The Hero's Guide to Being an Outlaw (Hero's Guide Series #3)

by Christopher Healy, Todd Harris (Illustrator)

Overview

The League of Princes returns in the hilariously epic conclusion to Christopher Healy's hit series, which Kirkus Reviews called "part screwball comedy, part sly wit, and all fun" in a starred review!

Prince Liam. Prince Frederic. Prince Duncan. Prince Gustav. You think you know those guys pretty well by now, don't you? Well, think again. Posters plastered across the thirteen kingdoms are saying that Briar Rose has been murdered—and the four Princes Charming are the prime suspects. Now they're on the run in a desperate attempt to clear their names. Along the way, however, they discover that Briar's murder is just one part of a nefarious plot to take control of all thirteen kingdoms—a plot that will lead to the doorstep of an eerily familiar fortress for a final showdown with an eerily familiar enemy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780062118493
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/28/2015
Series:	Hero's Guide Series , #3
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	528
Sales rank:	185,237
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 5.10(h) x 1.40(d)
Lexile:	750L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

Christopher Healy is the author of The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom, a New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice, as well as its two sequels, The Hero’s Guide to Storming the Castle and The Hero’s Guide to Being an Outlaw. Before becoming a writer, he worked as an actor, an ad copywriter, a toy store display designer, a fact-checker, a dishwasher, a journalist, a costume shop clothing stitcher, a children’s entertainment reviewer, and a haunted house zombie. He lives in New Jersey with his wife, two children, and a dog named Duncan. You can visit him online at www.christopherhealy.com.

Editorial Reviews

04/01/2014
Gr 4–6—The third installment in this series finds the League of Princes on the run, falsely accused of murdering Briar Rose. Prince Frederic, Prince Gustav, Prince Liam, and Prince Duncan (the jokester of the group), along with Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, and Princess Lila devise a plan to clear their names so that they can stop the evil Lord Rundark from taking over the 13 Kingdoms. Midway through the story, the princesses form their own band of do-gooders. Chaos ensues as they and the princes spend a good portion of the narrative tripping one another up in the race to prove Briar Rose is still alive. Countless battles take place—one in each Kingdom. Enemies include giant mongoose, pirates, and bounty hunters. Surprises abound with the reappearance of past foes, including the evil witch, Zaubera. Powerful Magic Orbs are Lord Rundark's secret weapons of choice. There's really something for everyone here, although sometimes it feels as if there is just too much going on. Readers new to the series will probably find the going a bit tough at times trying to keep track of who's who. Nevertheless, Healy has a good understanding of middle-grade humor and his audience in general. With its gender-bending stereotypes and oodles of action, this addition will be welcomed by fans of the series.—Mary Beth Rassulo, Ridgefield Library, CT

School Library Journal

★ 2014-02-19
The members of the League of Princes, good-hearted if only semicompetent heroes, are dubbed outlaws when accused of murder most foul! Strange things are afoot in the Thirteen Kingdoms, none stranger than the wanted posters proclaiming that the League of Princes murdered sometimes-antagonist Princess Briar Rose. The reward for their capture, literally "untold riches," sets bounty hunters after them, and Gustav, Frederic and Rapunzel are captured. In a wacky sequence of mistakes and flukes, two sets of rescuers—Duncan and Snow, and Ella and Liam—fall in and out of the bounty hunters' clutches until the princesses are trapped beyond rescue, and the brave princes run away. Their stories diverge, as the princes have swashbuckling adventures that ultimately strand them on an island. Meanwhile, the princesses spend quality time in jail alongside bread thief Val Jeanval, until their imminent executions necessitate a jailbreak. While initially portrayed as more competent than their princes, the princesses soon reveal themselves as just as hilariously dysfunctional. Throughout the heroes' and heroines' travels, the antiprince conspiracy is revealed in each kingdom—it's directly related to loose ends from The Hero's Guide to Storming the Castle (2013). Side characters make comedic final appearances, and a surprise villain team-up provides closure to the trilogy. Part screwball comedy, part sly wit and all fun. (Fantasy. 8 & up)

Kirkus Reviews

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