Keeper of the Lost Cities: A Review

 Keeper of the Lost Cities: a Series Overview

When my sister pushed me into reading the Keeper of the Lost Cities series by Shannon Messenger when I was in fifth grade, I wasn’t expecting much. However, little did I know I would be invested in this series all throughout middle school.

There are currently 9 books in the series (technically 10, but the 9th book only consists of half the story, while the other half contains artwork and information about the Lost Cities). Book 9.5 will be coming out in December of 2024. There is due to be a final book, though it will definitely not be coming out this year. The current books consist of Keeper of the Lost Cities, Exile, Everblaze, Neverseen, Loadstar, Nightfall, Flashback, Legacy, Unlocked, and Stellarlune.

Sophie Foster, a 12-year-old senior in high school and a telepath, could never really fit in with the people around her, even her family. Everything changes, however, when a super cute boy named Fitz Vacker—another telepath—shows up, claiming to have been looking for her. He reveals that Sophie is actually an elf (so is he). Fitz takes her to the Lost Cities, the land of the elves, where Sophie must live from then on. The seemingly utopian Lost Cities actually hold a great deal of dark secrets. In those dark secrets, there is a secret organization of rebels called the Neverseen that Sophie must face with her allies.

Elves are one type of species living in the lost cities. Most elves have some kind of special ability, such as telepathy, vanisher (someone who can vanish and reappear at their own will), empath (someone who can sense others’ emotions), and shade (someone who can control shadows). There are other species, including trolls, ogres, gnomes, dwarves, and goblins.

Right now, in the more recent books, some of the characters are kind of annoying in my opinion. For example, Sophie thinks that she should be doing everything by herself and not willing to let others join her. She fears that she will “put them in danger,” as if she isn’t walking straight into the danger herself. Additionally, Fitz has anger issues. For example, when Alden’s mind was broken in Exile, he blamed Sophie, refusing to talk to her (for much of Exile) when it wasn’t her fault. Another example is Keefe Sencen. While he is funny and caring, he often makes stupid decisions. For instance, he tried to become a spy for the Neverseen, even though everybody knew better and was against it.

However, there are several characters I do like. My favorite character is Tam Song, introduced in Neverseen. He is a shade, giving him a rather quiet personality. Beyond that, however, he is sarcastic—in a funny way—and considerate to his friends (especially to his sister). Another character I admire is Biana Vacker. I find her quite relatable since we both enjoy fashion, and we have similar opinions about events happening in the book.

While the characters are debatable, I love the overall plot. Messenger packs many mysteries and action-packed scenes into each book. Additionally, I feel the plot is quite creative—there are so many systems she had to put in place, species to give descriptions about, and all the fictional desserts that she even made recipes for (just to name a few)! Though they are not the exact sweets described in the book, she published them in Unlocked.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading his book series (still waiting for book 10!). My favorite book would be Neverseen, since my favorite character is introduced in it. Even though each book is quite long, it will feel like there aren’t enough, trust me! I would definitely recommend this to any reader, especially if you enjoy fantasy!

-Joyce Zheng