The Rogue Knight (40 page)

Cole nodded. “We'll find her. Or we'll die trying.”

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Every story I write begins as a series of scenes in my mind that I develop through daydreaming. Once I feel like I have a worthwhile story to share, I write a first draft, fleshing out the characters, their relationships, the trouble they confront, the decisions they make, and the consequences they face. After I get that polished up, I share the manuscript with editors who point out weaknesses to cure and strengths to highlight. The process of revision goes on until my editors and I agree that we have come as close as we can to the best version of that particular story. It's never perfect, but the process has always yielded something I'm proud to share.

I need to thank those who helped me whip this book into shape. As always, my wife and kids deserve a big thank-you for allowing me the time it took to write and edit this. As usual, my wife, Mary, was my first reader as I completed the chapters, and her feedback helped me make some important early adjustments.

My editor, Liesa Abrams Mignogna, once again provided many useful insights, and helped me add personality to many of the scenes. I'm grateful that people didn't get to read this book until after she worked with me to strengthen it. Solid feedback also came from my illustrious agent, Simon Lipskar, along with some thoughts from Elv Moody speaking for my British publisher.

Friends and family helped catch a variety of mistakes and gave useful suggestions and encouragement. This group of readers included Tucker Davis, Pam Mull, Cherie Mull, Sadie Mull, Liz Saban, Cole Saban, Dalton Saban, Richard Young, Jason and Natalie Conforto, Paul and Amy Frandsen, and Wesley Saban.

I also owe gratitude to the team at Simon & Schuster. Without their support, Five Kingdoms might not have happened. Some members of the Simon & Schuster Aladdin team have recently moved on to other employment, so I'd like to give a special thanks to Bethany Buck, Anna McKean, and Paul Crichton. Other members of the team who have helped include Mara Anastas, Carolyn Swerdloff, Matt Pantoliano, Jessica Handelman, Lauren Forte, and Jeannie Ng. Owen Richardson delivered another fantastic cover.

I also want to thank you, the reader. Without you, this book would serve no purpose. Thank you for taking the time to bring this story to life inside your head!

NOTE TO READERS

Two down, three to go. For those paying close attention, at the end of the last book, I said, “one down, five to go.” Since this is a five-book series, that may seem like a mistake, but it was actually a test, so if you noticed, congrats—you passed. Okay, fine, I'll admit it. I meant “one down, four to go” and did poor proofreading. Let this be a lesson to you! Always proofread a lot!

There are five kingdoms, and there will be five books in this series. This was the second, and I'm now hard at work on the third.

Writing a series means spending a lot of time with the main characters. By bringing them to life in daydreams, I get to know them pretty well, including information about their pasts and their futures. As the writer, sometimes it's difficult knowing secrets about important characters or momentous events that won't be revealed until later books. It can be hard to keep my mouth shut about some of the cool surprises I have in store, but keeping those details to myself is an important part of my job. Trust me—it's for your own good! I've saved some of the most interesting kingdoms and secrets for later in the series.

Beginning a new series is a little like starting my career all over again. I always hope that readers will enjoy the new story. So far it seems that people are liking Five Kingdoms. If that is true for you, please spread the word! I'm very excited about my plans for the final books. They will contain some of my best work.

Before Five Kingdoms is complete, I will begin work on the sequel series to my Fablehaven books. It will be called Dragonwatch. I'm excited to share more stories about the characters of Fablehaven including Kendra, Seth, Newel, Doren, Warren, Bracken, Vanessa, Raxtus, etc. If you're liking Five Kingdoms but haven't tried Fablehaven, you should get to know those people!

If you'd like to connect with me or learn more about my work as an author, there are some places where you can find me online. You can like my author page on
Facebook (Brandon Mull)
and follow me there. You can also follow me on Twitter (
@brandonmull
). I routinely post at those outlets, so they are the best places for news. Also, for general information or big news, you can visit
brandonmull.com
, and you can get maps and some extra info about Five Kingdoms at
EntertheFiveKingdoms.com
. If you want to send an email,
[email protected]
is an address I use, but I'm busy enough that I can only answer emails at random from time to time. (I appreciate the messages and read as many as I can.) If you want to meet me in person, I go out on tour when new books release. You can get info about tour visits at the online outlets I mentioned.

That's it for now. Thanks for coming with me this far. Book 3 and Zeropolis are up next!

Laura Hanifin

Brandon Mull is the author of the
New York Times
,
USA TODAY
, and
Wall Street Journal
bestselling Beyonders and Fablehaven series. He resides in Utah, in a happy little valley near the mouth of a canyon with his wife and four children. Brandon's greatest regret is that he has but one life to give for Gondor.

Also by Brandon Mull

Five Kingdoms

Sky Raiders

Beyonders

A World Without Heroes

Seeds of Rebellion

Chasing the Prophecy

Fablehaven

Fablehaven

Rise of the Evening Star

Grip of the Shadow Plague

Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary

Keys to the Demon Prison

The Candy Shop War

The Candy Shop War

Arcade Catastrophe

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This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing Division

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First Aladdin hardcover edition November 2014

Text copyright © 2014 by Brandon Mull

Jacket illustration copyright © 2014 by Owen Richardson

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

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Jacket designed by Jessica Handelman

Interior designed by Hilary Zarycky

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Mull, Brandon, 1974-

Rogue Knight / by Brandon Mull. — First Aladdin hardcover edition.

pages cm — (Five kingdoms ; 2)

Summary: When the hunt for his lost friends leads Cole Randolph to the kingdom of Elloweer, he and new friends Mira, Twitch, and Jace team up with the resistance movement to search for Mira's sister Honor, but enemies abound and Cole and Mira must use a new kind of magic to protect themselves.

ISBN 978-1-4424-9703-0 (hardback) — ISBN 978-1-4424-9705-4 (eBook)

[1. Fantasy. 2. Adventure and adventurers—Fiction.] I. Title.

PZ7.M9112Rog 2014 [Fic]—dc23 2014025800