Crown of Three: A Kingdom Rises by J. D. Rinehart

While Elodie is imprisoned by Lord Vicerin, she uses her powers to summon dead warriors Vicerin had killed. With the dead’s help, she and her friends escape and fight their way to Melchior & troops loyal to the triplets. Meanwhile, Gulph wakes up from his fatal jump into the chasm fully healed by Celestis’s waters. Returning to Celestis, Gulph overthrows Lady Redina and leads Celestis’s inhabitants up to Idilliam. Tarlan soon arrives to fly Gulph and their mother to Elodie. Together the siblings lead an army of local men, the dead, and animals to contend with a new invading force and Vicerin. 

The final book in the Crown of Three series resolves all the countless calamities the siblings have endured. But a new, internal problem arises with Tarlan. At the beginning of this novel both Elodie and Gulph have accepted their royal roles. Tarlan, however, can’t quite accept his part in the prophecy. The constant fighting, the loss of his animal friends, and his uncomfortable human interactions cause Tarlan to fly away from his life. When Tarlan finally lands, he runs into Captain Leom: one of the men who smuggled Tarlan and his siblings away so they could have a chance to fulfill the prophecy. Realizing the realm needs his help and that Tarlan can’t run away from his destiny, Tarlan accepts his royal life and reunites with Elodie and Gulph. At times the plot gets muddled with three perspectives of the same event and drawn out wars, but the story gets back on track to create a clean, satisfactory finish. A complex, captivating trilogy any fantasy fan would enjoy.

Crown of Three: The Lost Realm by J. D. Rinehart

Escaping the zombie plagued Idilliam, Gulph finds a shaky sanctuary in the lost underground realm of Celestis. Meanwhile, the wizard, Melchior, arrives at the Trident camp and takes Tarlan on a journey to rejuvenate his wizarding powers. Once Tarlan leaves, Elodie’s adopted father, Lord Vicerin, attacks the Trident troops but Elodie pretends to turn on her soldiers to spare their lives. When Elodie returns with Vicerin, his true intentions are revealed.

More suspenseful adventures unfold as the royal Toronia triplets attempt to claim their prophesied birthright. But many insurmountable obstacles lie in their path to the throne: a zombie father, an undead army, a psychopathic adopted father, an unfeeling underground realm, and even more invading forces. However, as the problems get harder, the triplets’ inner powers get sharper. Gulph learns he can become invisible. Tarlan hones his skill to speak and gather animals. And Elodie’s gift of summoning ghosts may save her and her friends from Vicerin’s evil plans. What would have aided this series is a map showcasing the travels and locations of the triplets. This visual aid would have helped readers keep track of the triplets’ movements and better understand the distances they traveled while facing their different challenges.

Crown of Three by J. D. Rinehart

A prophecy tells of royal triplets who will overthrow their evil father, King Brutan. After their birth, the newborns—Agulphus, Elodie, and Tarlan—are smuggled away to three faraway kingdoms. Thirteen years later, Agulphus is a contortionist scheduled to perform in Brutan’s court. Far away Elodie is kidnapped by rebels who want her to lead their army against Brutan. Meanwhile, Tarlan is flying with his tribe of giant eagles to find his siblings. Agulphus is arrested and put into a cell with King Brutan’s oldest child and Agulphus’s half-brother, Prince Nynus. Agulphus helps Nynus to escape and returns him to his mother, Queen Magritt. But the queen takes advantage of Agulphus and uses him to unknowingly kill Brutan.

Even though the characters are middle-grade age, this story is more appropriate for young adults because of the plot complexity and the graphic, bloody scenes throughout the story. Besides the more mature content, Rinehart’s series is totally engrossing as readers follow the deadly misadventures of Agulphus, Elodie, and Tarlan. When readers catch up to the teenage triplets, each one is well established in their separate lives. However, destiny has different plans for them. For this book, each sibling learns about and accepts their leading roles in defeating Brutan. But that role cannot be fully realized when their father becomes a zombie. Any fans of The Chronicles of Prydain, The Lord of the Rings, or The Inheritance Cycle will thoroughly enjoy this series.