Fablehaven: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuaryby Brandon Mull

I like the Fablehaven series and this fourth installment is a good addition to the set, which (according to the back of the fourth book) will conclude in a fifth book due out sometime next year. “Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary” lacks the full emotional involvement that could catapult Mulls writing into the realm of the classics and suffers from some minor philosophical contradictions, but it is nevertheless an exciting and fresh story with unique characters and an unexpected conclusion.

Mull doesn’t fully develop the emotion of his stories, and this ends up hindering both the story and the speech of some of his characters. For example, in “Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary” chapter 3 should be read before chapter 2. The 3rd chapter of the book (along with pieces of chapter 5) weaves an immensely emotion story that tears at your hopes and bolsters your fears, and makes you anxious to read on for a resolution, desperately hoping that Mull has a way to undo everything that he has done. At least, that’s how you would feel if you hadn’t spoiled it by reading chapter 2, pre-empting the emotional investment you could have made and the wonderful sense of unexpected relief that chapter 2 could have given you (by the way, there is a very similar situation in Book Two: “Rise of the Evening Star”; Chapter 13 should be read before chapter 12). Seth and Kendra’s grandparents also suffer emotionally in the story, often sounding very detached and business-like when they speak to Seth or Kendra, rather than sounding like a grandparent that truly loves and adores their grandchild and therefore can’t help but let that adoration make their communication more intimate. This lack of emotion doesn’t ruin the story by any means, but it is one of the things that keep the books of this series from being books that you are anxious to read again.

The books of the Fablehaven series also suffer from a few contradictions, and this fourth book is no exception. For example, Fairy’s are presented as not being able to be good or bad because they don’t really choose to do good things, and yet some of the fairies make choices that separate them as clearly being more trustworthy and friendly than other fairies. Another contradiction is how deception is treated in the “Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary”. Betrayal and deception are the cornerstone of the evils of the book, and yet the “good” caretakers employ similar deceptive tactics in betraying the trust of some of the creatures on their reserve, justifying the deception and betrayal because of their need and the difficulty of dealing truthfully with the creatures. Honesty and integrity are the most important tenets of the “good” heroes I want to believe in, and if a hero must deceive I anxiously await the moment when all is revealed. A hero willing to permanently deceive others for sake of convenience is not the hero I want to stand behind, and these types of heroes should be presented as characters whose integrity needs to mature. Once again, however, these contradictions are minor annoyances, and don’t detract much from the story.

What makes this book worth reading is the story, and the rich array of characters and creatures that are a part of its world of magic. The creatures are exciting to learn about; some of the dragons introduced in this installment being especially interesting. The ending twist caught me completely off-guard, which hasn’t happened in even some of my favorite books. If anything, my criticisms described in the previous two paragraphs are the result of my love for the story of the Fablehaven series, and the rich magical world in which Mull immerses the reader. The contrast and collaborative possibilities presented in “Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary” that result from the special magical abilities that have been granted to Seth and Kendra are possibly some of my favorites in any book that I’ve read. I am hoping strongly that the conclusion of the series in book five, “Keys to the Demon Prison,” will be inextricably dependent upon some great power that can only be wielded by these two young heroes.

The fourth installment of the Fablehaven series, “Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary” is a book worth reading (after the first, second and third books, naturally). I wish that the stories were a little more refined to my taste, but they are still wonderful stories that are well written. Brandon Mull is an author that I will keep on the list of those whose books I am interested in reading.