Enk vessara, enk talmin.
You can’t convict what you can’t confirm.
Jaxter Grimjinx is a born thief. At least, he’s supposed to be. For generations, the Grimjinx clan has produced the swiftest, cleverest thieves in Vengekeep.
The problem is, Jaxter is clumsy. So clumsy that in his first solo heist, he sets the Castellan’s house on fire and lands his family in gaol. Even Jaxter’s skill for breaking magical locks can’t get them out of this bind.
Then a suspiciously convenient prophecy emerges naming the Grimjinx clan as the soon-to-be heroes of Vengekeep. It’s good enough to get his family out of gaol, but with a firestorm, a flood, and a host of skeletal beasts among the dangers listed in the prophecy, Jaxter is pretty sure life in the gaol would be a better fate.
Now—like it or not—Jaxter Grimjinx will have to become the hero he was truly born to be.
Book One of the Vengekeep Prophecies
Illustrated by Brett Helquist
ISBN-13: 978-0062049285
Junior Library Guild selection: Fall 2012
Winter 2012-2013 Kids’ Indie Next List
Best Children’s Books of 2012 (Kirkus Reviews)
Named to the New York Public Library’s list of Children’s Books: 100 Titles for Reading & Sharing, 2012
Praise for THE VENGEKEEP PROPHECIES
“Farrey’s rich fantasy hits the ground running and never lets up.”
Starred Review–Publishers Weekly
“Farrey creates a complete and satisfying read with this coming-of-age novel.”
Starred Review–Shelf Awareness
“There couldn’t be a more likable family of thieves.”
–Kirkus Reviews
“In a nice twist on Harry Potterlike fantasies of wizards in school, Farrey launches a rollicking saga of life among the Grimjinx, a clan of petty thieves, fortune-tellers, and the ultimate saviors of their Middle Ages–esque world.”
—Booklist
“A charming story that’s at times laugh-out-loud funny but also a satisfying fantasy, offering a magical world and sometimes hapless hero that will strike a chord with fans of the first volumes of the Harry Potter series.”
—Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books
“This book has something for everyone: prophecy, mystery, adventure, magic, and humor.”
—Jack and Jill Magazine
“With great humor and dexterity, Farrey creates a new fantasy world where magic is kept in check, only popping up once in a while to bite our heroes on the bum.”
—A Fuse #8 Production
“[A] lighthearted and freewheeling fantasy.”
—Minneapolis Star Tribune
“Part of the fun is the many twists and turns that appear out of nowhere, often from one page to the next.”
–Benjamin Boche, Kidsreads.com
“Enticing, lively, and wholly engrossing, this book takes us on a journey as twisty and treacherous as an old castle staircase. A book readers will devour in one sitting.”
–Anne Ursu, author of Breadcrumbs
“Humorous and inventive. I’m eager to read the second book in the trilogy!”
–Joseph Delaney, bestselling author of the Last Apprentice series
Brian Farrey was born and raised in Wisconsin. He received an MFA in creative writing from Hamline University in 2008. His debut YA novel, With or Without You, was named a Stonewall Honor book by the American Library Association and won the 2012 Minnesota Book Award for Young People’s Literature. The Vengekeep Prophecies is the first book in a trilogy featuring the Grimjinx family. He and he alone has the power to make you an honorary Grimjinx. (You know you want it.) He lives in St. Paul, MN.
Contact:
brian [at] brianfarreybooks.com
@BrianFarrey
Jaxter Grimjinx is a twelve-year-old thief from the town-state of Vengekeep in Korrin Province. This is his first appearance in a book. He can assure you it won't be his last.
