The Revenge of the Shadow King

1. The Revenge of the Shadow King Derek Benz & J.S. Lewis

2. Derek Benz & J.S. Lewis • Derek Benz • J.S. Lewis

3. Vocabulary • sinister Prologue Response: How does the author grab your attention? What happens that makes you want to keep reading? Identify the figurative language used in the prologue.

4. Vocabulary • askew • zealous • consumption • eclectic • precocious • voracious • proprietor • menacing • malice • enraptured • depleted • portal It’s All in the CardsChapter 1 pp3-20 Response: Keep a character chart throughout the story. List both physical and personality traits. What connection do you think there is between Max’s dream and the Slayer Goblin from the Round Table game? Do you think there is a connection between Harley’s dog being attacked and Max’s dream? Where do you think the Oberon card came from, and what does it foreshadow? Keep a chart of allusions mentioned in the story. Make a connection between the story and the allusion. Also keep a list of similes and metaphors used throughout the story.

5. Vocabulary • cherubic • impeccable • cavernous • fervor • acquiescing • rapier • ominous • haphazard • codex • chasm How Max Found a Magic BookChapter 2 pp21-36 Response: Is Max happy with his life? What is his main conflict so far in the story? Do you think there is a connection between Max’s dream and his grandma’s dream about her husband? Explain. What is the connection between Iver and Max’s grandpa? Add Logan to your character chart. What happened to Max at his grandma’s house? Make connections to other stories.

6. Vocabulary • reverently • multitude • submission • marshal • steward • warden • grudgingly • conceded • protocol • contentment Secrets Are Meant to Be SharedChapter 3 pp37-49 Response: What is the main conflict of the story now? Has it changed since chapter one? Add any new characters to your character chart. How are the book and the Round Table game connected? What does the coming storm symbolize? And what could Sprig be worried about?

7. Vocabulary • mesmerized • parry • meticulous • interjected • adversary • stoic • ravine • mulling • claustrophobic • rancid • conceded • morbid • codger Exploration, an Accident, and the Root of All EvilChapter 4 pp50-64 Response: Why do you think Logan is training Max? Iver came to town after Max’s grandfather died to look after Max. Why? Would you have let the shadow out of the book when Sprig asked? Explain. What do you think Max’s destiny is? And how is Iver’s warning at the end of the chapter connected to Max’s destiny?

8. Vocabulary • malodorous • putrescence • formidable • juggernaut • blustered • rotund • clamored • portly • miscreant • precarious • egregious • effrontery • fissure • fetid • glutinous Malodorous PutrescenceChapter 5 pp65-82 Response: What connect do you think the substitute, Ms. Rhiannon Heen, has to the developing plot? Who do you think played the prank in the courtyard fountain of the school? Why would someone do that? Add any new characters to your character chart.

9. Vocabulary • destitution • ruthlessly • curtly • begrudging • wary • chagrin • agile • bramble • quarry • glade Shoe-Eating TreesChapter 6 pp83-100 Response: Who do you think the woman in the Shoppe of Antiquities is? What role do you think she will play in the development of the plot, if any? What happened to Harley after he received the knucklebones from Iver? Why do think Ray was asking about knucklebones? What is happening to the forest? Who or what do you think is responsible?

10. Vocabulary • protestations • ominous • discern Friends Are Friends(Except When They’re Not)Chapter 7 pp101-115 Response: If you were Max, would you trust Sprig after she had already tricked you once? Remember, she saved your life once also. Explain. Try to piece together all of the characters in the story. How are the all connected? What role does each character play?

11. Vocabulary • consolation • ingenious • resolutely • unfathomable • dissipating • decrepit • obscured Natalia’s Favorite WishChapter 8 pp116-128 Response: How did Iver know when and where to show up in order to rescue the Griffins? What do you think the Slayer and the Shadow King are trying to accomplish?

12. Vocabulary • quell • erratic • nemesis • tantalizing • accosted • renowned • perused Turtles and Dice and Everything (Not So) NiceChapter 9 pp129-146 Response: Add the Knights Templar to your list of allusions. Do some research to discover what this group is known for. Also add Friday the 13th. Do you think the Templars and the Codex are connected? Explain. What role is Ray playing in the development of the plot? Make connections.

13. Vocabulary • demure • malicious • propriety • exuberant • acrid • harrowing • assailant There’s More than Bats in the BelfryChapter 10 pp147-162 Response: What do you think is happening to Ray? Who is the cloaked woman that Iver is talking to in the alley?

14. Vocabulary • outlandish • emblazoned • thrice • catacombs How Witches Came to Be a NuisanceChapter 11 pp163-174 Response: Add Morgan LeFay to your list of allusions and do some research. What do you think Ray is up to now?

15. Vocabulary • meandering • feasibly • disheveled • burly • undaunted • befriended • encroaching Of Dark Plots and Something StolenChapter 12 pp175-184 Response: Why do the Grey Griffins keep ignoring Iver’s warnings? What rationale do they use for following Ray into the cornfield? What happened in the cornfield?

16. Vocabulary • wont • nefarious • preposterous • wretchedness • barren • deplorable • deterrent • barraged It Was a SetupChapter 13 pp185-203 Response: Describe the developments in the plot. Is Ms. Heen on the side of good or evil? Have there been any clues that have lead you to your conclusion?

17. Vocabulary • vigilant The Game of LifeChapter 14 pp204-216 Response: Do you believe that Max’s grandmother is involved or not? Add King Phillip to your list of allusions and do some research. What do you think the Grey Griffins will do now that they have discovered the Max is a descendant of King Arthur? What do you think happened to Iver?

18. Vocabulary • pungent • chastised • malcontent • dejected • culvert Presumed Thieves and BicyclesChapter 15 pp217-228 Response: What role does Dr. Blackstone play in the developing plot? Why is this chapter titled “Presumed Thieves and Bicycles”?

19. Vocabulary • slavering • blunder Into the WoodsChapter 16 pp229-236 Response: Do you think Sprig is trustworthy? Explain. What do you think happened to Ray?

20. Vocabulary • diminutive • impenetrable • ethereal • tenacity A Narrow EscapeChapter 17 pp237-250 Response: Do you think that Ray can be saved from the evil? What will the Grey Griffins do now that they have the Codex back in their possession?

21. Vocabulary • dank • pompous Ernie Rolls Up His SleevesChapter 18 pp251-263 Response: Now you know that Morgan LeFay and Dr. Blackstone are in cahoots. What do you think the last task is that Morgan was about to ask Dr. Blackstone to perform? Do you think Ms. Heen is friend or foe? Explain. Who is the real villain of the story? Explain.

22. Vocabulary • enshrouded • archaic • emaciated Unlocking Both Windows and SecretsChapter 19 pp264-277 Response: Do you think the field trip to the Chapel of Mist was a coincidence, or do you think that Ms. Heen had wanted to ‘educate’ Max about his destiny? Max knew about the catacombs, but now there is a jewel involved in the unraveling mystery. Do you think they are connected? Why do you think the Codex Spiritus is illuminating a blue light, and why has Max not investigated it yet?

23. Vocabulary • emanating • feral • retribution • lustrous • retorted • dolt The Good News and the BadChapter 20 pp278-293 Response: Do you think that Iver is dead? Explain your thinking. Why do you think Max didn’t tell his friends about locking the Slayer Goblin back in the book and now the garden faeries? Why hasn’t he tried to figure out what the key is for?

24. Vocabulary • sanctuary • hewed • covetous • rending • shorn • vestibule • penchant • impishly • preeminence • appease • elusive • nonchalant Ancient HistoryChapter 21 pp294-310 Response: Now you know the story of Titania’s Jewel and the Codex Spiritus. You can understand why Oberon, the Shadow King, wants both of them, but why does Morgan LeFay want them? Ms. Heen always seems to appear just when the Grey Griffins need help. Once again, do you think she is a friend or a foe? Explain your reasoning.

25. Vocabulary • haggard • monolithic • arduous • niche • trepidation • portcullis • undeterred • intangible • hewn • indignant • incredulously Into the CatacombsChapter 22 pp311-338 Response: Why would a witch as skilled as Morgan LeFay fail at getting to Titania’s Jewel? Or did she get what she came for? What lessons have the Grey Griffins learned?

26. Vocabulary • oppressively • constrained • providence • suffice • hindrance One Last ChanceChapter 23 pp339-351 Response: Predict what will happen once the Grey Griffins step into the painting.

27. Vocabulary • gale • errant • sadistic • periphery • reveling The End – or the Beginning?Chapter 24 pp352-369 Response: What do you think happened to Sprig and Ray? Like the title of this chapter suggests, do you think it is the end or the beginning? Look beyond the hero’s adventure quest. What themes were revealed throughout the story? Which theme do you think is the most important and why?