Sapphique is a young-adult fantasy and science fiction novel written by Catherine Fisher

Catherine Fisher

Catherine Fisher is an author, broadcaster and adjudicator who lives in Newport. Her former jobs include working as a primary school teacher and archaeologist. She also taught Writing for Children at the University of Glamorgan....

, first published in 2008 in the UK. It is the sequel to Incarceron

Incarceron

Incarceron is a young-adult fantasy and science fiction novel written by Catherine Fisher, first released on May 3rd, 2007. Published by Hodder Children's Books, it is the first in a line of novels centered around Finn and Claudia, two adolescents individually confined by the Warden of Incarceron...

, and concludes the story of Finn's quest for freedom. Sapphique was released in the US in December, 2010.

Sapphique is also the name of the legendary prisoner who journeyed to escape.

Plot summary

The story continues on from where Incarceron finishes. Finn has escaped from the prison. Claudia believes that he is Giles, the rightful heir to the throne. Finn has to adjust to the world Outside and to Protocol. He is unsure if he is in fact the heir to the throne. Claudia declares Finn as the lost heir and he must prove himself to the court amongst other emerging claimants to the throne. Finn is unsure if he is indeed the lost prince Giles, doubting whether his memories are his own, or the construct of the prison.

Finn's oathbrother Keiro and his friend Attia are still trapped within Incarceron and are still trying to escape. They go in search of a magical glove which the legendary Sapphique used to escape. However, the prison itself is still curious about the outside world, and would like to find the glove in the hopes of escaping from itself.

Inspiration and Origins

Fisher said that as she was completing Incarceron, she knew that another book would be necessary to complete the story.

As I neared the end of Incarceron I realised there would be a sequel, but I didn’t think it would make a trilogy. A pair of books was something I hadn’t done before, so I was happy with that. Sapphique picks up a few months after the earlier book ends, and I can’t say too much about the plot without giving things away. But maybe escape is not the same thing as freedom, and inside the prison a crazy magician claims to own Sapphique’s Glove, an object of great power that everyone, including the Prison itself, desperately wants.

Incarceron

Incarceron is a futuristic prison - a living building that tortures the inhabitants inside. Its futuristic technology oversees all the inmates inside through glowing, red eyes, and tortures them with the hope of escape, an unattainable goal only a legendary figure has attained.
Initially, the intent of Incarceron’s creators, the Sapienti, was to incarcerate all the criminals in the world and repair their morals to form a perfect society, controlled with the help of the Prison entity ‘Incarceron’. The prisoners and Sapienti inside were sealed off from the world in order to control all variables in this experiment, with the exception of the prison Warden to oversee the project. However, after years of isolation and the failure of the perfect society, those inside have no way to seek help or escape when the Warden abandons the experiment’s aims.

The Realm

The Sapienti created Incarceron during a time of advanced technology and discovery. However, since then, King Endor released a royal decree that Time would be "stopped" in order for humanity to survive, and now the Realm is trapped in the 18th century. The King justified that they were making a world “free from the anxiety of change.” The Protocol prevents the development of science and evolution, and has since hindered Sapienti, and provided problems against freeing those in Incarceron.

Characters

• Finn
• Claudia Arlexa
• John Arlex (Warden of Incarceron)
• Keiro
• Attia
• Rix
• Jared (Sapient)
• Queen Sia

The Sapienti

The Sapienti are the learned peoples in the Realm and in Incarceron. Incarceron was created by the Sapienti. Several of the creators entered Incarceron with the intent of passing knowledge to the inhabitants and ensuring the success of the experiment. Outside of Incarceron, the Sapienti are greatly respected for their knowledge and often are allowed to breach protocol. They have a mother tongue, which only Sapients can speak. It is also the mother-tongue of the prison.
They wear special robes to distinguish themselves from others. Within Incarceron, there are very few Sapienti remaining.

Cover

The hardback cover shows an ornate golden keyhole. Through the keyhole, stars can be seen. This is a reference to Finn's escape from the prison to the outside world where he could see the stars. The paperback shows two golden swans attached by chains around their necks and decorated with diamonds.

Critical reception

Reception so far has been mostly positive, although many reviews say that this sequel is not as good as its predecessor . One review said:

Fisher concludes her high-intensity, mind-bending duology in this sequel to Incarceron. She further explores themes of reality, illusion, and freedom without losing her intensely original world-building and authentic characters. The bittersweet conclusion fits perfectly...