Champions of the Fox
Champions of the Fox
The key turned. I clapped Gareth on the back, then opened the door.
And the two of us stared in horror.
We’d found the Hollow Man.
There was no doubt this was the right cell. Both Sheridan and Colonel Deavers had told us the Hollow Man was Castle Cardogh’s oldest prisoner, here for ninety-seven years. The man inside, slumped on the floor, certainly looked the part. Ancient, wrinkled flesh sagged over his bones. Long gray hair fell past the sunken cheeks of his weathered face, his eyes closed. His clothes were nothing but tatters, worn to the barest threads, faded to a dull grey. He was so dirty with stone dust, it was hard to tell the difference between his rags and his skin.
He didn’t look like a danger at all. But whoever the Hollow Man was, he’d been singled out for special treatment. Because unlike Cormac, this man was shackled to the wall.
Rusted chains hung down from a spike driven into the stone. The chains ended at manacles equally caked with rust. Ninety seven years in this cell, I thought. It was impossible for him to escape, yet they’d still kept him shackled. I wondered what he’d done. Treason, Deavers had said. Still, did the Hollow Man deserve this kind of punishment? Did anyone?
In Champions of the Fox, the third and final volume of the “Thieves of Shadow” trilogy, Callan and his group of loveable young thieves and con artists attempt what should be their last seemingly impossible mission, one which has been delegated by the magical ‘Eye’ that has taken up residence in Callan’s head and has dictated the group’s every move in the past two volumes. Now it promises that, on completion of this heist, Callan will be free. But first his group must enter an unassailable fortress to rescue the ‘Hollow Man’ who has been imprisoned there for 97 years.
Simultaneously, Callan is troubled by his subconscious wanderings into Shadow that allow him to communicate with spirit creatures. Through these, Callan recognizes that, though quintessential con men, themselves, they have been royally conned. Everything his group has achieved thus far has only furthered the Eye’s plans to destroy the world. As realization dawns on who the Eye represents, the group know an even more massive task is before them.
In this white-knuckle read, tension follows tension as Callan and his group use all their skills to fulfil their mission with ingenuity, humour and, yes, apprehension. The twists and turns in the plot are complex, full of close shaves and narrow escapes. But, despite the many intricacies of the plot, the story reaches an amazing culmination with all the threads pulled together most satisfyingly.
As for the unlikely heroes, readers continue to learn more of their mysterious backgrounds, and their characters grow in richness, creativity and principle. Other wonderful characters are the spirits Shuna, the Fox, and her estranged sister, Artha the bear, and readers finally understand more about the ‘Old Man’ whose memory and voice have always been a constant presence in Callan’s mind. Even the villains feel like fully-developed characters rather than stereotypes they often are.
Readers will not be able to help themselves from rushing through the book for the excitement of finding out what happens, but Champions of the Fox should be read again to appreciate the creative detail and sheer richness of text, plot and character. Like the other two books in the series, Champions of the Fox will be eagerly read by those aged 10-14 who love adventure and/or fantasy.
Aileen Wortley is a retired Children’s Librarian from Toronto, Ontario.