History Literature / FiveKingdoms

''Five Kingdoms'' is the fourth YoungAdult {{Fantasy}} series penned by author Brandon Mull, and the fifth overall that he's created. (He created ''Literature/SpiritAnimals'' as well, but each book in the series is being written by a different author.) [[SurpriseCreepy You have been warned.]]

* MagicAIsMagicA: A variation, in which the rules of magic (here called Shaping) differ depending on which of the Five Kingdoms you're in. Artifacts from one kingdom won't necessarily work in another, either, due to the changing rules.

* MadeASlave: All of Cole's friends. Cole himself swiftly follows, once the slave traders catch him.

* TrappedInAnotherWorld: Trapped in the Outskirts, to be specific.

As of April 2016, there are four books in the series-- ''Sky Raiders'', ''Rogue Knight'', ''Crystal Keepers'' and ''Death Weavers''. With five kingdoms, the series is planned for five books, though the author's note in the original book accidentally implied that there would be six.

[[JustForFun/IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused with]] ''RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms.''

[[IThoughtItMeant Not to be confused with]] ''RomanceOfTheThreeKingdoms.''

The fourth YoungAdult {{Fantasy}} series penned by author Brandon Mull, and the fifth overall that he's created. (He created ''Literature/SpiritAnimals'' as well, but each book in the series is being written by a different author.) [[SurpriseCreepy You have been warned.]]

* LoopholeAbuse: When Cole travels to see Dandalus, Warden of the Light, in ''Death Weavers'', he is told that he may ask three questions of him. Cole has some important questions to ask, but after using the first two questions, they start to have a conversation and Cole asks anoher question without realizing it. Dandalus admits that it's hard to converse without them, but Cole doesn't need to worry about it because it only actually applies to the ''important'' questions, and he'll tell him if he hits upon a topic that requires him to use his third "official" one. He eventually does, [[spoiler:wondering if Dandalus can help him get his power back]], but Dandalus can't help, and he feels he's wasted his third question. At this, Dandalus looks around, comments that he doesn't see anyone else waiting and notes that the rule was only made to prevent frivolous inquiries. Obviously, Cole isn't interested in frivolous inquiries, so he's allowed to ask more questions. He ends up learning several more important things before they both agree that it's time for Cole to move on.

* LoopholeAbuse: When Cole travels to see Dandalus, Warden of the Light, in ''Death Weavers'', he is told that he may ask three questions of him. Cole has some important questions to ask, but after using the first two questions, they start to have a conversation and Dandalus admits that it's hard to converse without them, but Cole doesn't need to worry about it because it only actually applies to the ''important'' questions, and he'll tell him if he hits upon a topic that requires him to use his third "official" one. He eventually does, [[spoiler:wondering if Dandalus can help him get his power back]], but Dandalus can't help, and he feels he's wasted his third question. At this, Dandalus looks around, comments that he doesn't see anyone else waiting and notes that the rule was only made to prevent frivolous inquiries. Obviously, Cole isn't interested in frivolous inquiries, so he's allowed to ask more questions. He ends up learning several more important things before they both agree that it's time for Cole to move on.

As of May 2015, there are three books in the series-- ''Sky Raiders'', ''Rogue Knight'' and ''Crystal Keepers''. With five kingdoms, the series is planned for five books, though the author's note in the original book accidentally implied that there would be six.

As of early 2015, there are two books in the series-- ''Sky Raiders'' and ''Rogue Knight''. With five kingdoms, the series is planned for five books, though the author's note in the original book accidentally implied that there would be six.

* DreamLand: Sambria, which is explicitly the kingdom situated between dreaming and waking. In addition to the dreamlike floating castles, [[MagicAIsMagicA shaping]] in Sambria tends to be a bit more potent, allowing for more powerful workings.

Like Brandon Mull's other works, this is a series that is [[DarkerAndEdgier far more dark and unsettling than it initially seems to be on the surface.]] However, it also emphasizes the [[DreamLand whimsical and dreamlike]] aspects of its setting, giving it a more lighthearted and adventurous feel.

* CoolSword: The Jumping Swords, which carry their user through the air in large, shaping-augmented arcs. Very useful for dodging traps and escaping the range of monsters.

It's just another Halloween for Cole Randolph--aside from the fact that he's going trick-or-treating with his crush, Jenna, along with his best friend Dalton. Rumor has it that an ex-Hollywood special effects artist has set up a super-scary haunted house in their neighborhood, and eager to prove his machismo to his crush, Cole agrees to go. But said house is far scarier than any of them bargained for: It's actually run by a group of slave traders from another world, and they've been abducting groups of children all night long to sell to their King. Dalton and Jenna are captured, but Cole manages to hide. He follows the slave traders down through a hole in the floor, into a strange place called the Outlands--a place seemingly put together piecemeal from bits of other worlds; a place that goes from the dreamlike to the {{Magitek}} in an instant. At first, Cole can only think of trying to save his friends. But he soon falls in with a band of SkyPirates and meets a mysterious girl named Mira. The Sky Raiders' training is brutal, and their missions are often fatal. But remaining with them--and Mira--is the best chance he has to save his friends. And maybe, while he's at it, make a difference in all the Outlands.

* AlienSky: The Outlands have multiple suns, and [[WeirdMoon many wildly different moons.]] Some days, the suns don't even rise all the way, if at all, and sometimes they don't ''set'' either.

* TrappedInAnotherWorld: Trapped in the Outlands, to be specific.

* WizardsLiveLonger: Shapers have longer lifespans than most. Though using shaping on ''yourself'' is a great way to kill yourself.