Rick Barry’s novel Kiriath’s Quest features astonishingly realistic characters to help draw the reader into this brilliantly-written book that teaches one how to grow morally. Set in a mythical kingdom of Xandria where the young prince Kiriath must quickly face the task of rescuing his father King Jekoniah from the Grishnaki, horrible primitive creatures. Kiriath’s best friend Brand accompanies him on his journey to Vol-Rathdeen, the capital city for the Grishnaki. Two days into their journey, Ariana, Kiriath’s sister and Brand’s fiancée, joins the two on this perilous journey. While on their way to Val-Rathdeen, the group encounters flying serpents which test the group’s wisdom, strength, and endurance. Crossing the uncharted land of the…show more content… When Kiriath and Brand first set out, they used unswerving speech to communicate their plans and thoughts. While walking on the beach, Brand says it is “‘time to leave this path,” and Kiriath agrees (50). However, when Ariana joins the two, the boys start to have a more light-hearted chat. Pushing each other off the path “Ariana giggle[s] and cross[es] her arms. ‘I don’t see how you two ever accomplish anything’” she says (90). Spatial order plays its part when the group enters a new stronghold and the forgotten kingdom. Kiriath notices “a guardhouse built beside the clef [and] beneath an awning in front of the building was a wooden bench” (65). Although Barry uses just enough spatial order to allow the reader to see the image, he does not go into the specifics which allows the readers to fill in the missing details. Both the sequence and dialogue help the readers to see what the characters sees and understand the characters…show more content… Although the serpents show up only once in the story, they add yet another challenge to the perilous quest. In the old kingdom, the threesome find bizarre orbs which play a significant role in escaping Vol-Rathdeen and winning the war. Barry wrote this book in a third-person limited point of view. Readers can quickly point out the third-person point of view, but they must wait until the quest commences to see where the limited point of view comes in to play. Together the fanciful elements and the third-person limited point of view keep readers
