The Accidental Highwayman: Being the Tale of Kit Bristol, His Horse Midnight, a Mysterious Princess, and Sundry Magical Persons Besides

by Ben Tripp

Book Overview

The Accidental Highwayman is the first swashbuckling adventure for young adults by talented author and illustrator, Ben Tripp.

In eighteenth-century England, young Christopher Kit Bristol is the unwitting servant of notorious highwayman Whistling Jack. One dark night, Kit finds his master bleeding from a mortal wound, dons the man's riding cloak to seek help, and changes the course of his life forever. Mistaken for Whistling Jack and on the run from redcoats, Kit is catapulted into a world of magic and wonders he thought the stuff of fairy tales.
Bound by magical law, Kit takes up his master's quest to rescue a rebellious fairy princess from an arranged marriage to King George III of England. But his task is not an easy one, for Kit must contend with the feisty Princess Morgana, gobling attacks, and a magical map that portends his destiny: as a hanged man upon the gallows....
Fans of classic fairy-tale fantasies will find much to love in this irresistible YA debut by Ben Tripp, the son of one of America's most beloved illustrators, Wallace Tripp (Amelia Bedelia). Following in his father's footsteps, Ben has woven illustrations throughout the story.
Delightful and charming. A swashbuckling adventure in the vein of Robert Louis Stevenson. --#1 New York Times bestselling author Brandon Sanderson

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765335492
• ISBN13: 9780765335494
• Release Date: October 2014
• Publisher: Tor Teen
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.1" x 9.3"
• Age Range: 12 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 7 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

Funny and Highly Enjoyable

I first found this book while looking for more audiobooks read by my favorite narrator, Steve West. He does a fantastic job and I highly suggest listening to this book! The story is fun and surprising and our main character Kit has a great sense of humor. The romance gets sappy towards the end and I get a little annoyed with stories where the characters succeed by having luck and a good heart. There’s some of that here but Kit also uses his brains to balance it out. Brandon Sanderson wrote the blurb for The Accidental Highwayman and said this about it on his website: “Something in between The Princess Bride and The Fugitive with the charm of Stardust and the snark of Terry Pratchett—if he wrote Robert Louis Stevenson fan fiction.” Enough said!