The Wicker King
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- Create Date：2021-08-03 09:55:11
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：K. Ancrum
- ISBN：1250101557
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
Jack once saved August's life 。 。 。 now can August save him？
August is a misfit with a pyro streak and Jack is a golden boy on the varsity rugby team--but their intense friendship goes way back。 Jack begins to see increasingly vivid hallucinations that take the form of an elaborate fantasy kingdom creeping into the edges of the real world。 With their parents' unreliable behavior， August decides to help Jack the way he always has--on his own。 He accepts the visions as reality， even when Jack leads them on a quest to fulfill a dark prophecy。
August and Jack alienate everyone around them as they struggle with their sanity， free falling into the surreal fantasy world that feels made for them。 In the end， each one must choose his own truth。
Written in vivid micro-fiction with a stream-of-consciousness feel and multimedia elements， K。 Ancrum's The Wicker King touches on themes of mental health and explores a codependent relationship fraught with tension， madness and love。
August is a misfit with a pyro streak and Jack is a golden boy on the varsity rugby team--but their intense friendship goes way back。 Jack begins to see increasingly vivid hallucinations that take the form of an elaborate fantasy kingdom creeping into the edges of the real world。 With their parents' unreliable behavior， August decides to help Jack the way he always has--on his own。 He accepts the visions as reality， even when Jack leads them on a quest to fulfill a dark prophecy。
August and Jack alienate everyone around them as they struggle with their sanity， free falling into the surreal fantasy world that feels made for them。 In the end， each one must choose his own truth。
Written in vivid micro-fiction with a stream-of-consciousness feel and multimedia elements， K。 Ancrum's The Wicker King touches on themes of mental health and explores a codependent relationship fraught with tension， madness and love。
Reviews
Jérémy
，
La lecture de Rois de Cendres m'a boulversé， rien de moins！ J'ai eu cette boule au ventre tout au long de ma lecture。 Malgré cette joie à la fin， cette boule au ventre ne voulais pas me quitté！ Je voulais tellement savoir la suite que j'ai terminé ma lecture en 2 jours 📖 Je n'ai d'ailleurs pas cette impression d'avoir lu le livre， mais bien de l'avoir vécu！ À chaque chapitre， j'étais là avec eux。 Je recommande grandement ce livre qui est， pour moi， excellent 🤩 La lecture de Rois de Cendres m'a boulversé， rien de moins！ J'ai eu cette boule au ventre tout au long de ma lecture。 Malgré cette joie à la fin， cette boule au ventre ne voulais pas me quitté！ Je voulais tellement savoir la suite que j'ai terminé ma lecture en 2 jours 📖 Je n'ai d'ailleurs pas cette impression d'avoir lu le livre， mais bien de l'avoir vécu！ À chaque chapitre， j'étais là avec eux。 Je recommande grandement ce livre qui est， pour moi， excellent 🤩 。。。more
skye
，
[3。5 stars rounded up] i love the thought that went into the design of this book as a physical item: all the fun ephemera， and the progressively darkening pages to reflect the descent of jack and august as they keep on spiraling。。。 mwah。 chef's kiss。 [3。5 stars rounded up] i love the thought that went into the design of this book as a physical item: all the fun ephemera， and the progressively darkening pages to reflect the descent of jack and august as they keep on spiraling。。。 mwah。 chef's kiss。 。。。more
Augusto Guibone
，
Um livro que começou sendo só "legal" mas que me ganhou totalmente nas cenas finais！Aqui acompanhamos a história de Jack e August， amigos muito próximos que passam praticamente todos os momentos juntos。 Num determinado momento， Jack começa a ter alucinações sobre um outro mundo e então acaba trazendo August pra ele， do seu jeito。 O problema é que a presença deles na vida um do outro começa a ficar problemática e traz problemas pra ambos。 O que mais me deixou intrigado e cativado foi a forma como Um livro que começou sendo só "legal" mas que me ganhou totalmente nas cenas finais！Aqui acompanhamos a história de Jack e August， amigos muito próximos que passam praticamente todos os momentos juntos。 Num determinado momento， Jack começa a ter alucinações sobre um outro mundo e então acaba trazendo August pra ele， do seu jeito。 O problema é que a presença deles na vida um do outro começa a ficar problemática e traz problemas pra ambos。 O que mais me deixou intrigado e cativado foi a forma como a autora abordou a codependência， principalmente na última parte e na nota que ela escreve depois。 Realmente a codependência pode se tornar uma doença tóxica e precisa de tratamento， e a autora não faz questão de esconder ou romantizar isso！ Em momento algum， conforme a presença dos meninos na vida um do outro se torna cada vez mais tóxica， ela romantiza o que eles tem e faz questão de destacar o quão problemático está sendo。 A narrativa em terceira pessoa foi um acerto aqui porque， mesmo que a maior parte seja pelo ponto de vista do August， ela deu mais liberdade pra que a autora pudesse entrar na cabeça de alguns outros personagens。 E isso que é interessante， além de fluída， coesa e veloz， é uma narrativa bem intrigante e psicológica， mesmo sendo em terceira pessoa， além de ser cru， descrevendo o que acontecia conforme acontecia nos momentos reais mas também por vezes se perdendo em meio a sensações e "fantasias"。 A nota da autora merece um destaque pela verdade e sensibilidade que ela conseguiu imprimir nela e que complementa ainda mais todo o livro。 O acréscimo de imagens （fotografias， bilhetes， boletins， etc） ao longo do livro （além do projeto gráfico dele ir ficando mais escuro conforme a relação dos meninos - e eles mesmo - queima） foi um ótimo adendo também pra escrita e pra compor a conexão do leitor com a história。 Com certeza foi uma história marcante， perturbadora em certo aspecto e que conversou comigo em algumas coisas。 Realmente o final me deixou bem tocado e foi o que me fez dar 5 estrelas pro livro。 Me senti mais próximo do que nunca dos meninos e da cru e triste realidade em que se encontravam。 Incrível！ 。。。more
athens
，
I don't know what to say。 I just finished this book seconds ago and I love August and Jack with all my heart and I am so happy that everything turned out well and the message at the end。 5 / 5 rapturous stars。 August and Jack will stay with me for a long time。 I will always think about them and will always wish the best for them。 They deserve all the happiness in the world。 I don't even know what to say。 I'm speechless and mad and angry and crying all at the same time while reading this。 I don't know what to say。 I just finished this book seconds ago and I love August and Jack with all my heart and I am so happy that everything turned out well and the message at the end。 5 / 5 rapturous stars。 August and Jack will stay with me for a long time。 I will always think about them and will always wish the best for them。 They deserve all the happiness in the world。 I don't even know what to say。 I'm speechless and mad and angry and crying all at the same time while reading this。 。。。more
Kennedy
，
Holy fuck this book is so amazing。 I literally am in shock at how good this book is。 All time favorite。
Eden
，
the writing was a little hard to follow at times and the pages were short but overall a solid book。
meryum
，
1this was literally so boring
Books by Selina
，
Okey。 Lo amé。 Me pareció increíble。 Una historia de dos amigos con una relación de tanto amor que hasta los lastima。 Hay amor y hay odio， son amigos y aún mas。 Lo real y lo ficticio van luchando por llegar a la meta durante todo el libro。 Un chico cuerdo y el otro demente， a veces es difícil saber cual es cual。 Los limites de la locura y la realidad son TAN finos que muchas veces se desdibujan。 Muy rápida lectura。 Espero leer pronto algo mas de la autora！
Audrey
，
One of the best books I have ever read in my entire life。 Literally。 I want to read this book eight times， tattoo it on my arm， and never stop reading it。 This book hooked me in and I don’t think I’ll ever leave the world K。Ancrum has created， filled with the Wicker King and the Bringer of Light。
Elba
，
The concept was brilliant and an interesting contemporary novel。
Geordan
，
4。5
Anisa C。
，
4。5
Zali
，
I'm not giving this a starred rating because I'm still not 100% sure about my feelings for this book。 It was easy to read quickly， however it was a hard read in terms of the content and topics it brought up。 The main relationship is technically abusive which doesn't feel great， however there is a little note from the author to readers about some of themes which I appreciated。 So it won't be in my top books of 2021 list， but it was good in it's own little way and I wouldn't be opposed to reading I'm not giving this a starred rating because I'm still not 100% sure about my feelings for this book。 It was easy to read quickly， however it was a hard read in terms of the content and topics it brought up。 The main relationship is technically abusive which doesn't feel great， however there is a little note from the author to readers about some of themes which I appreciated。 So it won't be in my top books of 2021 list， but it was good in it's own little way and I wouldn't be opposed to reading any other material in the universe。 。。。more
Kit
，
If there’s one thing I love in books， it’s multimedia。 It just brings so much more to a story。 I immediately know a book is going to be good if it has pictures in it。I very quickly got into the adventure of this story and couldn’t put it down。 Our main characters August and Jack used to play a game as kids where August was The Wooden King and Jack was The Wicker King。 For August， this game was just pretend， but when they’re 17， he learns that it’s been real this whole time for Jack。I honestly wo If there’s one thing I love in books， it’s multimedia。 It just brings so much more to a story。 I immediately know a book is going to be good if it has pictures in it。I very quickly got into the adventure of this story and couldn’t put it down。 Our main characters August and Jack used to play a game as kids where August was The Wooden King and Jack was The Wicker King。 For August， this game was just pretend， but when they’re 17， he learns that it’s been real this whole time for Jack。I honestly worried a lot for Jack just because he was in this alone。 Even though August decides to help him throughout the events of this book as Jack attempts to fulfil a prophecy and save the world， August doesn’t truly understand the world Jack lives in。 One of the biggest things I wanted out of this book was for the two to find a way to bring August into this world， both so Jack wasn’t so lonely and so readers could see more of what Jack was describing。I could also just describe this book by saying that there is no heterosexual explanation for anything these two do ever。 For some reason， I thought I had read somewhere that nothing happens between the boys， but this book is very， very LGBT。 I was kinda going insane with how much love these boys showed each other before they even got in a relationship。Strangely， there’s a big difference between if you read this book as a hardcover versus a paperback。 As someone who read the paperback version， I was really surprised by the twist at the end that revealed something that changed everything about this book。 But the details of this twist are pointed out right there in the description of the hardcover version of this book， and therefore was not surprising for many of the readers who have reviewed this book before me。 If anything， the secret isn’t a secret at all， but rather a fact everyone just knows。I suggest the paperback as the superior version。I don’t usually read Author’s Notes at the end of books， but that twist made me really curious as to what the author had to say。 The Author’s Note included after the story made me cry， but I think it’s required reading to really understand what was going on in this book and why it is so important。I’m going to be thinking of this book for a long time。 。。。more
Nicolle
，
This was the first for me by the K。 Ancrum。 I hope I do not have to wait long for the next book。
Yusuf Firdaus
，
❤️❤️❤️❤️
✧ Tina ✧
，
K。 Ancrum is one of a kind， i swear to god no one writes unique YA stories full of emotion like she does
skye
，
3。75
zee reads
，
not even sure if this is a 3 star or 4 star yet。。。 this was really strange but also kind of intriguing in a good way？ i went through the ebook version after reading via audiobook and i really liked the mixed media aspect。 i think i'll still be thinking about this book and these characters for awhile yet。 not even sure if this is a 3 star or 4 star yet。。。 this was really strange but also kind of intriguing in a good way？ i went through the ebook version after reading via audiobook and i really liked the mixed media aspect。 i think i'll still be thinking about this book and these characters for awhile yet。 。。。more
fizzingwhizbee
，
creeeeeepy。 rtcupdate: there is no review to come。 i can’t think of anything except creepy。
Kyrie
，
It wasn't what I expected， but it was good。 The artwork really added to the story， darkening as the events around August and Jack did。 It was an interesting trip down the rabbit hole and out the other side。 It wasn't what I expected， but it was good。 The artwork really added to the story， darkening as the events around August and Jack did。 It was an interesting trip down the rabbit hole and out the other side。 。。。more
Shannon Rose
，
It has taken me a few hours to really process my thoughts on this one but overall it was a really enjoyable read！ It is definitely going to be one of those books that stays with me for a while。I loved the themes explored in The Wicker King and the way this was done。 The characters felt really fleshed out despite the simplicity of the writing and storytelling。 I did find the majority of the plot pretty predictable until the very end - so that was a nice twist/surprise for me。 It ends with a reall It has taken me a few hours to really process my thoughts on this one but overall it was a really enjoyable read！ It is definitely going to be one of those books that stays with me for a while。I loved the themes explored in The Wicker King and the way this was done。 The characters felt really fleshed out despite the simplicity of the writing and storytelling。 I did find the majority of the plot pretty predictable until the very end - so that was a nice twist/surprise for me。 It ends with a really touching and much needed note from the author describing her reasons for writing this book。Definitely one I would recommend！ 。。。more
olivia
，
*4。5 stars*
Chloe
，
Sorry I just don’t get the hype…？
Alias Valia
，
Characters 9Atmosphere 9Writing style 9Plot 7，5Intrigue 8，5Logic 8，5Enjoyment 9
Paméla B。
，
This book was WEIRD in such a great way！ The BEST way！Things I liked:-K。 Ancrum's dedication: This book is dedicated to all the kids whose arms are filled with too much for them to hold， but who are trying their best not to drop a single thing。I see you and I am proud of you for trying。"-The cover？？？？ is stunning？？？？ I want to make a whole video dissecting it with spoilers。-The narrator is Charlie Thurston and he has a lovely voice！ He seems to be an actor too， maybe？ Unless its a name coinciden This book was WEIRD in such a great way！ The BEST way！Things I liked:-K。 Ancrum's dedication: This book is dedicated to all the kids whose arms are filled with too much for them to hold， but who are trying their best not to drop a single thing。I see you and I am proud of you for trying。"-The cover？？？？ is stunning？？？？ I want to make a whole video dissecting it with spoilers。-The narrator is Charlie Thurston and he has a lovely voice！ He seems to be an actor too， maybe？ Unless its a name coincidence。 But I haven't seen him in anything so thankfully his voice was just for The Wicker King for me :）-I loved the mixed media aspects of the physical book， even if they are cut out of the audiobook。 It makes sense， I get it。 I'm just glad I had the physical book too！-The characters were so flawed and August and Jack were holding on to one another SO HARD。-I know whenever I reread it I will enjoy it even more and I am excited for that！Things I didn't like:-I didn't like how there was so much of the ending at the beginning？ There was no more mystery by the end。 （view spoiler）[But at the same time it WORKS because it shows us that reality was at the base of everything in this book！ We lose reality through this book and finally at the end it snaps back to us！ （hide spoiler）] 。。。more
Leah M
，
CONTENT WARNING: depression， hallucinations， violence， panic attack， neglect， institutionalization， extreme codependencyI wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting myself into with this book， but it sounded intriguing， and I was right about that part。 The first thing that I noticed was as the story gets progressively darker， and the boys slip into their shared madness， the pages get darker。 The pages start out all colored off-white with black writing， and gradually become shaded darker and darker， CONTENT WARNING: depression， hallucinations， violence， panic attack， neglect， institutionalization， extreme codependencyI wasn’t exactly sure what I was getting myself into with this book， but it sounded intriguing， and I was right about that part。 The first thing that I noticed was as the story gets progressively darker， and the boys slip into their shared madness， the pages get darker。 The pages start out all colored off-white with black writing， and gradually become shaded darker and darker， until close to the end， when the pages are completely black with white writing。 This book is absolutely phenomenal， and I’m honestly not even sure how to process my thoughts into a coherent review。 But I’m going to try。 It isn’t organized like a typical book。 The chapters are super short。 Like a single page。 Sometimes only a few paragraphs。 It almost feels more like a journal。 It follows a timeline， occasionally delving back into the past when it is relevant to the story。 Interspersed are reports， photos， drawings， notes， etc。 They all form a linear story that makes complete sense， but it’s unique。 The story is told from August’s POV。 He’s intriguing， as is Jack。 They’re in such a codependent relationship that developed as a survival mechanism。 My heart breaks seeing these two boys depending on each other just to get by， and struggling so much。 Reading this book was like watching one boy break down completely， and see how it completely affects the other’s life too。 And there was a huge part of me that wondered how there wasn’t a single adult in either of their lives that caught it at all， leaving these two boys to handle things that even adults have a hard time dealing with on their own:“He’s seen Jack fall and sprinted toward the pit; August had leaped off the edge and dove headlong into the darkness behind him。 He would pull them both out of the deep with his bare hands。”As someone who has worked in mental health， with people who lived with severe mental illness， including psychotic disorders， it was especially interesting to have an insight into what someone sees as they descend into hallucinations。 I got the distinct impression that despite Jack’s honesty with August， there are still things that he held back。 But at least he knew that August would still love and accept him no matter what。“He did things like this often。 Checked to see if his memories were real。”The connection between Jack and August was absolutely fascinating。 While the relationship definitely wasn’t a healthy one， it became something that they each depended on for day-to-day survival。 And more than that， it was clearly more than just a close friendship， even if August wasn’t fully aware of it for much of the time。 There was one point in the book where I was convinced *something* was happening， but it was clearly written to be misleading — because it wasn’t quite what I thought it was and I had a good laugh at myself。 But there’s definitely LGBTQ rep in the book， and once it appears， I wasn’t surprised at all。 In addition， I loved the banter between August and Jack:“‘You seem happier than usual，’ Jack said。‘I’m actively frowning， Jack。’‘Pfft， like that means anything。 You frown all the time。 Usually you have this extra rage wrinkle between your eyebrows， but it’s gone now。’”This book was intense， emotional， and incredible。 I was hooked early on， and it’s one of those stories where an event close to the end was shared early on， but the circumstances surrounding it aren’t known until it actually happens。 By the end， everything is tied up with a beautiful bow， and I was so satisfied that I actually closed the book with a sigh。 I loved not just the story， but the message that the author conveyed through it。 。。。more
Paras
，
It was easy， super fun， and stupendous suspenseful。
Oliver
，
I would let this book eat my heart and soul。It's creppy， poetically obscene and godly beautiful。 Going down on a spiral of madness and loneliness with its characters was transcendental and surreal。 I can see how this book is not for everyone's taste， but giving it a shot was the best decision I've ever made。 I miss it already。 I would let this book eat my heart and soul。It's creppy， poetically obscene and godly beautiful。 Going down on a spiral of madness and loneliness with its characters was transcendental and surreal。 I can see how this book is not for everyone's taste， but giving it a shot was the best decision I've ever made。 I miss it already。 。。。more
kaylina
，
4。5/5: knowing my reading tastes well always serves me right but this one still affected me a great deal more than i'm able to admit。brief snippets i've heard about this story was the mental health representation， along with appreciation for the mixed media elements used throughout this narrative。 so from the start， i knew getting into this would require me to prepare myself as best as i could while pacing myself as i read。 all the chapters， as short as they were， give the impression that you'll 4。5/5: knowing my reading tastes well always serves me right but this one still affected me a great deal more than i'm able to admit。brief snippets i've heard about this story was the mental health representation， along with appreciation for the mixed media elements used throughout this narrative。 so from the start， i knew getting into this would require me to prepare myself as best as i could while pacing myself as i read。 all the chapters， as short as they were， give the impression that you'll end up flying through this story and leave with a bit of a headache afterwards or just not having fully connected to the characters。 for me， however， it only further made me sink into august and jack's fantasy world as it was blurring with their reality until the point of no return。 i connected with august's character most through this story， that feeling of a heavy load of responsibility just to try and alleviate all that crushing weight of loneliness and anxiety that pushes you into a corner and makes you end up screaming from the inside out。 those moments of setting things ablaze were， as unsettling as it was portrayed， were some of the best parts of this story to sink into because personally it just felt like some source of comfort to be honest with you， if "comfort" is even the best word to describe it。 there was some sense of euphoria at seeing august scream at people that they're not listening， they're not listening， when it comes to the nature of his and jack's relationship and i think a lot of it had to do with that similiar share of experience i have with him in where it always feels like no matter how much the majority deem the rest insane， there's this sense of clarity that you're seeing two different things and they're both just as real as the other。 i feel like for some readers maybe， this story might seem romanticized and i don't know if they're right or not， or if maybe i'm wrong and the different relationships in this story are actually pretty solid to a lot of readers。 what i do know is that with all the hype i've seen about this book， nothing else meant more to me than getting to see august's narrative for myself and being immersed。 this was a really good reading experience for me， personally， and all the mixed media elements included just made it feel more immersive which i think is really important for a writer to do when they're telling their own story about mental health/illness。 and so i just happened to love this one。 content warnings//: depiction of a toxic/co-dependent relationship， hallucinations， minor sexual content， fires， depression， brief description of a panic attack， parental neglect/abandonment， hospitalization， brief descriptions of blood & violence， allusions to PTSD， depiction of mental illness， obsessive behavior， anxiety， instances of drowning， and minor alcohol content 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Wicker King
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Wicker King&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Wicker King&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0