Incarceron
Encyclopedia
Incarceron is a young-adult fantasy and science fiction novel written by Catherine Fisher
, first released on May 3rd, 2007. Published by Hodder Children's Books, it is the first in a line of novels centered around Finn and Claudia, two adolescents individually confined by the Warden of Incarceron. The second, titled Sapphique
, was published in 2008.
Incarceron was first released in the United States in 2010 and appeared on the New York Times children's bestseller list.
20th Century Fox
owns the film rights to the novel.
The book has been released in paperback and as an audio book, read by Kim Mai Guest.
"wanted to write a book about a prison" and conceived Incarceron, an automated world controlled by a personified mechanical power. The physical size of the Prison is a cube bead, in which the edifice is vast and expands through whole villages, forests, cells and corridors.
Initially, the intent of Incarceron’s creators, the Sapienti, was to incarcerate all the criminals in the world and repair their morals to form a perfect society, controlled with the help of the Prison entity ‘Incarceron’. The prisoners and seventy Sapienti inside were sealed off from the world in order to control all variables in this experiment, with the exception of the prison Warden to oversee the project. However, after years of isolation and the failure of the perfect society, those inside have no way to seek help or escape when the Warden abandons the experiment’s aims. Incarceron is actually a world compressed into a silver cube which the Warden owns. Everything in it is microscopic.
|-
! Character !! Role
|-
| Finn || The young man whose story is the pivotal point of the book, being locked in, but trying to escape the prison called Incarceron.
|-
| Claudia || A young girl living outside of Incarceron. The key to Finn's escape from prison; She and Finn communicate with each other through a crystal key, which is also the key to the prison. She is the warden's daughter.
|-
| Keiro || Finn's cellmate and best friend, essentially brothers. He and Finn often look out for and defend each other. His adventurous nature often lands him in trouble.
|-
| Attia || A prisonner who follows Finn because he saved her life while she was a slave. She knows incarceron since her birth and obeys its rules of survival. She has no illusion, but likes Finn a lot.
|-
| Gildas || The spiritual guide who knows that there is a world outside of Incarceron. He helps Keiro and Finn in their escape from the prison.
|-
| Jared || Claudia's teacher on the outside who helps Claudia in aiding Finn's escape from Incarceron.
|-
| Queen Sia || Finn's stepmother who is also the Queen who had Finn sent to Incarceron in the first place.
|}
Amanda Craig from The Times praised the novel for its “imaginative scale and gobsmacking finale”, naming the book as “one of the best fantasy novels written for a long time.” In agreement is Independent, calling the plot “a deliciously dark and scary ride,” as well as identifying Fisher as one of the best fantasy writers of today. Fisher’s accomplished skills and depth of feeling was recognised by The Bookseller, who described the novel as “imaginative, rich in texture and vividly realised.”
Junot Diaz from Wall St. Journal labelled the book as a thriller of the highest order and said that “Fisher could give the show '24' a run for its money,” while Mary Quattlebaum from The Washington Post prised “this eerie, elegant fantasy”, highlighting the intricate plot, fictitious universe and likening the relationship of the book and readers to Incarceron and its prisoners.
In agreement was the Booklist, who labelled the book as a “must have,” and Publishers Weekly, certain that the “complex and inventive” book would be a resounding success. The Horn Book praised “Fisher's dystropic future, in which technology and decay coexist in a dazzling kaleidoscope of images and time periods.”
Catherine Fisher
Catherine Fisher is an author, broadcaster and adjudicator who lives in Newport. Her former jobs include working as a primary school teacher and archaeologist. She also taught Writing for Children at the University of Glamorgan....
, first released on May 3rd, 2007. Published by Hodder Children's Books, it is the first in a line of novels centered around Finn and Claudia, two adolescents individually confined by the Warden of Incarceron. The second, titled Sapphique
Sapphique
Sapphique is a young-adult fantasy and science fiction novel written by Catherine Fisher, first published in 2008 in the UK. It is the sequel to Incarceron, and concludes the story of Finn's quest for freedom...
, was published in 2008.
Incarceron was first released in the United States in 2010 and appeared on the New York Times children's bestseller list.
20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
owns the film rights to the novel.
The book has been released in paperback and as an audio book, read by Kim Mai Guest.
Inspiration and origins
Catherine FisherCatherine Fisher
Catherine Fisher is an author, broadcaster and adjudicator who lives in Newport. Her former jobs include working as a primary school teacher and archaeologist. She also taught Writing for Children at the University of Glamorgan....
"wanted to write a book about a prison" and conceived Incarceron, an automated world controlled by a personified mechanical power. The physical size of the Prison is a cube bead, in which the edifice is vast and expands through whole villages, forests, cells and corridors.
Incarceron
Incarceron is a futuristic prison and an artificial world - a living artificial world run by Incarceron, an artificial intelligence. This tireless, inhuman "overlord" controls all life as it monitors inmates by means of cameras that appear as glowing red lights and dispenses punishment and death on a daily basis without mercy. Escape from Incarceron is a concept which few believe in, except those who insist that Sapphique, the legendary Sapient, has in fact achieved this very act.Initially, the intent of Incarceron’s creators, the Sapienti, was to incarcerate all the criminals in the world and repair their morals to form a perfect society, controlled with the help of the Prison entity ‘Incarceron’. The prisoners and seventy Sapienti inside were sealed off from the world in order to control all variables in this experiment, with the exception of the prison Warden to oversee the project. However, after years of isolation and the failure of the perfect society, those inside have no way to seek help or escape when the Warden abandons the experiment’s aims. Incarceron is actually a world compressed into a silver cube which the Warden owns. Everything in it is microscopic.
The Realm
The Sapienti created Incarceron during a time of advanced technology and discovery. However, since then, King Endor released a royal decree that Time would be "stopped" in order for humanity to survive, and now the Realm is trapped in the 18th century. The King justified that they were making a world “free from the anxiety of change.” The Protocol prevents the development of science and evolution, and has since hindered Sapienti, and provided problems against freeing those in Incarceron. Change is not allowed which angers many nobles and they plot against the Queen.Characters
{| class="wikitable"|-
! Character !! Role
|-
| Finn || The young man whose story is the pivotal point of the book, being locked in, but trying to escape the prison called Incarceron.
|-
| Claudia || A young girl living outside of Incarceron. The key to Finn's escape from prison; She and Finn communicate with each other through a crystal key, which is also the key to the prison. She is the warden's daughter.
|-
| Keiro || Finn's cellmate and best friend, essentially brothers. He and Finn often look out for and defend each other. His adventurous nature often lands him in trouble.
|-
| Attia || A prisonner who follows Finn because he saved her life while she was a slave. She knows incarceron since her birth and obeys its rules of survival. She has no illusion, but likes Finn a lot.
|-
| Gildas || The spiritual guide who knows that there is a world outside of Incarceron. He helps Keiro and Finn in their escape from the prison.
|-
| Jared || Claudia's teacher on the outside who helps Claudia in aiding Finn's escape from Incarceron.
|-
| Queen Sia || Finn's stepmother who is also the Queen who had Finn sent to Incarceron in the first place.
|}
Cover
The cover is an image of the key, “a small cylindered artifact” with the hologram of the Realm’s royal eagle. Created by Lord Calliston, the "Steel Wolf", who was the first Prisoner to be sent into Incarceron, it can communicate with other keys of the same design, provide a blind spot from Incarceron’s security system, and allow one human to leave Incarceron. Lord Calliston died before he could use it.Critical reception
The book had received largely positive reviews from book critics.Amanda Craig from The Times praised the novel for its “imaginative scale and gobsmacking finale”, naming the book as “one of the best fantasy novels written for a long time.” In agreement is Independent, calling the plot “a deliciously dark and scary ride,” as well as identifying Fisher as one of the best fantasy writers of today. Fisher’s accomplished skills and depth of feeling was recognised by The Bookseller, who described the novel as “imaginative, rich in texture and vividly realised.”
Junot Diaz from Wall St. Journal labelled the book as a thriller of the highest order and said that “Fisher could give the show '24' a run for its money,” while Mary Quattlebaum from The Washington Post prised “this eerie, elegant fantasy”, highlighting the intricate plot, fictitious universe and likening the relationship of the book and readers to Incarceron and its prisoners.
In agreement was the Booklist, who labelled the book as a “must have,” and Publishers Weekly, certain that the “complex and inventive” book would be a resounding success. The Horn Book praised “Fisher's dystropic future, in which technology and decay coexist in a dazzling kaleidoscope of images and time periods.”