Tagged: rick riordan
“The Kane Chronicles: The Serpent’s Shadow” by Rick Riordan
I have finally managed to get my hands on the third and final book of The Kane Chronicles and I must say that Rick Riordan did not let me down with how he finished the trilogy when the time came. I was nervous that I would feel a little let down at the end of the series for some reason, but that was something I really shouldn’t have been worried about.
Carter and Sadie Kane have spent the past six months or so since the last book honing their skills as magicians, recruiting more members to the Brooklyn House, and trying to figure out how to stop Apophis from destroying everything they know. It’s a daunting task to say the least and they encounter several obstacles along the way, some of which were a little unexpected if you ask me.
There were several things that stuck out to me in The Serpent’s Shadow. First was how impressed I was with where the characters of Carter, Sadie, Zia, Walt, and Anubis wind up when the story is said and done. In the first two books there were moments when I wondered how Riordan was going to believably bring all of his cast together in the end to vanquish evil (and beyond of course). However, there is a very impressive twist at the end involving Walt and Anubis, and as a consequence Sadie as well. There is even a fun surprise when it comes to resolving Zia’s storyline that had me smiling. Carter, my favorite character from the series wound up exactly where I hoped he would as the reluctant, but capable leader who learned some very valuable lessons along the way.
It’s always interesting to read books like these that feature characters who are placed in their younger teen years because it’s strange to think of 13, 14, and 15-year-olds saving the world, but Riordan made it work. Props to him for pulling that off if you ask me. I’ve never read any of his other work (strange, I know), but I’ll be diving into the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus books as soon as I can find the time. There is even a blatant hint at the end of this book that Riordan is eventually going to try and write some crossover books between his three successful series. That will be epic if he does it right.
All in all, The Serpent’s Shadow was a great conclusion to a story full of excitement, action, interesting Egyptian mythology, and a healthy dose of heart and grit. It brought all the characters and plot points together into just the right place and managed to do it in a book that was shorter than the first two without feeling rushed.
Grade: B
Length: 401 pages
Kane Chronicles: The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan
In this exciting second installment of the three-book series, Carter and Sadie, offspring of the brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane, embark on a worldwide search for the Book of Ra, but the House of Life and the gods of chaos are determined to stop them.
The second installment of The Kane Chronicles continues the story of Carter and Sadie Kane a few months after the events of the first book, The Red Pyramid. They have been spending their days training other young, fledgling magicians in the Brooklyn House and trying to figure out what the next step will be in saving the world from the inevitable return of Apophis.
I’ll admit that I liked this book a lot more than the first one but I think that had to do with being able to jump right into the action this time instead of needing all of the character buildup and introduction that took place in the first installment. The action as a lot more interesting and the plot seemed to be a lot more solid than before. New characters were introduced such as the dwarf god, Bes who has an entire back-story that had me very intrigued. Especially when it comes to his powers of scaring people as a means of attack/defense.
One of the best parts of The Throne of Fire was the various cameos by characters from the first book. Bast shows up here and there to help the kids out. Set, who is basically the god of evil shows up and turns out to not be quite as evil as you might think in the end, even if he is scheming behind the backs of the heroes. I also really liked some of the small touches. The things like the small glowing balls that crew the boat Ra used to ride through the Duat each night between sunset and sunrise. Rick Riordan does a really good job of sneaking in small surprises within the text that are all fairly unimportant as far as the story is concerned, but when you notice them it gives the text a little more vibrance.
I’ll be reading the third book in the series sometime soon, but there is one thing I hope the author can get away from. Sadie and Carter have done enough of the “little sister/big brother” bickering. I hope he lets them grow up and mature a little at some point because otherwise it might be a little tiring as a reader.
Grade: B
Length: 465 pages
The Kane Chronicles: The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan
The Red Pyramid is a great start to an interesting new series by Rick Riordan. I haven’t had the chance to read his previous series based on Greek mythology, but this first installment of The Kane Chronicles which delves deeply into various pieces of the Egyptian mythos is a very good read.
I found the characters of Carter and Sadie to be both engaging and believable even when they were discovering their new magical powers. The fact that Carter is 14 years old and Sadie is 12 seemed to go well with what Riordan was trying to do with them as the main protagonists. Especially the way he weaves them back and forth as the viewpoint character.
At the start of The Red Pyramid it took me a chapter or two to get used to the writing style Riordan was using, but once I adjusted I quite enjoyed it. The entire book is written as though someone were transcribing an audio recording about the events. There are a few quirky asides as the characters refer to each other “off-tape” if you will. I thought the writing was quite charming to be honest.
Anyone who has an interest in Egyptian history or mythology will likely enjoy The Red Pyramid quite a bit. I learned a lot while reading it and it definitely convinced me that reading the following books will be worthwhile.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan
(Cover picture courtesy of Wikipedia.)
Percy Jackson’s seventh-grade year has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single monster has set foot on his Yew York prep-school campus. But when an innocent game of dodgeball among Percy and his classmates turns into a death match against an ugly gang of cannibal giants, things get…well, ugly. And the unexpected arrival of his friend Annabeth brings more bad news: the magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed.
In this fresh, funny and wildly popular follow-up to The Lightning Thief, Percy and his friends must journey into the Sea of Monsters to save their camp. But first, Percy will discover a stunning new secret about his family—one that makes him question whether being claimed as Poseidon’s son is an honor or simply a cruel joke.
Filled with more plot twists than the first book, Percy Jackson fans will love The Sea of Monsters. To me, it was even better than The Lightning Thief because we see the relationships between Percy, Annabeth and Grover develop much more. And we also learn that Percy isn’t the only living son of Poseidon, which was one of the better surprises.
One of the things I love most about Rick Riordan’s writing is how he seamlessly blends the Greek myths into his novel without achieving an obnoxious level of beating-you-over-the-head-with-a-stick ‘hinting’. It gives readers who know nothing about Greek myths some background information, but it also has more subtle allusions to Greek myths. One of these is when Grover his weaving but unraveling his day’s work every night to avoid the cyclops finding out he is really a man. This is an allusion to the myth of Penelope, Odysseus’ wife who wove a burial shroud for her father-in-law, the elderly Laertes, and unraveled it every night. She had told her suitors she would choose one when she finished, but she had no intention of marrying again and chose to stay faithful to Odysseus. So there really is something in here for everyone, whether you know a lot or next to nothing about the Greek myths.
With a fast-paced plot and believable characters, I can’t find much to complain about in The Sea of Monsters. It doesn’t quite live up to all of the hype surrounding the series, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good book. And since it helps get kids and teenagers interested in reading, I’m all for it.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
My Favourite Heroes
While there is no shortage of heroes in history and adult fiction, strong male leads are increasingly difficult to find in the YA genre. Most young adult fiction is written by women for women, but there seems to be a growing trend in YA novels geared toward teenage boys. With writers like Rick Riordan, Eoin Colfer and Anthony Horowitz topping bestseller lists, one can only hope that soon boys will get the representation they deserve. Here is a list of my favourite YA heroes, in descending order.
1. Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series by JK Rowling.
You probably knew Harry Potter would feature somewhere on this list, didn’t you? Well, there are many reasons the most famous character in YA literature is my favourite hero, not the least of which is the fact that the Harry Potter series was one of the first YA series I read. Perhaps I am biased, but I can also justify my choice. No matter how many horrible things happen to him, no matter how awful things get, Harry perseveres. He does things 99% of teenagers would not be capable of doing; he shows courage he never knew he had. But he is not perfect and his friends are usually there to help him through the tough times. Harry is a flawed hero, which makes him my favourite. Continue reading