Rick Riordan has written another winner here. I think I liked this more then the first book, The Sword of Summer. It was flowed a little bit better and Magnus’ sassiness really went up a notch in this one and I loved it! He wouldn’t let the fact that he was dead and will be spending eternity preparing for Ragnarok get him down. Nope. But really what I loved about this book more then anything else is the positive representation of diverse characters. I have praised Riordan in the past for his diversity and willingness to tackle difficult situations in his books. True, his main characters have been mainly white boys but his willingness to include characters of color and other sexuality is admirable for a kids author. So far his books have featured a Latino and Latina, Chinese Canadian, Gay teenagers, Biracial siblings, Native American girl, Black boy and girl, and Muslim girl and made them all well rounded full characters without ever falling into old stereotypes. In The Hammer of Thor he introduces us to Alex a gender fluid teen. As queer rights is becoming more and more a discussion point in our society, characters like Alex are even more important. She (I’m going to refer to her as She as Alex says that she mostly identifies as a She and spends most of a book as a female but at times Alex also identifies as Male too) is a person has been marginalized and misunderstood her whole life but has a strong conviction of who she is. Gender fluid people are not often depicted in pop-culture and not with the sensitivity and strength that Riordan writes her. But not only that, Riordan draws on the fact that Gender fluid people or argr as they were referred to by the vikings had a place in ancient Norse society. I think there are many people today who sort of think that LGBTQ community are the result of recent sins of the last hundred years or so. Not true. Just like how he wrote about Nico coming out and relating it to Cupid story he does it here. So props to you Mr. Riordan.
So let’s get back to the book. In the last book, we know that Thor has lost his famed hammer and now we know that some Earth Giants have it. They must get the Hammer back and thwart Loki’s plan to marry off Sam to the Giant, which is problematic since 1. Sam is still a teenager and 2. Sam has already been promised to marry Amir. They must traverse the seven realms to find another famed weapon and look for clues as to what Loki’s real objective is. Let’s just say, it’s not just to make sure his daughter is taken care of in a good marriage. Along the way, they meet democratic zombies, abusive father elves and giants who love to bowl. It all makes sense when you read the book. Riordan has always been good balancing the humor with the action. The book never waves or drags It was just keeps going and going and I can’t wait for the next one where they finally get act like vikings and hit the seas and PERCY!
There are more twists and turns in this book then most streets. While Six of Crows took us to Fjerda and back, Crooked Kingdom stays firmly in Ketterdam. After Kaz, Inej, Jesper, Nina, Matthias and Wylan were double-crossed after successfully completing their job at the Ice Court. They plan and scheme to take down Jan Van Eck and get the money they were promised, all while hiding Kuwei Yul-Bo from those who would want to use him for his knowledge of the drug Parem Jurdo, that could change the balance of power to whoever has it. Taking on Van Eck will be no easy task when they are the considered the worse of worst and Van Eck is a highly powerful member of the Merchant Council with the power of the city behind him. Then again, Kaz is never outdone and will not stop until he has his vengeance on everyone who has ever wronged him. Just like the first novel , this is a heist story more then anything else. It would fit in perfectly next to Oceans Eleven if it were a movie. There are so many cons and slight of hands going on that if you are not paying attention, you will miss it. That’s just part of the fun of the book is trying to see if you can figure out Kaz’s master plan before the big reveal. He is always two or three steps ahead. Even when it looks like he’s been bested he already has several cons waiting in the wings, just in case. Each of these characters are deeply flawed but each given time to grow. You may not agree with their decisions but at the same time you can’t really disagree with them either. They use the resources and the circumstances that they find themselves in to their advantage. They are just six teenagers from the barrel and they are going best the powerful merchants at their own gain. You can’t help but cheer. For fans of the Grisha Series will be happy to see some old friends make an appearance that is most welcomed but also made perfect sense to the plot. I recommend this duology to anyone who likes a good heist novel. You’ll be on the edge of your seat.
Scowler does fall in the horror category as it was super suspenseful and scary. I picked this book up because I knew that Daniel Kraus was working with Guillermo Del Toro on Trollhunters. The fact it takes place in Iowa an added bonus. Ry and his mother and sister are barely scraping by on their farm and Ry is doing everything to distract him from the pain of the physical and emotional abuse of his imprisoned father. Everything starts to fall apart when a meteorite falls and his father returns to the farm. Ry must defeat his father with the help of his imaginary childhood friends, including Scowler. This book is super super creepy. With a scene at the end that still sort of haunts me when I thing about it. It’s not just a great scary read but also delves into the effects of abuse has on it’s victims. The fear of facing is ones abuser maybe as terrifying as taking on a monster but being able to face that fear takes real strength.
I admit that I still have nightmares from this series. Particularly since I live in New York City and ride the subway through many of the same stations that they talk about in this book and I can’t help but wonder if they are vampires down there. You may have seen the show. I haven’t so I don’t know how it compares but I can’t imagine it as scary or creepy as the book because I’m pretty sure most of the book is not cable ready material. New York because the epicenter of a virus that turns people into vampires. Instead of the traditional being bite on the neck by a vampire to be turned, people are turned by little worm like things. Gross. Eph and his team at the CDC investigate several mysterious illnesses only to find themselves in the middle of a epidemic that deals with ancient vampires. As they try to stay alive and figure out what’s going on and how to stay alive and not to mention dealing with family drama. It’s the perfect scary series to read for Halloween. The ending of the series is truly heartbreaking.
Holly Black is one of my favorite authors. She’s never boring. Her books are never the same and truly original. In the The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, whole cities have been quarantined off because of vampires. Vampires have let’s say got out of control and in these Coldtowns vampires and humans leave together. Some humans more willing then others as some had the misfortune of getting stuck inside when the walls went up. Tana’s mother was bitten by a vampire and later died. After a wild party, Tana wakes to find that only she, her ex-boyfriend and a tied up vampire are alive. The vampire virus takes a couple of days before it takes hold and Tana is determined to save herself and her companions by going to one of the Coldtowns away from her family. It’s not your typical vampire story. It was truly refreshing read and Gavriel is a vampire worth crushing on.
Ok, so this is scary or spooky as the others but the make no mistake the story of the Baudelaire siblings is truly terrifying. When their parents tragically die and they are sent to live with Count Olaf. Things get worse from there. A Series of Unfortunate Events is truly an understatement as the unfortunate events are usually the faults of the adults they are put in the care of. Violet, Klaus and Sunny are put in one bad situation after another from the very first book when Count Olaf tries to marry 13 year old to get a hold of their fortune. Is there really anything more horrifying then that? The first couple of books are a little formulaic but once you get to book five things really start to pick up and things get really scary.
After I finished reading Empire of Storms, I decided to go back and read the prequel novellas as many of the characters we meet in these stories make appearance and play a role in the final book to come out next year. It’s very common for authors to publish novellas or short stories in connection with successful series. Most of the time they have little consequence to the actual narrative of the series themselves. They are just a fun story about the time before, or another character’s perspective. The further I got into Empire of Storms and the big reveals starting to come out, I realized that I these novellas were more important then I originally thought. The end was blending of Aelin’s present with Celaena’s past. If Aelin is going to defeat Erawan and reclaim her crown in Terrasan she is going to have call in all of Celaena’s favors. And so I went back and bought all the novellas. The five novella’s The Assassin and the Pirate Lord, The Assassin and the Healer, The Assassin and the Desert, The Assassin and the Underworld and The Assassin and the Empire tell the story of the months that lead her to be arrested and sent to Endovier where we meet her in the Throne of Glass that starts everything in motion. All five novellas were collected together and later published under the named The Assassin’s Blade.
**Spoilers**
Last Week I get a text from my Mom to say that she is sending me a book. This book. What can I say, she knows me. I love Little Golden Books. I think like most people, Little Golden Books were some of the first books I read or were read too. The Poky Little Puppy is my Mom’s favorite. Every Christmas there is a book drive at Barnes and Noble and I donate The Poky Little Puppy in her honor. The other thing from our childhood is Star Wars. I distinctly remember our parents taking Kate and I out of school so we could go to the first showing at the local theaters for the re-release of A New Hope. So Star Wars and The Little Golden Books together is just the perfect gift. This is such a cute book. I wouldn’t say it’s a kids book. I have a feeling it’s shelved in the Humor or even the self help section of Barnes and Noble but if wanted to read it to your kids it wanted too. It’s a simple book that uses scenes from all the movies to talk you up. Not everything is going to happen as you plan. There are going to be dark times. The dark side of the Force at the times may seem more appealing but in the long run it isn’t. Friends will always find you under Cloud City or rescue you when you have been frozen in carbonate. So don’t let the bad out weigh the good. And just like Yoda says “Do or Do not. There is no Try” so go read this book and relive the magic that is Star Wars and Little Golden Book and be inspired.
The series The Book of Spirit of Thieves is both a prequel and a sequel to Morgan Rhodes other series Falling Kingdoms. With it’s dueling narratives that take place centuries before and after and in the same realm as the action of her previous books and also in our own world in present time. In some ways, it fills the origin holes of some the mysteries and prophecies but stands on it own. The switching POV of Maddox, Becca, Crystal and Farrell are kind of a mix bag. I like Maddox as his is different from the others. It’s the prequel part of the story and takes place in Mytica. Becca, Crystal and Farrell are all in present day Toronto. The sisters Becca and Crystal are fine. There is a genuine love between them but a little bit of distance. Since the events of the last book, they both have learned a lot about themselves and each other and they are not sure what to do about this new knowledge. Farrell, I could do without, sort of. I understand why he is a POV but I just don’t really care that much about him as I do the others. He’s a privilege rich white boy who drinks and acts out because he didn’t get the love at home. He uses people to make him feel better and people keep giving his boorish behavior a pass because he’s just a good kid inside. He’s just hasn’t gotten over the loss of his brother. He’s being controlled by an ancient cult leader. Ok those are both true but still. I’ve over it. This series is fine and okay. I think Falling Kingdoms is a far more interesting series with more compelling characters and more twists and turns. That being said, it’s still kinda fun to read and it does fill in some wholes of the other series so it’s worth checking out if you’ve read the other series.
***Spoilers***
