Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date: May 2013
Pages: 368
Source: ARC from publisher
For: Review
Series: The Blackwell Pages, Book 1
Things I Liked:
I enjoyed getting more Norse mythology - I think it's a super rich source of adventures and interesting stories and there aren't enough books out there about it. It was a fun story, filled with adventures and danger and weird things happening. I liked the idea that they don't have to follow the old tales exactly as they happen and that they want to change things. It was a fun start to a new series that will definitely appeal to Rick Riordan fans.
Things I Didn't Like:
I have to admit I kind of just didn't enjoy it. I'm not sure what precise things might have bothered me, but I just didn't love it. Near the beginning, I kept thinking the characters were a little bit older, since Matt is into boxing and wrestling and those don't exactly scream 13-year-old sports to me. They didn't seem like it in a lot of ways. Maybe that's what initially threw me off and I just couldn't get back into it. Also, I think it suffers just from being compared to Rick Riordan's books and he does the mythology aspects so well. Still, I think kids will like it, and be clamoring for sequels.
Read-alikes:
Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan
Kane Chronicles series by Rick Riordan
Sea of Trolls series by Nancy Farmer (for wonderful Norse mythology)
BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none
mrg-factor: none
v-factor: ->
a little bit of fighting
Overall rating: ***
What's your favorite mythological book?
If you buy through my Amazon linkage, I will get a very small percentage
Posts
I love Norse mythology, and I've always been trying to get my kids to read Sea of Trolls. Maybe they would be more likely to read this if it's like the Percy Jackson series.
ReplyDeleteI think this one is a lot more accessible than Sea of Trolls, so they might be more likely to try it. Also, there are some illustrations in the final version (none in the ARC) so it might be fun to see those too.
DeleteI'm in love with Loki since the movies have been popular. I wonder if there's any big people novels about him? Hmmmm...
ReplyDeleteI've not heard of many adult books about Norse mythology, but I'm sure there have to be some :)
DeleteI hate you didn't like it more. I've been really curious about it and hoping it would be good. You did remind me how much I want to read Sea of Trolls, though! :)
ReplyDeleteIt was pretty good, just not that great. Definitely give Sea of Trolls a try!
DeleteIt felt to me very much like an introduction--I'm hope in book 2 the zest level will increase, and I'll truly enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteYes! There didn't seem to be a lot more than "here are some characters" stuff going on. I'll have to see what you think of the next one and then maybe I'll give it a try :)
Delete