Review: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Title: The Lightning Thief
Author: Rick Riordan
Information on series: First of five books in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series
Audience: Middle grade, though with plenty of appeal for readers of any age who love a good adventure story
Rating (scale of 1-5, with 5 being highest): 4
TL;DR: An action-packed quest story whose young hero was written off as a bad kid, but really he has supernatural abilities straight out of Greek myth.

Longer review:
On a recent road trip, we started and abandoned several audiobooks, nothing quite working for both of us. That is until we started The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (as read by Jesse Bernstein). In fact, we loved it so much that when we got home before finishing the last disc, we moved from the car straight to the couch. Neither of us had been terribly excited to listen to this book, I'd started and abandoned the print edition, he'd seen the underwhelming movie adaptation, but in the end it was a highlight of our very long drive. We were looking for a book that combined adventure and humor, and that is exactly what we got.

The Percy Jackson series is based on the idea that the Greek gods of ancient myth are not only reality, they are active forces in the modern world, who still have the bad habit of having half-god children with mortal men and women. Percy Jackson (spoilers) discovers that he is the son of an unknown god, which gives him unusual powers and mark him out as a target for evil forces. That some of his special abilities (a natural aptitude for ancient Greek, hyperaccelerated reflexes) manifest as learning disorders (dyslexia, ADHD) that mark him out as a "bad kid" in the mundane world is an inspiring touch. While your average reader isn't likely to be a demigod, the message that sometimes our strengths lie in what makes us different, even if that means we can never be normal.

While I know this book, series, and author has a very large fan base, I never would've considered suggesting this series to adults before checking out the audiobook myself. That's the magic of a skilled audiobook narrator, they can take a good book and turn it into something even better.

Read alikes:
Rick Riordan: The obvious read alike, he expands on Percy Jackson's world in the Heroes of Olympus series, explores Egyptian mythology, and his newest series, Magnus Chase, which takes on norse mythology.

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins: Before she wrote The Hunger Games, Collins wrote a series about a young boy's adventures in a secret kingdom under the streets of New York City (warning: there are rats, cockroaches, and other creepy crawlies).

Hounded by Kevin Hearne: Hearne's Iron Druid Chronicles are NOT for children or young readers. This is a decidely adult urban fantasy series set in an Arizona overrun by the gods of Celtic mythology.

~Sarah, Carnegie-Stout Public Library

Review: The Library at Mount Char author Scott Hawkins

Title: The Library at Mount Char

Author: Scott Hawkins

Series: N/A

Audience: Adult

Rating: 4

TL;DR: What are twelve adopted godlings to do when their “Father” goes missing, leaving the power of his famous library up for grabs?

Longer review: On Labor Day, 1977, a Pershing missile was dropped on the Garrison Oaks subdivision in a futile attempt to kill a god. Twelve of the children who survived the devastation thanks to the powers of “Father,” became his apprentices.

Years later, we meet Carolyn and her damaged and deranged “siblings”, as they gather together to learn the fate of their Father, who has disappeared.

Who will succeed him? The savage and brutal David, who has studied the arts of war? Mad Margaret, who has been murdered and resurrected thousands of times? Or will it be the quiet and crafty Carolyn, underestimated by all her siblings? Which sibling will be the first to gain access to Father’s vast and powerful library? And can these men and women manage to rediscover the shreds of humanity that remain to them after the years of physical, psychological and emotional abuse they underwent in order to become gods?

Author’s Website: http://www.shawkins.net/

Read alikes

American Gods by Neil Gaiman.

Chronicles of Amber by Roger Zelazny. If you enjoy the cut-throat sibling rivalry of The Library at Mount Char, you might also enjoy the intrafamilial intrigue of Zelazny’s series.

The Lost Swords series by Fred Saberhagen.

Review by Teresa Dahlgren, Waterloo Public Library

Review: The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin

Title: The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms

Author: N.K. Jemisin

Information on series: First in The Inheritance Trilogy

Audience: Adult, though with appeal for some older teens

Rating (scale of 1-5, with 5 being highest): 3.5

TL;DR: A dark love story set against a complicated backdrop of political intrigue where the stakes are life or death.

Longer review: N.K. Jemisin's debut novel, The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, introduces a complex world of political intrigue where it is deadly dangerous to be among the elite or too far outside the norm. Unfortunately Yeine, our protagonist, is a descendant of both the ruling Arameri and the "barbaric" Darre. Centuries past, the Arameri conquered the world with the aid of the god of light, Itempas, and suppressed all other religions- and gods. Yeine's mother gave up a position of power as the Arameri heir to marry a Darre man, and lived out her life in exile for her choice. But shortly after her mother is murdered, Yeine is called to the capital by her grandfather to join the competition to become his new heir.

This is not an easy read. It is dark and sometimes confusing. I almost abandoned The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms before I finished it, but I stuck with it from a combination of sheer stubbornness and the appeal of the twisted romantic subplot. I am a sucker for any variation on the story of Psyche and Cupid, though this is more of a hint than anything close to a retelling. Fair warning, this book does contain a sex scene and there are no warm fuzzies. Everyone has hidden motivations; if morality is a spectrum, most characters lean away from the good end of the scale.

While The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms stands well on its own, readers will probably appreciate seeing how the story of these characters and their world plays out over the next two books in The Inheritance Trilogy. There is a diversity of cultures to this world that we are first led to believe is a mono-culture under the strict control of the Arameri. That Yeine's Darre people secretly hold some of their ancient beliefs and practices along with their darker complexions is easily assumed to be an exception. Jemisin created a very detailed world for this series, and it was difficult to appreciate or (for me, at times) to even grasp all of the meaning in a single reading. By looking at the same world, and some of the same events, from different perspectives in the second and third books, I gained a much clearer picture of the larger story.

That said, the murkiness of this book, where I was never quite sure of the motivations behind various characters actions or what their goals were, fit the themes of balance between light and dark or order and chaos rather well. That Yeine is trying to navigate this precarious, ill-defined space in her identity as outsider and elite, serves to emphasize the theme. This is one of several themes that Jemisin continues to examine and expand on throughout the series. I may've picked up The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms for a romantic fantasy, but I love The Inheritance Trilogy for a complexity that continues to make me think.

~Sarah, Carnegie-Stout Public Library

Read alikes:

The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin: The first book in her third series, which was just published in August, The Fifth Season also features unique worldbuilding (the main magical power is literally worldbuilding or at least a power over mountains, earthquakes, etc.), and a main character whose powers make her an outsider.

Uprooted by Naomi Novik: For readers who are looking for a more typical (thought not entirely predictable) romantic subplot, this might be a good fit. I also might just really like this book (see previous review here).

The Emperor's Soul by Brandon Sanderson: A novella length story featuring an unusual female protagonist trapped by the ruling elite. A faster-paced story with more of an emphasis on action, but still featuring well developed, complex characters that touches on some interesting questions of identity.

Review: City of Stairs by Robert Jackson Bennett

Title: City of Stairs

Author: Robert Jackson Bennett

Information on series: Not part of a series (EDIT: Has been picked up as the first in a series, second book expected in 2016)

Audience: Adult, though with appeal for some older teens

Rating (scale of 1-5, with 5 being highest): 4

TL;DR: A suspenseful mystery/spy mash-up with colorful characters that tackles complex issues of colonialism in a world where science has overthrown magic.

Longer review: Robert Jackson Bennett’s earlier books combined elements from the horror, fantasy, and mystery genres to create a creepy, bleak alternate early 20th century small town America. In City of Stairs, he presents a more straightforward fantasy novel, complete with imaginative world-building, while still incorporating elements from the pages of spy thrillers and mysteries. The use of a suspenseful mystery plot and a cast of very colorful characters makes this book a great choice for readers who are relatively new to fantasy.

The story is set in a world dominated by the island nation of Saypur, whose technological advancements (on par with the early 20th century) have completely upended the former world order. Saypur used their science to overthrow their former conquerors, the Continentals. The Continent was once gifted with divine magic, until those gods were killed by the Saypuri. Bennett explores the lasting impacts of colonialism and the ways that we define our cultural identities, while still maintaining an action-packed plot.

Shara has spent most of her adult life in exile on the Continent as an employee of the Saypuri Ministry of Foreign Affairs, specifically, as a spy for the Ministry. She is accompanied by Sigrud, her imposing and violent “secretary” with a mysterious past. Shara and Sigrud come to city of Bulikov to solve the murder of Effrem Pangyui, a Saypuri historian whose controversial research earned him no shortage of enemies. Bulikov was once a city of wonders, the cultural and religious center of the Continent, but now wallows in poverty and disease.

At 450 pages, this is not a short book, though the plot moves along so quickly I found it difficult to put down. Another point in City of Stairs’ favor is that it is not part of a larger series, so readers aren’t being asked to commit to three or more books that may or may not have been written yet. By the last pages, most of the plot threads are wrapped up more or less neatly, but between the imaginative setting and the interesting characters (the foul-mouthed female military commander, Mulaghesh, was probably my favorite), I would be perfectly happy if Bennett did write a sequel some day.

If this sounds like your cup of tea, you might also enjoy:

Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone: Gladstone’s debut is a mix of fantasy and steampunk with a fast-paced mystery plot. Tara, a first-year necromancer, is assigned to revive a dead god, but discovers a murder.




The Spirit Lens by Carol Berg: First in a series set around the Collegia Magica, the last college of magic in a world where science has gradually gained supremacy. Portier de Savin-Duplais, a Collegia librarian, is asked to investigate an attempted murder that quickly becomes more complicated.

Cast in Shadow by Michelle Sagara: A gritty work of fantasy, and the first in a series of mysteries. Hawks are the equivalent to police in the City of Elantra, and Kaylin is a new patrol officer out to find a serial murderer of children.




Review by Sarah Smith, Carnegie-Stout Public Library