Review: The Red Pyramid (Kane Chronicles, Book One) by Rick Riordan
The Red Pyramid
by Rick Riordan
Book One of ‘The Kane Chronicles’
Siblings Carter and Sadie Kane have very little in common with each other. Since the death of their mother six years ago, they’ve lived separately, Carter with their father Julius and Sadie with their grandparents. Neither one is looking forward to their Christmas Eve reunion at the British Museum, where Julius Kane - a well-known Egyptologist - has arranged a private viewing of the Rosetta Stone. Some Christmas, right? The kids are shocked when their father uses the stone to summon an Egyptian god, whom blows up the British Museum and whisks their father away in a coffin. Their uncle quickly arrives and takes the kids to New York City, where they learn that their family descended from the pharaohs of Egypt and both of the Kane children are hosting an Egyptian god inside them. Endangered because Set and his minions are hunting for them, Sadie and Carter begin an adventure around the world with the goddess Bastet, searching for a way to stop Set’s plans to bring the world down into chaos and save their father.
The Red Pyramid takes the elements that made Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and makes everything bigger and badder. Percy took readers on adventures around the United States; Sadie and Carter are globe trotters with stops in London, Washington DC and Cairo. Percy and the campers at Camp Half-Blood were the children of the gods; the Kane siblings are gods (or at least possessed by them). There’s more gods, more demons and tons more battles. It’s an adventure from start to finish.
That said, there are a couple of reasons why I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the Percy Jackson series.
1. Instead of having a single narrator, we have two. Sadie and Carter alternate telling the story - supposedly, they’re creating an audio recording, and the book is a transcription of the recording - which means that at the beginning of every chapter the two siblings start squabbling. “Shut up, Sadie” and “Yes, Carter, I do have to breathe occasionally” and other random asides don’t do much for the story. They’re just annoying.
2. Since the stories of Egyptian mythology isn’t as well known as the Greek and Roman myths, and construction of their universe further removed from our modern concepts, there’s a lot of info-dumping, usually from Carter.
3. The literal translations of the demon names, like “Bloodstained Blade” and “Face of Horror” sound pretty freakin’ silly.
I did find it cute, though, that Riordan managed to work one or two references to his other series into the book, indicating that the characters of Percy Jackson and The Kane Chronicles occupy the same universe. It was very subtle, but it was there, like a little Easter egg for his fans.
I think that kids will enjoy this series. I mean, I complained, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have fun when reading it. I’m hoping that the story will improve in later volumes, as the characters settle into their world, but even if it doesn’t The Kane Chronicles should be quite entertaining.
3.5 out of 5 stars
To read more about The Red Pyramid, buy it or add it to your wishlist click here.
by Rick Riordan
Book One of ‘The Kane Chronicles’
Siblings Carter and Sadie Kane have very little in common with each other. Since the death of their mother six years ago, they’ve lived separately, Carter with their father Julius and Sadie with their grandparents. Neither one is looking forward to their Christmas Eve reunion at the British Museum, where Julius Kane - a well-known Egyptologist - has arranged a private viewing of the Rosetta Stone. Some Christmas, right? The kids are shocked when their father uses the stone to summon an Egyptian god, whom blows up the British Museum and whisks their father away in a coffin. Their uncle quickly arrives and takes the kids to New York City, where they learn that their family descended from the pharaohs of Egypt and both of the Kane children are hosting an Egyptian god inside them. Endangered because Set and his minions are hunting for them, Sadie and Carter begin an adventure around the world with the goddess Bastet, searching for a way to stop Set’s plans to bring the world down into chaos and save their father.
The Red Pyramid takes the elements that made Riordan’s Percy Jackson series and makes everything bigger and badder. Percy took readers on adventures around the United States; Sadie and Carter are globe trotters with stops in London, Washington DC and Cairo. Percy and the campers at Camp Half-Blood were the children of the gods; the Kane siblings are gods (or at least possessed by them). There’s more gods, more demons and tons more battles. It’s an adventure from start to finish.
That said, there are a couple of reasons why I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the Percy Jackson series.
1. Instead of having a single narrator, we have two. Sadie and Carter alternate telling the story - supposedly, they’re creating an audio recording, and the book is a transcription of the recording - which means that at the beginning of every chapter the two siblings start squabbling. “Shut up, Sadie” and “Yes, Carter, I do have to breathe occasionally” and other random asides don’t do much for the story. They’re just annoying.
2. Since the stories of Egyptian mythology isn’t as well known as the Greek and Roman myths, and construction of their universe further removed from our modern concepts, there’s a lot of info-dumping, usually from Carter.
3. The literal translations of the demon names, like “Bloodstained Blade” and “Face of Horror” sound pretty freakin’ silly.
I did find it cute, though, that Riordan managed to work one or two references to his other series into the book, indicating that the characters of Percy Jackson and The Kane Chronicles occupy the same universe. It was very subtle, but it was there, like a little Easter egg for his fans.
I think that kids will enjoy this series. I mean, I complained, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t have fun when reading it. I’m hoping that the story will improve in later volumes, as the characters settle into their world, but even if it doesn’t The Kane Chronicles should be quite entertaining.
3.5 out of 5 stars
To read more about The Red Pyramid, buy it or add it to your wishlist click here.