kaseni's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
linda_03's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
clarian's review against another edition
3.0
Meh
Me gustó:
-Magnus y Alex son super monos!!! Los shippeo muchísimo y al principio pensaba que estaba loca por shipearlos, pero woah o sea me encantan como pareja.
-El setting. Loved Boston.
-Esa llamada final entre Anabeth y Magnus con ella con la voz rota y claramente afectada...Qué habrá pasado en la saga de Apolo.....
-Lo reguiré repitiendo hasta la saciedad: la diversidad de esta saga me enamora: TJ es un personaje de color, Heart es mudo, Alex es gender fluid, y Samirah una chica musulmana. Me impactó poaitivamente como Rich dio visibilidad a este último personaje en concreto con la incorporación del Ramadán en este último libro o con como a Sam a veces por la calle la insulten o menosprecien con comentarios sobre terrorismo. Bravo Rick!!!
-Me encantó el gran barco AMARILLO que Frey le regala a Magnus
-Mi parte favorita de este libro fue cuando al final Magnus pide a Odín que le facilite el abrir su mansión como un refugio para jóvenes sin hogar, otra realidad a la que el autor también da voz en este libro.
-Lo que no me gustó:
-El libro ni me enganchó en ningún momento.
-Me faltó desarrollo de personajes. Hay algunos de ellos como Mallory, Halfborn o T.J. que me sobraban en el grupo.
-El final fue decepcionante; que el enfrentamiento final estre Magnus y Loki fuera simplemente una batalla de insultos sin siquiera gracia me pareció un final queerecía mucho más.
-Para ser el dios del verano Frey es de lo más sos de lo Aesir.
-La trama era absolutamente predecible, y lo único que me hacía querer acabar el libro era ver como iba a desarrollarse todo estre Magnus y Alex.
Me gustó:
-Magnus y Alex son super monos!!! Los shippeo muchísimo y al principio pensaba que estaba loca por shipearlos, pero woah o sea me encantan como pareja.
-El setting. Loved Boston.
-Esa llamada final entre Anabeth y Magnus con ella con la voz rota y claramente afectada...Qué habrá pasado en la saga de Apolo.....
-Lo reguiré repitiendo hasta la saciedad: la diversidad de esta saga me enamora: TJ es un personaje de color, Heart es mudo, Alex es gender fluid, y Samirah una chica musulmana. Me impactó poaitivamente como Rich dio visibilidad a este último personaje en concreto con la incorporación del Ramadán en este último libro o con como a Sam a veces por la calle la insulten o menosprecien con comentarios sobre terrorismo. Bravo Rick!!!
-Me encantó el gran barco AMARILLO que Frey le regala a Magnus
-Mi parte favorita de este libro fue cuando al final Magnus pide a Odín que le facilite el abrir su mansión como un refugio para jóvenes sin hogar, otra realidad a la que el autor también da voz en este libro.
-Lo que no me gustó:
-El libro ni me enganchó en ningún momento.
-Me faltó desarrollo de personajes. Hay algunos de ellos como Mallory, Halfborn o T.J. que me sobraban en el grupo.
-El final fue decepcionante; que el enfrentamiento final estre Magnus y Loki fuera simplemente una batalla de insultos sin siquiera gracia me pareció un final queerecía mucho más.
-Para ser el dios del verano Frey es de lo más sos de lo Aesir.
-La trama era absolutamente predecible, y lo único que me hacía querer acabar el libro era ver como iba a desarrollarse todo estre Magnus y Alex.
caitie_spiegs's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Favourite of the series. Last few scenes made me emotional. Again high star rating because of Alex and Magnus. Crossover book.
booksforyou's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
fonika's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
scarlettbastille's review against another edition
3.0
~Spoiler free review~
Characters: 6/10
Normally I love Rick Riordan characters. I mean, the seven from Heroes of Olympus are some of my favourite ever. However, I can’t say I’m as enamoured with the characters in this book. Magnus has never been a favourite of mine to be honest. He’s a bit boring – he can’t compare with the sass of some of the other characters, like Alex. The same could be said of Samirah – I just find her a bit dull. Alex is definitely one of the best characters; adding some much needed attitude and colour to an otherwise bland cast. They’re not awful, don’t get me wrong. They just aren’t exciting. To my disappointment, two of my faves from previous Magnus Chase books: Hearthstone and Blitzen, weren’t really featured that heavily. Others, such as Mallory Keen, took up a lot of the limelight – and I don’t really like her, sorry. The one redeeming factor (other than Alex) was the very brief cameo by Percy and Annabeth. Their appearance alone adds a few extra points to the character score. I just love them that much!
Plot: 6/10
Again, the plot just lacked the general pizazz that I’ve grown to expect from Rick Riordan books. I think part of it is that I’m beginning to grow a bit bored of the whole ‘hero has a really short amount of time to complete impossible quest’ trope. But aside from that, this novel was just too light. Honestly, I think that was my problem with it. I love Rick Riordan’s sarcastic, joking tone normally, but I feel that sense of ‘It’s all a joke’ was just taken too far in this book. I never had any real fear for the characters. The managed to gimmick their way out of every inescapable situation. Even the big finale was a bit of a let down. I mean, it was an entertaining plot. It just didn’t make me feel anything.
Writing: 9/10
I found the writing in this book very fluid. The fact that it’s intended for younger readers doesn’t detract from the quality of the writing but it does mean that it’s easy to read. It doesn’t feel like a chore, unlike some more wordy books. I also enjoyed the joking tone with which the whole book was told. It gave it a sort of quality as if the characters themselves were recounting a funny tale to you. However, I did feel that it was occasionally too jokey.
Enjoyment: 6/10
I would say that it took about 3/4 of the book before I actually started enjoying it. The last quarter was pretty decent and at that point I was reading because I was interested rather than out of some sense of loyalty to the author (I own pretty much every book Rick Riordan has ever published and I normally love them, so I actually feel kinda bad that I didn’t like this one as much). However, that said, this book did have its good bits and the bits I’d deem ‘bad’ weren’t really that bad.
Overall: 6.75/10
A quest like any other – and that’s the problem. The excitement has begun to dwindle and the action even more so. It’s still a decent story but don’t be expecting any heart-racing moments of suspense or epic battles because you’ll probably be pretty disappointed.
Characters: 6/10
Normally I love Rick Riordan characters. I mean, the seven from Heroes of Olympus are some of my favourite ever. However, I can’t say I’m as enamoured with the characters in this book. Magnus has never been a favourite of mine to be honest. He’s a bit boring – he can’t compare with the sass of some of the other characters, like Alex. The same could be said of Samirah – I just find her a bit dull. Alex is definitely one of the best characters; adding some much needed attitude and colour to an otherwise bland cast. They’re not awful, don’t get me wrong. They just aren’t exciting. To my disappointment, two of my faves from previous Magnus Chase books: Hearthstone and Blitzen, weren’t really featured that heavily. Others, such as Mallory Keen, took up a lot of the limelight – and I don’t really like her, sorry. The one redeeming factor (other than Alex) was the very brief cameo by Percy and Annabeth. Their appearance alone adds a few extra points to the character score. I just love them that much!
Plot: 6/10
Again, the plot just lacked the general pizazz that I’ve grown to expect from Rick Riordan books. I think part of it is that I’m beginning to grow a bit bored of the whole ‘hero has a really short amount of time to complete impossible quest’ trope. But aside from that, this novel was just too light. Honestly, I think that was my problem with it. I love Rick Riordan’s sarcastic, joking tone normally, but I feel that sense of ‘It’s all a joke’ was just taken too far in this book. I never had any real fear for the characters. The managed to gimmick their way out of every inescapable situation. Even the big finale was a bit of a let down. I mean, it was an entertaining plot. It just didn’t make me feel anything.
Writing: 9/10
I found the writing in this book very fluid. The fact that it’s intended for younger readers doesn’t detract from the quality of the writing but it does mean that it’s easy to read. It doesn’t feel like a chore, unlike some more wordy books. I also enjoyed the joking tone with which the whole book was told. It gave it a sort of quality as if the characters themselves were recounting a funny tale to you. However, I did feel that it was occasionally too jokey.
Enjoyment: 6/10
I would say that it took about 3/4 of the book before I actually started enjoying it. The last quarter was pretty decent and at that point I was reading because I was interested rather than out of some sense of loyalty to the author (I own pretty much every book Rick Riordan has ever published and I normally love them, so I actually feel kinda bad that I didn’t like this one as much). However, that said, this book did have its good bits and the bits I’d deem ‘bad’ weren’t really that bad.
Overall: 6.75/10
A quest like any other – and that’s the problem. The excitement has begun to dwindle and the action even more so. It’s still a decent story but don’t be expecting any heart-racing moments of suspense or epic battles because you’ll probably be pretty disappointed.
herodotusow's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5