Odin – Mom Read It

Fantasy, Fiction, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

New Legends of Orkney: Kalifus Rising

Posted on September 12, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Kalifus Rising (Legends of Orkney #2), by Alane Adams, (Sept. 2016, SparkPress), $24, ISBN: 9781943006052

Recommended for ages 9-14

In this sequel to 2014’s Red Sun, Sam Baron has freed Orkney from the Red Sun, but is now a prisoner of Catriona, leader of the Volgrim Witches. She’s determined to bend Sam to her will and use his half-god, half-witch power to mold him into the formidable force that will crush Odin and help her gain rule over Orkney and beyond. Fortunately, Sam’s not alone; his three best friends, Keeley, Howie, and Leo, find themselves drawn back into the fray to help save Sam. Each given their own quest, the three friends will learn more about themselves in this adventure.

Full disclosure: I didn’t read The Red Sun, and that’s to my detriment. While I could pick up the general gist of the story through exposition and dialogue that discusses previous events, I would have gotten more from Kalifus Rising if I’d read the first book (and now, it’s on my TBR).

This is a solid quest fantasy that your fantasy readers will love. I appreciated that it was a team effort to save Sam, and I love that each friend had a quest that taught them about themselves; some were given quests they didn’t feel cut out for, only to discover the inner strength to achieve the objective. It’s inspirational, which is the point of really good fantasy, isn’t it? The story concentrates on the importance and power of friendship: a key theme for middle graders; there are also great scenes where Sam reacts exactly like a tween/teen would when faced with a seemingly insurmountable task. He tries to convince Catriona that he’s moved over to her side, while relying on his inner strength to remind himself where he really stands, but as Sam – and by extension, the reader – learns, going it alone can be a tough and scary thing; the danger of losing yourself is real and having people around you to remind yourself of who you are is important. (And so is having a kick-butt mom, if I may say so, myself,)

Kalifus Rising debuted as the #1 hot new release on Amazon, so ride the wave and treat your fantasy readers to the Legends of Orkney series. Booktalk and display with Rick Riordan’s Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, Jasmine Richards’ Secrets of Valhalla, Keira Gillett’s Zaria Fierce trilogy, and K.L. Armstrong’s The Blackwell Pages series.

There’s a great Legends of Orkney webpage that includes a link to BattleKasters, a downloadable game based on the series! You want to see the trailer, right? Of course you want to see the trailer.

Fantasy, Tween Reads, Young Adult/New Adult

Enjoy more Tales from Asgard with a new trilogy!

Posted on May 31, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Thor: Dueling with Giants (Tales from Asgard #1), by Keith R.A. DeCandido (Mar. 2016, Joe Books Inc.), $9.99, ISBN: 9781772751970

Recommended for ages 12+

A new series of prose novels gives Asgardian fans more tales of Thor, the Warriors Three… and Loki, the eternal troublemaker. Dueling with Giants pits Thor against the Frost Giants when they seek revenge for a perceived slight against them by Odin. Little do the giants realize that a certain trickster’s been pulling all the strings the entire time… can Thor save the day?

Dueling with Giants is fun reading for any fan of the Marvel adventures of Thor and Co.: there are no other Avengers in this story, but they do get a brief mention. Loki’s here, providing just enough malicious trickery to keep the story moving along, and I was happy to see some hilarious banter between the Warriors Three, especially Fandral’s jabs at the self-titled Lion of Asgard, Volstagg. I was even more excited to see that the next chapter in the trilogy will center on Lady Sif, who really, really needs some more character study, especially since Marvel went and canceled Thor’s origin book, Journey Into Mystery, just as it was developing into a brilliant Lady Sif book.

The language and one or two standalone situations in the book suggest a slightly older audience than middle grade: I think it’s great for middle schoolers and above. Add it to collections where you’ve got comic fans, Marvel fans, and fans of fantasy that may have moved on from Rick Riordan but prefer more myth-based fantasy than current YA hot picks.

If you’re a fantasy fan – especially if you’re in a dedicated fandom – you know Keith R.A. DeCandido’s name. He’s written novels in the Supernatural, Star Trek, Sleepy Hollow, and Heroes universes; to name a few, as well as his original and prolific body of work. His author website provides links and more information about his work.

Fantasy, Fiction, mythology, Tween Reads

Neil Gaiman’s Odd and the Frost Giants: In which Thor, Loki and Odin get into trouble AGAIN.

Posted on March 16, 2014March 16, 2014 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Odd and the Frost Giants, by Neil Gaiman/illustrated by Brett Helquist. HarperCollins (2008), $14.99, ISBN: 978-0061671739

Recommended for ages 8-12

Neil Gaiman takes on Norse mythology with his tale of a lame young Norse boy named Odd, who encounters a bear, a fox, and an eagle in the frozen woods one day, only to discover that they are Thor, Loki, and Odin, on the run after Asgard is overrun by Frost Giants. They need Odd’s help to regain the kingdom and end the forever winter that the Frost Giants have spread throughout Midgard (and possibly, all of the realms). Is Odd smart enough to outwit the Frost Giants?

Gaiman adapts his storytelling voice for this story (as opposed to his dark fantasy voice that you can read in works like Coraline and Graveyard Book). The book is filled with his wry humor, especially in the interactions between Thor, Loki, and Odin – he gives Loki a particularly amusing voice, being the God of Mischief in the guise of a wily fox. Gaiman also excels at writing quiet, mild characters that achieve greatness through intelligence – Odd is yet another quiet Gaiman hero. Quiet kids will love how Odd uses his wits to save the day, rather than charging around Asgard swinging a war hammer and screaming for blood.

Brett Helquist’s art enhances Gaiman’s story with beautiful black and white sketches. The artwork lends a real authenticity to the Norse tale; the work could hail from a hoary, old tome, found in an old castle, it has such a wise old sense of timeliness about it.

I love Gaiman’s storytelling, and Odd is right there with his other work. This could enhance a unit on storytelling as easily as it could a unit on Norse mythology, and there are many activities to get kids writing that this book could inspire, including a Write Your Own Myth workshop, or asking the kids to put themselves in Odd’s place – how would they save Asgard? What would they do if they discovered three gods in the woods? Do you identify with Odd? What makes a hero heroic? There are many discussion topics that work for this book.