The Red Pyramid

I just read Rick Riordan's new book, The Kane Chronicles: The Red Pyramid. I was on a long hold list at the library for the book, which wasn't surprising because there seem to be hold lists for all of Riordan's books right now. The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series is very popular, and I read it soon after starting to work at the library at the beginning of this year. It's a fantastic fantasy series (Can you do that to the English language? Fantastic fantasy?) revolving around the Greek gods of Olympus.

The Red Pyramid is the first book in the trilogy The Kane Chronicles, which are set in the 2010s, but include themes from ancient Egypt. Sadie and Carter Kane are siblings who have been raised apart after their mother died -- Sadie in London with their grandparents and Carter traveling around the world with their Egyptologist father, Dr. Julius Kane. The book starts with a biennial visit between Sadie, Carter, and their father. Dr. Kane takes them to the British Museum, where he accidentally causes and explosion and releases Set (the ancient Egyptian god of chaos), who "banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives." Sadie and Carter embark on a journey to stop Set, save their father, and uncover the secrets of their family history.

The book is written as a transcript of a recording made by Sadie and Carter. It mainly reads as a normal story but is occasionally interrupted by Sadie and Cater's sibling banter. As with the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Riordan's writing in The Red Pyramid is witty and at times laugh-out-loud funny. I learned a lot about ancient Egypt, but the information was tied in with the story, which kept it from feeling like a text book. The second book will be released in the spring of 2011 and the third in the spring of 2012. I can't wait!