The Viper's Nest- Book Review

I started and completed The 39 Clues: Viper's Nest. The book was so interesting that I just couldn't stop reading it. I really like the series, because the series is a collaboration of different examples. What I mean is that different authors write each book. The author, Peter Lerangis did a splendid job of reveling the branch that Amy and Dan are a part of. I recommend this series to anyone who can follow through history, because there are several historical figures that are present in each of the series. For example, in the Viper's Nest, it talks about Shaka. Shaka was the military commander of the Zulu Kingdom, which reigned a lot of central Africa during the Age of Imperialism. The thing that I really like about the series is that it uses a lot of allusions that can be quite popular among those who are really good at history or even those who completed World History. Here is a brief summary of the book.

After Irina Spasky dies while saving Dan and Amy from the fire that Isabel Kabra set on their uncle's cabin, Dan and Amy decode the last words of Irina and that directs them to Pretoria, South Africa. When they venture into Pretoria, they are given a postcard that suggests a connection with Shaka. As they unravel the history of Shaka, they must penetrate the Tomas base, where they will find a very important clue. Then they encounter their fellow family, the Kabras. And the book then ends with a family secret.

Now, that is all that I will tell you for the rest will be full of action and suspense. The rest of the book is just building up to the very end where you will learn about Amy's and Dan's family branch. Though the book is quite an easy read, it contains several literary elements. For example, on page 2 of The Viper's Nest, it states, "Isabel Kabra had done it.She had burned down their house in Massachusetts all those years ago, and Dan and Amy's parents hadn't been able to escape all those years ago. Now Isabel was finishing her job." The last sentence was the key clue to tell that the Kabras will, again, try to kill Amy and Dan again in this book. I think that the author gave too much information in that sentence. If Peter Lerangis would have just said something like "And now she tried to burn Uncle Alistair's cabin" or something along that line, it wouldn't have told that much. But the fact that she said "finishing her job" established that the role of the Isabel Kabra is to kill or attempt to kill Dan and Amy. 

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Cliffhangers

As I finish reading The Mark of Athena, I am just puzzled by the ending of the book. Rick Riordan completely blows my mind with the plots twists that he fuses into the story. For those who have not read or completed reading The Mark of Athena, first read the book and then read this post.

ATTENTION SPOILER ALERT!!!

So as you know, if you have actually read the book and have not decided to read this post without reading the book, that the ending of The Mark of Athena is a cliffhanger. The best thing about the cliffhangers that Rick Riordan implements is that the demigods or demigod, in some of his books, complete(s) the quest and makes it look like a happy little princess-like ending, but then with his evil thought, yet making good twists, he fabricates a never-ending suspenseful until the next book comes out. In The Mark of Athena, he concocts a ending where the demigods successfully succeeds their quest in finding Athena's Parthenos, a statue that went missing for thousands of years, and they rescue Nico and Rome. Then, of course, Rick Riordan doesn't stop there, he forges the plot structure of House of Hades with the ending of the book and makes Annabeth and Percy fall into Tartarus. If you think of this technique, cliffhangers, in a more broader view, you will realize a similarity between the books in the series and a typical essay.

One similarity between the Heroes of Olympus series and an essay is that the first book acts as an introduction in the "essay". But, after The Lost Hero introduces the long-term objective of the demigods, which is to stop Gaea from waking up, and states the objective clearly, which is like the thesis of the essay, Rick Riordan writes the "first body paragraph" that describes the first step to reach the long-term objective. Then eventually uses a transition that makes it easy for the reader to transition from the first book to the second book by using a cliffhanger. Then at the beginning of the second book he then states the quest in the second "paragraph". And then this structure continues on until the last book, which has the first part containing the last paragraph and the last part having the conclusion that ends "essay".

Though I do not enjoy reading cliffhangers, as a writer, I must comply with this strategy in order to keep the reader engaged throughout my writing. The cliffhanger will induce a emotion in the reader that is the goal of the writer. The emotion that it sparked in the reader will coax them to reader the writing further and will have a greater lasting impact on the reader.

I think that Rick Riordan did create an extremely suspenseful ending in the book, because I just couldn't stop thinking about how Percy and Annabeth would survive in Tartarus, which contains the most dangerous of the most dangerous monsters, if that makes sense.

My future plans in reading, would be to get hold of The House of Hades, but if I can't I will continue reading a series that I started last year- The 39 Clues, until I get the book.

Ghosts

By the title, you might be thinking that this blog will pertain to ghosts- well you are partially right. Yes, this post talks about ghosts; however, not necessarily the scary and supernatural ghosts that everyone thinks about, but the Ghost of Ravenclaw and the ghost in The Mark of Athena.

First things first, the ghost of Ravenclaw from the last book of the Harry Potter series had known a secret about the Ravenclaw diadem, which was lost for hundreds and hundreds of years. She helped Harry find the diadem, which was a Horcrux to defeat Voldemort.And on the other hand, there is the ghost The Mark of Athena. A group of three demigods, Annabeth, Hazel, and Piper are venturing to the White Point Gardens to find out about the ghost who apparently can help them.

Now, this is a straight out prediction, but I think that there is a connection between these events in two separate books, which are very similar as I have mentioned in my earlier posts. I think that Annabeth will find out a secret to help her find the stolen item of Athena. Just like in the case of the lost diadem, the stolen item of Athena will be revealed by the ghost. Though this prediction is not so well supported, I believe that there will be a connection between the last book of the Harry Potter series, The Deathly Hollows, and The Mark of Athena.

Surprise, Surprise

I previously predicted that Phorcys would help the demigods fight against the twin giants. BUT I WAS WRONG, WRONG, WRONG! I underestimated the relationship between Phorcys and Gaea. Since Phorcys didn't help the demigods; it seems as if he still has a touching edge or a somewhat decent relationship with his mother despite the problems between them both. I really like that element that Rick Riordan includes in the book, he makes Phorcy really despise his mother, but at the end of the day, Phorcy still is on her side. This really surprised me and made me realize that the readers who give the biggest surprise tend to become really good authors.

Now, I have revised my prediction on what is going to happen next in the book. I assume that Percy, Jason, and the group will go to Charleston as they planned and meet Bacchus again. I predict that this time though, Bacchus will help the demigods out after he is given the tribute he asked for before. Though Bacchus is asking for tribute to help the demigods, the demigods should be getting a favor for help saving the world. I think that Piper's dream of Bacchus foreshadows that Bacchus has a significant role in their quest. I also think the mention of him here and there kind of foreshadows that. The rest of the predictions that I have made seem to work and hopefully they are true. I am hoping to finish my book soon, so that I can dive into the House of Hades, which might be one of Rick Riordan's best books. I think that in that book, it is going to involve a lot of Hazel and Nico, but still be based around the demigod group.

Rick Riordan vs. J.K. Rowling

Well, I have read the most popular series by both these authors. I read Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. Both of them have a lot of similarities as I have shown in my last post; however, I have not shared my opinion on whose writing best connects and intrigues me.

My opinion is probably contradicting conformity. But first, I'd like to acknowledge that both the authors are fantastic authors and are special in their own way. But the author that most intrigues and fascinates me would be Rick Riordan. Now, I am not saying that the Harry Potter series is not amazing, but I am saying that the Percy Jackson series is more engaging and appealing for me. Now, I have several reasons for my decision. 

First off, Rick Riordan's incorporation of Greek mythology just shows how creative the author is. I know that J.K. Rowling is very creative, but she uses a lot more of imagination while Rick Riordan uses more of mythology. Even with a more limited amount of options with Greek mythology to incorporate in the Percy Jackson series than fictional magic in the Harry Potter series, Rick Riordan engages and teaches the reader Greek mythology which in my perspective is quite amazing.

Second, Rick Riordan makes the main character of the series, Percy, have several different characteristics. One being quite stubborn; however at the same time he is exceptionally caring. Yes, those two characteristics do not go hand in hand, but he somehow manages both traits. He never listens to anyone unless it involves hurting innocent people. Another trait that he can demonstrate is humorous. At the same time though, he can be quite serious and courageous. Finally he is simply heroic- now that statement is valid throughout the series. On the other hand, Harry demonstrates all these traits; however, I kind of imagine him to be more serious and stern than Percy and not have that much of a humorous aspect of him. Well, that's my opinion on Harry- your's might be different.

Finally, Rick Riordan just stirs up the story with several plot twists. This is especially true with the prophecies that Riordan includes in each of the books. Though he includes the direction or goal of the story, he makes the prophecies quite tricky to decode. But while reading the story, he constantly makes the reader think about what the prophecy might mean, making us more and more eager to read on. However, in the Harry Potter series, there is nothing really that interesting that J.K. Rowling makes you concentrate on other than how Harry will destroy Voldemort before Voldemort kills him. I do like the plot structure of the Harry Potter series; however, I personally believe that Rick Riordan's structure is more engaging to the reader.

Well, those are my reasons for which series I prefer. If you have any comments on my decision or any questions, please comment below. 

Harry Potter vs. Percy Jackson

Though I am not an avid reader, I have enjoyed reading for fun whenever I have any free time. Some books, like "The Son of Neptune", though a big book, have intrigued me so much that I literally finished have the book in one night. On the other hand, books like "The Great Gatsby" take hours and hours just to develop interest in the book and continue reading it. I have realized through my reading experience that any book that does not immediately attach the reader to the pages, in my mind, is just a waste of time. I only finish books that have an intriguing beginning making me more enthusiastic to read more. But more importantly, series are what I read the most.

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One series that I extremely admire would be the Harry Potter series. I admire it because it is so descriptive and just immediately intrigues the reader with all the outstanding magic and tricks. The author, J.K. Rowling, simply talks to the reader in a colloquial way, making the story easy to understand to everyone despite all the magical and wizardry words. Another series that intrigues me is the Percy Jackson series. This is simply because of how intriguingly the author incorporates Greek mythology and the description that is involved. These two series are very common and both these authors have a very similar plot structure.

Throughout both of these series, the main character are the key to solving the problem or crisis that is present throughout the series. And in each of the books, there is an essential task that the main character or characters have to accomplish to get a step closer to accomplishing the essential goal. I kind of think that this is a very common structure in series books. This structure is also present in the 39 Clues series. Though I really like all three of these series, I think that the authors should probably make a more authentic series structure to make the reader more intrigued by their style of writing.

Another similarity that I realized in the Harry Potter series and the Percy Jackson series was that all of them had three main characters- Harry, Ron, and Hermione in Harry Potter and Percy, Grover, and Annabeth. In the Harry Potter series, all three of these characters are essential in the plot; however, each of them have unique characteristics. For example, Harry is more of the leader and exhibits leadership qualities; Ron is more of the comical type of person; and Hermione is the smart one. Just like the Harry Potter series, the Percy Jackson series has these types of main characters too- Percy is more of the leader and has leadership qualities, but is more comical; Grover is probably mostly comic; and Annabeth is extremely smart. This shows that both J.K. Rowling and Rick Riordan have quite a similar mind and think quite alike.

Another big similarity between these two series are that they both have the mystical world and the author incorporates lots on imaginative elements into the story. However, in this aspect Rick Riordan is a little different from J.K. Rowling. Rick Riordan incorporates a mystical world that is not entirely his own, while J.K Rowling exhibits her own imaginative world. This shows that public really admire books that are similar to these for both of them had been extremely popular among the public.

NFL Criticisms

While reading some columns by Bill Dwyre for an English project, I read two columns by him- both of which criticized some aspects of the NFL. Both the articles criticized the NFL for several things including NFL injuries and bad behavior from NFL players. In the first article titled "The high price of heroism in pro football", it told me the situation where Wes Welker, one of the best wide receivers in the NFL, was returned to play with an undetected concussion. This shocked me; I knew that the NFL had several injuries, but I never knew these serious injuries would go undetected. The author of the NFL made me realize that NFL is not only dangerous with the injuries, but also the undetected injuries, because when Welker was sent back, he could have gotten a more severe concussion or even worse.

I am not at all shocked that the NFL has several injuries with all the tackling, but I am just still astonished with the undetected ones. I mean these injuries could have gotten worse and lead to permanent head damage and prevented him for ever playing football again. An especially when Welker a veteran wide receiver at the age of 32 and with a weight of 190 pounds. This makes this star player even more viable to severe injuries. I actually kept up with the Chiefs and Broncos game; however, I soon knew that the Broncos would leave with an easy win. Another factor that I am considering is that Welker didn't need to return, after all they were doing well and had other receivers to take his place, so why did the coach put him back in? All these factors are just astounding me on the fact that Welker was put back into the game with an injury at a not required time.

Now, in the second article titled "Fans need to stand up to the Richie Incognitos of the NFL", I learned how much the viewers impact the NFL. I mean yeah without the viewers football isn't all that fun; however, I am surprised that the viewer impact the rules in the NFL. For example, the article talks about how the NFL will realize its mistakes in the rules if we stop watching football and soon they will fix it. Well yeah they will fix it, but I thought the NFL cared more about their players than anything else. This article changed my whole perspective on the NFL. making this a remarkable column.

I am quite astounded on the fact that the NFL isn't really that strict on discrimination and bullying on teams. Richie Incognito, Dolphins player, was making rude remarks and comments on a rookie. The remarks included death threats and racial slurs. I personally thought that the Dolphins would fire Incognito before the NFL could take action; however, they only suspended him. I would expect the Dolphins to want a player who rolls with the team and it friends with everyone, not a bully. Also I would expect the NFL to take even more serious action on this matter, because it just makes the viewer and fans very sad and it is just very rude and not teammate-like (if that is a word).

I have sparked an interest in sports columns and I will more frequently write on some surprising columns that I read. However, I will definitely still write posts on "The Mark of Athena".

"The Mark of Athena"- Author's Intent

The book is talking a lot about trying to save the world from Gaea and contains a lot of Greek and Roman mythology; however, the author's main intent was to show the power of teamwork, friendship, and trust. This can be easily seen throughout the book. Through this intent, the author vividly depicts any type of sports team; in order for the entire team to reach success, the team has to have teamwork, demonstrate friendship between the teammates, and the teammates should trust each other. Though the author basically depicts a sports team, these morals can also teach the reader some lessons about friendship, teamwork, and trust.

One moral the book can teach is "Sometimes teamwork is the only way to accomplish a task." This is supported by the fact that the demigods can only defeat Gaea and her giants and save the world only by the Romans and Greeks joining forces and overcoming their problems. Only with the teamwork between the Roman demigods and the Greek demigods will Gaea be stopped. Another lesson is "Though you might have several differences, friendship and trust will easily overcome those differences." This statement can be supported by the fact that the demigods, Percy, Jason, Annabeth, Piper, Frank, Hazel, and Leo, all have several difference, the main being that some are Greek and others are Roman; however, they all are friends, for the most part, and they trust each other, so their differences don't really matter anymore.

Many books, like the Percy Jackson series and the Heroes of Olympus series, have one objective and focus on that; however, hidden beneath the text are morals. These morals pretty much base the story and give the story its meaning. Just like other series written by Rick Riordan, the Harry Potter series also has some hidden morals beneath the objective of Harry Potter. One moral that is present in the text is "friendship and trust is enough to reach the objective." Harry Potter defeats Voldemort by having friends and trust among the people in Hogwarts. The friends he makes and the people he trusts helps him accomplish this goal and save the world from Voldemort's wrath.

Another book that has hidden morals is also The Hobbit. This book relies a lot on trust, because with only a bunch of dwarfs, they are trying to voyage to the mountains and kill the dragon, who stole their home. So another moral is "With trust comes confidence, and with that confidence comes hope." In the book, since everyone trusted each other, excluding Bilbo for a little while, the dwarfs were confident in regaining the land that they have lost. And with that confidence, they accomplished wonders by surviving their voyage to the mountain and defeating the dragon with a limited amount of people. Overall, even though stories seem very exciting and thrilling, always look deep into the text and figure out the morals, because they will tell the true meaning of the book.


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"The Mark of Athena"- Important Sentences and Inferences

Throughout the book, one sentence can pretty much summarizes the entire book: "Twins snuff out the angel's breath, who holds the key to endless death." This line is part of the prophecy basically summarizes the goal of the seven demigods, which is to rescue Nico and save Rome from the twin giants. This prophecy essentially tells the demigods what they have to do in order to succeed in their quest. Their main quest is to put Gaea back to sleep and save the world from total destruction. After the demigods save Rome and Nico from the giants, they will accomplish the task that Nico was required to do in order to stop the dead from taking over the world: find the door of endless death and close it. Now that I have emphasized on the sentence that summarizes the book, I will move on to talking about most important sentence in the book. 

 

The most important sentence in the book is "The story goes that the Romans stole something important from the Greeks, back in ancient times, when the Romans conquered the Greeks' cities."  This one line gives the title of the book. The story goes that the Romans stole something that belonged to Athena and ever since then Athena sends her children to try to find it by giving them the "Mark of Athena". This theft is the reason for the hatred between the Roman and Greek demigods and without them working together, they will not be able to save the world from the wrath of Gaea. So this mini quest that they are doing is to not only close the doors of death, but to restore the peace between the Romans and Greeks.

I think that they will now go to the old god of the sea, Phocys, and see if he will help them save Rome and the twin giants. Though he is a child of Gaea, he doesn't like her, so they are going to go to the god hoping that he will help them defeat Gaea. Then I think that Phocys will actually fight them to see if they are worth the efforts. The demigods will win the bet and then Phocys will have help them. I think then they will voyage to Rome. 

So they go to Rome and on the way there, they fight monster and get stuck, which hinders them from accomplishing their task in time. However, they will eventually make their way to Rome and find Nico in time. By that time I expect the giants to be almost done with their task of destroying Rome. But, of course, they will be stopped and then the Greeks will find out that the twins actually stole the item from Athena and that will resolve the problem between the Greeks and the Romans. 

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