Bones of the Sun God

June 15, 2017
Back from Egypt, 13-year-old Sam Force has returned to his Boston boarding school. The white boy is summoned from class to the headmaster's office, where he's informed that he's been accepted to opera school in Switzerland. Sam hates singing, but it's a good thing St. Albans' headmaster and music teacher are so gullible as to believe this unlikely event. It's an elaborate ruse orchestrated by Mary Verulam, Sam's half-Egyptian, half-English hacker pal. Mary has arranged for Sam to travel to Belize to pick up his missing parents' trail. It's a good thing Mary has her own credit card; Sam wouldn't be able to travel to Central America without Mary's money or her intelligence. It's Sam's chance to learn more about his parents' role in a global conspiracy involving a network of pyramids and temples around the world. The book is peppered with well-placed reminders of the first book's events, but the conspiracy has too many pieces: a mysterious World War II submarine, the Ark of the Covenant, the Knights Templar, an evil, brown-skinned crocodile keeper and his "dark-skinned" ("like most of the locals") henchman, and a network of nefarious figures bent on destroying the world swirl together confusedly. The usual ordinary-boy-must-save-the-world-aided-by-a-much-smarter-sidekick plot. (Adventure. 9-13)

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August 1, 2017

Gr 4-6-Sam Force barely escaped from Egypt after a failed search for his missing archaeologist parents in the first installment of the series. After a few months of boring safety at a Boston boarding school, he is ready to continue the search among the Mayan pyramids of Central America. With a little manipulation (and a lot of deception) from his partner in adventure, Mary Verulam, Sam makes it to Belize. Nonstop action ensues as Sam and Mary follow clues from Mayan mythology and the Knights Templar, hoping the secrets of the ancients will lead to his parents. Bad guys abound (a few good ones show up, too), as do crocodiles, bombs, diabolical technological devices, chases of all kinds, and enough blood to satisfy even the thirstiest of youthful adventurers. This works admirably as a sequel, though it could be read alone in a pinch. As with the first volume, flamboyant action trumps character development, but the plot does thicken nicely here as Sam uncovers the surprising purpose of the pyramid network, and faces potential betrayal from his best friend. The writing is crisp and descriptive, with the added bonus of engaging readers in first Egyptian and then Mayan mythology, as well as the legends of the Ark of the Covenant and the Knights Templar. VERDICT Series fans, especially in the middle grades, will welcome this installment and look forward to what follows.-Katherine Koenig, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

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