The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother's mysterious death, he's lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, keeping one step ahead of the police and the truant officers.

One day, he's tracked down by an uncle he barely knows-a man his mother claimed was dangerous. Uncle Randolph tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god.

The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war. Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years.

When an attack by fire giants forces him to choose between his own safety and the lives of hundreds of innocents, Magnus makes a fatal decision.

Sometimes, the only way to start a new life is to die...

“Even if we can't change the big picture, our choices can alter the details. That's how we rebel against destiny”

This book was thoroughly enjoyable. Going in, I didn't know if it was gonna turn out to be as hilarious as Percy Jackson and the Olympians, as it was a bit slow in the beginning. But I can now happily concur that I enjoyed it as much as PJO.

The characters were all a joy to read. Magnus was very perceptive of the people around him, whether he liked them or not. Every time he misheard a word or pronounced something incorrectly made me laugh a lot. The little pronunciation lessons were very helpful. Apparently, I'm not as good at pronouncing Norse words, as I am with Greek :D

Loki giving Magnus that pronunciation lesson in the beginning for ‘Hlidskjalf' made me split so bad because I was trying to pronounce it out loud as Loki was explaining it, but as the explanation got weirder, I had the same reaction as Magnus. Also, how come for Magnus, Loki only ever showed up whenever Magnus was dead, or dying. Also, I thought he was only projecting his illusions, didn't think they were tangible as it was shown in the end. Hmm, weird?!

The whole ASL thing was a joy to read. I didn't think I'd like Hearthstone's character as much as I did. Same with Blitz. I like how the author chose to explain the signs for some words to explain the double meanings. It was a joy to read. The constant banter between Blitz and Hearth, and how they supported/argued was really nice to read. One of my favorite parts of the book.

And, how many references did this book make to MCU o.O? Did they describe Frey as Chris Hemsworth?! Dear God.

Spoiler
Things I liked:
- Magnus's mom, just like Percy's mom.
- Hearth and Blitz protecting each other.
- Hearth and Blitz arguing with each other :D
- Did you make Hearth a bed, Blitz? I need one of those.
- Hearth being a plant! (There's too much Hearth on this list)
- Rune magic.
- Samirah, with her camouflage hijab.
- Loki, being an ass and charming all together.
- Magnus's description of Hearth's sign language.
- ASL communication
- The talking sword (Jack)
- Hearth saying he doesn't read sword lips, and Jack saying he can't read Elf hands (!!!)
- The pronunciation guide to Norse words, what is up with that?! PJO did that a lot too.
- Thor being into TV shows and mentioning that he was annoyed because he was a season behind on Sherlock. Appropriate reaction. I would be too if I was in your situation.
- The last fight with Fenris where Hearth grew flowers to protect everyone, and Jack flew around.
- Odin's PowerPoint presentation in the end.
- Also, have to mention Blitz clothes line.
- And lastly, Annabeth :) Can't say how happy I am to see you here! Where's Percy? Which book does he jump in?

Just because it's Rick Riordan, this book gets an automatic 5 stars. To be honest, it wasn't my favorite book by him that I've read, but it was still classic Rick Riordan. The entire thing was hilarious, especially the chapter titles, and full of action and learning. I also thoroughly enjoyed the few moments in which we got to see Annabeth and hope future books have more of her in it. Also, the few nudges that we get to Riordan's other book series made me smile.

É bom.
logo resumirei meus pensamentos sobre isso.

Pois bem (agora escrevendo livremente num teclado \o/): logo quando comecei Magnus Chase a “voz” da personagem me lembrou muito Percy Jackson, numa versão mais ácida de garoto de rua. Os títulos de cada capítulo fizeram pensar o quanto Rick Riordan realmente acredita em seu fandom fiel que lerá qualquer coisa que ele imaginar escrever (além das menções a série dos heróis do olimpo e a série dos olimpianos).
A linguagem também. Tive a impressão que não é destinado nem a um público muito teen nem a YA... ficou um pouco perdido entre ambos.
Gostei muito das personagens Sam, Hearth e Blitz são bem construídos (apenas o comportamento deles em relação a Magnus, principalmente de Blitz chamando o povo de 16 anos de “garoto” sendo que ele mesmo tem 20), e cativam muito, em especial Hearth. Até mesmo os secundários como T.J., X (!!!!!! gente, o que foi aquilo?), Mestiço, Mallory (não gostei muito dela) tem suas personalidades.

A releitura dos Deuses foi muito inusitada, principalmente para as mentes manipuladas por Marvel e assim por diante.

A história em si é um pouco arrastada, muitos eventos que aconteceram.... acho que poderia ter passado sem.
Enfim, espero que a série melhore e surpreenda.

5 stars..

Loved it to the core..

I had too much fun reading this..and it has some amazing scenes..

Like Thor is talking about League of Assassins from Arrow TV series & skipping important fight for Game of Thrones..
And the humor of Magnus Chase is awesome...Volkswagen and Captain Gorilla..

And Last we have an evil LOKI...evil and evil....

Now i need the next book..

Rick Uncle why you are killing us with awesome stories...

I love you and Thanks to you for writing some of the Best books that i read in my Life UNCLE RICK