Ghostly Pick

The Hunt for the Seventh
by Christine Morton-Shaw
Katherine Tegan Books (Harper Collins Publishers), 2009 (paperback edition)
273 pages

Creepy, thrilling and mysterious, this novel will have young readers frantically turning the pages to figure out who the "seventh" is. Jim moves with his father and younger sister to an English manor known as Minerva Hall. It's steeped in history and mystery. The current master, Lord Minerva, is a grumpy old curmudgeon who detests children and Jim, it seems, in particular.


When Jim begins seeing visions of ghostly figures and statues of dead children, he realizes that there has been at least one murder at Minerva Hall. As he searches for answers, his life and his family's lives are threatened.

Mixing ancient rites and early English lore with the supernatural ghost story, The Hunt for the Seventh will appeal to those readers who love a ghost story and a mystery. Readers who have read Mary Downing Hahn's ghost stories are sure to like this book.

Recommended for readers grades 4-8.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for the library. I did not receive any monetary compensation for this review.

YA Pick

The Red Pyramid ( Kane Chronicles, Book One)

by Rick Riordan.

Disney, Hyperion Books, 2010.

516 pages.

Following on the heels of tremendous success with the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, Rick Riordan takes on the Egyptian gods. Not quite as fun or popular as their Greek counterparts, the gods from Egypt are darker and meaner. They may become as popular as the Greeks in the capable hands of storyteller Riordan.

The Red Pyramid is a fun, non-stop adventure with tongue-in-cheek humor and puns. Riordan makes fun of many of the foreign sounding names, like Djehuti, whom the main character, Carter, pronounces "Ja-hooty." Titles of chapters are also part of the joke. Chapter 35, for instance, is titled "Men Ask For Directions (& Other Signs of the Apocalypse). There are funny characters like an baboon who plays basketball and wears a Lakers jersey.

Carter and Sadie Kane are siblings whose parents are Egyptologists and who the kids learn later are descended from the original Pharoh families. The Kane children have special abilities like magic and are protected by a cat named Muffin, who turns out to be the ancient goddess Bast. Other gods help Carter and Sadie along the way, too. Hey, it's not easy saving the world!

The novel itself is dedicated "to all my librarian friends, champions of books..." Riordan remembers all the book talks and reviews fellow librarians have done in the past helping his books become best-sellers. For that, he is commended!

The Red Pyramid will excite those who read the Percy Jackson series. It, too, will be several installments--probably six books--and who knows, maybe a movie???

Recommended for YA collections grades 6-h.s. If you liked The Lightning Thief and its sequels, this book is for you!