Hello! My name is Chie. I am likely to be the girl you'll see whose eyes would bulge out of their sockets at the sight of a book store and be seized by waves of epileptic shock whenever there is a book bargain. I'll probably be the one pushing you out of my way to get through the book bargain bins and tediously combing through the pile. (I forget my manners when it comes to books). I am tone deaf and have two left feet. But I would endure the embarrassment of a performance in exchange for books (terms and conditions apply). I have created this blog in order to find kindred souls. Those who would gladly share the same passion for books and reading because although reading is solitary task most of the time, it's no fun having no one to ramble to after..
Synopsis: A week ago, thirteen-year old Jack McKinley was a normal kid leading a normal life - totally unaware that he was about to die. He's cursed with a genetic abnormality that's giving him amazing powers too quickly for his body to handle. Jack's only hope: Find the seven lost Loculi that we're hidden in the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by the last prince of Atlantis. Only they contain the magic to save him - and the world.
After unearthing the first Loculus and defeating the Colossus of Rhodes, Jack and his friends are in worse shape than when they first set out. Marco has disappeared without a trace, along with the first Loculus. With no time to spare and no one else to turn to, Jack and the gang have no choice but to follow the only clues they have and to head off on the next leg of their epic quest - to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
Review: I've been meaning to write a post a couple of days back but since I am too lazy to do it I didn't. And since I am running out of excuses I've decided it's time to go back and dust off the cobwebs that have formed in this virtual home of mine. After my curiosity was aroused by the first book, The Colossus Rises, of the Seven Wonders series , I decided to read the next book, Lost in Babylon.
The adventure continues as Jack and his friends travel to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in the pulse-pounding second title in the Seven Wonders series. With Marco gone and the first Loculus lost, Jack, Cass, and Aly are no closer to saving themselves (or the world) than when they first arrived at the Karai Institute. But whenever Bhegad tracks down Marco deep in the desert, the kids are off on the next leg of their quest - to the ancient city of Babylon. There, the kids find themselves faced with a daunting choice that makes them question everything they've learnt so far. It's a gut wrenching decision, but what the kids don't realise is that it's also a trap. Surprises pile on surprises until a long-lost figure from Jack's past returns, and the kids find themselves forced to engineer an escape that might just turn out to be a different kind of trap altogether.
I am sorry but that cover really reminds me of Rick Riordan's The Red Pyramid. It's quite distracting to see so many similar elements. Anyway, going past that and on to the goodies. The first surprise is the dedication page, which reads: "For my amazing friends at the National Book Store and MPH and the great readers they serve on the other side of the world."
Whoa! Our very own National Book Store has been mentioned. I dimly recall that Peter Lerangis has visited the country via NBS, but I was not a fan back then. Drat that luck. But it's really cute that he mentions his Eastern fans since we don't get much love or mentions from foreign author. He also mentioned Manila, TWICE in the story!
Jack, Aly, Cass and Marco are back! I have come to enjoy their rapport with each other, despite the worrying disappearance of Marco at the end of the first book. Lost in Babylon is actually peppered with hints of Marco's secret agenda, but I already suspected it early on (or maybe it's just my paranoid nature). Still, when Marco's change of mind finally revealed, it still felt like a blow to me. I have come to view the four of them as a family. At the start, I thought he just truly believed that Karai are the bad guys, but when his great plan is finally revealed, I discovered his instinct - greed for power - is the true inducement for his switching towards the other side.
The dreams that Jack keeps having make me more convinced that he's truly descended from one of the two brothers. Of the four of them, he's the only one who has no real physical talent (brains, brawns, memory) and he's the only one who keeps getting dreams from the Mother Qalani and the two brothers, Karai and Massarym. Plus, my suspicion is aided by that bomb that Lerangis' drops on the readers by the end of the book which I will not reveal because it's a game changer!
Literary fiction is currently populated with YA books involving adventures around the world, but I think Lost in Babylon stands out in particular because it talks about an ancient wonder that is quite popular but not much explored in fiction.
Discovering (or rediscovering) places around the world is one of the reasons why I love to read books, and reading about the Hanging Gardens of Babylon has spurred me on to read more about it. I can say I am very excited to read the rest of the series because I want to read about the five remaing wonders, as stylized in fiction.
Peter Lerangis' has definitely improved with regards to visualisation. Unlike in The Colossus Rises, I was able to picture in my mind's eye how the Hanging Garden must have looked. What I felt lacking in Lost in Babylon is the other two characters, Aly and Cass. They felt like lackeys, and not the heroes I believe they are. I am hoping that the next book/s will be narrated from either of the two's perspectives, since I believe they can do so much more than they are currently portraying.
My liking for the series has improved since the first book. Lost in Babylon has alot of great elements that make it an exciting book - good characters who have potential to be great, a typical locations for the heroes' adventure, and a fluid writing style by Lerangis, which seems to be gaining stride with each book. Definitely looking forward to the next books in the Seven Wonders series.
Have you read any of the books in the series? How do you like it so far? Are you pro-Karai or pro-Massa?
Synopsis: A week ago, thirteen-year old Jack McKinley was a normal kid leading a normal life - totally unaware that he was about to die. He's cursed with a genetic abnormality that's giving him amazing powers too quickly for his body to handle. Jack's only hope: Find the seven lost Loculi that we're hidden in the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by the last prince of Atlantis. Only they contain the magic to save him - and the world.
After unearthing the first Loculus and defeating the Colossus of Rhodes, Jack and his friends are in worse shape than when they first set out. Marco has disappeared without a trace, along with the first Loculus. With no time to spare and no one else to turn to, Jack and the gang have no choice but to follow the only clues they have and to head off on the next leg of their epic quest - to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon.
Review: I've been meaning to write a post a couple of days back but since I am too lazy to do it I didn't. And since I am running out of excuses I've decided it's time to go back and dust off the cobwebs that have formed in this virtual home of mine. After my curiosity was aroused by the first book, The Colossus Rises, of the Seven Wonders series , I decided to read the next book, Lost in Babylon.
The adventure continues as Jack and his friends travel to the Hanging Gardens of Babylon in the pulse-pounding second title in the Seven Wonders series. With Marco gone and the first Loculus lost, Jack, Cass, and Aly are no closer to saving themselves (or the world) than when they first arrived at the Karai Institute. But whenever Bhegad tracks down Marco deep in the desert, the kids are off on the next leg of their quest - to the ancient city of Babylon. There, the kids find themselves faced with a daunting choice that makes them question everything they've learnt so far. It's a gut wrenching decision, but what the kids don't realise is that it's also a trap. Surprises pile on surprises until a long-lost figure from Jack's past returns, and the kids find themselves forced to engineer an escape that might just turn out to be a different kind of trap altogether.
I am sorry but that cover really reminds me of Rick Riordan's The Red Pyramid. It's quite distracting to see so many similar elements. Anyway, going past that and on to the goodies. The first surprise is the dedication page, which reads: "For my amazing friends at the National Book Store and MPH and the great readers they serve on the other side of the world."
Whoa! Our very own National Book Store has been mentioned. I dimly recall that Peter Lerangis has visited the country via NBS, but I was not a fan back then. Drat that luck. But it's really cute that he mentions his Eastern fans since we don't get much love or mentions from foreign author. He also mentioned Manila, TWICE in the story!
Jack, Aly, Cass and Marco are back! I have come to enjoy their rapport with each other, despite the worrying disappearance of Marco at the end of the first book. Lost in Babylon is actually peppered with hints of Marco's secret agenda, but I already suspected it early on (or maybe it's just my paranoid nature). Still, when Marco's change of mind finally revealed, it still felt like a blow to me. I have come to view the four of them as a family. At the start, I thought he just truly believed that Karai are the bad guys, but when his great plan is finally revealed, I discovered his instinct - greed for power - is the true inducement for his switching towards the other side.
The dreams that Jack keeps having make me more convinced that he's truly descended from one of the two brothers. Of the four of them, he's the only one who has no real physical talent (brains, brawns, memory) and he's the only one who keeps getting dreams from the Mother Qalani and the two brothers, Karai and Massarym. Plus, my suspicion is aided by that bomb that Lerangis' drops on the readers by the end of the book which I will not reveal because it's a game changer!
Literary fiction is currently populated with YA books involving adventures around the world, but I think Lost in Babylon stands out in particular because it talks about an ancient wonder that is quite popular but not much explored in fiction.
Discovering (or rediscovering) places around the world is one of the reasons why I love to read books, and reading about the Hanging Gardens of Babylon has spurred me on to read more about it. I can say I am very excited to read the rest of the series because I want to read about the five remaing wonders, as stylized in fiction.
Peter Lerangis' has definitely improved with regards to visualisation. Unlike in The Colossus Rises, I was able to picture in my mind's eye how the Hanging Garden must have looked. What I felt lacking in Lost in Babylon is the other two characters, Aly and Cass. They felt like lackeys, and not the heroes I believe they are. I am hoping that the next book/s will be narrated from either of the two's perspectives, since I believe they can do so much more than they are currently portraying.
My liking for the series has improved since the first book. Lost in Babylon has alot of great elements that make it an exciting book - good characters who have potential to be great, a typical locations for the heroes' adventure, and a fluid writing style by Lerangis, which seems to be gaining stride with each book. Definitely looking forward to the next books in the Seven Wonders series.
Have you read any of the books in the series? How do you like it so far? Are you pro-Karai or pro-Massa?
