The Thief Lord

"The Thief Lord" by Cornelia Funke, tells the tale of two run away boys, Prosper and Bo who take up residence in the city of Venice. They make friends with the prodigal Thief Lord and his friends, living out of an abandoned theater.

This week, I read the first six chapters of "The Thief Lord," and I've found it to be a compelling start to the book. Funke has done an excellent job of introducing many key characters among Prosper and Bo's friends and enemies. I've quickly come to love the responsible Prosper, the innocent Bo, the maternal Hornet and the rest of the Thief Lord's gang. I've also found myself sharing the children's' disdain towards Barbarossa, the disgusting pawnshop merchant who buys their stolen loot cheaply and sells it for ten times the amount.

The most interesting personality in the story so far, however, is that of Victor Getz, the private detective hired by Prosper and Bo's aunt and uncle to find them. He is obviously being put in the role of an obstacle for the boys to defeat or avoid, but he seems to be a genuinely nice person who wants to do the right thing. It will be interesting to see how Victor's relationship with the Thief Lord's crew develops.

"Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian," by Rick Riordan, is the fifth and final installment in the "Percy Jackson and the Olypians" series. Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon and Hero of the Prophecy, has been training and adventuring for five years, all leading up to the events of this book. The titan, Kronos, has been resurrected and now leads his armies to conquer Olympus, high atop the Empire State Building. Percy and his friends from Camp Half-Blood are the only hope for Earth and are willing to risk it all to fight the titans and defend Olympus. The previous four books have all culminated to this final battle between good and evil. However, the Lord of Time is no easy opponent do defeat.

The Last Olypian is a compelling read. At every pause, I found it more difficult to tear myself away from it. The book shows a realistic and satirical inner monologue from inside Percy's head as the story progresses.

Being based around magic and Greek mythology, not every kind of person is able to enjoy the story of Percy Jackson and the Olympians. However, it's a very funny book with plenty of wierd moments that are guarunteed to make you chuckle. I would definitely recommend it to readers of all shapes and sizes.

Ranger's Apprentice: The Siege of Macindaw

The sixth book in John Flanagan's "Ranger's Apprentice" series, The Siege of Macindaw is a captivating continuation of its predecessors. It tells the story of young Will Treaty, a once teenage apprentice to to the Ranger, Halt, now adult and full-fledged Ranger by his own merit and charged with watching over a fief of the kingdom, Araluen. This book picks up shortly after the end of the fifth book, "Ranger's Apprentice: The Sorcerer of the North." Will had journied North to the fief of Norgate to investigate the happenings of Castle Macindaw, only to be betrayed by the castle miltia and forced into the wicked forest of the sorcerer, Malkallam. However, it turns out that the evil sorcerer is really a simple healer, whose real name is Malcom. Will must retake Castle Macindaw to rescue his friend and stop the invading forces to the North.

The Siege of Macindaw is an awesome book, keeping a reader interested from beginning to end. There is never a dull moment in the story and all the characters are very well developed. I could barely ever put it down when I was reading. While reading, one really learns to love each character with a third person narrative that shares the perspective of several key characters.

While this book, and the series as a whole, is definitely aimed towards the medieval/fantasy loving audience, I believe that any lover of a story with daring heroism and rapier wit is bound to love it.