Book Review: The Ship of the Dead by Rick Riordan

Magnus Chase, a once-homeless teen, is a resident of the Hotel Valhalla and one of Odin’s chosen warriors. As the son of Frey, the god of summer, fertility, and health, Magnus isn’t naturally inclined to fighting. But he has strong and steadfast friends, including Hearthstone the elf, Blitzen the dwarf, and Samirah the Valkyrie, and together they have achieved brave deeds, such as defeating Fenris Wolf and battling giants for Thor’s hammer, Mjolnir. Now Magnus and his crew must sail to the farthest borders of Jotunheim and Niflheim in pursuit of Asgard’s greatest threat. Will they succeed in their perilous journey, or is Ragnarok lurking on the horizon?

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Short and Sweet: Eh.

I just..

I can’t believe I’m actually going to type these words. Get ready for it…

I didn’t enjoy a Rick Riordan book.

This one just felt, well, different. It didn’t give me the same feeling as all the other books I’ve read by him. I don’t know why.

I loved all the characters. There was a wonderful set of diverse, well thought out, well rounded characters. But something was missing. I’m not sure if it’s just my interest in Greek and Egyptian mythology that fueled my love of his books, and this diversion from what I know made me not love this. I’m really not sure.

Now, granted, I didn’t hate it. It still had the witty banter and the sarcasm that you come to love and expect from Rick’s books. On more than one occasion I found myself laughing out loud or reading the chapter title to the nearest person (normally my husband) that would find it amusing. It just didn’t have that stomach clenching, how-are-these-characters-going-to-survive feeling.

I guess it was missing that wonderment and that connection that I became so used to experiencing.

Ah well, what can you do?

I’ve said it a million times: you’re not going to love everything an author ever writes. So just close the book, place it back on the shelf (hey, it’s still pretty, right?) and move on to the next novel they release.

I’m certainly sad I didn’t love it, but I’m sure plenty of other people are going to adore it. If you like mythology and adventure, definitely check this out!

Until next time,