Book Review: Seven Wonders Series

"Imagine! In each of us lies the potential to do superhuman things. Feats of great physical daring, art, science. The ability to defy laws of nature.” 

 

We have to keep up the book reviewing.  I like books, guys.  If that bothers you, then you don't have to read any post that starts "Book Review."  However, I think it is still a worthwhile activity.

Also worth mentioning, that this book review is exercising clause 1 in my book review charter that I'll write someday.  It says that we can review an incomplete book series, so long as the rest of the series has not yet been published.

I got into Seven Wonders via Percy Jackson, to be honest.  Let me tell you a story.  A few years ago, I was a nanny to two little boys for a summer.  At the end of the summer, the family gave me, as a going away present, a Barnes and Noble's gift card.  I knew some of what I wanted to get, but I didn't know everything.  I was still in college, and in that sad part of my life where I didn't read as much as I would have liked.  But, I went to the Barnes and Noble's employee and said, "If I like children's lit, but haven't been keeping up with the genre, what is the one series that I have to read?"  This Barnes and Noble's employee took me straight to the Percy Jackson books.

The movie was already out at this time, but I hadn't seen it (which was probably a good thing, because I probably would have never read them based off of the movie--so, it's a good thing that I have my "can't watch the movie until you read the book rule), but I had heard about it.  And I figured if this bookstore employee didn't need to even think about the question, how bad could it be, right?

And from chapter 1, I was hooked.  When I was in college, I had a rule that I could buy one paperback per paycheck, because I was poor.  So, I would read one and would then have to WAIT until I could buy the next one.  It was torture.  But, I managed to do it, and I read all the first series quickly.

Since I put them on goodreads, goodreads recommendations obviously recommended that I read 39 Clues--since the first 39 Clues book, Maze of Bones, was written by Rick Riordan (though he didn't write any more of them).  It would pop up on my goodreads recommendations every once in awhile, and I'd think, "I should read that some time,"  but I didn't read it.  Then, I graduated from college, and saw the entire series on the shelf of the Tooele Library.  I remembered that I had always thought I'd read those eventually, and if it's written by Rick Riordan, how bad could it be, right?

So, once again, from chaper 1, I was hooked.  39 Clues is written by multiple, successful YA writers (kind of like Spirit Animals--which I also need to read, but haven't)--a Scholastic-Books-Built-"Dream-Team."  One of those writers is Peter Lerangis.  So, goodreads recommended Seven Wonders, which is one of Peter Lerangis's independent series.  I was hesitant.  The two of the 39 Clues that Lerangis wrote (Sword Thief and Viper's Nest) weren't my favorite.  But I wondered if that was because the historical mystery/culture/whatever that the Cahills took on those ones weren't really fascinating.  Plus, the characters changed subtly from writer to writer, and I did like the way he played up Dan Cahill's kind of quirky doofusness without making him obnoxious (a feat many of the writers couldn't handle) and seemed to embrace Amy Cahill's shy and quiet perfectionism without acting like it was a trait that needed to be changed, which many writers struggle with.  So, I gave him a chance.

I am so glad that I did.

Jack McKinley is a regular , thirteen-year-old kid who, for no apparent reason, wakes up one day twtichy and spasy. Then, he just passes out.  After he wakes up, he learns that he, along with three other kids who have also been abducted to a desert isle, have a genetic mutation known as G7W.  They all have near superpower manifestations of various different talents, but it has a toll.  They are metabolically unstable and no one with G7W has lived past the age of fourteen, and his passing out was his first attack of the metabolically instability.  In order to stabilize themselves and save their lives, they must unlock the powers of all Seven Wonders of the Ancient World--unfortunately, only one of which is still standing.



Jack, and the rest of the G7W mutants--Aly, Cass and Marco--have not long to save their lives, and they always have to choose whether or not it is worth it. 

These books are a high energy tale with lovable and believable characters, heart-rending betrayals, and secrets galore.  In the second book, they did have a reveal that I won't spoil, but it did kind of irk me--cliches of YA books.  But, it could have been worse.  I was also glad that Lerangis, as a Harvard-graduated biochemist, was able to build their disease believably.  He doesn't go into a lot of detail, but a lot of writers don't have the science background to craft believable diseases, so I commend him for that. 

Seven Wonders was a real treat to read, and I anxiously await the next installment.

A five star series (with a four star book) with my full recommendation.