Magnus Chaseand the Gods of Asgard: The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Way back in 2012, I read the Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan and I truly enjoyed the premise and the execution. And then I tried to read the Heroes of Olympus and the books became repetitive and I just stopped reading Riordan.  So when I saw Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard: The Sword of Summer at the library when I was browsing, I picked it up. I mean, I like Riordan's writing and I think he's very clever with his combining of contemporary worlds and the historical mythology. 

Riordan takes a young man who has suffered some difficulties in life and this character suddenly finds out that he is the child of a god and that he is responsible for saving the world. That's the plot of Percy Jackson and that's the plot of Magnus Chase. Percy is a dyslexic who finds out that he's the child of a Greek god. Magnus has been living on the streets as a homeless kid for a couple of years after his mom died who finds out he's the child of a Norse god. This is the sort of wish fulfillment plot that Riordan does repeatedly.

And, look, I like it. The plot is fast-paced, the writing is solid, and the whole thing is a magical ride into a world where you wouldn't necessarily want to live, but a nice visit would be welcomed.  I think that it is hard to distinguish between Magnus and Percy. There are parallels with other characters, too.  I think as a young reader, I would have appreciated this repetitive nature. It's why I read all the Nancy Drew books as a tween - I just like to hang out with my book friends. 

So, is this brand new? No. It's not even new for Riordan. But it is fun.  Also, I don't really know much about Norse mythology, but I think I'm going to have to do some research after reading this, so maybe you  might learn something if you read it.