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It has been a weird couple of weeks but I was able to get a fair amount of reading in.
Thirteen-year-old Sik wants a simple life going to school and helping at his parents' deli in the evenings. But all that is blown to smithereens when Nergal comes looking for him, thinking that Sik holds the secret to eternal life.Turns out Sik is immortal but doesn't know it, and that's about to get him and the entire city into deep, deep trouble.
Sik's not in this alone. He's got Belet, the adopted daughter of Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, on his side, and a former hero named Gilgamesh, who has taken up gardening in Central Park. Now all they have to do is retrieve the Flower of Immortality to save Manhattan from being wiped out by disease. To succeed, they'll have to conquer sly demons, treacherous gods, and their own darkest nightmares. ~Goodreads Description
This was such a great book. Mr. Chadda does such a good job drawing us in with the main character Sik. Sik is a sweetheart and is a very earnest young man just trying to do his best. I love learning about the mythology and the plot was very apropos for today. I honestly didn't want to put it down when it was time to go to bed. I highly recommend it!
In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon. But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place. As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection...because one wrong move could lead to her death. ~Goodreads Description
Mirage was such a well written story. I loved Amani she is a very sympathetic character and you can't help but feel for her as her whole life is uprooted all because she looks like the princess. The princess Maram is a piece of work who takes her fear and anger out on everyone else and her new favorite target is Amani. The journey Amani goes on to become the perfect doppelganger for Maram is a harsh one but there is hope at the end of this book. I can't wait to read the next one.
( Two more under the cut... )
Thirteen-year-old Sik wants a simple life going to school and helping at his parents' deli in the evenings. But all that is blown to smithereens when Nergal comes looking for him, thinking that Sik holds the secret to eternal life.Turns out Sik is immortal but doesn't know it, and that's about to get him and the entire city into deep, deep trouble.
Sik's not in this alone. He's got Belet, the adopted daughter of Ishtar, the goddess of love and war, on his side, and a former hero named Gilgamesh, who has taken up gardening in Central Park. Now all they have to do is retrieve the Flower of Immortality to save Manhattan from being wiped out by disease. To succeed, they'll have to conquer sly demons, treacherous gods, and their own darkest nightmares. ~Goodreads Description
This was such a great book. Mr. Chadda does such a good job drawing us in with the main character Sik. Sik is a sweetheart and is a very earnest young man just trying to do his best. I love learning about the mythology and the plot was very apropos for today. I honestly didn't want to put it down when it was time to go to bed. I highly recommend it!
In a star system dominated by the brutal Vathek empire, eighteen-year-old Amani is a dreamer. She dreams of what life was like before the occupation; she dreams of writing poetry like the old-world poems she adores; she dreams of receiving a sign from Dihya that one day, she, too, will have adventure, and travel beyond her isolated moon. But when adventure comes for Amani, it is not what she expects: she is kidnapped by the regime and taken in secret to the royal palace, where she discovers that she is nearly identical to the cruel half-Vathek Princess Maram. The princess is so hated by her conquered people that she requires a body double, someone to appear in public as Maram, ready to die in her place. As Amani is forced into her new role, she can’t help but enjoy the palace’s beauty—and her time with the princess’ fiancé, Idris. But the glitter of the royal court belies a world of violence and fear. If Amani ever wishes to see her family again, she must play the princess to perfection...because one wrong move could lead to her death. ~Goodreads Description
Mirage was such a well written story. I loved Amani she is a very sympathetic character and you can't help but feel for her as her whole life is uprooted all because she looks like the princess. The princess Maram is a piece of work who takes her fear and anger out on everyone else and her new favorite target is Amani. The journey Amani goes on to become the perfect doppelganger for Maram is a harsh one but there is hope at the end of this book. I can't wait to read the next one.
( Two more under the cut... )
