The Soul of the World (Legends of Amun Ra #2) by Joshua Silverman

The ancient powers lost to Potara have returned. The Brotherhood of the Black Rose rises to bring Thoth into disorder. And, while the Brotherhood reclaims their power, chaos reigns among the survivors. Six individuals have emerged from the aftermath struggling for control over their lives and a divided land. Kem and Shirin, who abolished the five thousand year reign of the Amun Priests, rule from the golden throne of the Oracle’s Chair in the Hall of the Nine. Dio and Axios struggle to piece together a resistance worthy to challenge the ancient magic which resides in the Great Temple of Amun, and Leoros and Atlantia try to remain true to their hearts and their cause despite tragedy.

But when the Book of Breathings is discovered, the path to immortality is revealed. Leoros and Kem race to capture the Soul of the World unaware of the challenges awaiting them. This time, the gods themselves will intervene.

In a tale where boys become men and girls become women, where treachery and deception are around every corner, and where primeval mysticism finds its way back from the grave, victory is reserved for neither the good nor the evil, but the powerful.GOODREADS

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I didn't like this cover at first but looking at it now, it actually works. I've read the previous book in this series a long time ago and only remember bits an pieces. Not that the book isn't memorable, I just have really bad memory.

There were a lot of things that bothered me, but as a whole this is an awesome book and sequel.  I like mythology and this one doesn't only focus on popular Greek mythology but Egyptian as well. There's also a futuristic element to the world Silverman has created. The use of exo-skeletons in battle and holograms and other advanced technology. I didn't touch on this in my first review, but these three things: Greek, Egyptian and futuristic technology all in ancient Egypt ( or a version of Egypt) . The Greek and Egyptian mythology mixing them together and creating the story works and is believable even the advanced stuff works. However, I found it to be distracting at times and contradicting in  way. I would sometimes be so engrossed in the story that I would forget that they had such technology in Potara and  it would surprise me. Then there's the the Am-ra (energy), these abilities some of the characters have and the presence of mythological creatures. It's just a lot to take in and isn't always believable. But it works!

The narration bothered me as well. The story is told from multiple POV's but at times it feels really static and drags. It picks up in the last chapters.  Some of the dialogue as well sound really textbook-like. Especially when Leoros talks about energy and life. At times it seems like almost every person in this world has a sarcastic bone in their body...even the freaking Griffin and Sphinx can be sarcastic. It's like every thing or person has a default sarcastic punk as an alter ego. This isn't necessarily a bad thing but it's also not very dynamic. 

I didn't connect with any of the characters. The  story picks up two years after the events in The Emerald Tablet, Leoros is stuck on earth and wants to get back to Potara. Leoros is suppose to be the chosen one; He's the hero and I don't like him. I don't sympathize with this kid at all. The way he just  accepts his fate and jumps into the role of the savior is unbelievable. The characters that I even remotely liked were probably Dio and ( hate to admit it ) Shirin; Shirin reminded me of Artemesia from Rise of Empire. The way she took control of things and the way she encouraged Kem ( that arrogant bastard) to become a god. I can totally see Kem as the new God king......pharaoh?. Dio is an alcoholic now and eventually gets her *&%$ together. Her relationship with Axios has progressed and they've become closer. Even though Dio has fallen off the wagon they stick together; Dio even tries to commit suicide at one point. I mention this scene, because Axios catches her in the act. The way this event took place was interesting. They just calmly talked it out...even though she pulled the trigger and the gun was empty. The characters don't always react the way you think they will.

The book is called Soul of the World because Kem has to go looking for the Soul of the world to become a god. The soul of the world is a freaking dragon ( I am going with that). There is more to it then just a dragon, but seriously you do not want me to even try to explain it. In the end this dragon is defeated by Leoros with a magic sword. This happens in the end when Leoros , Atlantia and a new character Kevin show up in Ankar. They practically walk into the Resistance fight led by  Axios and Dio in the frey and the city being attacked by Kem's soldiers and ah.... ..did I mention the dragon?. Leoros and company enter the city on a flying griffin and spinx. 

I liked the last chapters because they were exciting and actually funny; Atlantia hits Leoros upside the head because the Sword of Thoth, which he had, could kill the dragon. I also hated that Axios, a supposedly awesome general didn't realize that Shirin was trying to capture Dio or that Dio was an important weapon in the war and sending her off on her own to fight the Brothers of the Rose was an idiotic move. These scenes where Shirin gives orders during the battle again reminded me of Artemesia, especially when she tells her general not to disappoint her. 


I don't know how to categorize this book. It could be sci-fi, it could be supernatural/spiritual. I definitely don't think it's Young Adult, because although some of the main characters are teenagers there's a lot of violence and some sex in this book. Shirin's past is riddled with violence and rape; this surprised me because I didn't really expect that. At times even though Leoros and Atlantia are suppose to be kids they sound really mature and being reminded of this fact, instead of being amazed by this it sounded unbelievable. 

The ending sucks and in a  bad way. I like it when the last line in a book lingers in your mind, it should be memorable. The chapter itself isn't bad it's just the last line ...Leoros after reading a prophecy off of a pyramid miniature literally says " I've heard that before"....that's the ending line...I'm not impressed.



Grade :

The Emerald Tablet ( Legends of Amun Ra # 1) by Joshua Silverman

Leoros doesn't have many friends. The son of a scientist and archeologist, he is constantly on the move. But when his parents make a startling discovery in Egypt, Leoros' world is turned upside down.

Description

Do you wish you could have the power of a god? Would you use it for good…or for evil?

When an archeologist discovers the mythic Emerald Tablet buried beneath Egypt’s desert, her son decodes the ancient text leading him to a distant world.

On that world, a slave girl begins a journey towards a destiny she cannot imagine. But when an ancient foe rises from the ashes, they will be brought together
by forces neither understands.

Leoros, who dreams of being like the heroes in the comic books, must fight to unlock the secrets of the universe to save a people he never knew existed.

Atlantia, whose bloody visions wake her in the night, senses the darkness coming.

Together they will face an enemy with the power of dark energy, lose a mentor to the assassin’s blade, and be betrayed by someone they trust. Their fight for the future is just beginning, and before it is over, a final sacrifice must be made. When the darkness comes, will they stand and fight or will they join it?

There is darkness in everyone.GOODREADS

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I expected this was going to be another story about a kid ending up in another world and having an adventure. Like that movie Warriors of Virtue or Alice in Wonderland. Although I suppose with all the Star Wars references it should be more like Luke saving a planet story. However my Star Wars savvy is limited to some popular phrases and yoda-talk. So I won't go there, everything I expected from this book was blown out of the window starting from chapter one.

The first chapter starts of with a disturbing and unpleasant scene. A girl being strangled by her father. The scene is very detailed, describing what the girl is feeling and how she blacks out. The father while he strangles her keeps asking her if she has ever felt hate. Eventually the girl escapes by unlocking an innate ability, she uses energy and throws her father away. That' was the whole point of the "exercise". The father,King Ankar, is the villain of the story. A man who wants to use his children and get vengeance.

The narration isn't that great. At times it sounds like an old wise science teacher or philosopher or like an enthusiastic kid playing with toy soldiers, the latter comes out especially in the scene where captain Axios is introduced. Also the narrator switches from one character to several together and describes what they're thinking and a bit of each characters background. 

This is a book with very good characterization. Every character has an interesting background but they have unpleasant personalities. But this can just be me and it's only at the start of the book. So bad first impressions. The characters are dynamic as well so they become more bearable in the second half of the book. Leoros was too accepting, he's 13, very young, goes through a portal meets an Amun Priest that says he's a kid from some prophecy and Leoros's reaction to this is basically "cool, teach me your ways". The other apprentices have unpleasant and shallow personalities. Again this changes later, while  some change for the better others not so much. The one character that changed and I liked more was Dio, I think her character grew a lot and I suppose Leoros as well. Then there's Kam's character  one of the apprentices that goes and joins Ankars army. The one character that just kept going down hill while developing a twisted obsession to a magical rod, I expected him to start calling it "my precious " at some point. 

The odd and unfortunate thing is I liked Leoros's parents, Alex and Camilla. Those were the characters I liked the most. They had clashing personalities, Alex believes in what he sees while Cam is more open-minded. The narration also switches from what's happening in Potara and with Leoros's parents trying to activate the pillar to get him back. This was an unfortunate choice in favorite characters because they died.

This is science-fiction, kind of. Leoros ends up in a futuristic kind of Egyptian planet, potara. There's a disconnection at times between the narration and  the story. Sometimes you're focused on one scene or event then suddenly they're on advanced aircraft's. 

It's still a good story, it has that old school feeling of diving into a new and interesting  world and not just some glossy young adult novel. Also a good integration of Egyptian and Greek mythology.

I'm not happy with the ending. The ending was unexpected. It felt like the scene in John Carter when Carter gets tricked and sent back to earth...only the movie didn't end there. Objectively it's a good ending, subjectively.........

I'd definitely recommend this book, if you're a sci-fi fan, or Star Wars fan, or a comic book fan then there's definitely something for you in this book. If you're looking for something new, this book has that too. 

I liked what Leoros learned about Duality , how it's about perspective and finding a balance between two things. Is this really a good book or a bad one, I guess you'll just have to read it yourself.

My review of The Soul of World (Legends of Amun Ra 2)
Grade:

**T0 review this book I was asked