• Home
  • Book Reviews
  • Books
    • Monthly Wrap Up
    • Giveaways
    • Book Hauls
    • Events
  • Discussions
  • New Releases
  • Features
    • Top Ten Tuesday
    • Romance Thursdays
    • Movie Reviews
    • TV Series Reviews
    • Waiting on Wednesday
  • Beta Reading Services
  • #LoveOzYA
    • OZYA Interviews
    • OZYA Reviews
  • About
  • Contact
Angel ReadsAngel Reads
  • Home
  • Book Reviews
  • Books
    • Monthly Wrap Up
    • Giveaways
    • Book Hauls
    • Events
  • Discussions
  • New Releases
  • Features
    • Top Ten Tuesday
    • Romance Thursdays
    • Movie Reviews
    • TV Series Reviews
    • Waiting on Wednesday
  • Beta Reading Services
  • #LoveOzYA
    • OZYA Interviews
    • OZYA Reviews
  • About
  • Contact

Book Review: The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Home Book ReviewsBook Review: The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Book Review: The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

October 3, 2015 Posted by angelreads Book Reviews 3 Comments

The Sword of Summer

mangMagnus Chase and The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan

Pages: 528
Publish date: October 6th 2015
Publisher: Penguin Australia
ISBN: 0141342420
Purchase: Book Depository – Amazon UK – Amazon US – Amazon AU

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother’s mysterious death, he’s lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, keeping one step ahead of the police and the truant officers.
One day, he’s tracked down by an uncle he’s never met—a man his mother claimed was dangerous. His uncle tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god. The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war.
Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years. When an attack by fire giants forces him to choose between his own safety and the lives of hundreds of innocents, Magnus makes a fatal decision. Sometimes, the only way to start a new life is to die . . .

The Sword of Summer:

I received an advance copy of The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan from Penguin Australia in exchange for a review. This has in no way influenced my thoughts about the book.

I cannot explain my feelings when this showed up at my PO Box. I got home late from University and there is was sitting on the table. I ended up hugging the book around the house for the next hour. Yes I said, hugging. And then I started to read it right away and I wasn’t disappointed.

Rick Riordan is a genius. He knows how to write a fun, exciting and engaging novel that keeps you reading and reading.

“You missed a pedestrian,” I said. “You want to go  back and hit her?”

I’m a massive fan of mythology. I studied it in high school, I am doing a class on it at university and I have grown up with it. So it’s something that I hold dearly to my heart and I love reading retellings or books based on myths. The thing is, I don’t know too much on Norse Mythology – so I was happy that I start getting into it.

The Sword of Summer reads much like his other novels, in a sense that it reads for Middle graders, however anyone can read it. And come on all the main characters are just so loveable.

Magnus Chase; man I love him. He is quite similar to Percy in a sense, but much more sarcastic. He had off my seat laughing, I couldn’t read it late at night because I was going to wake up my siblings for all the laughing. A lot of the time he was funny and sarcastic and brilliant, then again at times he broke my heart. I am an emotional person so most of you won’t tear up, I just cry at everything. In saying that Rick Riordan was able to balance the two well and not have it too heavily funny. It would have made it unrealistic because of the events that happen before and during the novel.

“Then why don’t you just say A.D.?”

“Because Anno Domini, in the Year of Our Lord, is fine for Christian, but Thor gets a little upset. He still holds a grudge that Jesus never showed up for the duel he challenged him too.”

There is something about Rick Riordan characters that I just love. He is able to write characters that you just want to read about. That you want to know more about. That keeps the story going.

The plot of The Sword of Summer like other Riordan novels are quite similar. There is a boy, he turns out he is special, people are after him and so on. It’s the hero story and it might sound the same as other books, but there is something about Riordan’s writing like his characters that are unique and is intriguing.

I also really adored The Sword of Summer because of the diversity in characters. And it shows that not only contemporary novels have diversity, nevertheless fantasy can have it too.

The writing style is easy to read, however it does use a good deal of Norse mythology references and names. If you don’t have some knowledge with how to say these words and worlds, you might stumble a bit.

The Sword of Summer takes you on an adventure. That you can’t help, but keep on reading. I also love Riordan’s play on Norse mythology and the Norse Gods. They had me laughing at 1 am.

Not only was the words of book funny, sarcastic and brilliant but the chapter headings – holy – they are the most amazing chapter headings in the world.

There is also surprise visitors that made me squeal and it looks like some might make some appearances in the rest of the series.

The Sword of Summer is a book that takes you on a journey of laughs, heartache and fun. Rick Riordan doesn’t fail in his newest novel that any new and old fan will love.

Rating

 

You can find me on twitter at @angel_reads and on facebook and also on Instagram at angelreads. Subscribe to my email through the sidebar or follow me on bloglovin’ to keep up to date

Like this:

Like Loading...

Related

3 Comments
Share

3 Comments

Leave your reply.
  • Cassie
    · Reply

    October 4, 2015 at 9:06 PM

    THIS BOOK IS THE ACTUAL GREATEST!!

    And when I got home and found it sitting on my bed, I was silently screaming about it for hours. (Silently because I didn’t want my sister to know I had it until after I’d read it, so I could surprise her with it because Rick Riordan is the author that got her into reading).
    And that quote about Thor and Jesus is perfection. This whole book made me laugh.

    Good review 🙂

    Loading...
  • Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity
    · Reply

    October 9, 2015 at 1:07 PM

    Rick Riordan’s books are so hyped up that I am actually a little scared of actually picking one up. I own the first Percy Jackson book, and I know that everyone loves that series but I don’t know if it will live up to the expectation I have now because of all the hype.

    I do quite like the sound of this one, because I like books that weave mythology into the story, but I am a bit wary of the humour aspects because more often than not humour falls flat with me.

    Maybe I will try Percy Jackson soon, and if I am a fan then perhaps I will read this one. For now, though, it’s not very high on my list.

    I’m glad you enjoyed it, though, Angel! 🙂

    Loading...
  • Cait @ Paper Fury
    · Reply

    November 11, 2015 at 1:48 PM

    YAY I’M SO GLAD YOU LIKED IT A LOT TOO!! I absolutely adored it! *flails* It’s one of my favourite Riordan books so far I think. xD I adored Magnus and I loved how he was kinda like Percy….but more intense, maybe?!? Like Percy seemed clueless and happy a lot of the time, but Magnus was more down-to-earth and sarcastic BUT BOTH SUCH DORKS OMG I LOVE THEM. And the chapter headings WERE MY FAVOURITE. *flails some more*

    Loading...

Leave a Reply

Your email is safe with us.
Cancel Reply

Recent Posts

  • Books That I Was Surprised That I Loved
  • Completed Series I Want To Finish This Year
  • ARC Book Review | Just Drive by Devyn Sinclair
  • ARC Review: Wild Side by Elsie Silver
  • Another Good Reading Month | February Wrap Up

Subscribe to Angel Reads

Enter your email address to subscribe to Angel Reads and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Bookstagram

angelreads

book blogger 💻| romance books 💜| bookseller 📖
💌 angel@angelreads.com
📚53/150

April was a very good reading month for me, especi April was a very good reading month for me, especially after last month. I had some really fantastic reads in April. I did do a lot of re-reading this month but I had such blast. I re-read Caught Up and Play Along and the first 4 books in the Ironside Academy series. 📚

I read some books that I’ve been waiting for including the new book from Kels and Denise Stone, as well as the new Tessa Hale. ✨

Overall it was such a good month, lots of binge reading series and starting on some new authors. I’m so excited to see what May brings. 🖤

What was your favourite book that you read in April? 

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #romancereads #angelreads #bookblogger #spicybooks #romancereader #romance #smut #recentreads #aprilreads #aprilwrapup
IT’S RACE WEEK! 🏎️ If you didn’t know al IT’S RACE WEEK! 🏎️

If you didn’t know already I love F1, have ever since I was younger and decided that this year it would be fun to combined my love for F1 and reading together. 📚

After a week off we are back at it. We are in Miami this week’s and things are only just heating up. This week I’m reading Falling Off the Cliff  Kanitha P.

…

Formula 1 legend in the making and rising star Thiago Valencia is chasing redemption as well as his second World Champion title. With a tarnished reputation and an undetermined future in F1 that hangs by a terribly loose thread, he can’t afford to lose his seat. Thiago is ready to do anything to redeem himself and erase his past mistakes. When a mysterious woman intrudes on his private party in Monte Carlo, he is certain the universe has brought his polar opposite into his life as salvation. He is sunshine, she is moonlight; he is a bright star and she is a moonbeam.

Destiny takes the wheel, steering Kamari into Thiago’s orbit, but her open disdain and closely guarded heart warn her to stay away. Enchanted by her charms, Thiago is intent on melting her freezing barriers and tearing down the walls shielding her heart.

When Kamari agrees to help him save his future by being his fake girlfriend, the unexpected happens, triggered by a game of lies, secrets and desire.

As they plunge towards the finish line, the race veers offtrack and neither of them are ready to fall off the cliff.
… 

How Race Week Reads Will Work 

On Monday of race week I’ll announce the book I’ll be reading for the week, then throughout the week I’ll be posting stories and my thoughts. And then on Sunday, race day my review and final thoughts will go up.

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #romancereads #angelreads #bookblogger #spicybooks #romancereader #romance #f1 #formula1 #ausgp #raceweekreads #f1romance #sportsromance #fallingoffthecliff #kanithap #fullthrottle
A little late but I am finally getting to share Ra A little late but I am finally getting to share Race 5’s Race Week Reads review. This week I read, Downforce (Pit Lane #1) by Hannah Lily.

🏎️ Review 🏎️

I had so much fun reading this book. I knew I was in for a ride as soon as I started Downforce. It was entertaining, fun, and I just had a good time reading it. And while it does explore some heavy topics, I don’t think it took away from the fun nature of the book.

Right from the start, we can see the tension between F1 Presenter, Olivia Fraser and F1 Driver, Jonah Scott. And while silly at times, it was fun seeing them interact together. Both really didn’t like each other. They both had said things about and to one another that sometimes it caused chaos. And I was here for it.

I did find that at times, just silly things happened. I am not a massive rom-com reader, and there was a lot of falling into one another, and arguments stemmed from nothing. This is honestly just because I don’t like these types of scenes, but it didn’t really make me dislike the book at all.

I loved the whole road trip aspect of the book, it’s different from other F1 books I’ve read so far this year and just made for some interesting banter and lust. I do wish that the road trip was a little longer than it was because I did feel like the romance moved pretty quickly here, but again, it didn’t really affect how much I was enjoying the book.

The romance was this combination of being slow burn and full of angst right at the start, to the road trip happening and then bam. But I loved it, though. The banter between Olivia and Jonah was fantastic. I loved seeing them grow not only with one another but with themselves as well.

Overall, I had a great time reading Downforce and will be continuing the series for sure when the other books come out. The romance was angsty and just felt right. The found family aspect really worked well here, and the F1 aspects were pretty okay. Not the best I’ve seen, but not the worst either. If you are looking for a fun read that has a great romance and a little rom-comy, then pick this one up.
I’ve already had a pretty amazing reading year. I’ve already had a pretty amazing reading year. There have been so many books that I have enjoyed but there are some that I have just loved. 🖤

I didn’t realise before I put this post together that all of these books are from authors I’ve read and loved before. There hasn’t been a Rebecca Yarros book that I haven’t rated under 4 Stars. Elsie Silver is just making me love everything that she writes. Wild and Wrangled may be my favourite in the series. 📖

Three rereads also made it to this list. Binding 13 still makes me gasp and smile all at the same time. And Caught Up and Play Along just hit every time. 📚

I’ve honestly had a great year so far and since making this post a few more books I’ve read I’ve ended up loving. It’s going to be hard to pick my favourites at the end of the year that is for sure. ✨

What books have you loved reading this year? Are any books that made my list on yours? Let me know! 

🏷️ 
#romancebooks #bookstagram  #romancereads #angelreads #bookblogger #spicybooks #romancereader #romance #smut #recentreads #2025favourites #onyxstorm #wildside  #binding13 #caughtup #wildandwrangled
Follow on Instagram

GoodReads

Angel - Angel Reads's bookshelf: currently-reading


goodreads.com

Contact Us

Send us an email and I'll get back to you, asap.

Send Message

© 2013 - 2025 · Angel Reads · Disclaimer

Prev Next
%d