Reviewed by Candace Cunard for TeensReadToo.com
Theodosia Throckmorton, precocious daughter of a London museum curator and a top archaeologist, is back again in this sequel to THEODOSIA AND THE SERPENTS OF CHAOS. In that previous volume, eleven-year-old Theo used her knowledge of Egyptian curses to keep her parents safe from the dangerous artifacts that they handle on a daily basis, but in doing so, she ran afoul of a secret organization known as the Serpents of Chaos, whose goal, as their name implies, is to destroy order and plunge the world into violence.
Now, the Serpents are back, trying again to use their knowledge of Egyptian lore and curses to encourage the tensions building between Victorian England and Kaiser Wilhelm's Germany.
Theo may be just one girl, but she's got the backing of an entire museum worth of information and newfound friends to help her figure out the latest mystery. When she's assigned to clean out and catalogue the museum's basement, she comes across an artifact with more power than she suspected--the Staff of Osiris, which, when properly wielded, can reanimate and attract the dead toward it. Unfortunately, Theo's accidental activation of the staff leads all the mummies of London to make their way through the streets to her father's museum, leading the police to suspect Theo's father of stealing them.
Theo must work to clear her father's name and keep the staff safe from the Serpents of Chaos, who wish to employ it for its more diabolical ability to produce a poisonous gas that will kill anyone who breathes it.
I thoroughly enjoyed this second story of Theodosia's. LaFevers wittily mixes serious historical ramifications with comical moments. Even at its most serious, the story finds a lighthearted core in Theo's first-person narration, which continues to be a wonderful vehicle for exploring early 1900s London.
It's quite possible that I enjoyed this book better than the first one, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in magic and adventure!
Theodosia Throckmorton, precocious daughter of a London museum curator and a top archaeologist, is back again in this sequel to THEODOSIA AND THE SERPENTS OF CHAOS. In that previous volume, eleven-year-old Theo used her knowledge of Egyptian curses to keep her parents safe from the dangerous artifacts that they handle on a daily basis, but in doing so, she ran afoul of a secret organization known as the Serpents of Chaos, whose goal, as their name implies, is to destroy order and plunge the world into violence.
Now, the Serpents are back, trying again to use their knowledge of Egyptian lore and curses to encourage the tensions building between Victorian England and Kaiser Wilhelm's Germany.
Theo may be just one girl, but she's got the backing of an entire museum worth of information and newfound friends to help her figure out the latest mystery. When she's assigned to clean out and catalogue the museum's basement, she comes across an artifact with more power than she suspected--the Staff of Osiris, which, when properly wielded, can reanimate and attract the dead toward it. Unfortunately, Theo's accidental activation of the staff leads all the mummies of London to make their way through the streets to her father's museum, leading the police to suspect Theo's father of stealing them.
Theo must work to clear her father's name and keep the staff safe from the Serpents of Chaos, who wish to employ it for its more diabolical ability to produce a poisonous gas that will kill anyone who breathes it.
I thoroughly enjoyed this second story of Theodosia's. LaFevers wittily mixes serious historical ramifications with comical moments. Even at its most serious, the story finds a lighthearted core in Theo's first-person narration, which continues to be a wonderful vehicle for exploring early 1900s London.
It's quite possible that I enjoyed this book better than the first one, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in magic and adventure!
Just as exciting and engaging as the rest of the Theodosia series. We read them out loud as a family. All of the Theodosia books are equally fun for girls AND boys. It's easy for everyone to imagine yourself in Theo's place (if your parents were Egyptian archaeologists and you always had adventures with Egyptian artifacts, that is. . .).
