My Stepfather Is a Falcon
May 4 would mark the fifth anniversary of the publication of "The Red Pyramid". Rick Riordan introduced Egyptian mythology to his young readers, and the events happened in the same universe as "Percy Jackson and the Olympians", and its sequel, "The Heroes of Olympus". The novel was followed by two more books, namely "The Throne of Fire" and "The Serpent's Shadow". Known as the Kane Chronicles, the trilogy recounted the misadventures of Carter and Sadie Frost.
If Carter and Sadie would have their way, then they would prefer to be normal teenagers. But they were descendants of Narmer and Ramesses II. Egyptian royalty. It seemed hard to believe, as Carter was a walking encyclopedia and Sadie was a typical British teenage girl. Brother and sister, two different personalities. It happened that their forefathers unified Ancient Egypt.
Baby, you wouldn’t last a minute on the stream
The Kane Chronicles could be Riordan's best work to date. The siblings weren't as popular as Percy Jackson, but they were more interesting. And their frequent bickering would amuse readers no end.
The spirit of Ancient Egypt was alive, its remnants could be seen all over the world. You only need to find a pyramid. (There's one in Las Vegas, of all places.) And don't pass up a needle. (George Washington will like it.) Riordan described the Egyptian gods and goddesses, very different from their Greek (and Roman) counterparts. Egyptian hieroglyphs revealed their deities with head of animals attached to human bodies. They would have the ability to find a human host and inhabit there. In Carter's case, it was Horus, the God of War and the leader of the gods and goddesses. Sadie's was Isis, the Goddess of Magic. They have to unite their tribe against Apophis, the God of Chaos. Ra, the Sun God, once defeated him. Can history repeat itself?
What was probably the best thing about "The Kane Chronicles" was there were too many gods and goddesses to be included. So Riordan thought of a hospital in another realm. In that forsaken building were deities once worshiped by Ancient Egyptians, only to be replaced by new ones. (Some might think that this is the influence of foreign countries on Egypt.) They were not as popular as Horus and Iris. Carter and Sadie found Ra in that hospital, a senile, old man who couldn't be the same person who bested Apophis.
The Nile River would play a major part in the trilogy, where Carter and Sadie must sail through it. The river was like a long stream of burning fire at dusk, and the siblings were going through a rite of passage. Readers would call it an adventure.
If you want to be a Doctor of Egyptology
Unlike "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" and "The Heroes of Olympus", nothing in "Kane Chronicles" would relate to young readers apart from the siblings and their peculiar vibes. But this was what have drawn tourists to Egypt.
Fans would be excited to know that Riordan released a troika of books, where the Greek demigods have a chance meeting with the Kane siblings and their cohorts. (The author previewed it in its paperback edition.) There was a connection between Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece. Alexander the Great made it possible, but Riordan dug something else. It would be up to readers to follow the rest of the trail.
