New York Times #1 best-selling author Rick Riordan pays homage to Jules Verne in his exciting modern take on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.
Ana Dakkar is a freshman at Harding-Pencroft Academy, a five-year high school that graduates the best marine scientists, naval warriors, navigators, and underwater explorers in the world. Ana's parents died while on a scientific expedition two years ago, and the only family's she's got left is her older brother, Dev, also a student at HP. Ana's freshman year culminates with the class's weekend trial at sea, the details of which have been kept secret. She only hopes she has what it'll take to succeed. All her worries are blown out of the water when, on the bus ride to the ship, Ana and her schoolmates witness a terrible tragedy that will change the trajectory of their lives.
But wait, there's more. The professor accompanying them informs Ana that their rival school, Land Institute, and Harding-Pencroft have been fighting a cold war for a hundred and fifty years. Now that cold war has been turned up to a full broil, and the freshman are in danger of becoming fish food. In a race against deadly enemies, Ana will make amazing friends and astounding discoveries about her heritage as she puts her leadership skills to the test for the first time.
Review:
This is one of those situations where the summary doesn’t really summarize the book much at all….But, also, it kind of can’t, without giving HUGE things away. So, basically, writing my review is going to be interesting….Ana and her freshman class do witness something terrible in the very beginning of this book, that had me put this book down and go, “WOAH.” Riordan does not shy away from action and suspense in his books, but that was a MAJOR opening.
And then because it’s a Rick Riordan novel stuff goes a little fantasy/sci fi. I’m used to his books always involving mythological Gods and creatures and super powers of sorts, so it was a fun experience to get something different from him. Instead, there’s ships, submarines, giant octopi, dolphin friends, sci-fi weapons, crazy science, hidden islands, treasure, AI, and so much more!
I also have to admit that I never actually read (…or I guess completed) 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. I tried to read it when I was a teenager, and just did not get into it. Maybe I need to re-try it? If it’s half as fun as this novel was, I am definitely missing out.
Then of course, there’s the diverse cast. The main character is an Indian girl (who addresses colonialism!) and one of her closest friends is autistic. It wouldn’t be a Rick Riordan novel without orphans, kid geniuses, kid warrior/athletes, and kid leaders. Ana is a bit of a chosen one, kind of, but in an almost acceptable way. It has more to do with science than anything else (it’s her blood/DNA that’s needed for things because of who her ancestor is. And that’s all I’m saying on the matter.
I also like that Rick Riordan wasn’t afraid to write about periods! Ana suffers from terrible cramps! And it’s not something just mentioned once and then forgotten about. It comes up multiple times. And I have to admit that I first found this odd because I’m not used to reading about it…Like it made me, a grown woman, a little uncomfortable. But, then I thought about it, and I loved it. Why shouldn’t we be used to reading about it? I think periods and cramps should be normalized, and kids should be able to talk about it. And I know the amount of people who read his books. Hopefully, this will play a part in helping Women’s Health issues become something we can all talk about and read about in a regular way (without feeling uncomfortable).
That all being said, I loved the diverse characters in this book. I loved the very suspenseful plot. Even for Riordan, this was next level. I found the ocean life and science fiction elements to everything fascinating! I loved the friendship stories too. I found this to be a really fun book, and I’m so glad I read it. I’m glad Riordan is still writing more, and I hope he continues to do so. I give this a 9/10.
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