Scan barcode
missy_evanko's review
4.0
Cool upside down reversal world, where the grass is blue and the sky is green etc.
michellewords's review
3.0
Jalil's point of view is not my favorite. He's super analytical and this part of the story is tough to follow and care about (African minor deities and the upside down stuff.)
I do like the way the once-separate lives begin to mix together in the real world. It's such an interesting series about friendship and expanding beyond what you know.
I do like the way the once-separate lives begin to mix together in the real world. It's such an interesting series about friendship and expanding beyond what you know.
stressedspidergirl's review
4.0
Slightly less depressing. So I appreciate that. There's something nice to be said about that for sure.
They travel through some part of Africa and meet an Orisha and defy the African gods when they haven't defied any others.
The plot with Christopher and the nazi terrorist cell heats up a little, and I think that's the last book that I have access to, so I'm not sure I'll be able to finish the series, but at least it's a slightly better wrapping up place than some of the other books.
They travel through some part of Africa and meet an Orisha and defy the African gods when they haven't defied any others.
The plot with Christopher and the nazi terrorist cell heats up a little, and I think that's the last book that I have access to, so I'm not sure I'll be able to finish the series, but at least it's a slightly better wrapping up place than some of the other books.
constant_reader_19's review
4.0
I do enjoy Jalil as the narrator...this one was just a bit drawn out for me.
rynflynn12's review
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
jdglasgow's review
3.0
Well. You know, as I’ve been reading these books, I’ve been thinking of them in terms of the whole series. I mean, part of that has got to be the serialized nature of the stories, one bleeding right into the next for the most part, but I’ve thought of it as how do we get the characters from point A to point B—emotionally, psychologically, and physically—over the course of 12 books. But I’m wondering now: did Applegate and Grant know they were writing 12 books? Specifically, at this the eight book BRAVE THE BETRAYAL, did they know how much longer the series would last?
The reason I ask is because this one sure feels like it’s just killing time. I saw some complaints to this effect about FEAR THE FANTASTIC but I didn’t feel that way about the plot of that book. This one… eh. So the group is en route to Egypt, I guess, to beg Senna’s mom to open a gateway to the Coo-Hatch world, which I’m sure she’ll jump at the opportunity to do; but first they get trapped in an African savanna where they are pursued by a Nigerian demigod named Eshu who demands a sacrifice. Jalil defies him and that struggle takes up the rest of the book.
I did like elements of this story. In particular, the moment when Jalil wakes to find himself being eaten alive by lions only to rationalize his way out of what was only an illusion is a very strong scene. The bizarre “opposite” world Eshu throws them in when they fail to comply is also intriguing. David does more sincere leadership here and it is nice to see that continue. I also like Jalil and April’s growing similarities and I like that this book finally comes out and uses the word “atheist” to describe Jalil (although April’s taunting “I thought atheists didn’t believe in evil” irritated me—not least of which because it seemed like she was really backsliding from the cusp of reality she had strode so close to in GATEWAY TO THE GODS). And yes, I’ll admit, I even liked Christopher’s attempts to be less racist. In this book he acknowledges that the Republicans from the copy shop thought he might be one of them and *there was a reason why that was*. He acknowledges he’s been behaving badly and, funny, just doing that is enough to start making him more endearing. Why couldn’t he have done this in *his* book? Dunno.
I didn’t dislike this book, per se, I just don’t feel like it moves the pieces forward in any meaningful way. I guess Jalil officially makes an enemy of Senna; but then, she brought him to be a tool for her so how much of an enemy is she really? I don’t think there’s any deepening of Jalil’s personality, except maybe highlighting a ruthless stubbornness. I suppose one might say that where in the Old World he feels a compulsion to wash his hands seven times or align his notebooks just so, in Everworld he feels compelled to fight to the death no matter the collateral damage. I mean, I guess. I don’t know, I just don’t feel like this book does anything with the characters that we don’t already know from prior books. Getting a look inside Jalil’s head is exciting because he is the most interesting character, but this entry feels so lightweight, especially compared to the epic action of the previous book. I’m breaking up the series with other non-Everworld books after every four and I gotta say I’m a little disappointed to be pausing on this note.
Lastly, the cover. The creature on the cover reminds me of Watto from ‘The Phantom Menace’. It’s supposed to be a Coo-Hatch but it didn’t look *anything* like what I had imagined. Don’t judge a book by its cover but this is probably the worst cover of the series. A real shame.
The reason I ask is because this one sure feels like it’s just killing time. I saw some complaints to this effect about FEAR THE FANTASTIC but I didn’t feel that way about the plot of that book. This one… eh. So the group is en route to Egypt, I guess, to beg Senna’s mom to open a gateway to the Coo-Hatch world, which I’m sure she’ll jump at the opportunity to do; but first they get trapped in an African savanna where they are pursued by a Nigerian demigod named Eshu who demands a sacrifice. Jalil defies him and that struggle takes up the rest of the book.
I did like elements of this story. In particular, the moment when Jalil wakes to find himself being eaten alive by lions only to rationalize his way out of what was only an illusion is a very strong scene. The bizarre “opposite” world Eshu throws them in when they fail to comply is also intriguing. David does more sincere leadership here and it is nice to see that continue. I also like Jalil and April’s growing similarities and I like that this book finally comes out and uses the word “atheist” to describe Jalil (although April’s taunting “I thought atheists didn’t believe in evil” irritated me—not least of which because it seemed like she was really backsliding from the cusp of reality she had strode so close to in GATEWAY TO THE GODS). And yes, I’ll admit, I even liked Christopher’s attempts to be less racist. In this book he acknowledges that the Republicans from the copy shop thought he might be one of them and *there was a reason why that was*. He acknowledges he’s been behaving badly and, funny, just doing that is enough to start making him more endearing. Why couldn’t he have done this in *his* book? Dunno.
I didn’t dislike this book, per se, I just don’t feel like it moves the pieces forward in any meaningful way. I guess Jalil officially makes an enemy of Senna; but then, she brought him to be a tool for her so how much of an enemy is she really? I don’t think there’s any deepening of Jalil’s personality, except maybe highlighting a ruthless stubbornness. I suppose one might say that where in the Old World he feels a compulsion to wash his hands seven times or align his notebooks just so, in Everworld he feels compelled to fight to the death no matter the collateral damage. I mean, I guess. I don’t know, I just don’t feel like this book does anything with the characters that we don’t already know from prior books. Getting a look inside Jalil’s head is exciting because he is the most interesting character, but this entry feels so lightweight, especially compared to the epic action of the previous book. I’m breaking up the series with other non-Everworld books after every four and I gotta say I’m a little disappointed to be pausing on this note.
Lastly, the cover. The creature on the cover reminds me of Watto from ‘The Phantom Menace’. It’s supposed to be a Coo-Hatch but it didn’t look *anything* like what I had imagined. Don’t judge a book by its cover but this is probably the worst cover of the series. A real shame.
sizrobe's review
5.0
This series continues to deliver. This time the group enters the territory of a group of African gods, represented by the trickster god Eshu. The narrator of this volume, Jalil, refuses to make a sacrifice to appease the gods, invoking their wrath. Most of the book takes place in a bizarre backwards world, with blue clouds in a white sky and upside-down mountains shaped like Vs instead of ^.
It's worth mentioning that despite the fact that while the writing avoids swearing besides the occasional "crap," this book contains a grisly first person account of being ripped apart by lions.
It's worth mentioning that despite the fact that while the writing avoids swearing besides the occasional "crap," this book contains a grisly first person account of being ripped apart by lions.
bcdoliveir's review
4.0
Surprise, surprise, Jalil narrates the story that takes place in Africa. Although, in all fairness, I would have hated to read it from any other characters’ point of view.
I’m actually really excited about this, because how often do we hear about African mythologies (I’m purposefully excluding Egypt)? We all know Thor and Zeus and Jupiter. Even Ra from Egypt and Quetzalcoatl from the Aztecs are mentioned frequently enough that we know their names.
But after the grotesque simplification of the Aztec religion, I was scared. If they reduced an entire mythology and pantheon to “this guy eats so many hearts blood flows like a river from the pyramid”, what would Applegate do to an African religion?
And yes, she did oversimplify the Orisha and Eshu. Still accurate, but over simplified. I have the Legacy of Orisha books lined up to read after I finish Everworld, and this book only excited me even more to read about the West African Yoruba religion by a Nigerian American author, because wow, we don’t know anything about them over here!
Anyways, I was happy to have a book that wasn’t overly focused on Jalil’s OCD in the “real world”. I’m fact, his life was positively normal, trying to ask a girl out and everything. Of course Christopher had to ruin it for him. Interesting that it would be Jalil who ran into Christopher getting beat up on by the Aryan Nazis and save him. I’m glad to see Christopher trying to make changes in his life after that though.
In Everworld, our heroes piss off the Orisha by refusing to sacrifice to their gods (April for religious reasons and Jalil for atheist reasons). So they end up in tipsy turvy town with an African deity demanding that they make a sacrifice or die. You would think our heroes would know better than piss off gods by now.
We also see Senna getting stronger and falling into her witch role with more practice. I’m not so sure if that’s a good thing or not yet.
Overall, I’m glad to see Applegate including lesser known mythologies in her story and when I backtrack and remember that these books were written in 1999 and 2000, they’re actually very progressive and address some serious issues of racism and misogyny that are still painfully relevant today. Could she have done a better job of it (especially as a white woman)?Absolutely. Is it still good to have these difficult conversations even if we stumble and mess up? Yes.
I’m actually really excited about this, because how often do we hear about African mythologies (I’m purposefully excluding Egypt)? We all know Thor and Zeus and Jupiter. Even Ra from Egypt and Quetzalcoatl from the Aztecs are mentioned frequently enough that we know their names.
But after the grotesque simplification of the Aztec religion, I was scared. If they reduced an entire mythology and pantheon to “this guy eats so many hearts blood flows like a river from the pyramid”, what would Applegate do to an African religion?
And yes, she did oversimplify the Orisha and Eshu. Still accurate, but over simplified. I have the Legacy of Orisha books lined up to read after I finish Everworld, and this book only excited me even more to read about the West African Yoruba religion by a Nigerian American author, because wow, we don’t know anything about them over here!
Anyways, I was happy to have a book that wasn’t overly focused on Jalil’s OCD in the “real world”. I’m fact, his life was positively normal, trying to ask a girl out and everything. Of course Christopher had to ruin it for him. Interesting that it would be Jalil who ran into Christopher getting beat up on by the Aryan Nazis and save him. I’m glad to see Christopher trying to make changes in his life after that though.
In Everworld, our heroes piss off the Orisha by refusing to sacrifice to their gods (April for religious reasons and Jalil for atheist reasons). So they end up in tipsy turvy town with an African deity demanding that they make a sacrifice or die. You would think our heroes would know better than piss off gods by now.
We also see Senna getting stronger and falling into her witch role with more practice. I’m not so sure if that’s a good thing or not yet.
Overall, I’m glad to see Applegate including lesser known mythologies in her story and when I backtrack and remember that these books were written in 1999 and 2000, they’re actually very progressive and address some serious issues of racism and misogyny that are still painfully relevant today. Could she have done a better job of it (especially as a white woman)?Absolutely. Is it still good to have these difficult conversations even if we stumble and mess up? Yes.