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nicolemhewitt's review
5.0
This book is told from the unique perspective of a Muslim boy. Recently, I've read MG and YA stories told from Muslim POVs, but all of them have been from a girls' perspective. The male perspective gives a surprisingly different dynamic. Chadda doesn't shy away from the fact that Muslim men don't ever get to be the heroes in Western stories---a fact that is addressed directly throughout the book. He also uses the word jihad to describe the characters' struggles. I will fully confess that I read this word and internally flinched. I've never heard it used in anything but a negative light, and it's obvious that Chadda is well aware of those negative associations and he's working to counteract them. I honestly appreciated this reminder (and repudiation) of my own cultural biases.
As I said, the MC is a teenage boy. The story follows Sik, a thirteen-year-old boy who grew up hearing stories of the epic hero Gilgamesh and his many mighty deeds. When Sik's brother dies while on a trip to Iraq, Sik feels like his family is broken in ways that can't be fixed. He pours his time and energy into his family's deli, but he feels like nothing he can ever do can make up for the loss they've experienced. Then one day, the Mesopotamian plague god shows up at his door, insisting that Sik has something precious in his possession from Sik's brother. He destroys the deli and infects Sik's parents (and, soon, the rest of Manhattan) with a deadly disease. Sik teams up with the goddess of love and war (and her daughter Belet) to try and defeat the plague god.
One of my favorite aspects of this book is how seamlessly Chadda interweaves many seemingly unrelated elements. Tiny details from the beginning of the story become important later. For instance, Sik completely misunderstands and misjudges his brother's best friend, a character who becomes vitally important by the end of the book, and seemingly bothersome details about him transform into something new by the end. The story explores the themes of love and loss, family, friendships, and what it means to fight for your homeland and those you love. It's also full of adventure that will appeal to Rick Riordan Presents' typical fans.
I truly hope this turns into a series so we can follow Sik's and Belet's further adventures!!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley for review purposes. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
As I said, the MC is a teenage boy. The story follows Sik, a thirteen-year-old boy who grew up hearing stories of the epic hero Gilgamesh and his many mighty deeds. When Sik's brother dies while on a trip to Iraq, Sik feels like his family is broken in ways that can't be fixed. He pours his time and energy into his family's deli, but he feels like nothing he can ever do can make up for the loss they've experienced. Then one day, the Mesopotamian plague god shows up at his door, insisting that Sik has something precious in his possession from Sik's brother. He destroys the deli and infects Sik's parents (and, soon, the rest of Manhattan) with a deadly disease. Sik teams up with the goddess of love and war (and her daughter Belet) to try and defeat the plague god.
One of my favorite aspects of this book is how seamlessly Chadda interweaves many seemingly unrelated elements. Tiny details from the beginning of the story become important later. For instance, Sik completely misunderstands and misjudges his brother's best friend, a character who becomes vitally important by the end of the book, and seemingly bothersome details about him transform into something new by the end. The story explores the themes of love and loss, family, friendships, and what it means to fight for your homeland and those you love. It's also full of adventure that will appeal to Rick Riordan Presents' typical fans.
I truly hope this turns into a series so we can follow Sik's and Belet's further adventures!!
***Disclosure: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley for review purposes. No other compensation was given and all opinions are my own.***
laureninthebuf's review
adventurous
emotional
informative
fast-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? No
3.5
clizk425's review
adventurous
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
olisa16's review
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
gayathiri_rajendran's review
4.0
City of the Plague God follows Sikander Aziz,a thirteen year old who goes into battle to save New York from a new form of infestation and plague. This book comes under the Riordan Imprint and is based on Mesopotamian mythology. I didn’t know much about this and I enjoyed this book thoroughly getting to know various tales.
The word building is great and there is never a dull moment in the story. I enjoyed the humour sprinkled throughout the story and the supporting characters Belet and Daoud added much flavour to the story.
There are a lot of unanswered questions in this book and we got to know only three Gods. I’d love to see a second book in this series which fleshes out the pantheon of Gods in a more detailed manner. A fun and refreshing middle grade read for all mythology lovers out there!
The word building is great and there is never a dull moment in the story. I enjoyed the humour sprinkled throughout the story and the supporting characters Belet and Daoud added much flavour to the story.
There are a lot of unanswered questions in this book and we got to know only three Gods. I’d love to see a second book in this series which fleshes out the pantheon of Gods in a more detailed manner. A fun and refreshing middle grade read for all mythology lovers out there!
ogreart's review against another edition
4.0
I found this book to be compelling and very entertaining. It was refreshing to see a main character who is "different." Having a Muslim-American character as the main character was refreshing. Even more so was that the vast majority of the supporting characters were as well. I enjoyed the different mythology that was used for the story. Going back to the Mesopotamian mythologies was interesting, and I even learned a little something about them in a way that I found interesting. Lots of strong action scenes. Lots of fun. I hope this is the first book of a series; I would read it.
I received and electronic ARC of this book through net galley.com in return for an honest review.
I received and electronic ARC of this book through net galley.com in return for an honest review.
jaydoesitup's review
4.0
I loved this book! I make it a point to read all of the Rick Riordan presents books, they are all so diverse and inclusive. This book was no exception. I received an advanced copy from NetGalley, and when I found out I was so excited! This book does such a good job of drawing you in immediately, then never letting go. I highly recommend this book!!!
sparklingreader's review
4.0
Thoughts: So… reading a book about plagues during a pandemic is probably not the best thing to do in the world. The story can get disgusting at times – all right, a lot of the time – with maggots and slime and ick all over the place. So… reading this book while eating a snack or meal, also not a good thing to do if you’ve got a weak stomach. Actually, if you have a weak stomach, you might want to skip a lot of this book. But, that being said…it is a well-written book that will probably appeal to the younger set. Any kid who likes disgusting stuff will love it. Add in Mesopotamian mythology with Gilgamesh, Ishtar, Negral, etc. and you have an interesting read. Sik is an excellent character as he has problems but finds solutions (usually) that help him get through. The conflicts between him and Daoud (his brother’s best friend), Sik’s parents, and his dead brother are realistic and believable. He believes he is the one stuck doing duty at his parents’ deli while his brother Mo gets to travel the world having adventures—except Mo gets killed. When Sik meets up with Mo in the underworld, he realizes some truths about himself. I loved how Daoud came through in the end and changed from being so self-centered.
The story is full of action, gross details, fighting, and mythology. There’s some humor with the one demon speaking only in rhyme. And interesting details about Ishtar’s home. Kind of like Dr. Who’s TARDIS, it’s much bigger on the inside. And the story has a satisfying ending that makes it a good stand alone, but also gives you hope that there might be more.
Opinion: I can’t say I liked the story mostly because of the ick factor. But beyond that, it is a good story. It’s well-written and gives good insights into what it’s like to be an immigrant from the Mid-East in New York. Especially through the eyes of Daoud who would love to be an actor with a starring role but keeps getting hired as a terrorist or other similar part. It even made me want to go read the story of Gilgamesh again. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s into the Rick Riordan mythology series but again, beware of the ick factor.
Thanks to Disney Worldwide and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by anyone.
The story is full of action, gross details, fighting, and mythology. There’s some humor with the one demon speaking only in rhyme. And interesting details about Ishtar’s home. Kind of like Dr. Who’s TARDIS, it’s much bigger on the inside. And the story has a satisfying ending that makes it a good stand alone, but also gives you hope that there might be more.
Opinion: I can’t say I liked the story mostly because of the ick factor. But beyond that, it is a good story. It’s well-written and gives good insights into what it’s like to be an immigrant from the Mid-East in New York. Especially through the eyes of Daoud who would love to be an actor with a starring role but keeps getting hired as a terrorist or other similar part. It even made me want to go read the story of Gilgamesh again. I would recommend this book to anyone who’s into the Rick Riordan mythology series but again, beware of the ick factor.
Thanks to Disney Worldwide and Netgalley for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and are not influenced by anyone.
saracat's review
5.0
I first want to thank NetGalley and Rick Riordan Presents, which is part of Disney Publishing Worldwide, for giving me early access to this book in exchange for an honest review.
A big thing I think that is important to say upfront, is that the timing of the publication of this book is unfortunate. At the time of me writing this review, the COVID-19 pandemic is still ongoing. So, for some readers, a book that does include the spreading of disease and people not being able to see their loved ones who are in hospital under quarantine - while a result of supernatural events - may not be something they are wanting to read about just now.
This was a wonderfully written book. I liked the incorporation of Arabic and other non-English words. And the way it was done, the general feel and meaning could be deduced through context clues - though there is a dictionary at the back of the book for those who like to know the exact meaning of things as they read. I absolutely loved how the image and meaning of being a hero was challenged in this book - but I won't say anymore for fear of spoiling the book for anyone. It was also fascinating to learn a bit about the gods of Mesopotamia. And while it did take a bit to remember who was who and how they were all connected, this book is definitely written so that those not familiar with these gods and the stories around them can still fully enjoy the novel.
The pacing of the book was good and Chadda did a great job keeping me guessing about how things might get resolved. The characters are also wonderfully written, especially the main character. I really hope this is not the last we will see Sik, but even if Chadda does not write another adventure for Sik, I am excited to see what he will write next.
Content Warning: some gore (most adults and older teenagers would not likely be bothered, but some younger readers may be), infectious disease, characters dealing with racism/xenophobia/stereotypes
A big thing I think that is important to say upfront, is that the timing of the publication of this book is unfortunate. At the time of me writing this review, the COVID-19 pandemic is still ongoing. So, for some readers, a book that does include the spreading of disease and people not being able to see their loved ones who are in hospital under quarantine - while a result of supernatural events - may not be something they are wanting to read about just now.
This was a wonderfully written book. I liked the incorporation of Arabic and other non-English words. And the way it was done, the general feel and meaning could be deduced through context clues - though there is a dictionary at the back of the book for those who like to know the exact meaning of things as they read. I absolutely loved how the image and meaning of being a hero was challenged in this book - but I won't say anymore for fear of spoiling the book for anyone. It was also fascinating to learn a bit about the gods of Mesopotamia. And while it did take a bit to remember who was who and how they were all connected, this book is definitely written so that those not familiar with these gods and the stories around them can still fully enjoy the novel.
The pacing of the book was good and Chadda did a great job keeping me guessing about how things might get resolved. The characters are also wonderfully written, especially the main character. I really hope this is not the last we will see Sik, but even if Chadda does not write another adventure for Sik, I am excited to see what he will write next.
Content Warning: some gore (most adults and older teenagers would not likely be bothered, but some younger readers may be), infectious disease, characters dealing with racism/xenophobia/stereotypes