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A review by jdglasgow
Brave the Betrayal by K.A. Applegate
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.