I am always on the hunt for books that might appeal to those Percy Jackson fans... and this one caught my eye because it was about Indian mythology (and had a cover that suggested there might be some good action).

Ash Mistry is visiting his aunt and uncle in India, when his uncle takes on the job of translating some pictograms for the mysterious Lord Alexander Savage. Ash is immediately suspicious of the large payment offered for the job and the creepy appearance of Lord Savage and his employees. Somehow they seem to resemble reptiles and dangerous predators a little too much...

Ash is at an archeological site near Lord Savage's home when the ground suddenly gives way and he falls into an undiscovered area under the site. He accidentally pricks himself on a golden arrowhead, which leaves a sliver in his finger, and begins to see visions of the battle against the evil demon king Ravana. It turns out that Lord Savage is indeed an evil bad guy who wants to release the demon Ravana so that he can become immortal.... and the golden arrowhead is exactly the thing he is looking for. Unfortunately Ash and his sister become the primary target for Lord Savage and his employees -- who are really demons in disguise. 

With the world at risk of being overrun by murderous demons, Ash needs to find a way to stop Lord Savage. This means battling giant birds, monstrous reptiles and shape shifting wolves. 

I liked the action and pace of the plot and definitely found bits about Indian mythology intriguing. I do think the gods/demons will interest many Percy Jackson fans. I don't find the conversation and characters to be as humorous as the ones in Rick Riordan's books but there are some witty comments that give the characters distinct voices and keep the tone of the book light. The whole thing about incarnation added an interesting layer to the plot, but I felt it could have the potential to become a bit of a cop out where it doesn't matter if characters die because they'll come back to life later anyway.

This is more suited for preteens (pretty much the same audience for the Percy Jackson series). Visit the Ash Mistry blog for character profiles, info on Indian Mythology, book excerpts and activity sheets. And yes, there is a sequel: Ash Mistry and the City of Death.

Mark of Athena is due out in just a couple of weeks.  I'm not going to talk about that, though.  It's just a handy lead-in for me to mention this week's book, one good for guys that might have aged a bit beyond the Rick Riordan series.

For those who love Greek gods in the modern world, the Rick Riordan series are great.  The idea of the Pantheon rampaging across familiar places makes the myths that much cooler.  I mean, how many of us really have any experience in Greece, particular the ancient kind?

The Age of Zeus has the Pantheon returning to the world after being away for a couple thousand years.  Through their might, the world has fallen into peace policed by the familiar ancient beasts and gods.  Of course, they still have their ancient urges: the monster rampage and the gods demand tribute, erupting into their famous rage when they aren't satisfied.

Enter a rich arms dealer who seeks to return the Earth to human rule and a small group of people who have lost everything to the gods.  Together, they form a new team of Titans, based on the original god-killers.  And they, unlike all the resistance movements that came before them, find a way to hurt the Olympians.

As familiar as the Greek myths are, and even though The Age of Zeus is very familiar with these myths, this is an action book first and foremost.  If anything, this feels like a pulp novel or a cheesy sci-fi miniseries.  The Titans are on a mission to destroy the Olympians, and that's all this book is about.

This is fine for teens, but for younger kids, it's a no go: there's some language and mild sexual content, though it's relatively mild.

James Lovegrove has written a couple of other books along the same lines, The Age of Ra (Egypt) and The Age of Odin (Norse).

Tomas and his family are moving back to Slovakia, a home they've left since he's five years old, after he almost drowned and burned to death at the same time. The first thing Tomas sees when he gets back: a ghost. Not a good start, but that's not all. A few otherworldly beings, and some past acquaintances, have their eyes on Tomas. He is hoping it's just sleep deprivation and jet lag, but when Tomas found out from Death herself that his cousin Katka is going to die, he will have to admit he can see things others can't, and try to figure out who is friend and who is foe to save his cousin.

Pitting humans against powerful figures from myths a la Percy Jackson seems to be the thing to do still, and Bryce Moore did a fine job introducing us to the folklore of Slovakia, and giving us another reluctant hero to cheer for. Good and evil are somewhat ambiguous when it comes to these mythical creatures, especially the trickster Vodnik, so you never quite know who you should like. The book touches on racism and bullying, but those elements become a bit of a distraction from the main plot. Nonetheless, it's a fresh and engaging read.

For extra fun, check out the publisher's blog posts on how the design of the book cover came to be. I prefer some of the other illustrated designs so the book doesn't get dated easily. How about you?
Lee & Low Books: Design 101: How a book cover gets made Part I  Part II

I've mentioned this before: I have an uncle who started most of my early reading obsessions by giving books for birthdays and Christmas.  When I was 14, my uncle gave me my first Discworld books, Men at Arms and Soul Music.  I was thrown right into the middle of the series without any background, and I loved them.  I've since acquired nearly all his other books from the Discworld series and otherwise, and a number of other tie-in media, like almanacs, maps, TV adaptations, video games, and even a cookbook.

It is Britsh comic fantasy, a bit like a more refined Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.  Terry Pratchett recognizes the tropes of fantasy and mythology but plays with them to build his stories.  Characters in the novels know this, and their actions are often guided by that knowledge (the hero wins, the no-name thug will die, 1-in-a-million chances come up 9 times out of 10, the mysterious stranger is obviously up to something, etc.)

For people who want literature for their kids, this series is good for it:  Terry Pratchett weaves a lot of social commentary into the stories.  Using fantasy standards such as trolls, elves, dwarves, werewolves, vampires and such as stand-ins for various cultures, he addresses a lot of modern issues such as racism and intolerance, gangs and violence, and even large-scale economics and terrorism, all without coming across as preachy.

I wouldn't recommend starting at the beginning; Terry Pratchett didn't really hit his stride until about 10 books (of 39 so far), at around Reaper Man.  This is where a lot of the fantasy elements and straight-up jokes are played down and the character and character-driven humour take over.  Even then, there are quite of number of cross-genre mashups here, including detective, noire, military, comedy, martial arts, murder mystery, pop culture, kids books, etc.

The series itself can be divided into several sub-series, in addition to a number of standalone works, though all of them do have appearances by characters from each subgroup:

The City Watch (my personal favourite)
The Witches
Rincewind and the Wizards
Death (he's actually a nice guy, and pretty thoughtful, too, even if he doesn't understand people very well)

Plots don't span multiple novels, but there is a lot of progression in characters and the world in general as people are promoted and technology marches on so reading them in rough order is recommended but not required.

Seventeen-year-old Jack London dreams of striking gold, just like all the other men and women traveling to Yukon. He willingly embarks on a treacherous journey across the wild north through blizzards and mountains and raging rivers, all the while keeping his optimism and enthusiasm for what he considers an adventure, but little did he know that the wilderness has something else in store for him, and he is going to find out who really is Jack London, if he survives the ordeals.

I sneaked a peek at the plot prior to reading (really, why do I do that all the time to give myself expectations?), and I knew the authors have weaved in a couple legends, and this survival story will turn supernatural. The first hundred pages or so are well written, and it will thrill many readers that enjoy this type of story, but it's not really my cup of tea, so I was anxiously waiting for something "different" to happen. Once the story takes that strange turn though, I find myself wishing that Jack is back fighting nature. The wolf as Jack's spiritual guide doesn't quite work for me.  I don't mind the inclusion of the Wendigo, a flesh-eating monster, but it almost comes in too late in the book. Also, I prefer one scary villain, but the attention is divided when Jack encounters of the temptress Lesya and has to find a way to escape, and the subplot takes away the horror of the Wendigo.

Even though the book is marketed to teens and upper-elementary kids, it reads more like an adult book. It's difficult to like a book when the main character is not someone you particularly care to root for. Also not quite sure if Jack London fans will want to read this because of the strange mixture of fantasy and historical. 

Allegedly a movie deal has already been made, and the sequel Sea Wolves will come out in Feb 2012.
Author websites: Christopher Golden • Tim Lebbon

When John receives a note from his professor urging him to go to London to see him, John sets off immediately. But before he arrives, his professor is discovered murdered in his study.
After John and two other young men, who were also on their way to see the professor at the time of his death, are questioned by the police inspector, they are approached by a strange old man who tells them they are the caretakers of a magical atlas. This atlas -- the Imaginarium Geographica -- contains all the worlds described by myths, legends and fairy tales and can be used to guide a person to and from imaginary lands. John is sure there is some kind of mix-up, but before he can protest, they are chased by mythical man-eating creatures and he finds himself running for his life.
What follows is a quest to save both the "real" and imaginary worlds from the evil Winter King who is taking over with his army of Shadow-Born, terrible, lifeless creatures that cannot be killed.
This isn't a nail-biter thriller, but it definitely is a great adventure story with plenty of action. The first chapter starts off with the murder and from then on the main characters are moving from one fantasy world to the next. There are plenty of talking animals, trolls, magic rings, and treachery. The language is a bit archaic, but it fits the 1917 England setting and is not unlike the writing found in many of the more classic fantasy novels. What kept me reading though, was all the references to characters, places and plots of myths (Greek, Eqyptian, Norse), legends (e.g. Arthurian) and other famous literary works (Jules Verne, Dickens). It was really neat to have them merge and interact together and kind of entertaining to look for the more subtle allusions throughout the book as well. The problem with this of course, is that readers who are not familiar with these tales will miss the references, especially since not all of them are explicitly explained in the book. However, this being said, those who like the more classic fantasy style will most likely still enjoy the book, as it the plot itself is intriguing enough.
This is the first in the Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica series. James Owen is also the illustrator and author of the StarChild comics and books.