The
Viper's Nest
The
39 Clues
Peter
Lerangis
Scholastic
(Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 0-545-06047-8 (0545060478)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06047-9 (9780545060479)
Publication Date: February 2010
List Price: $12.99
Synopsis (from the publisher): It's no longer a game. The body count is rising. Shaken by recent events, Amy and Dan flee to a distant land and trace the footsteps of their most formidable ancestor yet: a military leader of mythic proportions. Yet just as the siblings begin to master the art of ancient warfare, they confront a dangerous enemy that can't be felled with a sword: the truth. With the stakes higher than ever, Amy and Dan uncover something so devastating it changes everything – the secret of their family branch.
Review:
Fleeing the island of Java (Indonesia) following the fire that took the
life of someone they thought was their nemesis, but who saved their
lives while sacrificing hers, Amy and Dan Cahill use the lyrics to a
song as a guide to their next destination and travel to South Africa in
their search of another clue in The
Viper's Nest,
the seventh book in The 39 Clues series of adventure novels, this entry
written by Peter Lerangis.
Amy and Dan quickly discover their grandmother, Grace, spent a
considerable amount of time on the continent of Africa, and in
particular the country of South Africa, leaving behind several
documents, including a secret letter from Winston Churchill, that aid
the children in their quest. But the letter is cryptic, giving only the
location of a "realization", the Witbank Mines, where a young Churchill
had once taken refuge during the Second Boer War. Heading off for the
mines, Amy and Dan are convinced if they can find the key to help them
decode the letter, they'll be able to learn the next clue in their
bizarre hunt around the world, which will ultimately lead them to the
greatest power ever known.
Though filled with the action and adventure that the books in the
series are known for, The Viper's
Nest
also has an abundance of puzzles, codes, and secret messages for Amy
and Dan (and the reader) to figure out. These add an interesting
intellectual twist to the story. (And don't overlook the coded message
printed on the page edges of chapters 7 through 11 for readers to
decipher!) Finally, there is some subtle, and most welcome,
misdirection in the plot, giving the story an element or two of a
classic mystery.
Typical of books in the series, there are plenty of cliffhangers to
keep readers in suspense, with the book ending -- somewhat
appropriately -- with hints on where Amy and Dan may be heading next,
but not revealing the exact location. And as promised in the previous
book, In
Too Deep, Amy and Dan do
learn in which branch of the family they belong, though it isn't clear
what this new knowledge may mean within the overall context of the
series.
Book 8 of The 39 Clues, The
Emperor's Code,
is written by Gordon Korman (who also wrote the second book One False Note),
and is scheduled for publication in April 2010.
Special thanks to Scholastic for providing a copy of The Viper's Nest for this review.
Review Copyright © 2010 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read The Viper's Nest? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series …
The
Maze of Bones
Scholastic (Hardcover), December 2008
ISBN-10: 0-545-06039-7 (0545060397)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06039-4 (9780545060394)
One
False Note
Scholastic (Hardcover), December 2008
ISBN-10: 0-545-06042-7 (0545060427)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06042-4 (9780545060424)
The
Sword Thief
Scholastic (Hardcover), March 2009
ISBN-10: 0-545-06043-5 (0545060435)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06043-1 (9780545060431)
Beyond the Grave
Scholastic (Hardcover), June 2009
ISBN-10: 0-545-06044-3 (0545060443)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06044-8 (9780545060448)
The Black Circle
Scholastic (Hardcover), August 2009
ISBN-10: 0-545-06045-1 (0545060451)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06045-5 (9780545060455)
In Too Deep
Scholastic (Hardcover), November 2009
ISBN-10: 0-545-06046-X (054506046X)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06046-2 (9780545060462)
The Viper's Nest
Scholastic (Hardcover), February 2010
ISBN-10: 0-545-06047-8 (0545060478)
ISBN-13: 978-0-545-06047-9 (9780545060479)
Omnimystery
keywords for The Viper's Nest
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Location(s) referenced: South Africa.
