Who Let the Gods Out?

December 15, 2016
A semiorphaned boy accidentally discovers that the gods are real and finds himself drawn into an ancient mythological war with the fate of the world hanging in the balance. Sound familiar? Abandoned by his father, Elliot Hooper, a 12-year-old English white boy, struggles to care for his ailing mother, save their ancestral farm from being sold to a greedy real estate developer, and not fail out of school. When Virgo, the beautiful, immortal goddess from the Greek zodiac, crash-lands in Elliot's cowshed, he is drawn into her mission to feed a godly prisoner held underneath Stonehenge, mistakenly unleashing an ancient evil that threatens the mortal and immortal realms. Evans' debut novel is a breathless roller-coaster ride taking readers on a mythological tour of Elysium, the Underworld, and everything in between. Drawing heavily on stylistic elements reminiscent of Rick Riordan with a hint of Neil Gaiman's Stardust, the author's godly characters are a modern family whose dysfunction would make Jerry Springer salivate. Their antics anchor the story's humor, but otherworldly elements such as the What's What guidebook to universal knowledge are less finely drawn. Elliot's struggles and clear motivations create genuine appeal, but other characters--particularly the perfectionist Virgo--remain opaque and fit awkwardly into the narrative. Weaknesses aside, fans of Percy Jackson will devour this and hope that the gods send a sequel. (Fantasy. 10-14)

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January 1, 2017
Grades 4-7 Virgo may only be 1,964, but she's certain she's mature enough to deliver an elixir to an immortal prisoner on Earth. So it surely can't be her fault when she crash lands on a farm and meets Elliot, who happens to follow her and accidentally releases the daemon Thanatos. Right? Now the other Constellations have stripped her of her powers, until she can return Thanatos to prison. Elliot's life is already complicated as he tries to care for his ill mum while saving the family farm, so Virgo's arrivaland her ineptitude toward Earth customsjust adds one more egg to his overflowing basket. With the help of the all-powerful, but retired, Zeus and a ragtag team of Olympians, can the young heroes thwart Thanatos' evil plans? While Elliot's epic adventures with Virgo will keep the pages turning, his growth as he learns to reach out for help in the most unlikely places keeps the story nicely grounded. Evans gives mythology fans a hilarious and heartening new series that can satisfy their Percy Jackson cravings.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)

July 1, 2017
While helping Virgo, mortal boy Elliot Hooper accidentally frees Thanatos, god of death, from imprisonment. Zeus and the Greek gods arrive to seek the Chaos Stones and recapture Thanatos, but Elliot wants to use the Stones to acquire money to save his family farm. Plot holes abound, and while scenes are played hard for laughs, too many caricatures leave the characters flat and unbelievable.

(Copyright 2017 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)