The Trap

The Magnificent 12 #2

by Michael Grant

In the thrilling second book of the Magnificent 12 series, Mack MacAvoy is challenged by his spectral mentor, Grimluk—who only appears in the shiny chrome pipes of bathrooms. Mack must find the ancient ones, the great forgotten forces. Some will help; some not so much. But above all— Time is short! The wicked Pale Queen’s three-thousand-year banishment ends in thirty-five days, and she will be free to destroy the world. It’s up to Mack to stop her return. But what do all of Grimluk’s clues mean? Can Mack achieve everything he must do without getting killed by the evil Risky—and escape the trap? The Magnificent 12: The Trap is another fast-paced episode in bestselling author Michael Grant’s hilarious fantasy-adventure series.

Genres: Fantasy, Adventure, Middle Grade, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Mythology

294 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

Co-author with Katherine Applegate of Ocean City, Making Out, Summer, Animorphs, Everworld, Remnants, Eve and Adam.

Pseudonymous coauthor with KA of Christy (the TV spin-off books), Sweet Valley Twins, Girl Talk and various Disney spin-offs.

Pseudonymous author of Barf-O-Rama.

Author of Gone, BZRK, The Magnificent 12, Messenger of Fear, Front Lines, Monster and A Sudden Death in Cyprus.

AKA Michael Robinson (restaurant reviews and newspaper features).

AKA Michael Reynolds (legal name) political media producer. (Team Blue).

Reviews

[Beagle Lover (Avid Reader) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars!

Mr. Grant delivers another wild and entertaining book with "The Trap." Loaded with action, terrific characters (both good and bad), the assembling of 4 of the 12 and the hugely enjoyable character named Stephan, clearly my favorite in this story, even though he is not one of the 12.

Two books into this series and this reader is highly amused and very much entertained. It is a good book to recall one's childhood and relive some long forgotten memories.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reviewed by James, age 10, 6/22/19

This book is about 12 year old David "Mack" MacAvoy who, in the first book, learns that he has magical powers and must assemble 11 others like him to destroy the Pale Queen of All Monsters.
She was banished for 3000 years by the first Magnificent 12, but back then they didn't have really big numbers and a rich dude was an "11-aire." They called together all their astronomers and everything to come up with the biggest number possible to banish her, and the number they came up with was 3000.
Now those 3000 years are all but up, and in about a month the Pale Queen will arise and destroy the world, unless Mack can assemble the 12 and save the world. All while fighting the Pale Queen's minions, which she sends out to save them.
(Mom's note: Wow, this doesn't sound like The League of Seven at all! Oh well, I guess it's less whether the plot is original and more where they go with it!)
(James' note: Ever heard of inspiration, Mom?)
In this book he must find the rest of the 12, learn the magical language that allows them to do spells, and avoid a trap.
He does, narrowly.

There are two more books after this in the series. I have read them. The whole series is good. I liked it.

[TheBookSmugglers · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally Reviewed on The Book Smugglers: http://thebooksmugglers.com/2011/08/t...

After teaming up with Jarrah, the second of the Magnifica in The Call, Mack, Jarrah and Stefan set out to find the remaining 10 members possessing the “enlightened puissance.” With only a few muddled, cryptic clues from Grimluk (via the bathroom), Mack conquers his phobia of flying (sort of) and heads to China with his friends in tow, only knowing that he must find something about a band called Egg Rocks (actually items called “egge” rocks), toityberg (actually Teutoberg Forest) nine dragons (of Daidu). On this leg of their journey, Mack and his friends find the next member of their world-saving team in Xiao, a lovely young dragon in the form of a girl. Of course, their mission is dangerous and full of mortal peril, as they are chased by more monstrous creatures, and a very old assassin named Paddy “Nine-Iron” Trout. Oh, and there’s also Princess Risky – aka the goddess of destruction and daughter of the Pale Queen – hot on their tail. The intrepid team discover that not only do they only have 36 days to find the remaining members, but they also have to kill Risky twelve times in order to prevent the Pale Queen’s ascension. No problem.

As second novels go, The Trap is every bit as silly, fun, and adventure-filled as its predecessor. I loved the change of location from the US, to Australia, to China, and it’s wonderful to see diversity with the heroes of the world in the Magnifica. While Mack and Stefan are both caucasian boys from America, Jarrah is aborigine-descended, and Xiao is an honest to goodness Chinese Dragon (in the form of a girl). I loved the addition of Xiao to the crew as her character is bold and direct – plus, she can fly.

Like the first book, The Trap is split across two stories, one in realtime and one in the past – only this time, the past storyline is that of Paddy “Nine-Iron” Trout and his lurid history. While Nine Iron’s storyline is interesting, I had the same issue with this as I did with The Call: I didn’t really care much for the past storyline and found myself rushing through to get back to the overall story. The only other thing about The Trap and The Call that is a little worrisome is that there are a number of current references in terms of technology (iPhones) and pop stars (Ke$ha), which could date the series rather quickly. But for now, this and plotting questions aside, I found myself thoroughly enjoying this book, and with a cliffhanger ending, it will keep readers hungry and anxious for the next member of the twelve.

[Ewan · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's very funny. I'm serious.

[Brandon Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a massive improvement from the first book. I was given the first book of this series as an unexpected delve into the sort of YA sci-fi type series.

The first book did not impress me at all. The story was hard to follow. It was confusing in plot, setting, etc. This book fixed all of those problems.

The descriptions in the book, albeit a bit short, were extremely well done. I would have loved to see some of the scenes done in even more detail, such that, each chapter feels like its own setting and maybe expanding on those settings with a longer book would have made me even more elated, but we're nitpicking the difference between an "A" and an "A+" to that degree. The vastness I felt when the heroes entered the caverns, flying through the sky and even entering the oak tree gates in the sky were absolutely marvelous as a picture in my mind and I love these descriptions here.

The plot of the story made sense and even had the characters asking questions that I had been asking throughout the story. Getting to hear the backstory of the villains to some degree and laughing as he continued to shoot people on the path was funny. The side pieces of the golem doing his hilarious antics back in the real world were funny and engaging. And the fact that it seems the book is told from the experience of a teenager but done in a way that's actually interesting and funny, rather than childish and boring.

My final thoughts are that I could nitpick the ideas of them hiding in a cabinet and randomly finding letters or the idea that all this can happen and we expect people of the regular world to not have this be a bigger deal, but honestly those things are drowned out by how good this book made me feel in the other areas of the story. An excellent book through and through, and I look forward to seeing more of this in book 3.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was overall a good book. What doesn't make sense is that they run into 2 people that they need to meet out of the billions of people in the world. Obviously the third person they needed to meet is against them and is working for their enemies and just happened to have a big fat grudge against the main character. How weird is the luck. In these types of book the author always says the main character's look is bad but they always win and come out alive.

[Camila Candia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ni tan bueno ni tan malo, pero seguiré hasta el final xD

[Erasmo Giordano · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice book to read, and full of adventures.

[Catherine · Rating 4 out of 5]

A quick, good read for all writers. You will feel buoyed and validated in Goldberg’s hands.

[Jonathan Hyun · Rating 5 out of 5]

(WARNING: My review contains some spoilers)

Magnificent 12: The Trap

Characters:
-Mack
-Stefan
-Grimluck
-Paddy Nine Iron Trout
-Valin
-Risky
-Xiao
-Jarrah
-Diemter

Plot:
Mack is continuing his journey on saving the world from the Evil Pale Queen, who only has 36 days left until her resurrection in being free from the locked underground. Mack is on his way to finding all the eleven members of the new magnificent 12 including himself. So far, he has found Jarrah, with his body guard Stefan who was once his school bully. Mack finds 3 more of the members, Xiao, Diemeter, and Valin. Xiao and Diemeter were two brave and loyal members who really helped Mack during his journey. But in the other hand, Valin, who was destined to be one of the 12, became a traitor who worked for the Pale Queen with the evil old Paddy Nine Iron Trout. During the adventure, the Magnificent 12 meets many more characters like the dragons, more evil enemies sent from the Pale Queen, Risky, and the gods of Asgard. The Pale Queen and Risky has set a trap on the magnificent 12 into running into the gods of Asard; Thor and Odin who try to turn the 12 into the Pale Queen. But through the help of Nott, the magnificent 12 tend to escape from the gods. The days until the resurrection of the Pale Queen is getting closer, and Mack needs to find the other 7 members of the Magnificent 12 to gain power and defeat the evil Pale Queen forever.

Problems:
The problem in this story is the trap. In order to kill Mack and prevent him from saving the world, the Pale Queen and Risky sets a trap by using the old gods of Asgard. Risky uses the god’s weaknesses to set a trap on Mack. Thor, who is obsessed in rock bands have been promised from Risky that he would get a chance to perform with the famous rock bands. Odin, the father of the gods has been promised a whole bank of money from the Pale Queen. Believing that all this would happen, the gods get tempted into taking in the magnificent 12 and plans to hand them over to the Pale Queen so they would be killed. Just like the title of this story, the trap was the main problem, which almost had the magnificent 12 to be killed. But through the powers that they already have together, they manage to escape the trap.

Positive Aspects:
The positive aspect of this book was the character choices from the author. It was interesting to see from the first book that a boy who is scared of literally everything becomes the hero of saving the world with a body guard boy named Stefan who once was a school bully of Mack. By the end of the first book, Mack finds a girl named Jarrah who is from Australia and is much more like a boy than a girl. In this book, Mack and his magnificent 12 find a dragon girl named Xiao Long. Xiao’s father is the king of the dragons. Finally, Mack finds a boy named Diemter, who is the great great great (x1000 and much more) grandson of the original Magnificent 12 leader, Grimluck. The combination of characters is all random and crazy, which is the one reason I really love this book. A boy who has phobias of everything, a school bully, an Australian girl who acts like a boy, a dragon girl, and the great great grandson of hero has come together as a team to save the world from the evil Pale Queen.

Style of Writing:
The style of writing by Michael Grant is the sense of humor of the book. The three main senses of humor for this book were; The Golem’s letter, flashback chapters, and the author’s jokes. The Golem’s letter in almost every chapter is written on the side of the page vertically, which makes it even more interesting and funny to read sideways. Just like the first book, the second book is written as a flashback from the old times to modern days. In the first book, it was about Grimluck’s youth life as the leader of the magnificent 12. In the second book, it was about Paddy Nine Iron Trout’s youth life into becoming a nafia, and becoming a servant of the Pale Queen. And finally, the author Michael Grant writes his books in the style of joking. In some phrases and sentences, he uses parenthesis to write down some jokes or a humorous phrase that makes me laugh all the time. When you read them, it feels as if he is a good friend of yours and talking to you like a real friend and not a formal and serious book writer. All these senses of humor in the book represent who the author Michael Grant is, and how different and fun of a writer he is which makes it much more interesting and fun to read his books.

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

RECEIVED FROM: Net Galley for Review


***NOTE MY REVIEWS OFTEN CONTAIN SPOILERS***

Mack MacAvoy is the leader of the Magnificent 12, a group of chosen twelve-year-olds with “enlightened puissance” who have been tasked with saving the world. The children aren’t protecting us from the dangers we know, but the dangers that we don’t remember. The Pale Queen, the mother of all monsters will escape her prison in a little over thirty days and Mack and his companions are our only hope of stopping her and her monster minions from taking over the world. In that time Mack must assemble the twelve, learn Vargran and figure out how to defeat her. So far he’s found one of the twelve and brought along his middle school bully as a bodyguard. Will he be able to find the rest before the Pale Queen escapes?

First I’ll mention this is the second book in a series and while it does summarize the previous book, it’s always best to start with the first book in a series like this one. Unfortunately, this is my first encounter with this author’s work so I didn’t do that. Second I’ll tell you off the bat this isn’t a book that’s written for adults. This is the book you buy for that eight or nine year old in your house that would rather have his teeth pulled than read a book. (I have two of those.) It’s an excellent blend of humor and adventure that no child will be able to resist reading.

I have never in my life read a sillier book than this one. The element of adventure and fantasy is there of course, but it pales in comparison to the humor portrayed all throughout the book. There are passages from a Golem who will explain to you that his name is pronounced GO-Lem not Gollem and he’s not after your precious, though he continuously repeats himself because of course with a brain made of mud he doesn’t have much in brain power. There’s a hundred-year-old assassin who tells his targets to wait for him while he takes a puff from his oxygen tank. A hero with 21 phobias, a bully that doesn’t know three times four but who will excitedly fight anyone and a goddess who smiles and waves at you before she attempts to kill you are all featured in the zany cast of characters portrayed in this book. And we haven’t even started on the narrator who never really introduces himself, but who fills the story with humorous commentary that will have you laughing from beginning to end.

Was the book geared toward me? No. Did I have a blast reading it? Of course, who can help but laugh when the hero stops to answer his iphone in the middle of a battle or any of the other crazy things that happen in this book? I personally intend to ensure there are two copies of this sitting under the Christmas tree for my boys this year because if any book exists that will get my sons to read, it’s this one. Grant’s talent for writing in this mix of humor and adventure I’d have to say is unparalleled.

The only negative thing I have to say is that like many children’s and young adult series, each book is only a section of the story and you don’t get the traditional beginning middle and ending. Overall though the Magnificent 12 is a book that should be on every child’s book shelf because if you want your kids to read I can pretty much guarantee this book will do the trick.

[Thomas Norstein · Rating 3 out of 5]

We come from the land of ice and snow,
From the midnight sun where the hot springs blow...

I wonder how many others got that reference... Anyway.

It took me forever to finish reading this book, but I finally did. Not sure how exactly to start this review... The Trap wasn't slow per se, but it wasn't a page turner either. It was cool getting to know the characters more and bringing new ones along the way, but at the same time all the characters seemed distant. I couldn't relate at all to Mack, Stefan, Jarrah, Xiao or Dietmar at all. I think it goes without saying that I didn't relate to Nine Iron nor Risky.

I found the first Golem message hilarious, though luckily I was reading at home alone and my parents were out. So no, people didn't look at me funny for reading a book sideways. However, the other Golem messages were a bit annoying since they didn't really matter to the story at present. Good luck with Camaro when you get back, Mack.

Grimluk literally appeared for 1 chapter and a flashback, after having half the last book centered around him. The enlightened puissance was rarely emphasized too.

I did enjoy the Norse mythology that was put in, especially since I finished reading Loki's Wolves and series earlier this year, and I plan on reading The Hammer of Thor when I get the chance.

Overall, I feel this book had much more potential. I still want to finish the series though, and will book the next one soon.

[Mundie Moms & Mundie Kids · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

A fast paced, action packed adventure with some unforgettable characters, The Trap is a wonderful sequel to The Magnificent Twelve. Michael Grant has created a series that whisk's readers into a fabulous world mixed with a rich mythology, intriguing mythological characters and creates a story line that's both fun and engaging.

This time Mack and his friends travel from China to Germany in their continued quest to find the rest of The Magnificent Twelve and defeat the Pale Queen. Along the way they meet or should I say get attacked by some rather interesting characters. One of my favorite new characters is Xiao, who's also featured on the front of the book. I loved being introduced to Xiao and her dragon family. I was really surprised with how much Mack has grown as a character. While he still deals with all his phobias, he's also learned to think things through more. Mack also provides a lot of the comical relief in the story with his tongue in cheek comments. I found myself laughing out loud more than a few times. Stefan's character keeps getting better and better.

I like that the world of The Magnificent Twelve continues to become much more creative. New characters are introduced, and like the first book, The Trap has a great back story that parallel's with Mack's adventures via the story's bad guy. I like the way Michael Grant introduces Nine Iron, and allowed me to see why he's bad, and why he's after Mack. The Trap is a fabulous addition to a series I highly recommend picking for MG readers. There's a lot more humor in it, the characters have become much more in-depth, and the action is non-stop.

[Brittany · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mack and his friends are still at it. They must assemble the Magnificent 12 before the Pale Queen rises, which is only a few days away. They find dragons, get followed by an ancient man in green, visit Thor and encounter all sorts of freaky creatures along the way. No matter how defeated they think they might be, they have to pull it together to save the world.

The one thing that bugged me a lot about this book was all the product placement. There was quite often a lot of name dropping be it electronics or otherwise. I just think this dates a book and tries to grasp too hard at being cool. Besides that flaw, I loved this book as much as the first one. It was still quite humorous; Mack and his buddies are a lot of fun. I like the new characters we get to meet as more of the Magnifica are gathered. Some of them are a little annoying, but bring a certain charm to the group regardless. I still think that this book should be in the hands of middle grade boys and girls alike. I imagine that once they read it they will eagerly anticipate the next book and the next book. I know I'm waiting!

First Line:
"Grimluk—looking as grim as ever—said the following while appearing as an indistinct image in a shiny chrome object in a bathroom in Sydney, Australia: 'I cannot guide you much further, Mack of the Magnifica.'"


Favorite Lines:
"The philosophy at Donghuamen seemed to be: Is it really gross? Okay then, put it on a stick."

Read more: http://www.areadingnook.com/#ixzz1VsG...

[Tami · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't received the book yet, just received notice I had won. 08/01/11
Received last night, will start as soon as my current read is finished. Almost there. 8/9/11
Will be starting this today. 8/11/11

**Haven't read the first book.**
Mack and his friends head to Tokyo to look for another one of the magnificent twelve. They find another, see the 9 dragons, escape from Paddy Nine Iron and travel to Germany. They meet a bunch of different characters along the way. Some help them, others do not. The Pale Queen will break free from her prison in 35 days, 34 days, 33 days.......

Okay, First I haven't read the first book. Second, this one was a proof so there were errors in the writing. Third, it was written for younger kids, I would say the tween set 10-13 year olds. For that last reason alone I gave it 3 instead of 2. I found the story a bit contrived. Too many attacks, too similar in nature, predictable characters, etc. I loved the dragons but the rest seemed too bland for me. They never mentioned how Nine Iron could travel so fast. They didn't explain how one of the twelve ended up as Nine Iron's apprentince. And maybe it was in the first book, but where are the parents? Only Mack has a golem sitting in for him. The others parents are just fine with their kids running around the world and fighting evil?

[Tony Keefer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very fun follow-up to the first book in the series. Michael Grant's writing style in this series is very fun. Tongue-in-cheek sequences sandwiched between high action give the adventure in this story a little bit of comical fun. I am sure that many middle grade/middle school readers will devour The Trap.

It will be interesting to see where the next installment will take the main characters, especially the villainous Paddy "Nine-Iron" Trout. I loved the backstory that Grant wrote into this book. It was like the Godfather meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Also Mack has started to become a more complicated character. I enjoyed seeing his thinking more in this story as he his processing the nearly impossible task of rustling up the rest of the Mag 12 and stopping the Pale Queen. The most interesting side character introduction in this book was Thor. I loved the idea that Asgard is in disarray and Thor is doing nothing but playing guitar, trying to learn Led Zeppelin songs. Another side note to this is that Odin has become a super fan of a lousy German Soccer team. Grant may have disrupted Rick Riordan's plans to create a new series that centers on Norse Mythology. :)

[Shannon O'Donnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

First, I love, love, love Michael Grant. If he wrote it, you need to read it. Period. His YA GONE series is fantastic, but I can't tell you how much I enjoy this particular MG series. I love the storyline of The Magnificent Twelve, but the characters and humor trump all. I think I would read this even if the storyline was only so-so, that's how great the characters are and how much I enjoy the humor. The wild adventure begun in the The Call continues in The Trap, but the stakes are higher and we meet a new cast of characters along the way. While I love Mack and his phobias, Stefan is still my favorite character by far. He started out as a mega-bully, but he's just mega-hilarious! I adore him.


The Magnificent 12 is a FIVE STAR series, folks! It's perfect for middle grade readers. All three of my kids love it. I love it. Even my father-in-law read it and loved it. It's a guaranteed hit.

[ℂᖺαᖇᒪἷ℮ ⊰1017 &Tardis⊱ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've procrastinated in writing this review.
Basically, this book was hilarious. It's also for kids. Having read The Limit just prior to this, I wasn't expecting much from the middle-grade section. But this book was so good, it was a pleasant surprise. The humor was constant, making me laugh loudly in the middle of class. The action was exciting too, considering it's not proper YA. Exciting and laughable, it was a great quick read--highly enjoyable. I'm very conservative with my five stars these days so this was relegated to four. Apologies.
It's what I expect from Michael Grant, one of the best authors out there!!
The best part was the part about Stonehenge and Justin Beiber. Funny enough to cause severe oxygen shortages.
The plot had its proper twists and turns, a lot of fun to follow.

[Jamie · Rating 3 out of 5]

In the second installment of the Magnificent 12, Mack and Jarrah head to China, where they meet the third member of the 12, a mysterious girl/dragon. After being chased through the Forbidden City, they make their way to Scotland where they meet the fourth and fifth members, one of whom doesn't seem to keen to join them. Having been warned of a trap, Mack is ever wary of those they meet, but is blindsided by the actual trap (of course). Not having any more information from Grimluk, they set off to look for more clues for the whereabouts of the remaining 7 members of the Magnificent 12.

This book fell a little flat for me - sure it was fun, but it was SO predictable. The best parts for me are the notes in the margin from the Golem, who is still posing as Mack and getting him into all sorts of trouble. I truly hope the author steps up his game for the third book,or I won't be reading any further...

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loads of fun! I can't wait to get these books into the hands of some of our fourth and fifth graders--or middle school, if you happen to work with those kids.


Loved the humor and the action.

"Sometimes I talk to toilets. It .... Well, they seem to like it." In my e-ARC that was on page 10 but that could change in the final copy. Anyway. Lines like that. Who wouldn't giggle.

"(By the way, if you know all this because you read the first book? You can skip this chapter and go on to the next one. My feelings won't be hurt.)" That was on page 23. Though I think you should read them in order because otherwise you miss out.


There were lots of others but that is just a hint. Dragons and ninja-like characters. Lots of Paddy's backstory. More fun from Mack's golem back home. Warning ... ends on a cliffhanger. When will book three come out?

[Danielle Larca · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the second volume of The Magnificent 12 series, Michael Grant once again takes us on a wild ride around the world. Mack, Stephen and Jarrah are on their way to China to pick up the next member of the 12, but of course they encounter everything from scary little men made of stinky blue cheese to dragons, to giant grasshoppers and just plain old giants. With the clock ticking down to the Pale Queen's release, will Mack be able to find the rest of the 12 in time to save the world from impending doom?

I wasn't as enamored with this second book. The humor that drew me into the The Call was over the top and contrived in The Trap. I also think that the numerous pop culture references will date this book too quickly. Overall, though, I'd still recommend this series to readers who like humor and adventure.

[kari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book takes up shortly after the end of the first installment and the action immediately rushes on.
I really love the characters in this book, from Mac to Stefan, the bully. Each of them is clearly defined and voiced. The backstory of the assassin added some great humor. Should a story about an assassin be humorous? Anyway, it is.
Although this is a book for children, there are bits that are aimed more at adults, things that children likely wouldn't catch out as being funny. This would be a great story to read to children or for a child to read. Yes, there is an assassin and other creatures attempting to stop Mac and his compatriots, but nothing here is bloody or gruesome. Even the killers are pretty funny.
The notes from the golem was so funny and added to what is happening back in Mac's life.
No spoilers so I'll end by saying can't wait for the next one.

[Bruce Snell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book 2 in the Magnificent 12 series by Michael Grant. This book picks up exactly where book one leaves off with Mack MacAvoy seeking other members of the Magnificent 12 in order to fight the evil White Queen and save the world. Mack and his two friends travel to China where the meet a young Dragon/girl who turns out to be one of the 12, then they go to Germany and find two more of the 12 (although one of them has been co-opted into helping the White Queen). They the Queen's minions, including her daughter, Risky, and the Norse gods Odin and Thor, and (as all good cliff-hangers do) the book ends with them escaping one dangerous situation and arriving at the next. This is probably a book 12 year olds will like so i won't criticize the silliness of the situations, or the simplicity of the plot - they are, after all, aimed at 12 year olds.

[foo4luv · Rating 5 out of 5]

Join Mack, the boy of a thousand phobias (well, okay -- only twenty-five at last count), and his companions, Stefan and Jarrah, as they continue their quest to complete the gathering of the Magnificent Twelve and battle the forces of the Pale Queen. Every bit as awesome and funny as the first book, I'd actually recommend this one for kids, teens, and adults. And don't worry -- Mack's golem still makes the occasional appearance.

Warnings: Well, I guess there is violence. Stefan gets to beat on a lot of monsters. The monsters also have various ick factors -- not the least of which are the lepercons (emphasis on the first two syllables)-- which aren't too far from what you might be thinking.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second book in this series is every bit as good as the first one. In fact, I think it may be funnier. Our hero, Mack, has 35 days to find 11 other members of the Magnifica and save the world. He gets his instructions from a very old guy who only speaks to him through bathroom fixtures. There are an unusual number of strange creatures out to kill him. He is constantly having to overcome his many phobias, including his phobia of phobias. It sounds too pat, but Grant makes the story sing. The dialogue is just right. The riffs on Justin Bieber and Simon Cowell are spot on. And who cares if most 12-year-olds won't get the reference to Led Zeppelin and Stairway to Heaven; I like it. Really looking forward to Book 3.

[Mamatufy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had to read this one as I supposedly read #1. I did not so it was a little confusing. There's Mack, Jarrah & Stefan are back, I guess, & the hunt for the rest of the Magnificent 12 is now urgent because the Pale Queen is about to be released after being imprisoned for 3,000 years. Interesting. The story follows their travels around the globe & they finally end up in China. Oh, these guys are 12 & 13, so the traveling thing on their own is totally plausible. The author solves this problem by writing that Stefan appears old enough to be an adult, ok. Towards the end of the story, all of sudden there's Thor & Odin out of nowhere & things get even more confusing. I guess if you'd read the 1st one it would all make sense. Not the worst book I've ever read but close.

[Darlene · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yay! I won this through First-Reads on GoodReads! I am looking forward to reading it! Thanks!

* * *

Received the book today. It looks very exciting. I can hardly wait to dive in! Thank you!

* * *

Hurry, write the next one! This series is a lot of fun. AND educational. Ok, I will admit that I missed the built in dictionary of my Kindle for this is a real, life book. Where is the button to hit? But I had to look things up. I think most children who read this may do the same. There is just enough history and science to pique the curiosity without weighing the reader down with facts.

LOVE the golem and his wrap around journals and texts.

[Shelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

This goes right into our must-read series list. My son and I read the first book before reading this one and I'd recommend doing so. We enjoyed this book while waiting for Hurricane Irene and then had to put it reluctantly aside when we dealt with flooding. It was a fabulous adventure that had us laughing out loud. There are lots of fun and silly aspects to keep the young readers interested. I look forward to seeing where it goes next! We can't wait! I work with elementary and middle school aged children so I'll be using this series with them... I'm not sure if this series is making the rounds yet with the kids, but my son loved it!

Thanks for the Firstreads giveaway!

[Mark Buxton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read an eBook version of the story. This book is the second in the series, and you should read the first book before it. The humor continues to be a little weird, but it's no different from the first book. The author again shares a flashback story, but this time it explains why the old assassin doggedly stalks the kids. I enjoyed the plot of the book, but I was bothered by the thoughts of the golem, a mud monster impersonating Mack while he gone. The golem's thoughts were stuck in the middle of the plot without any notice, although later in the book they appeared as text messages. There were scenes with chases, fights, and nasty creatures, and they were mixed the author's sense of humor.

[Antonio Luis Angelo Pimentel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Never failed to disappoint me.

Very very entertaining and fast paced. The humor of this series never failed to make me smile and laugh.

The golem's parts in this book bothered me though. He's creepy and weird. I don't want a golem substitute if I ought to save the world. Haha

This series is awesome and a lot of new characters is appearing (I can't believe Thor is here XD) , can't wait to meet all the Magnificent 12.
And know their hidden powers and what will Risky's other eleven deaths be like.

There's currently four ( Magnificent 12) of them in this book. not including Mack's bodyguard Stefan.

Loving this series even more :)