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The 39 Clues #2

by Gordon Korman, Гордън Корман

Целта на надпреварата е да се открият 39-те ключа към тайната на рода Кахил. Наградата е сдобиване с невероятна власт. Колкото и да изглежда невъзможно, 14-годишната Ейми Кахил и по-малкият й брат Дан се оказват във водеща позиция. Кодиран откъс от музикална творба на Моцарт, до която двамата успяват да се доберат, ги отвежда във Виена. Но жадните им за могъщество роднини са неотклонно по петите им. Дали малките Кахил са поели по пътя към успеха - или към смъртоносен капан?

Genres: Mystery, Adventure, Middle Grade, Fiction, Young Adult, Childrens, Audiobook

176 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 2008

About the author

Gordon Korman is a Canadian author of children's and young adult fiction books. Korman's books have sold more than 30 million copies worldwide over a career spanning four decades and have appeared at number one on The New York Times Best Seller list.

Reviews

[Tina➹ lives in Fandoms · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25 Silver Stars
With Golden Sparks

the adventure continues
searching for clues, solving mysteries,
the Family business!

I wanted to give this book 4 stars, only because of lots of "LOL", I had a great time reading it. but to have a fair rating, the plot was good & engaging, but not that much interesting to make me obsessed, though it made me curious. (maybe it's because the lack of magic)
we discovered more about the history of the Cahills & its branches. (I love this branch!)
I was solving the puzzles exactly with Amy & Dan & it was such a cool feeling!
quick read.
Fun!
traveling!
Music!

I really like Dan & Amy & Nellie!
& Saladin!
I'm really curious which branch these two are.

For more details, read my review of the first book; the Maze of Bones
-
World building: ★★★/5
Characters: ★★★★/5
Written style: ★★★★/5
Plot: ★★★/5
General idea: ★★★/5

[Exina · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vienna, Salzburg and Venice – the treasure hunt continues. The author of this book is not the same as the previous book’s, so the writing style is noticeably different. It bothered me first, but as the story progressed, I got used to it.
Still exciting, entertaining story. Recommended!

Their one chance was to get lost in the maze of canals. But this was not to be. Just ahead, the tight channel fed into an expansive waterway bustling with marine traffic.
"The Grand Canal," Amy said with awe. "And there's the Ponte di Rialto, one of the most famous bridges in the world."
"We don't need a guided tour! We need a place to disappear!"

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Η μικρή (όχι και τόσο) χαζή (αυτογνωσία) Αννούλα (εγώ είμαι αυτή), εκ Θεσσαλονίκης ορμώμενη, αποφασίζει να πάει διακοπές στο εξοχικό. Το θεωρεί επίσης καλή ιδέα να μην πάρει το δικό της αυτοκίνητο, γιατί εκεί θα έχει το οικογενειακό αυτοκίνητο στη διάθεσή της (ή το μπαμπά σοφέρ στη χειρότερη). Και κάπως έτσι αρχίζει η περιπέτεια ΟΑΣΘ – ΚΤΕΛ Χαλκιδικής. (Μα καλά, είναι δυνατόν το λεωφορείο να έχει κλιματισμό και όλα τα παράθυρα να είναι ανοιχτά; Κάνεις κίνηση να κλείσεις το δικό σου, μετά τα βλέπεις όλα ορθάνοιχτα και λες άσε, που να μπλέξω τώρα και που να βάλω μυαλό σε όλο τον κόσμο, θα φαίνομαι η τρελή της υπόθεσης).
Στο ΚΤΕΛ δεν περίμενα ιδιαίτερα πολύ για να φύγω (γύρω στο μισάωρο), όπως σωστά είχα υπολογισμένα για να φτάσω εγκαίρως και να μη ρισκάρω να χάσω το λεωφορείο, γιατί ποιος περιμένει το επόμενο. Εντάξει, γι’ αυτό δεν έχω να γκρινιάξω. Μέσα στο λεωφορείο όμως, δίπλα μου κάθεται μεγαλόσωμος τύπος – που πιάνει και το 1/3 της δικής μου θέσης - και κάποια στιγμή αποκοιμιέται και πέφτει πάνω μου - ω ναι, την έφαγε την αγκωνιά του! Πίσω μου κάθονται κάποιες κυρίες που αναλύουν τα πάντα περί της ζωής τους - όχι, δεν γνωρίζονταν, δωρεάν ψυχοθεραπεία βρήκαν. Το air condition επίσης δεν δούλευε (τα παράθυρα δεν ήταν ανοιχτά τώρα) και γενικά η εμπειρία ήταν λίγο τραγική. Ίσως κιόλας έχω μεγαλώσει πλέον για να ζω τέτοιες εμπειρίες!
Μετά από 4 ώρες τελικά (σε σύνολο) έφτασα στο σπίτι μου (1,5 ώρα με το αυτοκίνητο, όπου θα περνούσα από τον καινούριο υπέροχο δρόμο που φέτος δόθηκε στην κυκλοφορία – θρύλος αυτός ο δρόμος) και ξόδεψα περισσότερα λεφτά από όσο θα μου κόστιζε η βενζίνη (ω ναι, το ΚΤΕΛ Χαλκιδικής φροντίζει να μας γδύνει!!!).
Μπορεί η απόφασή μου να μην ήταν και η πιο ώριμη (θα μεγαλώσω και θα μάθω) αλλά είχα φροντίσει να πάρω e-reader (ίσως αυτό να με ώθησε κιόλας να φύγω με λεωφορείο). Τελικά λοιπόν ισχύει: με ένα βιβλίο ξεχνιέσαι και όλα γίνονται πιο εύκολα!!!!
Η σειρά τα 39 στοιχεία δεν με έχει ενθουσιάσει (ναι ξέρω, δεν απευθύνεται σε μένα, αλλά αντίστοιχες σειρές μου έχουν αρέσει περισσότερο), αλλά τη χαζοδιαβάζω (και θα συνεχίσω να το κάνω). Δυο ορφανά παιδιά γυρνάνε τον κόσμο ψάχνοντας στοιχεία που θα τους κάνουν άρχοντες της ανθρωπότητας (εδώ δε σώζουν τον κόσμο, μόνο τον εαυτό τους). Ο κύριος λόγος που δεν μου αρέσει η σειρά είναι ότι τα στοιχεία τα βρίσκουν τυχαία και δεν μου βγάζει πολύ λογική η όλη πορεία τους. Τελοσπάντων, για κάτι τέτοια ταξίδια καλή είναι η φάση τους. Αν ήμουν παιδί ίσως το είχα απολαύσει περισσότερο.
ΥΓ. Σαν τη μαμά δεν έχει. Ξέρει να κάνει τα πάντα υπερλούξ ξενοδοχείο!!!!!!

[Isa Cantos (Crónicas de una Merodeadora) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Una nueva historia de los hermanos huérfanos Cahill en su búsqueda de las 39 pistas que les permitirán obtener riqueza y poder ilimitados para dominar el mundo. En Una Nota Falsa las pistas nos llevan a Viena, Salzburgo y Venecia de la mano de Mozart y posibles adivinanzas y misterios que dejó mientras aún vivía, previendo esta enorme búsqueda de la familia Cahill.

En esta entrega seguimos viendo lo despiadadas que son las diferentes ramas de la familia Cahill, pues harán literalmente todo lo que sea necesario para tomar la delantera y conseguir la siguiente pista. Si bien todas las ramas tienen dinero y recursos, Dan y Amy deben valerse únicamente de su ingenio y de la ayuda de su niñera para viajar alrededor del mundo.

No es un libro espectacular, pero está muy bien para pasar el rato entre lecturas más densas.

[Moon_child31 · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5⭐

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jedino što mogu da kažem svaka čast Herr Gordonu na upsešnom prekopiranom stilu pisanja os Herr Rika. Da nisam primetio da su drugačiji pisci na naslovnicama ne bih ni znao da je neko drugi pisao. Odlično.

Sem toga nema puno, ako va se svidela prva knjiga svideće vam se i ova. Skakutanje svetom u potrazi za tragovima koji će nas odvesti do velikog blaga. Svi oće nagradu i svi igraju prljavo.

Sa finom dozom akcije i komedije knjiga prosto proleti :)

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had a hard time putting this one down. This story kept me hopping and guessing what the next clue would be. My biggest disappointment was that not all the Cahill relatives played a big part in this story. I'm anxious for the next one.

[Jelinas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I firmly believe that writing for kids should still reflect good writing.

Just because they're kids doesn't mean that you should throw in a bunch of explosions or fighting to keep them interested. No, I believe that children, like adults, learn how to write from what they read. I'm not just talking about grammar, here. I'm talking about style, descriptions, expression -- the whole shebangbang.

And the better the writing is now, the better it will be in the future, when today's kids grow up and write books of their own.

This is why I'm so disappointed with this book. Gordon Korman wrote This Can't Be Happening at Macdonald Hall when he was only twelve -- it was published when he was fourteen. The Bruno & Boots series was full of fun and energy -- I wanted to move to Canada and attend Miss Scrimmage's Finishing School for Young Ladies so that I could engage in shenanigans with the boys at McDonald Hall. His characters were believable and had a lot of depth under all the fun.

How can it be that Korman's writing got worse as he got older?

After reading The Maze of Bones, the only things that made me read the second book in the series were that: A. my nine-year-old buddy BN was looking forward to lending it to me, and B. the second book was written by Gordon Korman. I figured that if anyone could rescue this series from a crappy second installment, it was Korman.

I was wrong. I was so, so wrong.

The second installment in the series takes the kids from France to Austria to Italy. This time, they're chasing Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. We get a lot of nice Mozart factoids along the way, but I'm dubious as to the accuracy of some of them. For example, the book claims that Mozart had a twin sister. He did have a sister, but they weren't twins. What's up with that, Korman?

But my biggest beef with this volume wasn't the inaccuracies. It was the lack of style.

Maybe it's because he was given such crappy characters to work with in the first place, but the book was just as two-dimensional as its predecessor. I guess I was expecting too much -- if Korman read Rick Riordan's installment and then tried to copy his (flat) style, then he did too good a job. Korman, sometimes, it's okay to turn down a job.

Really, the only thing One False Note really does is get the Cahill kids from France to Italy, from whence they will fly off to Japan. *sigh*

Man, I miss Ellen Raskin so much.

[Lily · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

Mm, this one lacked a climax, but I don't quite feel like writing a full review. Also, how come Natalie and Ian have got top-notch surveillance all over Venice, but the Janis stronghold doesn't even seem to have a single security guard, let alone any cameras? Makes it way too easy for our main characters. Still, the Clue-hunt wasn't bad, and I loved the musical aspects of this!

««Recommended for...»»
☐ Reluctant/impatient readers
☐ Children grades 3-6
☐ Those who love fact-paced reads
☐ Music geeks
☐ Fans of The False Prince
☐ Fans of Gordon Korman's Titanic Trilogy: Unsinkable / Collision Course / S.O.S.
☐ Readers of middle grade, fantasy, historical fiction, and/or action and adventure
☐ Someone wanting to get out of a reading slump

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

And so on to the second on the series and so far so good. The action starts pretty much right from the off and not ending till literally the last pages. The story is fast paced in-between with humour and action a-plenty.

I would say that I think keeping this up for the entirety of the series could start to feel repetitive but I guess for the target audience that may not be such an issue - however only 2 books in this certainly is not the case.

One thing I must admit I am enjoying is that the main protagonists are likeable - the issue I have seen (and I am not expert on the genre by a long shot) is that they can come across as either annoying pathetic or impossibly superior. However here we have characters who you can root for and are relatable too - a hard task considering it appears it is nothing short of the fate of the world they are racing towards. So, so far so good I would say

[aLirEza nEjaTi · Rating 3 out of 5]

فک کنم بتونم با فراخ بال 3 یا حتی 3.5 بدم :)
جلد دوم شبیه جلد اول خیلی شروع معمولی و کسل‌کننده‌ای داشت ولی اواخر این جلد خیلی بهتر و منطقی‌تر جلو رفت! مخصوصا که وجهه‌های مختلفی از خانواده‌ی کاهیل آشنا شدیم.
فعلا که این مجموعه به‌قولی مزه کرده، می‌رم جلد بعدی :دی

[Ruby Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

These books are so good!!! I am like seriously not kidding. These books, unlike some other middle grade I have reread recently and didn't have half a heart to rate two stars from the first 50 pages, are actually good for all ages. Yes, they are appropriate for younger audiences, but the enjoyment isn't gone for older ones. :)

[Lila · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cahills take bloodthirsty family to another level, huh?

Another city, another adventure. I know it's such a small part of the story, but I found it fascinating how Korman spun the Marie Antoinette's famous words: "Let them eat cake!"

I have always wanted to visit Venice (been in Italy a few times, but never in Venice) and this book make it seem like I did. I cannot get enough of Amy and Dan and their ingenuity. Nellie is hilarious and quirky and if I had one, I would have loved her as an au pair.

I can't decide who I consider to be most unscrupulous out of all Cahill teams. Might be a bit on the nose, but Lucians seems most ruthless.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really great adventure series centered around orphaned Amy (14) and Dan (11) Cahill. There grandmother has died and set their family off on a world wide adventure to discover the 39 clues that will lead to a price that will grant enough wealth and power to possibly rule the world! The kids are fresh and natural with each other and very personable. The adventure are fast paced, almost like watching a movie. The way the authors weave historical facts into the mystery makes it extremely educational (even for us "learned" adults) but in a very fun way. Plus, the adventure continues into the real world with physical clues, a computer site and the chance to win a lot of money. I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys YA adventures and especially for reluctant readers.

[Kasia (kasikowykurz) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trochę mi przykro, bo pierwsza część podobała mi się o niebo bardziej. Trudno oczekiwać, aby seria pisana przez różnych autorów była równa, chociaż do tej pory się udawało. Nie porwała mnie, była nudnawa i mimo, że taka króciutka to zabrakło czegoś, co by mnie wciągnęło jak w przypadku pierwszej. No nic, może dalej będzie lepiej ;)

[librarian4Him02 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is book 2 in the 39 Clues series. When I finished book one, I wasn't sure if I wanted to continue on with the story. Now that I'm done with book 2, however, I have to know how the story ends.

The 39 clues lead to a prize which promises great fame for whoever solve the puzzle. In this volume Amy and Dan Cahill are hot on the trail of clue number 2. Their search takes them to France, Salzburg, and finally to Venice all in search of famous places connected to the life of composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. Along the way, of course, they have to dodge their scheming relatives who will stop at nothing to put Amy and Dan out of commission.

This second volume is written by Gordon Korman. He does a great job continuing the story started by Rick Riordin in The Maze of Bones. All the characters are back from the tricky Alistair Oh to the mysterious man in black and everyone else in between. Even the cat Saladin is back and he's on a hunger strike, which adds a humorous element to this action packed story. In the end Korman leave the reader with a hunger to know what will happen next. (

[Espen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dan and Amy Cahill and they're o'per Nelly found the first clue from Mozart. The clue leads them Vienna Astraea. They're brutal relatives are on they're tail. Will they find the next clue, or will they walk into a deadly trap! What does iron solute half to do with anything?

[Nina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is very fun to read and I love it. I need to get the third book.

[phases.of.dawn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite liked rereading this, especially for nostalgic reasons. For someone who likes Mozart, music and art, this is a fascinating read (although it's of course not the most realistic). 3 stars!

[Tayler Marie Brooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book for children!

[A · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5

Pretty good, I enjoyed this series a lot when I was younger, still pretty good

[Isabel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series just keeps going on to be really good. I did enjoy every single page of this book. It is totally recommendable!

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another fun installment in the 39 CLUES series!

Here, in book two, author Gordon Korman takes the helm from Rick Riordan to steer the Cahill siblings toward their next destination and their next big clue.

It's obvious that Korman and Riordan have different writing styles, and I admit it took me a few chapters to adjust, but once I did I ended up enjoying Korman's style quite a bit and felt he continued with the feel of the characters and the structure of the plot.

Are the books literary masterpieces? No, not really. But, they achieve something brilliant in their own way.
The great thing about these books is how easy they are to read and how quickly one can (and wants, in my case) to read through them. Of course, this does lead to sense of wanting/needing more. Sometimes I felt the arcs of the characters weren't as clearly defined as the arc of the plot, so that kind of was a bummer because I was left wanting more. I know this book is just one in a huge series, but still, I wanted more for the emotional place the characters were at the time.
However, the good of all this is that the books (so far) are page turners and I absolutely love the fact that you can "play along."

I've already ordered my copy of book three! I'm glad I embarked on this journey with the Cahills and I can't wait to take the next step with them.

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Quickie Review

Like a Saturday morning action/adventure serial, the 39 Clues books--at least, so far--feature plenty of action and adventure. It also contains historical and geographic details about real-life people and places, much like the Carmen Sandiego franchise. It's been a while since I've read the first book, but, I was able to understand this second one fairly well. If you haven't checked this series out...you should!

Content Concerns:

Sex: None. 5/5
Nudity: None. 5/5
Language: One misuse of God's name. 4/5
Violence: Some "PG"-level action. 3/5
Drugs: None. 5/5
Frightening/Intense Sequences: Some "PG"-level peril. 3/5

Score: 4/5

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

One False Note picks up right where we left off in The Maze of Bones. Dan and Amy head to Austria to find their next clues. Their competitors make occasional appearances, all with their wealth, power and fame, but the two Cahills actually have the brains, so it's no surprise tabs are being kept on them. I liked the creativeness of the clues of (D>HIC and the cake 'gateau' business). The next book looks like it packs another awesome adventure in Japan. I am fascinated with where the story is heading. Do all 39 clues lead to an ingredient involved in a large formula? A formula for what? And what is Mr McIntyre and the Man in Black's role in all this? I have many questions waiting to be answered!

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

I usually don't like this kind of book, but this one is really good! Even though it is in the mystery section, if you like adventure books, you should definetly read this series. Sometimes it is a little confusing but I understand everything in a few minutes. This is a fast paced book with an ongoing chase and lots of characters that I can't keep track of. I recomend this book to anyone who likes everything I just described, even if you don't like what I just described you should read this book.

[Jade Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was a little less interesting than the first. There was less intrigue throughout the book and some of the connections with different pieces of evidence didn't make much sense or track very well.

The action was great, and listening to the audiobooks almost makes it feel like watching a movie!

The endings for these books though are probably what I like the most! They keep me very much hooked to what happens next!

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

The review of this book has two answers. How I would feel as a kid reading this book (lower ya) and how I liked it from a adult perspective.

As a kid I liked the continuation of the story line from the first book. They are in Europe now trying to put the pieces together to find the clues to get to the end of the challenge first. I liked book one better but I think it is a writing style preference as the books in series are written by different authors.
The story line is engaging as you follow the children and their chaperone hunting for the clues. They get into a few situations that are close and others where they are able to convince other teams in the game they don’t have what they the others want . The children are very resourceful and are often underestimated by the adults . 4.5 stars for kid.

As an adult I would but this more in the 3 star category. This book is like spy kids merged with the davinci code.
The plot was well written just you can definitely tell it was written for a younger audience. It kept my interest while reading but it’s not a book I’ll probably do a reread of.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved all the problems they faced that would so easily be solved by smartphones today:

Exhibit A: In the catacombs cave-in they are stuck in total blackness and have to use their hands to grope along the walls to find their way out. It’s terrifying. Today any self-respecting 14 and 11-year-old would have just whipped out the flashlight on their iPhone in a heartbeat. They still would have been trapped but at least they could SEE.

Exhibit B: They actually consider trying to *steal* a priceless manuscript from behind a retinal-scan case just so they can take it to their au pair to have her translate it. Today you could have just taken a picture and texted it to her in seconds. (Or use google translate yourself.)

Exhibit C: They go to all sorts of libraries and museums to get information instead of just googling it in the car before they get there. 😂

This was 2008 people!! 15 years ago!! When we were kids!! I’m blown away by how much things have changed in our short lifetime. The 39 Clues contest would have been a whole different ballgame in 2023.

[Simoné Eloff · Rating 2 out of 5]

Better than the first one, but still not great. Pushing through with the series in the hopes that it will keep improving, though.

Plus, I've thought up a fun little prompt for myself for January, which this one kicked off: as many short audiobooks (under 5 hours) as I can cram into 31 days. Aiming for 10, but that might be too optimistic...will do my best to get the other 9 done alongside my other reading!