Today I'm thrilled to be hosting a spot
on the SHINJI TAKAHASHI AND THE MARK OF THE COATL by Julie Kagawa Blog Tour
hosted by Rockstar
Book Tours. I hope you'll check out my review and of course enter the giveaway!
About The Book:
Author: Julie Kagawa
Pub. Date: April 5, 2022
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Formats: Hardcover, eBook, Audiobook
Pages: 320
Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl is the first book in a globe-trotting adventure that combines high-tech wizardry, old-world legends and a little bit of magic.
Shinji Takahashi is just an ordinary kid. An ordinary homeschooled smart-alecky
orphan kid being raised by his aunt Yui. But when a magical guardian decides to
use him as a conduit to awaken its power, Shinji’s life takes a turn for the
extraordinary. Captured by the menacing Hightower Corporation, which is bent on
using the guardian’s magic for its own nefarious purposes, Shinji must team up
with a brilliant young tech whiz named Lucy and her robot mouse, Tinker, to
escape the Corporation’s evil clutches.
Together Shinji and Lucy turn to the venerable Society of Explorers and
Adventurers and its ragtag cast of spelunkers, hackers, mapmakers, pilots, and
mythology experts (among other things) to return the guardian to its rightful
home and release Shinji from its magic—which seems to be draining his life
force. Time is ticking, the Hightower Corporation is hot on their tail, and
success or failure might depend on one small thing—Shinji finally coming around
to the belief that he is anything but ordinary.
Based on
the Society of Explorers and Adventurers lore that exist across the Walt Disney
Parks, Shinji Takahashi and the Mark of the Coatl is the first book in
an all-new action-adventure series that brings S.E.A. into the twenty-first
century through a blend of science and magic, and a focus on two young
characters on an epic journey through time and place.
My Review:
I love the way that Disney is expanding its lore to include books featuring one of their many rides or park attractions. Which reminds me, I still need to read Tales from the Haunted Mansion. I'm also a huge fan of the Rick Riordan Presents imprint and the way that it has published books written by own voices authors, introducing various cultures, their traditions and mythology. So, I was pretty excited to hear Julie Kagawa was writing a book about the Society of Explorers and Adventurers (S.E.A). I had the pleasure once of visiting one of the offshoots of the S.E.A. or The Adventures Club when in was housed in the former Pleasure Island (now referred to as Downtown Disney). It lasted from 1989-2005 and was a pretty cool place, part library/museum filled with books, artifacts and animatronics. Each room had a different theme and the cast put on a show each night, it was certainly entertaining. Reading this book really reminded me about my visit there, and also made me wonder how many people know about the Society of Explorers and Adventurers? There's so much that can be explored in a book about an organization that encompasses so many attractions across so many different park locations. It's like searching for Hidden Mickey's in Disney World and just as exciting when you find a reference to something that you've visited in one of the parks or watched in a movie.
Shinji is kind of bored hanging out with his aunt, so she sends him off to the market to get himself a present or at least to find something that speaks to him. He ends up finding a small Coatl statue that attaches itself to him in the form of a tattoo on his arm. At the same time a group of men show up demanding that he give them the statue and after a struggle, he wakes up at the Hightower Corporation. Shinji learns that he has been cursed by the statue and that the only way to remove the curse is to return the Coatl to the place it was stolen from. The story explores the S.E.A and how the organization has changed their bylaws, focusing on exploring the wonders or relics of the world, and to preserve and protect the artifacts. This is a huge breaking away from past explorers or colonialists who only took things for themselves. Overall, this is a very fast-moving story that takes the reader from the Zambezi River to California and then to Mexico. It's filled with snakes, fire traps, a lake with a scary monster and a hidden pyramid in the jungle. I'd recommend this to a reader whose enjoyed the Rick Riordan presents imprint and someone who's looking for a little adventure, along the lines of an Indiana Jones movie, very exciting.
About Julie Kagawa:
Julie Kagawa is the New York Times bestselling author of the Iron Fey, Blood of Eden, Talon, and Shadow of the Fox series. She was born in Sacramento, California. But nothing exciting really happened to her there. So, at the age of nine she and her family moved to Hawaii, which she soon discovered was inhabited by large carnivorous insects, colonies of house geckos, and frequent hurricanes. She spent much of her time in the ocean, when she wasn’t getting chased out of it by reef sharks, jellyfish, and the odd eel. She worked as a professional dog trainer for several years, dodging Chihuahua bites and overly enthusiastic Labradors, until her first book sold, and she stopped training to write full time. Julie now lives in North Carolina with her husband, two obnoxious cats, and a pair of Australian Shepherds that have more Instagram followers than she does. You can follow her on Instagram or Twitter @JKagawa or check out her website at juliekagawa.com.
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Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a finished copy of SHINJI TAKAHASHI AND THE MARK OF THE COATL, US Only.
a Rafflecopter giveawayTour Schedule:
Week Two:
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4/3/2022 |
Review |
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4/4/2022 |
Excerpt/IG Post |
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4/5/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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4/6/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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4/7/2022 |
Review |
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4/8/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
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4/9/2022 |
Review/IG Post |
Looking forward to this one!
ReplyDeleteYeah, hope you enjoy it!
DeleteThis was a good one. I think my adventure fantasy fans will really enjoy it1
ReplyDelete