Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow

Grade: A

By: James Rollins

Publisher: Harper Collins
Pub. Date: May 1, 2009
ISBN: 0061473790

Jake Ransom and his sister, Kady, have been on their own for three years since their parents’ mysterious disappearance from an ancient Mayan archeological dig. The last present they received from their parents was two halves of an ancient Mayan coin, which arrived in the mail only weeks after their parents’ disappearance. Not knowing the significance of their gift, both Jake and Kady never take off their coin, always wearing it around their necks as a necklace. Both children have different ways of coping with the loss of their parents. Jake has taken a keen interest in archeology and history in hopes of one day following his parent’s footsteps. Kady, however, engrosses herself with as many after school activities as she can, charming her way up the social ladder as one of the “popular” girls.

One day, Jake and Kady receive a letter from a museum in London, inviting them to travel overseas to attend a showing of the artifacts that were found by their parents. Curiosity getting the best of them, both Jake and Kady arrive in style at the opening of the show where their adventure begins. During a lunar eclipse, Jake and Kady find themselves magically transported to a place called Calypsos where they become friends with lost civilizations, including Romans, Mayans, Cave Men, and even Valkyries. They are irrevocably thrown into an ongoing war with a villain known as the Skull King.

Leading the adventure in an Indiana Jones style prose, the author has created a story of a lost civilization that will not only surprise the reader, but which resolves in a wonderful beginning to a book series. This is definitely a book that people of all ages will enjoy, adults and children alike.