THE 39 CLUES, Book Three: The Sword Thief
by Peter Lerangis
Scholastic
ISBN: 9780545060431
Ages 9-12
160 pages
• Read an Excerpt
When Grace Cahill passed away, relatives oozed out of the woodwork in hopes of getting their hands on her fortunes. But Grace wasn't your typical old lady, and she didn't leave this world in typical fashion either. Instead of a will and an inheritance, she left behind a quest involving 39 clues that lead to a vast wealth and the highest authority imaginable. Now, six teams of Cahill relatives are racing around the world, chasing after intricately placed clues left behind by other famous Cahills, like Ben Franklin. The race is on, and there aren't any rules.
Fourteen-year-old Amy and her 11-year-old brother, Dan, make up one of the teams. Orphaned and unwanted by everyone except their beloved, and now deceased, grandmother, the siblings don't have anything to lose and have decided to go for it. But unlike their opponents, they have no money, no connections and no special training, not to mention the fact that they're just kids. Plus, Amy is shy and stutters when she's nervous, and Dan tends to be impulsive. This team has the odds of winning seriously stacked against them. But they do have a few pieces of jewelry from their grandmother to sell for expenses, a very cool au pair traveling with them, and, above all, a great deal of spunk, smarts and determination. And they've kept up with their opponents so far, somehow.
In the third installment of this bestselling series, Amy and Dan follow the clue of the samurai swords to Japan --- or at least they try to do so. One of the rival teams, Ian and Natalie Kabra, trick them and take their seats on the plane, leaving Amy and Dan stranded at the airport without any tickets, au pair, sword clue or passage to Japan.
Before they can give up completely, another rival, Uncle Alistair Oh, shows up offering an alliance. Not wanting to trust him, yet not having much choice, Amy and Dan agree to share information with their uncle and jet over to Japan on a private plane. After some research at the library, they find things that set the ball rolling into non-stop action, including a run-in with another rival team, an actual ninja fight, a hidden room in the subway depths, encoded messages, hidden treasure in a secret cave, and discovering the actual heart of the 39 clues secret.
It isn’t too long before Amy and Dan reunite with their au pair, who manages to gain a bit of a foothold on her own with some added income to aid in the race. Along the way, Amy and Dan can’t help but begin to have faith in their team alliances, caring about them as friends and family, but at what cost to the 39 clues and their hearts? Will their tentative trust ensure the win of the race, or the loss of their lives?
Author Peter Lerangis takes his leg of the race seriously, daring to delve into the fascinating world of Japan with mystery and adventure. He pens clever riddles, rips open emotional scars of family loss and loneliness, and includes hysterically funny wisecracks at just the right places. Colorfully descriptive language paints a vivid picture in the reader’s mind: “They were swords --- a tower of them, arranged neatly in a crisscross pattern. The hilts jutted out, some fancy and jeweled, others dented and dull. They looked like hands, reaching out as if daring someone to pull, which would probably upset the pile like a falling house of cards.” Lerangis also cleverly slips in some good old-fashioned advice, applicable to everyone at some time or another in his or her life: “‘Dan, you must never, ever give in,’ Alistair said encouragingly. ‘A problem is merely a solution waiting to be found.’”
THE SWORD THIEF lifts and carries The 39 Clues series on its way, which incidentally will continue with book four due out in June. In the meantime, log on to www.The39Clues.com to hunt for the clues and have a chance to win some fabulous prizes.
--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman, author of FINDING MY LIGHT, THE BLACK POND and GHOSTS OF THE U.P.
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