The Medusa Plot (The 39 Clues - Cahills vs. Vespers

Two years have passed since Amy and Dan survived the hunt for the 39 clues. The now 16- and 13-year-olds have settled into the rebuilt mansion of their dear grandmother, with Uncle Fiske and Nellie as legal guardians. Both have grown and matured some; Amy even has a steady boyfriend named Evan. She still stutters sometimes, but has more confidence in herself. She knows that she will never escape being a Cahill, so she has been preparing herself for anything with constant workouts, self-defense lessons, and a fancy command center with lots of high-tech stuff. Dan, on the other hand, is bored. After racing around the world on an important quest, eighth grade seems rather trivial. He even drops into periods of depression. But before long, things get interesting --- and life-threatening --- again.

The Cahills are finally attempting a peaceful reunion, having called a cease fire. The older generation hasn't quite gotten the hang of it yet, but the younger cousins have actually become friends. Sort of. This is good as there's another enemy lurking about, and the Cahills will have to band together in order to survive. The evil Vespers kidnap seven of the Cahills to use as ransom: Nellie, Reagan, Uncle Fiske, Natalie, Alistair Oh, Ted, and 12-year-old Phoenix Wizard. The Vespers are using the hostages to force Dan, Amy and their cousins scrambling to steal a priceless painting of a severed Medusa head.

But nothing is as it seems, and trust is treacherous. Dan and Amy have serious doubts that they will be able to rescue Nellie and the other hostages in time. While Amy hits the library for research and reaches out to other Cahill resources, Dan starts on a backup plan. At the end of the clue hunt, they had destroyed the very dangerous 39-ingredient formula invented by Gideon Cahill that would have given a person absolute power. No human should have that kind of power. But one copy of the formula still exists --- in Dan's photographic memory. Dan starts collecting the rare ingredients to recreate the formula that he will use on himself to save Nellie.

This new spinoff series from the original 39 Clues books starts off with an adventurous bang. Gordon Korman takes the lead novel and does an outstanding job with lots of excitement, nonstop action and more around-the-world quests. In the first book, he shoots Dan and Amy off to Florence, Italy, to hunt down the famous and grotesque painting of the severed Medusa head. He uses lots of vivid imagery to set the scenes, giving readers a unique look at the story. Dan and Amy are a bit older, with different hurdles to overcome and mountains to traverse; Amy is in a serious relationship, and Dan is struggling with some depression. This may explain why the humor is a bit keyed down here as compared to previous installments, though the story does have some funny parts.

Keep your eyes roving for those clues stashed in the pages! Book Two is due out in December 2011 courtesy of Jude Watson.

--- Reviewed by Chris Shanley-Dillman

This book contains an excessive amount of disgust to the world most valued art objects. If there was a small amount of irony on this subject it could be fun, however, the amount of hatred to international history and culture is absolutely excessive.
Now please mix in cultivation of theft, low culture and cynicism= The Medusa Plot by G Korman.

Here are some quotes for you to enjoy:

"Dan was not impressed by art galleries, and the Uffizi was not exception. Fat naked babies. Big deal."

"If I wanted to be tortured, I'd go to the opera"

"Florence is the one truly preserved Renaissance city"...." Yeah, but why does everything have to be so old?" Dan complained.

My "favorite":

"Thanks, yo. 'Preciate that," the famous Jonah Wizard said graciously as the chef personally delivered a steaming platter of gnochi. "Signor Wizard!" the man gushed. "Such an honor to welcome a renowned television personality and recording artist!"... "Did you catch Gangsta Kronikles yet?"...."Of course, of course! the chef exclaimed. "we will always remember this glorious day!:"

This is an exciting mystery and adventure book for older adolescents and young adults. Certain scenes of violence may be too intense for youger readers. I recommend reading the book first, to determine if it is appropriate for your child's level of maturity.

I did not read the original series but this was an excellent book.

Highly recommend.

I really enjoyed the first 39 Clues series. This one ups the ante by having Dan and Amy having to do jobs for the Vespers in order to save several of their family members, many of whom you have grown very fond of by the end of the first series.

I would not recommend this book to anyone who hasn't read the first series as they won't understand much of what is going on.

"The Medusa Plot" witnesses a dramatic change in the objective of characters Dan and Amy. Rather than finding the clues, they now need to protect their family from the clues. Some of the characters have changed quite a bit. Amy, especially, has a much different personality in this story. Over all, I have enjoyed this installment as much as the rest of the series.

i really enjoyed this book. it was good because it had twists and things you didnt expect to happen. i was so exited when the new seris of 39 clues came out with the vespers. first of all because i love the stories and i didnt want them to end and second of all i liked all the other characters. in the other books you didnt see much of anyone ecept dan amy and nellie and when you did see another character they were trying to kil dan amy and nellie. but in this book they are all part of a team.

but there is one thing i do not like about this seris. i dont like how each book has a different auhor. because everybody has their own style of writing each book just sounds different so its hard to ajust to each book.

This was a good story, fast-moving plot, cliffhanging pages. I can see why it is such a popular series for young adults. It does contain some spoilers from the original 39 Clues books, so I would recommend starting with the first series.

Having read the entire 39 Clues first 11 books
I was a little bit disappointed with the new series.
They went to some length in the previous books to say how the Cahills are the smartest most powerful family in the world, and here they have them being blackmailed into committing criminal acts by the Vespers.
It is good light reading even if dubious in plot and setting a bad example for ethics.

The plot is complicated and confusing and hard to follow for a child. Actually it is even hard to follow for an adult. There is just too much going on. I think this book tries to be too many things. Good fiction should transport you into a different world with words alone. Excellent fiction can do that and educate you at the same time. However I was willing to try something new. A book with an interactive website and a card game to follow along. Everyone loves a good mystery and I thought it would be fun for the kids. This is nothing new or weird since so many toys now come with websites that have games. However the version I received did not have the card game or access to the "interactive" website. I think a well written book with good illustration for children is one of the few simple relaxing quiet things they do these days. I don't think books need to "bring readers into action" with websites and card games. So I have to give this book a thumbs down.

This book is fast paced, keeping it interesting and engaging for my 9 year old son. He really liked the main characters (Dan and Amy) and he appreciated the adventures. He usually prefers more comedy in his books, but this one appealed to his more mature side.

As an adult, I felt like the situations were pretty unlikely, but I guess that is what makes it fun for the kids to read. It's a bit violent for me, but my son didn't think so. Anytime there is a kidnapping, I'm uncomfortable, but again, my son was fine with it.

The author knows how to appeal to kids and we will be reading more of the series.