The Secret of Ka by Christopher Pike
Summary:
ne minute Sara’s bored on vacation in Istanbul. The next, she’s unearthed a flying carpet that cleverly drags her to the mysterious Island of the Djinn—or genies. By her side is Amesh, a hot boy she’s starting to love but doesn’t yet trust. When Amesh learns the secret of invoking djinn, he loses control. He swears he’ll call upon only one djinn and make one wish. The plan sounds safe enough. But neither Sara nor Amesh are any match for the formidable monster that that swells before them. It hypnotizes Amesh, compelling him to steal Sara’s flying carpet—the ancient Carpet of Ka—and leave her stranded.
Discovering the Carpet of Ka has sparked a new path for Sara, one that will lead her to battle creatures even deadlier than djinn. In this fight, Sara can save mankind, herself, or the boy she loves. Who will she be forced to sacrifice
My Review:
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been in love with magic carpets since I first heard the story of Aladdin, then Disney went and made a movie about it and cast a totally cute animated character in the role and a beautiful princess and the hook sunk even deeper in.
So when I came across The Secret of Ka on NetGalley I jumped at the opportunity to read it. But let me warn you – I know I received an uncorrected e-galley of this book and am not sure if the book was deliberately typed up like I received or if it is something that will be changed… but the capitalization of things was all off and the beginning of chapters made me feel as if a teenager was writing the story and trying to be cool. wRiTiNg lIkE tHiS doesn’t impress me, nor does not capitalizing the “I” when referring to yourself and capitalizing only some of the names. But again – I don’t know if this is intended, just something that really bugged me in this copy of the book.
Other than that the book really was fantastic. I was worried about the story being corny… I mean, we’re talking genies and magic carpets here. However the story unfolded in a very cool way – with the carpet being used as a specific item and the passage of time moving in a different way on the island of the djinn.
I thoroughly enjoyed the warfare lore mixed in and the touch of romance – it was nice to see another strong female character determined to save the boy in this case and a refreshing change of pace for me.
The cover of the book is beautiful and the story is a fascinating one. There were a few other issues which I’m sure editing will take care of.. but once this book is released I would highly recommend for those seeking a different sort of fantasy adventure.
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”
by Cleo Coyle
