Alfred Kropp: The Thirteenth Skull (Rick Yancey)

Summary:
Alfred Kropp is the descendant of Lancelot. Yes, that one. He's got a whole lot of money thanks to his late father. He's the Beloved of the Archangel, Michael. Oh, and his blood can heal anyone on Earth, except for himself. In the third book of the Kropp saga, Alfred has more people after him than ever before. There's the son of the man he killed so the man wouldn't kill him. There's the man that wants him only for his magical heal-everything blood. And there's the Company, who wants him to give back the Seal of Solomon, which he kept himself so no one else could use it. He faces betrayal at every turn, and in the places he least expects it. Will he survive, or will any of these murderous foes kill him? Again. (Yup, he's already died once.)

Thoughts:
Not bad, though it's getting a little more predictable. I think my least favorite part is the fact that Yancey has used the countdown clock as his vehicle for drama at least twice now, drawing out the endings of the last two books for an extra 5 pages both times (I read the first so long ago that I don't remember if it used this "plot device" as well) to draw out the conclusion of the story. It just feels like he's padding the page count more than anything else. If it weren't for this countdown, I think the page count would've been more like 292 or 293ish, rather than its stated 297. That doesn't even count the extra two to three pages he soaks up in having a blank page around the "change of scenery" type pages. Kropp goes from Knoxville, TN, to Helena, MO and there's just a page that says "Helena, Montana" with a blank page after it, and then the next is the beginning of the new chapter. Lazy padding of a book, Mr. Yancey. But I digress. I enjoyed the story, though not as much as the first two. It's a good, action-packed book geared mostly to a teenaged boy. (Kropp is 16.) It's just a little disturbing, though, that at sixteen, Kropp has become comfortable with the idea of killing someone. He does it with little remorse in the midst of this book, and it just about glosses over the fact that someone just died. Kropp's adrenaline is pumping too hard for him to feel anything, it seems, and then he never really goes back to the fact that he just killed the guy except to say that his replacement in the squad of people that are after him looks exactly like the murdered guy. Seriously disappointing. He's killed at least two people now, if not more that I can't recall, and he seems to only really feel bad about the first guy he had to off, and only because he was an Arthurian knight's descendant. Not really something you want a teenage boy to get used to, you know?

Book 6 of 50

Pages: 297 padded pages
Genre: Teen lit, action, and fantasy
Grade: B
Would I Recommend?: Good for a fanciful story, and lots of action, but the previous two were far better.

Alfred Kropp: The Seal of Solomon (Rick Yancey)

Summary:
Alfred Kropp is a teenaged boy with no mom, living in the foster system. His father was the descendant of Lancelot of the round table. In the previous book, Alfred died and was brought back to life. Now he's got to help get the Seals of Solomon so the world doesn't get overrun by a bunch of demons. The trouble is, he's seen what the Seal does, and what demons can do to a person. He's told to never look into their eyes... So what does he do? Yep. He looked. Now he's got to deal with his worst fears while he fights to save the world. Again.

Thoughts:
A good book. The first was really cool, delving into the mythos behind the Knights of the Round Table. In this one, Kropp finds out that there are, in fact, such things as demons, and not just the mistakes that come back to haunt you later. Kropp has to deal with his inner demons as well as the physical ones, and find a way to best the demons that can't be bested. It's an interesting take on "the end of the world." It's good enough to keep you wondering how Kropp's going to make it through, but light enough that you can put it down for a week, then pick it back up and still remember what had been happening. Not bad for teen lit.

Book 37 of 40

Pages: 327
Genre: Fantasy, teen lit
Grade: B
Would I Recommend?: Eh. You've got to read the first one before this, and this is very definitely a fantasy book.

The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp (Rick Yancey)

Summary:
Alfred Kropp is a fifteen year old hulk of a boy, whose mother died, and whose father left very early in his life. Alfred never even knew him. Alfred lives with his Uncle Farrell, who works as a security guard in Samson Towers. One day, Uncle Farrell is approached and asked to steal a sword from Bernard Samson's office. Uncle Farrell, in turn, says that Alfred has to help him steal the sword, or he'll send Alfred back to foster care. Given no other choice, Alfred goes along with it, only to learn that the man wanting the sword is evil, and the sword is really the Sword of Kings, Excalibur. Alfred feels horrible about the theft, and decides to do everything he can to get the Sword back to its rightful place. Along the way, he learns more and more about the legends and history of King Arthur, and his Knights.

Thoughts:
Wonderful! I'm definitely planning to get the rest of the series. Some of the plot twists were easy to see coming, but the writing was fantastic. It was one of those can't-put-it-down kind of books. This, like the Percy Jackson book from earlier this year, was one that I never looked to see how many pages I had left. It was engaging. At every turn, I felt more and more awful for Alfred, and was rooting for him more and more. Great stuff. The worst part was the end, because I couldn't get another dose of story until I get the next book!

Pages: 339
Genre: Fantasy/mystery
Grade: A+
Would I Recommend?: Absolutely.

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