I can see why this is marketed as "Rick Riordan presents:" as it's a book for middle grade readers in much the same vein as Riordan's demigods books. Sikander Aziz is just a thirteen year old kid, with Iranian parents, trying to help his family run their deli, when he gets embroiled in a conflict between Mesopotamian gods. What does it say about me that I know more about Nergal and Ishtar than Gilgamesh?

The timing on this one is a bit hard. Apparently the book was written in 2018 but was only coming into print in 2021, which was a pretty on-the-nose time to be selling a book about plagues. The energy in this book is very similar to Riordan's stuff, and it's obvious when it sidesteps issues that younger readers might not be interested in. Managing to tell a story about a war god, refugees, orphans, and some grizzly disease and death stories, in a way that pulls its punches just enough that it is still an exciting and inspirational story for young readers, is quite artful. I am impressed. I wish I liked battles more.

I was worried that it was going to be all fighting and glorifying violence, but the story takes a subversive turn and sets the heroes at finding better ways to solve problems. Given that the main character is Muslim, I thought it was a particularly daring touch to hint that a couple of the characters are gay. Romance does not feature in this story, as it's an adventure for pre-teens.

A mix of scary, and magic, and cats, and visiting the afterlife, community gardens, male-modelling, and saving a Manhattan deli.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read this one cause Covid has made anything relating to a pandemic feel exhausting. But I love myths and legends and it’s always interesting to learn about the different gods, goddesses, and heroes of other cultures. I also got to put stories to familiar names which was great! We follow the MC on his journey of dealing with grief and it really made me think about who and what are important to me. 

This was a really interesting and adventurous MG fantasy that showcased Mesopotamian mythology really well. It was also great at confronting serious issues such as the blame put on oppressed communities in times of crisis, and the experience of grief. Belet was definitely my favourite character as I loved how determined and sharp she was. My biggest criticism is that the pacing was a little slow considering this is 350 pages and a MG read.

As a side note, I listened to the audiobook and the narrator Vikas Adam did an absolutely phenomenal job.