Tag archives for Patrick Carman
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BOOK NAME: Atherton: House of Power
AUTHOR: Patrick Carman
Atherton: House of Power by Patrick Carman is tremendously wonderful. You will expect adventure, action, and mystery. Atherton is a 3 layered land of the Highlands, Tabletop, and the Flatlands. The Highlands is the top of Atherton and supplies Atherton with all the water. Tabletop is where Atherton receives all the supply of food which is why there are slaves in Tabletop. The Flatlands is the place filled with creatures such as cleaners which have suction discs and are able to live on garbage waste and little water. A boy ,named Edgar, living in Tabletop, secretly goes near a cliff escaping from the plantation behind him. Edgar finds a mysterious book about his missing father. Since he can’t read he must reach the Highlands since they know how to read. The number one rule is to never climb the cliffs to the Highlands. Edgar climbs regularly, but the penalty is death!
Atherton: House of Power is a stupendous book because as I said it contains adventure, action, and mystery. My favorite character is Edgar because he was courageous enough to climb to the Highlands even though he most likely would have died just in search of his father. Mr. Ratikan is my favorite villain because he treats the kids ok for a person that uses kids as slaves. If I had to compare this book to another book it would have to be The Search for WondLa by Tony DiTerlizzi because they both show a character trying to uncover a mystery. I highly recommend House of Power as a dystopian novel.
Want another opinion? Read Kyle’s review!
Posted by BOOK NAME: Atherton: House of Power
AUTHOR: Patrick Carman
Atherton: House of Power is the first book in a trilogy by Patrick Carmen and takes place in the mysterious three tiered world of Atherton. There is the top layer, or the Highlands, where the water for the whole world originates and the high society and leaders of the world reside. Directly below that, there is Tabletop, where eleven year old Edgar lives with the rest of the working class. This is also where the groves are, which is where Edgar works under the evil Mr. Ratikan. If he puts one toe out of line, Mr. Ratikan will end up taking away meals and increasing work as punishment. At the bottom of the world is the Flatlands, where all the horrors of the entire world reside, waiting to eat any leftovers that fall from Tabletop. While tending to the fig trees in the Groves, Edgar daydreams about what could possibly be in the Highlands. He finally decides to climb there during the night, even though it is completely forbidden. While climbing up, he discovers a mysterious book that he believes contains secrets to his past and might contain information on the origin of his world. There’s only one problem though; he can’t read. So when he finally climbs up and manages to locate somebody who can read, he has to repeat his forbidden climbing night after night. In doing this, he discovers that certain handholds are lower than the previous night; meaning that the Highlands are sinking into Tabletop. And in all this chaos, he has to worry about Mr. Ratikan’s punishments. He must travel all over this world to find a way to save all three layers, including the dreaded Flatlands.
This book is an amazing introduction to the trilogy and will keep you reading to find out how this world was created and for what purpose. It is full of action and shows how each of the inhabitants of the layers must work together to save their world. I absolutely loved the character of Edgar because he could climb like a maniac. I like climbing, am not very good at it, and definitely envy his superior skills. I would like to commend the author on creating an intriguing, complex world. Overall, I recommend this book to anyone interested in a good series who likes science fiction and fantasy.
Posted by BOOK NAME: Thirteen Days to Midnight
AUTHOR: Patrick Carman
You are indestructible. Three words that transferred a power to Jacob Fielding that would soon change everything. Without knowing the “rules” or “guidelines” of the power, he remained unsure about it and hesitated to use it for a long time. Daily, he holds a flame under his fingers and wished it would burn his skin, but it doesn’t.
Then Ophelia James, a drop dead gorgeous daredevil at heart moves in town and become friends with Jacob and his best friend, Milo. When the secret is released to her, she becomes filled with ideas, all of which are to help people. But there is something addictive about testing the boundaries of the power and the fear that comes with running through fire unharmed, falling off buildings without a bruise and emerging yourself in water for an hour without drowning.
Jacob has to chose which lives to safe and which to let go. After a while, though, the choices become difficult and suddenly pressured. With every good deed and life they save, the power becomes cursed and Jacob only has 12 days to figure out how to release the curse.
The author wrote this beautifully and I won’t ever forget the adventure Jacob and Ophelia had cheating death. Although the cover and summary on the back might make it seem scary, it isn’t. The only thing to be cautious about was the mild language and conversations about hell. It’s an exciting quick read and any pre-teen/teen could easily eat this book up in a few days.
