The Storm Runner #2: The Fire Keeper by J.C. Cervantes

My name is Zane, and I must find a way to rescue my father from his prison. As a Mayan god, he wasn't supposed to have children with a human woman, but here I am. Having a child shouldn't condemn him to prison forever, or sentence him to death. However, I've accidentally endangered other godborns, and it's my responsibility to save them. They'll surely be killed if the gods ever discover their existence. But how can I rescue them when my father's life is in danger? I can feel his energy weakening. Someone is clearly control

ing events to amass great power, but who and why? It would help if I could master my abilities with fire, but I have no idea what I'm doing. And to top things off, how do I keep Brooks from reading the book and discovering my true feelings about her?

I'm not sure you need to read the previous books, but it wouldn't hurt. The author's writing style was reminiscent of Rick Riordan. I most enjoyed the interaction of the characters, as the author mixed some unique personalities. Zane's relationship with Brooks was entertaining, since he was afraid to say he had a crush on her. She didn't appear to be very affectionate, so her reaction to the news was unpredictable. Ren was introduced to the series, and her past was a mystery. She had the ability to create dangerous, fighting shadows, but like Zane, she had trouble controlling them. The antagonists in the plot were unknown, but let's just say some characters from the first book weren't gone forever. As a matter of fact, Zane was forced to team up with the least-likely partner you could imagine. Events got more interesting with Zane's hellhound named Rosie appeared. Imagine a grizzly bear-size, fire-breathing, untrained, loyal beast that attacked whenever she heard the word dead. The narrator shared her apparent thoughts, so Rosie was treated as another character. You could never predict how she'd behave, but the characters always felt safer with her around. Overall, the series is entertaining and should appeal to most middle grade readers. If you liked the different Rick Riordan series about Percy Jackson, Jason, and a young Apollo, you'll enjoy this series too.