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amrenina's review
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
tokoyami23's review
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
queens_flame's review
4.0
4.5/5 Stars
So, a few weeks ago or so I got a pleasant surprise in the mail from Scholastic. I was sent an early copy of Tomb of the Khan to review. I won’t lie I jumped up and down and cheered so THANK YOU Scholastic once again for getting a chance to read this series early. I am glad I managed to read it in time too!
If you haven’t picked up the Assassin’s Creed: Last Descendants series yet, GO NO FURTHER. I won’t be spoiling the new book, but I can’t promise I won’t be spoiling the first one. You can check out my review for the first book HERE if you’re curious. Second thing I’d like to say, if you really don’t know anything about Assassin’s Creed or don’t care to know, I wouldn’t advise reading the books. You’ll be confused! There is a book that recently came out that’s an introduction to the world. You can buy that HERE.
Alright now, moving onto the review! The first book left off with all of the characters getting separated, and in this sequel, everyone comes together. The Assassins and the Templars are both still looking for the three prongs of the Trident of Eden, and it’s a race to see who will get them first.
This novel brought back all the elements I love about the Assassin’s Creed world, and more. I really like how this series is bringing the “neither” element to the table. In the video games, the heroes are always the Assassins, and the bad guys the Templars or Abstergo. But, in this book, we see that neither side is necessarily the “hero” or the “villain”. There’s a gray area to both group and the young adults in the novel are seeing that.
Second, what I really loved about this book is the fact it gave me Indiana Jones vibes. The way they were looking for the Piece of Eden in a tomb and had to travel through the jungle of Asia – I dunno, it made me think of young Indiana Jones on adventures. And I LOVED it. The plot line brought me all over the place, in the genetic memories, and physically over the continents.
Another positive thing I enjoyed about this novel is that we get more in depth with almost every character’s personalities and motives. They all have some sort of development, some positive and others negative. Javier is my favorite character so far, and I liked getting more inside his head and seeing his side of things in this novel, rather than just Owen. Also, we see a lot more of Natalya and I ADORE her. I’m pretty sure she’s the one on the cover; I’m happy that there are more female characters being brought into this world. I hope to see one in a video game by herself without a male partner soon........
ALSO. One of my favorite character’s from Assassin’s Creed Heresy was in this novel as well — Victoria Bibeau. Sometimes I forget the worlds are allowed to connect, and characters from the video games and other stories pop up in the novels, even across novels. I hope to see more of her, and Anaya who was mentioned at the end. It’s WEIRD wanting to learn more about the Templar agents rather than the Assassins after reading Heresy.
The plot line got SO much more intense in this book. Some of the prongs were found and maybe didn’t exactly end up in the right person’s hands….BUT the novel ended off in quite an interesting turn of events. I’m curious to see how everything will go down in the next book. This book is full of action, there’s barely any boring or dry spots in the novel. It definitely keeps you interested. Personally as an AC fan, found this book better than the movie that just came out, and maybe even some of the games. That may be because I’ve been a reader longer than a gamer though, hehe.
If you love Assassin’s Creed and haven’t picked up this series, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? If you have read the first book, Last Descendants, well tomorrow is your lucky day. Tomb of the Khan hits shelves December 27, 2016! P.S IT’S SHINY. This book was ten times better than the first one and I couldn’t put the book down. Looking forward to the next!
So, a few weeks ago or so I got a pleasant surprise in the mail from Scholastic. I was sent an early copy of Tomb of the Khan to review. I won’t lie I jumped up and down and cheered so THANK YOU Scholastic once again for getting a chance to read this series early. I am glad I managed to read it in time too!
If you haven’t picked up the Assassin’s Creed: Last Descendants series yet, GO NO FURTHER. I won’t be spoiling the new book, but I can’t promise I won’t be spoiling the first one. You can check out my review for the first book HERE if you’re curious. Second thing I’d like to say, if you really don’t know anything about Assassin’s Creed or don’t care to know, I wouldn’t advise reading the books. You’ll be confused! There is a book that recently came out that’s an introduction to the world. You can buy that HERE.
Alright now, moving onto the review! The first book left off with all of the characters getting separated, and in this sequel, everyone comes together. The Assassins and the Templars are both still looking for the three prongs of the Trident of Eden, and it’s a race to see who will get them first.
This novel brought back all the elements I love about the Assassin’s Creed world, and more. I really like how this series is bringing the “neither” element to the table. In the video games, the heroes are always the Assassins, and the bad guys the Templars or Abstergo. But, in this book, we see that neither side is necessarily the “hero” or the “villain”. There’s a gray area to both group and the young adults in the novel are seeing that.
Second, what I really loved about this book is the fact it gave me Indiana Jones vibes. The way they were looking for the Piece of Eden in a tomb and had to travel through the jungle of Asia – I dunno, it made me think of young Indiana Jones on adventures. And I LOVED it. The plot line brought me all over the place, in the genetic memories, and physically over the continents.
Another positive thing I enjoyed about this novel is that we get more in depth with almost every character’s personalities and motives. They all have some sort of development, some positive and others negative. Javier is my favorite character so far, and I liked getting more inside his head and seeing his side of things in this novel, rather than just Owen. Also, we see a lot more of Natalya and I ADORE her. I’m pretty sure she’s the one on the cover; I’m happy that there are more female characters being brought into this world. I hope to see one in a video game by herself without a male partner soon........
ALSO. One of my favorite character’s from Assassin’s Creed Heresy was in this novel as well — Victoria Bibeau. Sometimes I forget the worlds are allowed to connect, and characters from the video games and other stories pop up in the novels, even across novels. I hope to see more of her, and Anaya who was mentioned at the end. It’s WEIRD wanting to learn more about the Templar agents rather than the Assassins after reading Heresy.
The plot line got SO much more intense in this book. Some of the prongs were found and maybe didn’t exactly end up in the right person’s hands….BUT the novel ended off in quite an interesting turn of events. I’m curious to see how everything will go down in the next book. This book is full of action, there’s barely any boring or dry spots in the novel. It definitely keeps you interested. Personally as an AC fan, found this book better than the movie that just came out, and maybe even some of the games. That may be because I’ve been a reader longer than a gamer though, hehe.
If you love Assassin’s Creed and haven’t picked up this series, WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? If you have read the first book, Last Descendants, well tomorrow is your lucky day. Tomb of the Khan hits shelves December 27, 2016! P.S IT’S SHINY. This book was ten times better than the first one and I couldn’t put the book down. Looking forward to the next!
alexisthecrow's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
sadie27's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
tjlcody's review
1.0
*Rubs eyes* This book's major problem is that it suffers from the same thing it did in the first one: The characterizations are painfully paper-thin.
I can legit sum the main characters' MAJOR defining traits up like this:
Owen's dad robbed a bank, he died in prison, and that makes Owen sad. He wants to be an Assassin like his ancestors. His relationship with his grandparents' ain't great.
Javier is Owen's (Gay) best friend. He's got jealousy issues. His brother went to prison for beating up a guy who said bad things about him. He is also now an Assassin, but he's not as enthusiastic about it as Owen is.
Sean is in a wheelchair. He does not want to be in a wheelchair, and likes being in the Animus because he can walk again.(but god fucking forbid he be upset about being in a wheelchair and wanting to walk again, or someone will give him a patronizing "You're a ~whole person~, you're not ~broken~" speech)
Grace and David are siblings who worry about each other. They are African-American. They don't like racism (le-fucking-gasp, I am shock). Grace is serious and doesn't want to get kicked out of the Abstergo program. David likes fun and is curious.
Natalya is a quiet girl of Russian ancestry and does not like watching her ancestors kill people in the Animus. Doesn't quite trust the Templars.
...Done. No, really, that's pretty much the length and width of these kids' personalities and behavior. Any other details about them are so minor and brief they aren't memorable at all. I don't know how they achieve in school, I don't know what their hobbies are, I don't know if they have any friends back home, I don't know what food they like to eat- I don't know any of the little details that flesh a character out into someone unique and memorable.
(And don't think I didn't notice the fact that somebody was trying to fill a diversity quota here: A disabled character with Disability problems, a gay kid with Gay problems, and two black kids with Racism problems (at least when they go into the Animus, anyway), and to boot, they're setting up Natalya to have PTSD. And maybe if everyone had been fleshed out this would have been less aggravating, but since they're all pretty much solely defined by these characteristics, it looks a lot like Diversity Pandering.)
I mean, Jesus- Desmond Miles had WAY less screen-time in the five games he was in than his respective ancestors, and I STILL know a fuckton more about who he is as a developed character than I do about these kids- and I'm sorry, but video games cost way more to produce than a book, and I'm not really seeing any viable excuses for how the author could not have managed to stretch a little more characterization out for his characters.
The same problem can be said of the ancestors they visit in the Animus. Very little to no characterization, and- again, like the last book- the ancestors' stories are interrupted by the fact that we can SEE the kids offering up their commentary on what's happening. Do you know how annoying it would have been in the game if Desmond had constantly been offering up his observations on Altair, Connor, or Ezio?
Either the author should have reduced the amount of characters they were working with and dedicated the book to characterizing a few, or they should have made the book longer and included more characterizing moments for everyone.
And finally, just as a parting remark, I'm a little fucking bothered by the tack this book is taking regarding the whole "Gosh, maybe we shouldn't choose sides between the Assassins and the Templars!" thing.
The Assassins literally forbid killing innocent people. Yeah, they can be manipulative, and yeah sometimes they do sketchy things.
Meanwhile, the Templars have pretty much committed a form of Genocide against the Assassins and anyone related to them: They have killed not just the Assassins, but their spouses and children and other family members too, because they are literally trying to wipe them off the face of the fucking Earth. Rebecca flat-out says they've destroyed as many records of Assassins in order to deprive the Assassins of information about their history and culture (which, fun fact, is also a form of Genocide). They have kidnapped people and effectively tortured them by subjecting them to rigorous stints in the Animus, which can easily drive a person nuts (Clay Kaczmarek, anyone?) in order to find memories of their ancestors.
And that's just what they've done to the Assassins. There are loads of games and other media dedicated to the other reprehensible shit they've done throughout history. I could, no shitting you, go down the entire fucking list of terrible shit the Templars have been responsible for in history, including slavery, oppression, mass violence, and murder, but I'd take up the rest of the word-limit I have here and then some.
Yeah, I'm sorry, while we can debate the values of total control vs chaotic free will all day long, the really blunt fact here is that the Templars are fucking bastards and the Assassins are pretty much the only people stopping them from imposing their will on the entire fucking world, and from stomping on thousands on innocent people to get there.
And yeah, I get that the kids may not realize that, they're just getting into things, but for the reader? The one who's played the games, or at least knows the stories behind them, and has seen some of the truly monstrous shit the Templars have done to pretty much anyone who stands against them? Maybe someone who's never played the games won't quite get it, but for those of us who have, you look at the page and you go, "what the unholy christ is wrong with you, the Templars are genocidal world-dominating lunatics, no shit I'm on the Assassins' side."
The Assassins may not be perfect, but the fucking Templars have proven themselves to be power-mad assholes who pretty much always seem to find a way to make themselves the oppressors throughout history. For this book to place the Assassins and Templars on the same level of morally questionable status makes me want to throw the book out the fucking window, because if you know literally ANYTHING about what this series claims the Templars are responsible for, it just doesn't work.
Part of me is curious to see how this clusterfuck ends, but frankly, I'm not sure I want to waste money on the third book. So much wasted potential, it hurts.
I can legit sum the main characters' MAJOR defining traits up like this:
Owen's dad robbed a bank, he died in prison, and that makes Owen sad. He wants to be an Assassin like his ancestors. His relationship with his grandparents' ain't great.
Javier is Owen's (Gay) best friend. He's got jealousy issues. His brother went to prison for beating up a guy who said bad things about him. He is also now an Assassin, but he's not as enthusiastic about it as Owen is.
Sean is in a wheelchair. He does not want to be in a wheelchair, and likes being in the Animus because he can walk again.
Grace and David are siblings who worry about each other. They are African-American. They don't like racism (le-fucking-gasp, I am shock). Grace is serious and doesn't want to get kicked out of the Abstergo program. David likes fun and is curious.
Natalya is a quiet girl of Russian ancestry and does not like watching her ancestors kill people in the Animus. Doesn't quite trust the Templars.
...Done. No, really, that's pretty much the length and width of these kids' personalities and behavior. Any other details about them are so minor and brief they aren't memorable at all. I don't know how they achieve in school, I don't know what their hobbies are, I don't know if they have any friends back home, I don't know what food they like to eat- I don't know any of the little details that flesh a character out into someone unique and memorable.
(And don't think I didn't notice the fact that somebody was trying to fill a diversity quota here: A disabled character with Disability problems, a gay kid with Gay problems, and two black kids with Racism problems (at least when they go into the Animus, anyway), and to boot, they're setting up Natalya to have PTSD. And maybe if everyone had been fleshed out this would have been less aggravating, but since they're all pretty much solely defined by these characteristics, it looks a lot like Diversity Pandering.)
I mean, Jesus- Desmond Miles had WAY less screen-time in the five games he was in than his respective ancestors, and I STILL know a fuckton more about who he is as a developed character than I do about these kids- and I'm sorry, but video games cost way more to produce than a book, and I'm not really seeing any viable excuses for how the author could not have managed to stretch a little more characterization out for his characters.
The same problem can be said of the ancestors they visit in the Animus. Very little to no characterization, and- again, like the last book- the ancestors' stories are interrupted by the fact that we can SEE the kids offering up their commentary on what's happening. Do you know how annoying it would have been in the game if Desmond had constantly been offering up his observations on Altair, Connor, or Ezio?
Either the author should have reduced the amount of characters they were working with and dedicated the book to characterizing a few, or they should have made the book longer and included more characterizing moments for everyone.
And finally, just as a parting remark, I'm a little fucking bothered by the tack this book is taking regarding the whole "Gosh, maybe we shouldn't choose sides between the Assassins and the Templars!" thing.
The Assassins literally forbid killing innocent people. Yeah, they can be manipulative, and yeah sometimes they do sketchy things.
Meanwhile, the Templars have pretty much committed a form of Genocide against the Assassins and anyone related to them: They have killed not just the Assassins, but their spouses and children and other family members too, because they are literally trying to wipe them off the face of the fucking Earth. Rebecca flat-out says they've destroyed as many records of Assassins in order to deprive the Assassins of information about their history and culture (which, fun fact, is also a form of Genocide). They have kidnapped people and effectively tortured them by subjecting them to rigorous stints in the Animus, which can easily drive a person nuts (Clay Kaczmarek, anyone?) in order to find memories of their ancestors.
And that's just what they've done to the Assassins. There are loads of games and other media dedicated to the other reprehensible shit they've done throughout history. I could, no shitting you, go down the entire fucking list of terrible shit the Templars have been responsible for in history, including slavery, oppression, mass violence, and murder, but I'd take up the rest of the word-limit I have here and then some.
Yeah, I'm sorry, while we can debate the values of total control vs chaotic free will all day long, the really blunt fact here is that the Templars are fucking bastards and the Assassins are pretty much the only people stopping them from imposing their will on the entire fucking world, and from stomping on thousands on innocent people to get there.
And yeah, I get that the kids may not realize that, they're just getting into things, but for the reader? The one who's played the games, or at least knows the stories behind them, and has seen some of the truly monstrous shit the Templars have done to pretty much anyone who stands against them? Maybe someone who's never played the games won't quite get it, but for those of us who have, you look at the page and you go, "what the unholy christ is wrong with you, the Templars are genocidal world-dominating lunatics, no shit I'm on the Assassins' side."
The Assassins may not be perfect, but the fucking Templars have proven themselves to be power-mad assholes who pretty much always seem to find a way to make themselves the oppressors throughout history. For this book to place the Assassins and Templars on the same level of morally questionable status makes me want to throw the book out the fucking window, because if you know literally ANYTHING about what this series claims the Templars are responsible for, it just doesn't work.
Part of me is curious to see how this clusterfuck ends, but frankly, I'm not sure I want to waste money on the third book. So much wasted potential, it hurts.
booknotes_athina's review against another edition
4.0
You can read the full review also on my blog Book Notes by Athina
The Assassin's Creed universe is one of my favourites. I love reading the books in the series.
The Last Descendants is a kind of spin-off trilogy where we see the story taking place in our time with the necessary Animus simulations of course.
It centers around the history of Genghis Khan and his descendants. I like the writing and the story but it's not one of my favourites. It is of course better then the first one, in my opinion. The characters are spot-on and I am curious to see what comes next for them.
The Assassin's Creed universe is one of my favourites. I love reading the books in the series.
The Last Descendants is a kind of spin-off trilogy where we see the story taking place in our time with the necessary Animus simulations of course.
It centers around the history of Genghis Khan and his descendants. I like the writing and the story but it's not one of my favourites. It is of course better then the first one, in my opinion. The characters are spot-on and I am curious to see what comes next for them.
binches's review
4.0
Even though I didn't like the conflict between David and Grace because it seemed forced, and I also thought that the identification of the protagonists with their ancestors felt repetitive, I really enjoyed this book. I was a bit disappointed in the past plot since barely any of it mattered to the present day and therefore I wasn't able to get invested in the characters as much as I could in the first book. The revelations and twists in the final pages were, though some of it rushed, really interesting, and I have high expectations for the conclusion of this trilogy.
graymatter's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
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