Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Theodosia Throckmorton, #1)

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Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Theodosia Throckmorton #1)

by R.L. LaFevers (Goodreads Author)

3.88 of 5 stars 3.88 · rating details · 2,479 ratings · 364 reviews

Theodosia Throckmorton has her hands full at the Museum of Legends and Antiquities in London. Her father may be head curator, but it is Theo—and only Theo—who is able to see all the black magic and ancient curses that still cling to the artifacts in the museum.

When Theo’s mother returns from her latest archaeological dig bearing the Heart of Egypt—a legendary amulet belong...more

Kindle Edition, 364 pages

Published May 5th 2008 by Houghton Mifflin Books for Children (first published April 9th 2007)

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Aug 22, 2010 Julie (Klickitat) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: middle-grade, begging-for-a-booktalk, favorites

Like Roald Dahl's Matilda before her, Theodosia Throckmorton can't get any respect. At the young age of eleven she already has a formidable knowledge of Egyptian theology and black magic but her parents are too consumed with running their museum of antiquities to notice. Even worse, the elder Throckmortons often unwittingly place themselves in harm's way, forcing Theodosia to rescue them (but always behind the scenes in order to spare their pride.) I think kids will love the many jabs at adults'...more

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Nov 13, 2008 Rfrancik rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: oct-12-2008, 6-fictional-chapter-books, 1-e

Theodosia sees evil spells and spirits. Her methods of dealing with these problems as well as her eventual meeting with other people who recognize their presence and are committed to keeping them from harming England and the World makes for an exciting adventure.

I was quite taken with this new book published in 2007. Theodosia a child often neglected by her loving but preoccupied archologist parents sees and feels evil spells. Her parents who do not share her ability continue to bring cursed obj...more

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Jul 26, 2008 Samantha Hastings rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Theodosia is a charming character that is very clever; although, no adults seem to take her seriously. She still manages to take curses of artifacts that her mother, an archeologist, ships back from Egypt. One of the artifacts has a curse so powerful it could cause problems for all of England. Theodosia teams up with a street thief and Lord Wigmore (the head of a secret society) to stop the group The Serpents of Chaos and to return the artifact. I absolutely loved this book. I couldn't put it do...more

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Feb 17, 2013 Linda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is such a fun book! The heroine, Theodosia Throckmorton, reminds me strongly of Alan Bradley's pre-teen heroine, Flavia DeLuce in his series. Both take place in London in an earlier age and both girls are prodigies in a particular field. Theodosia is eleven, the daughter of two Egyptologists: her mother is an archaeologist in Egypt and her father the Head Curator of Egyptology in a second rate London museum. Theodosia can "feel" the bad magic of an object and has developed her own ways to n...more

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Dec 02, 2012 lia rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: children-books

I wanted so much to like this book but in the end, to me the book does not deliver its promise.

Theodosia Throckmorton is an eleven year old girl who lived at a museum and sleep in sarcophagus. She actually doesn't live at museum but most of the time she has to because she has negligent parents. Her mother brings all sorts of artefacts from Egypt that are heavily laden with curses and Theodosia is the only person who can sense it. she, of the above average cleverness, found ways to make the curs...more

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Sep 14, 2012 Cathy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This was a cute story about a resourceful 11-year-old girl named Theodosia who more or less lives in a British Museum around 1905. Her shockingly neglectful parents are Egyptologists, her father runs the museum and her mother combs Egyptian tombs for artifacts. Theodosia can see and sense magic, which is a good thing, since most of the artifacts that her mother brings back are cursed. Theo identifies the cursed items and attempts to "cure" them. Naturally, her parents and the other adults at the...more

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Feb 26, 2012 Barb Middleton rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

I like fantasy ...fantasy movies ...fantasy books ...and no matter how mediocre the movie or book, I know there will be action, adventure, and magic. Give me a big screen, a bowl of popcorn, a soda and I'm entertained.

This book was just that ...entertaining and fun. It has flaws but in the end, it satisfies. While certain parts of the story reminded me of the movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the book, The Red Pyramid, the plot has some unique twists, is original, and has a fun main character...more I like fantasy ...fantasy movies ...fantasy books ...and no matter how mediocre the movie or book, I know there will be action, adventure, and magic. Give me a big screen, a bowl of popcorn, a soda and I'm entertained.

This book was just that ...entertaining and fun. It has flaws but in the end, it satisfies. While certain parts of the story reminded me of the movie, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and the book, The Red Pyramid, the plot has some unique twists, is original, and has a fun main character. Theodosia is the brilliant and sensible heroine whose parents don't pay attention to her because they are too busy pursuing their own careers running their Museum of Legends and Antiquities and making museum purchases. They don't notice when Theo's governess quits. They don't notice that Theo doesn't go to school. They don't notice that Theo sleeps in a coffin in a closet. But Theo knows shes special even if her parents don't. She knows that she is protecting them from all the evil magic they bring into their museum. Theodosia can see and feel the magic oozing from ancient artifacts. While other kids, like her brother, are in school, Theo spends her days at the museum helping her parents and teaching herself how to cure the museum from the curses in the objects her parents keep collecting around the world. Things don't always go as planned and when she accidentally casts a curse into her cat it becomes crazed and wild. However, when Theo's mom brings home ,The Heart of Egypt, things become really dicey because the curse from this artifact can topple countries. When the beginnings of plagues and war begin in Britain, Theo knows that it is from The Heart of Egypt and that if she doesn't return it to the tomb where her mother found it, innocent people will die and chaos will rule. The problem is that there are others who want The Heart of Egypt too. Others who will even kill for it.

What I liked. LaFevers does a nice job making many characters as suspects in the stealing of The Heart of Egypt. An interesting twist in the plot is when the parents become suspects as a result of working so long around black magic without protection. It is suggested that the magic can be absorbed by human bodies and cause people to make evil choices without even realizing it. Perhaps her parents stole The Heart of Egypt? Comic relief comes in the form of a crazed cat who attacks people at the museum after Theodosia accidentally tosses the curse from an artifact into the body of her cat. Sticky Will, the pickpocket, was fun with his Dickens-like voice and character and was a nice addition to the kids caper. The recipes for curing curses was unique and Theodosia goes into detail on how she approaches the removal of a curse. Theodosia grows as a person becoming confident in her parents love for her and confident in her unique power to remove curses.

What lacked. Henry, Theo's brother, sounded old when we first met him and then young later on. His character was supposed to be the irritating younger brother but he didn't always come off that way in the dialogue. Also, Theodosia's power of seeing the magic on the artifacts is never explained. It is hinted that she sees Isis in the hallway and the presence of gods but she seems to be the only person with this unique ability. Her superpowers are never explained. I thought the fortune-teller in Egypt could have revealed some of this. The setting is 1906 in Great Britain and it was hard figuring out the time period. Most came through the political dialogue between the parents and the sights and sounds of the time period are not described much. When Theo goes to Egypt there are more descriptions of the country; however, it could have been set in today's time versus the turn of the century. The ending leaves many questions such as how did the villians escape, why did one's face get eaten away by sand, did he die, how did the other get his hand out of the wall, and more. I'm hoping the next book will answer some of the questions and show Theodosia learning more about her unique power.

Was it worth reading? Definitely. Grab your bowl of popcorn and enjoy!

(less)

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Aug 21, 2011 Kurt rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: middle-grade, fantasy

Theodosia, our eleven-year old, intrepid, curse-spotting heroine, is smart beyond her years. The eldest child of the Head Curator of a second-rate museum (in stature only - not in collection) and the daughter of two Egyptologists, she is not only functionally fluent in the deciphering of hieroglyphics, she reads all the Olde Textes that explain Egyptian curse magic and whips up protective amulets whenever necessary.

Also, she sleeps in a sarcophagus.

If it weren't for her highly developed sense...more

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May 16, 2011 Sensitivemuse rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Think of a combination of Nancy Drew and a little bit of Indiana Jones and you have Theo. I really did enjoy reading this book. It had a perfect blend of mystery, adventure, and paranormal characteristics that made the book enjoyable for all ages.

Not only was Theo not a typical girl but she was curious, outspoken, and an adventure seeker who was not afraid of getting into danger. Her unique gift of finding the ancient curses and dispelling them is fun and different and I enjoyed her process of...more Think of a combination of Nancy Drew and a little bit of Indiana Jones and you have Theo. I really did enjoy reading this book. It had a perfect blend of mystery, adventure, and paranormal characteristics that made the book enjoyable for all ages.

Not only was Theo not a typical girl but she was curious, outspoken, and an adventure seeker who was not afraid of getting into danger. Her unique gift of finding the ancient curses and dispelling them is fun and different and I enjoyed her process of removing these curses from these items despite how oblivious her parents are. She does get a little lippy towards people older than her, but I like this part of her personality. It adds more to her stubborn character and adds more to her personality which makes the book all the more fun to read.

The plot was really good. As usual, there is an underlying main plot underneath a few mini story arcs. I like it, although it’s nothing really new or different from other novels like this one but it provides the adventure to the story and when Theo does eventually get involved it adds more adventure and quickens the plot pace. My favorite bit was when Theo impresses a crowd with her removal of a particular curse. It gave me a triumphant feeling and I cheered her on as so many adults just seem to push her away just because she’s just a child. However, Theo does have flaws, and sometimes her ability to remove the curse does backfire (and it has somewhat comedic consequences). The ending provides for much of the action, which gives the story a great climax and makes way for the second book.

What’s also great about this story is the pace is steady and you’re not slowed down at any time of the point. At each scene, you’re there for a good time before moving onto the next one and there’s no redundancy or over-repetitiveness. This book had a wonderful plot, an outstanding main character who’s fun to read, and I think this is going to be a very exciting fun filled series! I most definitely recommend this book for people of all ages.(less)

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Jun 20, 2010 Kate rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: history, j

There are a dreadful number of booktalks rising up in me about this book: "Imagine Gilda Joyce as a Victorian egyptologist's daughter with curse-fighting powers" or "Having trouble with ancient curses? Theodosia to the rescue!" or "Sleeping in a sarcophagus is surprisingly effective at protecting you from ancient Egyptian curses. When you have to sleep in a museum filled with said curses, of course, as Theodosia Throckmorton does."
This is a very talk-able book that will be easy to sell to kids,...more

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Feb 26, 2010 Tamra rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: people less critical than me

Shelves: couldn-t-finish

Not sold. After reading (and not finishing) Percy Jackson, I thought all I needed was a change up in mythology. I love Egyptian anything, so Theodosia seemed a sure bet. Not so much, though. Unlike Percy Jackson, this one is NOT well-written.

The main character and narrator is a bookish 11-year-old whose language usage isn't fitting either for a too-smart youngster, or a 1905 character. Plus, I have serious doubts that ANY 11-year-old would be reading hieroglyphs, daughter of the curator or not....more

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Feb 21, 2013 Molly Hall rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I love it when I discover a book that is so well-written it spans the genres from middle-grade to adult. Combining a precocious and lovable protagonist, an intriguing mystery, and sharp and witty writing, R. L. LaFevers' Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos does exactly that. Although categorized as middle-grade fiction, this novel is for anyone who enjoys a good story.

In the book, eleven-year-old Theodosia Throckmorton spends most of her time at the London Museum of Legends and Antiquities, a g...more I love it when I discover a book that is so well-written it spans the genres from middle-grade to adult. Combining a precocious and lovable protagonist, an intriguing mystery, and sharp and witty writing, R. L. LaFevers' Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos does exactly that. Although categorized as middle-grade fiction, this novel is for anyone who enjoys a good story.

In the book, eleven-year-old Theodosia Throckmorton spends most of her time at the London Museum of Legends and Antiquities, a gloomy place filled with ancient scrolls, dusty statuary, and clay tablets, most of which come replete with evil omens and restless spirits. Since her mother is frequently gone, traveling to far-away lands in search of ancient objects to add to the museums collections, and her father is too engrossed in his research to even remember his daughter is in the building, Theodosia spends most of her time alone. Gifted with the ability to see the black magic attached to the artifacts, Theodosia uses her knowledge of Egyptian magic to protect both her family and the museum employees from sinister forces. Plucky and intelligent beyond her years, she uses whatever is at hand for warding off evil spirits, frequently relying on nothing more than her own quick wits. "Removing curses is not a task for the faint-hearted or financially strapped; unfortunately I am both."

When an object that has the power to bring both plague and pestilence upon the whole of England disappears from the museum, it requires all of Theodosia's courage and cunning to save her country and herself.Teaming up with the sly and quick-footed pick-pocket, Sticky Will, and her younger brother, Henry, Theodosia prevents the attempted assassination of a British agent, outwits a group of German thieves, escapes the clutches of her disapproving grandmother, and stows away aboard a ship.

This is an absolutely wonderful story that takes the reader from the dark and dusty halls of the museum, to the streets of London and, finally, all the way to Egypt. Full of humor, suspense, Egyptian mythology and page-turning action, Theodosia is a just plain fun read. And it contains some of the best character names in fiction since Charles Dickens: Nigel Bollingsworth, Clive Fagenbush, and the truly contemptible von Braggenschnott. If you enjoy Alan Bradley's Flavia de Luce mysteries, you will like this series as well.

Note: R.L. LaFevers also writes as Robin LaFevers and is the author of Grave Mercy , the first book in the His Fair Assassin series.(less)

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Jan 11, 2012 Jennifer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens, fantasy

This was an enjoyable cross between the mythology/magic aspect of Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson books, the dry British-like humor of The Mysterious Benedict Society, and the genius girl quirkiness of Roald Dahl's Matilda. It lacked the ongoing action excitement of the Percy Jackson novels, at least until the climax, instead featuring clever quips. Like the Percy Jackson novels, it would be a great book for kids to read in conjunction with learning about history and myths. It was also refreshing t...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Cemeread rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: chapter-book

The cover of this book claims it is a sure bet for Harry Potter fans. I have not read any Harry Potter books so I can't compare the two.

Theodosia spends most of her time at her parent's workplace, a museum. That may seem boring to you, but her parents are archeologists who bring back Egyptian objects found in pyramids. They never seem to be aware of the curses on some of these artifacts so it is up to Theodosia to try to remove the curse. She has a gift for knowing what is cursed and ancient boo...more

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May 04, 2010 K. Bird rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Theodesia is the eleven year old daughter of adventurous archeologists who work for a museum. Her mother gallivants off to Egypt to open tombs and extract artifacts. Her father catalogs them.

Theodesia is mostly left to herself to rattle around the museum. Which is a good thing, because she's the only one in her family who can see/feel the black magic curses that are often on all the artifacts her mother brings home!

It's up to her to take care of the curses, and usually things go okay. However, t...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Danielle Smiley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: middle-grade, paranormal-fantasy, historical-fiction

**My best British accent** I do so enjoy a well written middle grade fantasy! Much in the vein of the 2001 movie, The Mummy Returns (one of my all time favorite movies), LaFevers writes a smashingly brilliant adventure (yes, still in the British accent mode).

Theodosia -clever, bright and under appreciated- has grown up surrounded by ancient Egyptian artifacts. Theo has learned to survive with her gift of sensing the dark magic (with which many artifacts were cursed) by studying ancient Egyptian...more

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Mar 06, 2012 IndyPL Kids Book Blog rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, fantasy

Theodosia spends most of her time in her dad’s museum that is filled with artifacts her mom digs up in Egypt. But Theo is a wreck! She’s constantly worried about her parents, who are so busy they sometimes forget to feed her, and what’s worse, they have no idea their artifacts are cursed. Theo is so concerned about the curses, she’s developed her own curse removing kit and sleeps in a sarcophagus (mummy’s coffin) for safety. If sleeping in a coffin makes sense…you’re really scared!

Theo’s mom ret...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Lindsay rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I absolutely adored this book. This is not at all a surprise, since it encompassed several of my favorite things- Britain, museums, cats, Egyptology, magic/the supernatural, and a very spunky, smart female lead character. Theodosia Throckmorton is extremely fun to read about. While the book may be a tad anachronistic in terms of how much she bucked Edwardian "norms" in speech and decorum, I found her voice to be very authentic and well-written. I loved her descriptions and dry humor and even her...more

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Feb 09, 2012 K.C. Rivers rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, action-adventure, humorous, young-adult

Okay, if Elizabeth Peters and the creator of "The Mummy" movies had a love-child, it would probably be in the form of Theodosia Throckmorton. I must be on an Egyptian kick as of late, because this book reminded me of an Elizabeth Peters mystery for middle-grade readers, with a twist of magical curses to give it some spice. Theodosia was a delightful character whose wit and bravery was just as entertaining as Amelia Peabody. There's something about a storyline involving Egypt that takes place in...more

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Apr 26, 2010 Erica rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: first-in-a-series-of-course-it-is

Now *this* is a heroine I can get behind! Theo is clever, observant, snarky, and -- my favorite trait of all -- ingeniously resourceful, all without seeming like *too* much of a stretch for being only eleven years old. The plot is well thought-out, scary in all the right spots, and sets the series up very nicely.

My only quibble (which gets substantially larger in the second novel) is the behavior of the adults. While I accept that a certain amount of (at the very least) benign neglect is necess...more

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Jun 02, 2012 Melissa rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult, adventure, egypt

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Nov 02, 2011 Brett rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: juvenile-fantasy

Theodosia Throckmorton enjoys her life essentially living in a vast, shabby museum in London with her slightly irritable curator father &, occasionally, her archaeologist adventuress mother & annoying younger brother (often at a dig & boarding school, respectively). However, there's one complication - she can sense the powerful & often dangerous curses that ancient magicians have put on many of the Egyptian artifacts surrounding her family. Theodosia seems to be the only person i...more

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Oct 19, 2011 Erica rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: audiobook, famous-figures, fantasy, growing-up, historical-fiction, horror, jf, magic, supernatural, travel, uk, witches-vampires-ghosts-werewolves, women-and-girls

This was adorable! I SO would have eaten it up at 10-12 years-old! I think the reader, Charlotte Perry, made it even more delightful.
I liked Theodosia's spunk and cleverness; I'm a sucker for headstrong, independent, creative heroines. I also like that it's strongly hinted that she has access to magic that most people don't and that the Egyptian gods and goddesses are watching over her, but that's not central to her point of view - she knows she has skills and she assumes most people do or she w...more

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Jun 16, 2009 Adrienne added it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-fiction, fantasy

Theodosia Throckmorton spends most of her time in the Museum of Legends and Antiquities where her father is the curator and her mother is one of the archaeologists. It's the best museum in London (better than the British Museum, anyway, which everyone always goes on about).

Even though Theo is only 11, she has a special talent: she can sense and deal with all of the nasty curses that are living on the ancient Egyptian artifacts that her mother brings back for the museum. This takes up quite a bi...more

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Sep 17, 2012 Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides marked it as decided-not-to-read · review of another edition

Recommended to Snail in Danger (Sid) by: katayoun Masoodi

Shelves: children-ya, fantasy-fiction

Interesting premise. The author clearly did a reasonable amount of research into ancient Egypt. But it sounded so RPG-ish, talking about second- and third-level spells, that it, well, punctured the balloon that is my suspension of disbelief.

Her parents are so stereotypically work-absorbed, and she is so precocious, that I just couldn't keep going. Also, some things were clearly meant to be surprises, but I saw them coming hundreds of pages in advance.

Also ... at least in the portions that I read...more

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Aug 18, 2010 Stephanie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: middle-grade, fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Theodosia Throckmorton, young heroine of R L LaFevers’s Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos, is proof of the saying that work, rather like a gas, will always expand to fill the space given to it. Despite the fact that Theo neither attends school nor is supervised by a governess or tutor, and that her parents, enthralled by the exigencies of their curatorial and archaeological work, are scarcely aware of her existence, Theo in no way lives an idle life. Precocious and bookish, and with an interes...more Theodosia Throckmorton, young heroine of R L LaFevers’s Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos, is proof of the saying that work, rather like a gas, will always expand to fill the space given to it. Despite the fact that Theo neither attends school nor is supervised by a governess or tutor, and that her parents, enthralled by the exigencies of their curatorial and archaeological work, are scarcely aware of her existence, Theo in no way lives an idle life. Precocious and bookish, and with an interest in all manner of arcana—an interest rather well served by her daily proximity to the museum in which her father works—Theo spends her days reading up on topics such as ancient Egyptian hexes and curses, an area in which she demonstrates considerable natural talent. While her formal knowledge of the stuff is quite extensive, she also has a bit of an intuitive knack for identifying cursed objects. . .

Such as those brought home by her mother from a recent archaeological dig in Egypt, which sheis horrified to realise are positively crawling with all manner of dark magic. One item in particular results in a near-visceral reaction from sensitive Theo: a legendary amulet known as the Heart of Egypt, which Theo fears is tainted with a curse so foul and powerful that it has the potential to cause the fall of Britain if it ends up in the wrong hands. Which, of course, it does. And, given that the setting of the novel is early 20th Century Britain, the wrong hands, are, of course, Ze Germans. With the help of street urchin pickpocket Sticky Will, her slightly dunderheaded brother Henry, and the slightly wigged-out Lord Wigmere from the Antiquaries Society, Theo sets off after the undeniably evil von Braggenschnott (his name alone, most onomasticians would agree, incites a bit of a tremble in the old knees) in order to retrieve the Heart of Egypt and return it to the tomb where it was found—a task that requires some parental wheedling, a spot of stowing away on a ship bound for Africa, and a rather complex combination of luck and magic.

Given that all of this fits into the space of a mere few hundred (substantially spaced) pages, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos is quite the plot-oriented book. Unfortunately, such breathless rapidity is frequently to the detriment of other essentials such as characterisation and mood, and this sadly serves to undermine the book as a whole. Despite what should be a grimily fascinating and politically fraught setting in pre-WW I London, the authors fails to evoke any real feeling of either location or era, forcing the reader to clutch at occasional snippets about long-skirted dresses, omnibuses, and train station thievery in order to paint a picture of what should be a wonderfully dark and desultory period. The unanchored feel of the book is in part compounded by the depiction of snarky Theodosia, whose speech and attitudes both feel rather too modern for the book’s setting.

While many of the characters are little more than sketches, and frequently fail to rise above broadly rendered caricatures, it’s Theodosia who to me is the most problematic. The author intends, one imagines, to depict her as witty, gutsy, and ambitious, but her rather galling condescension towards virtually every other character in the novel transforms her instead into something quite unlikeable. Perhaps this is in part because Theodosia tends to act on her own, eschewing cooperation and collaboration unless it serves her ends, or perhaps one could put it down to the astounding neglect of her academically oriented parents, but either way, I’d certainly be wary of coming across this young lass in a dark alleyway, or even a well-lit room, for that matter. Given that the novel is written in first person, however, it’s impossible to escape Theodosia, and one therefore must put up with her unerringly sneering reproaches. Theo does have her moments where pluckiness rather than arrogance shines through, particularly towards the end of the novel, but one has to hope that her facetious ‘tude might be dialled back somewhat in later iterations of the Theodosia series.

The novel also struggles under the weight of some awkward narrative turns that make it difficult for the reader to suspend disbelief. As a reader, I’m largely accepting of anything strange and unusual–but only so long as it fits within the logic of the world as set out by the author. Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos suffers from not a few moments of ‘just because!’ logic and eyebrow-raising coincidence, particularly in the latter half. Wigmere, for example, tasks Theodosia, who one must recall is an eleven year old girl in pre-women’s-lib-era Britain, with personally returning the Heart of Egypt, citing, in what one can only describe as a highly dubious argument, the unavailability of his extensive task for as a recent for doing so. Likewise, a number of narrative coincidences with which I can’t help take issue, and which are perhaps the result of editorial pruning, result in awkward montage-esque scenes involving Theo chasing down baddies in labyrinthine London (think the sewer scene in The Third Man, only without the zither) and dashing about Cairo’s market places and Giza’s pyramids.

It’s a shame that the novel is plagued by such a number of problems, as the Theodosia series otherwise promises a light and entertaining take on Ancient Egyptian mythology and history, and potentially brings with it a strong female narrator whose plight may well be enjoyed not only by female readers, but by that notoriously intransigent and rather difficult to please subsection of the reading population–the middle years male. However, uninvested and uncritical readers may well enjoy this lively introduction to an archaeological mystery series.

This review originally appeared at readinasinglesitting.com (less)

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Jul 04, 2010 Julie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, historical, childrens, triple-take

The premise is good. A smart girl in the early 1900's who basically lives in a London museum. She can sense curses and knows a lot about Egyptian ones in particular. And she gets caught up with secret societies and whatnot. And accidentally transfers a curse into her cat.

But it had trouble holding my interest, because most of the time, I simply didn't care about what was going on. Oh, she's sneaking around. Oh, she's being followed. Blah blah blah.

It's possible I would've liked it more if I was...more

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Sep 12, 2012 Aidan rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: childrens

Being interested in Egyptian mythology and the archaeological digs of the early twentieth century, I was excited to read this first book in the Theodosia Throckmorton series about a girl who is able to sense curses in ancient objects. While I thought it was an interesting idea, I felt the story unfolded surprisingly slowly and with little tension until its final few chapters.

Some elements of the story did work well for me, such as the museum setting and the references to the growing tension acro...more

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Jan 26, 2010 Nikki (Wicked Awesome Books) rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, series, middle-grade, read-in-2010

Theodosia Throckmorton spends most of her days in the Museum of Legends and Antiquities. Her father is the Head Curator of the museum and her mom is quite the archaeological excavator. She digs up sites all over Egypt, attempting to find lost and ancient artifacts. What her parent don’t realize, is that the artifacts they dig up and display in the museum, hold ancient curses and are shrouded in black magic. Theodosia has the job of keeping her parents safe by getting rid of these curses, but bec...more

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Jun 10, 2011 Cornelia rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a childrens book serries (like Harry Potter is) and I adore them. Mad about them. Set in the year 1900, Theodosia is an 11 year old girl with a gift for detecting what Egyptian relics have curses and she's devised ways to rid the objects of their curses. You see she lives in London, her father is the curator of a museum with eyptian objects and her mother (an American) is the museum's egytologist and brings these relics back from her digs in Egypt (not knowing they are curesed) Only Theo...more

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About R.L. LaFevers

R.L. LaFevers (Robin Lorraine when she’s in really big trouble) grew up surrounded by shelves of old dusty books and a passel of brothers. She has also spent a large portion of her life being told she was making up things that weren’t there, which only proves she was destined to write fiction. She is the author of over fourteen books for young readers, including THEODOSIA AND THE SERPENTS OF CHAOS...more

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Books by R.L. LaFevers

Theodosia and the Staff of Osiris (Theodosia Throckmorton, #2)

The Flight of the Phoenix (Nathaniel Fludd Beastologist, #1)

Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus (Theodosia Throckmorton, Book #3)

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Trivia About Theodosia and the...

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Quotes from Theodosia and the Serp...

“I blew that clay pigeon to smithereens. I don't know why Mum got so upset. According to Uncle Andrew she's a crack shot herself. But she says I'm too young. What I'd like to know is how old does a person have to be before they get to do all the fun stuff?” — 4 people liked it

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avg rating	preview: Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos Goodreads rating: 3.88 (2479 ratings)
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BBCode	[url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10506131-theodosia-and-the-serpents-of-chaos?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book][img]http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1328316188l/10506131.jpg[/img][/url] [url=http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10506131-theodosia-and-the-serpents-of-chaos?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_book]Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos by R.L. LaFevers[/url]

Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (Theodosia Throckmorton #1)

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