The Immortal Fire

The Cronus Chronicles #3

by Anne Ursu, Neil Swaab (Illustrator)

After their near-fatal battle with Poseidon, Charlotte and Zee would love nothing more than to relax and forget all over again that the Greek gods are real. But with the world in peril and no one else to save it, that just isn’t an option. Charlotte and Zee meet the Prometheans, an ancient brotherhood trying to protect mankind from the gods, who have finally found a weapon capable of bringing Zeus to his knees. But using it will come at a great cost, one Charlotte and Zee are not willing to pay. They strike out on their own for Mount Olympus, with the Prometheans, an angry Chimera, and all sorts of mythological beings on their tail. . . .

Genres: Fantasy, Mythology, Middle Grade, Young Adult, Adventure, Fiction, Greek Mythology

514 pages, Paperback

First published June 9, 2009

About the author

Anne Ursu is the author of several fantasies for young readers, including THE REAL BOY, which was longlisted for the National Book Award, and BREADCRUMBS, which was named as one of the best books of the year by Publishers Weekly, Amazon, and School Library Journal. She is also the recipient of a McKnight Fellowship. She teaches at the Hamline University's Masters of Fine Arts in Writing for Children and Young Adults, and lives in Minneapolis. Her next book, THE LOST GIRL, will be out in February 2018.

Reviews

[Monica · Rating 3 out of 5]

El final de una trilogía poco conocida que nos muestra a los dioses griegos como Percy, para que vean que no es el único. Son libros infantiles pero bien narrados, acompañados por imágenes al inicio de cada capítulo, si quieres algo más creativo que aborde a estos dioses, dales la oportunidad.

[Danielle The Book Huntress · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great ending to this trilogy, providing lots of thrills, laughs, and plain good old storytelling. Ms. Ursu employs wit and charm mixed with very visual imagery that gives the reader quite an adventure. Charlotte and Zee are really brave, tough kids. I shudder to think about real kids going through what they experience. I winced at how many times poor Charlotte got wounded, and there were a few moments that just about broke my heart. This book is very true to the original myths in how petty and unflatteringly the Greek gods are portrayed. I would never substitute a modern story for the original tales, but I like how fun and accessible Ms. Ursu makes the Greek myths. I liked that the author stayed pretty true to the myths, but also made a fun, original story of her own.

I'm glad the kids get a rest from saving the world and facing mortal danger with gods and vicious creatures of myths and legends, but I will miss Charlotte and Zee very much.

I think young readers and older readers will get their time and money's worth with this book. The writing is clever and sly, with some jokes for the younger reader, and some that a mature reader will appreciate in an entirely different way. Definitely recommend the Cronus Chronicles series to fans of Greek mythology and stories that spotlight the Greek myths.

Overall rating: 4.5/5.0 stars

[Angela · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love, love, love this series. Ursu's writing is funny and charming, her characters are wonderful and believable. I learn more about Greek myths with every novel.

This one had a wonderful surprise - there's a passage near the end that is so beautiful I read it three times before I could go on, and it had me in tears. Some of the loveliest, sweetest writing I've come across in a long time.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this third and final book, cousins Charlotte and Zee are in the familiar position of trying to act like normal 13-year-olds while knowing that the Greek gods are real and that there is major unrest among them. They are pretty sure that the unexplained phenomena going on in the Mediterranean are related to their encounters with Hades and Poseidon, but Mr. Metos and the Prometheans keep treating them like children. This knowledge, combined with Charlotte’s new understanding of her parents’ feelings, fills them with impotent guilt until, of course, they break free and seek to find a compromise between the gods and mortals. I love Ursu’s dry sense of humor, her depiction of the Olympian gods, the developing confidence of Zee and the developing conscience of Charlotte. A wonderful and appropriate end to the series.

[Ryan Mac · Rating 4 out of 5]

The third and final book in the Cronus Chronicles featuring Charlotte and her cousin Zee. This book picks up not long after the ending of book 2 after Charlotte and Zee's encounters with the god Posideon. The third book seemed to end abruptly and some parts of the story didn't seem to flow very well but overall it is a pretty good book. Another good weaving of Greek mythology into current everyday life.

[Matthew · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn't do it, the book was so odd on Mt. Olympus it kind of made me want to puke.

This book was really slow, but easy to read (A preschooler could do it!) That's what kind of made me mad, Anne Ursu has no real talent for writing and she still got published. In her next stories, hopefully she can make an interesting plot, characters, and maybe even a good editor.

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Percy Jackson fans... read this book! Ursu is amazing- and this book [ book 3:] is sooooo good.

[Shereen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was actually better than The Shadow Thieves...Loved it! :) :) :)

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really great conclusion to the trilogy, though as with the previous book I feel like it suffers from having a slow start. The story begins by showing the aftermath of the previous book - Philonecron uses Poseidon's trident to turn that god into a sea cucumber, and now that the god of the seas is missing, chaos reigns in the Mediterranean as the lesser ocean deities compete to show off their stuff. Zee and Charlotte are worried because they feel that this is all their fault and they have to fix it somehow. Of course, there's not much they can do until Mr. Metos returns and whisks them off to the Promethean headquarters in London - and even then, the Prometheans ignore a couple of kids, forcing our heroes to bust out and head for Mount Olympus on their own. Zee and Charlotte fight a chimera, a satyr, and a number of other gods and monsters on their quest, as well as meeting Zeus's latest son and discovering the location of Prometheus's Fire, which can give humanity knowledge of the gods once again. There's some great character moments towards the end, an entertaining depiction of Olympus, and some excellent action and excitement as the cousins manage to save the world - and the Dead - once and for all. As I said, I found that things dragged up until the halfway point, but from there the book rapidly got good, and I definitely enjoyed it overall. I like how things end up shaking out in terms of gods and their relationship with humanity, and I loved Philonecron's final fate. I think I would've liked to learn more about the Prometheans, and this did leave me wanting a story in which the gods are actually overthrown - perhaps I'll have to write such a thing myself, if nothing else appears in the inevitable stream of Greek myth YA. All in all, the Cronus Chronicles were a lot of fun, and I think I definitely enjoyed them more than Percy Jackson, even if I'm still left wondering why the series is named for a character who never manages to show up.

[Trisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlotte and Zee want some nice ,quiet, down time to heal and rest, but others have different ideas. But they are excited to finally meet the Prometheans and become one, but that is not exactly what happens. The Prometheans do not see their use and just lock them away to be safe. But if you know anything about Charlotte and Zee you know they will not be pushed to the side, so they make an escape and with all kinds of people on their heels, they run. They are on their way to take care of things all by themselves on Mt Olympus. Then the games begin.
This is a wonderful series. I missed book two so I felt a bit off but after a while I got the jest of book 2 and all was good. Charlotte and Zee cause havoc everywhere in this action-packed book. There is also so much suspense, but don’t hold your breath for too long, it is not good for you. The characters are wonderful and work well with each other. The flow is wonderful throughout the book and the series. Amazon lists the series as only 3 books but I sure hope there is more as I want to see more adventures of Charlotte and Zee.

This review copy was provided by Edelweiss

[Mamie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This final installment was well written and connected beautifully with the first and second books. I have read a lot of books based on mythology and I really felt the author brought some fresh perspectives and interpretations to such well known stories. I loved the twist with an unexpected goddess and the mature discussion of justice v. revenge.

[Sarah Cromwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

a slightly creepy book

[Alysha DeShaé · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love a good satisfying ending. This was exactly the ending this story needed. I love these books. 😺

But that epilogue! 😹 Perfection!

[Audry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this one best. Not as many slow parts and it jumped right into the story.

[Annie Morphew · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had a little trouble getting through the first part of the book but then I was hooked! Great adventure! The ending made me laugh out loud. Perfect!

[Virginia · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Shel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ursu, A. The Immortal Fire. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

510 pages (Yikes!).


Appetizer: In the final Cronus Chronicles novel, Charlotte is still recovering from the adventures in the last novel, The Siren Song. She and Zee are back at school, but all is not right in the world. They watch the news, knowing that the world is unravelling as the Greek gods stop hiding their existence from humanity.

Philonecron is keeping busy too, more certain than ever that he is going to become the ruler of the universe, he visits an Oracle and receives some disturbing news.

Zeus, the current ruler of the universe, is not a fan of all the new chaos. In fact, he thinks it might be time to be done with the silly humans for once and for all.

I have to say, I am sad that this series has ended. The narration of this series is so fun. I absolutely love Charlotte and the themes (sacrificing one for the many, the continuation of life after death, etc.). I just wish I wasn't reading these thick books under a dissertation related time frame. It puts a bit of a dampener on the enjoyment factor.)

I enjoyed The Immortal Fire immensely. The jumps back and forth in time made more sense with this book than with the second one. The voices of the gods were incredibly engaging. I also loved Philonecron's realization that Charlotte and he should be "frenemies."

Part of the reason I wish there were more books in this series is that the ending of The Immortal Fire did seem a little rushed. There are all these wonderful tensions about how the humans may have to rebel against the lazy-slacker Greek gods and I felt like that key conflict was dismissed too easily. Plus, I felt like I wasn't left with a clear picture of what Charlotte and Zee's life would be like after the events of the story. It was a little dissatisfying. (But also, since I'd hit page 500, I was also pretty ready to JUST BE DONE WITH THE BOOK!!!!)


Dinner Conversation:

"At the cradle of civilization, close to the belly button of the world, there is a sea like no other on Earth. This sea is unique for many reasons--the particular wine-dark color of its water, the fact that it is at the nexus of three continents, and of course because of the vast population of Immortals who call it home. Up until about an hour ago, it was also unique because on it there sailed a yacht like no other--but there is not much of that yacht left anymore, thanks to the ministrations of a rather vengeful, extremely giant, giant squid" (p. ix).

"A few days later, half a world away, one ordinary eighth-grader girl was lying on the couch in her den, stroking her cat and feeling sick. There was nothing too extraordinary about this situation; this girl stayed home from school, and if you looked at her you would not be surprised. For Charlotte Mielswetzski (you know how to pronounce that by now, right? Meals-wet-ski?) was covered in gross yellow bruises and small cuts and wore her wrist in a splint and generally looked as if she had had an unfortunate encounter with a very large falling piano" (p. 3).

"The gods had retreated because Zeus didn't want to deal with humanity anymore. And they kept it so humanity didn't know they existed. That didn't mean they didn't interfere--some gods used the mortal realm as their playground, and people as their playthings. The policy seemed to be that they could do whatever they wanted as long as no one noticed them.
Well, people were noticing them now" (p. 11).

"This was the way of things. [Philonecron] was a hero, this was a hero's journey, an epic for the ages--the saga of a humble demon's long journey from Underworld garbage collector to Supreme Lord of All Creation. He never wanted an enemy--he was peace loving, not prone to conflict--but every hero had a nemesis, one as terrible as he was great. It was only literary. It was the conquest of the Universe, after all. One did expect it to be literary" (p. 57).

"Yes, [Zeus] had made a decision, but circumstances change and a good leader changes with them. The children had caused all of this, and maybe humanity needed to be punished for it. Zeus hated to give Hera the satisfaction of doing what she wanted, but if those children did one more thing it would be time to make another decision. It would be a terrible bother, of course, and his world would be a little more empty without humans, but sometimes you have to suffer for justice.
They had one more chance" (p. 125).

"[Mr. Metos] paused and gazed at the cousins. "Though now I find I have a new [purpose]."
"What's that?" Charlotte asked.
"Keeping the two of you alive."
"Oh," said Zee.
"And apparently I cannot do that by myself, and I cannot do that while you two lead your daily lives in the open. I have made every attempt to shield you from danger, and with every attempt the danger seems only to grow. There's only one option that I can see."
Charlotte and Zee looked at each other. "What?" Charlotte asked, her voice shaking a little.
"You are coming with me. We are going to the Prometheans" (pp. 158-159).

[Eduardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

“He did not know what he had been expecting from Zeus; Hades had been inept and dithering, Poseidon has been–according to Charlotte–a narcissist with serious anger issues, and Zeus, Lord of the Universe, was just an overgrown, smirking bully.”
—

I always want to call this one, “The Promethean Flame”, which is definitely NOT the title…

This is the third and final book in Anne Ursu’s “Cronus Chronicles” trilogy (which has almost nothing to do with Cronus himself). And as each previous installment featured our heroes traveling to one of the godly realms–the Underworld and the sea–this one has our heroes face Zeus himself up on Olympus.

This one isn’t as funny as the last two, I think? I don’t know if it’s just that there are the high stakes of the fate of all of humanity in the balance, and the climax of the entire trilogy, that makes me not feel as if this one is as funny. I’m also less nostalgic about this one, and I remember less of it, which is WEIRD considering that this is the installment I’ve actually owned for years. Don’t mistake me, though, it IS funny, with tons of jokes throughout. It just didn’t feel AS funny as the previous two books.

It is a bit disappointing that the Prometheans aren’t as useful this time around, after we spent so long hoping that we’d see them go and kick butt fighting the gods. Which is sort of the point, though, isn’t it? This is a book trilogy about two cousins and the institutions that are failing them. ‘Adults Are Useless’ is probably too harsh of a way to put it, but in the end, it HAS to be them. It has to be Charlotte and Zee fixing the problem, maybe with the help of a particularly talented cat.

And of course, the gods are terrible. With Poseidon’s disappearance at the end of the last book, many of the deities under his authority start screwing around and showing off because they know they can get away with it. Which is exactly the kind of thing you expect Greek gods to be doing, especially after thousands of years of repressing themselves.

The two also have to confront themselves in their quest. I think in a world in which our literature has a bunch of snarky protagonists who don’t fit it, it IS very important to ask protagonists like Charlotte why they’re doing this, saving the world, when they don’t seem to like it very much. And characters like Zee realizing that their compassion can be turned against them, but not actually losing it, just getting smarter about it.

Oh, and there’s Steve, a teenager with anger management issues. He’s important.

There’s a scene in which Charlotte observes several major gods just lazing around, obviously bored. And they don’t want to change things because then they’d lose their life of luxury on Olympus, but Charlotte notes that what they have… is really, really boring. And how often are we seeing that in today’s world? The people in charge of society and especially modern technology, suggesting that the ideal life is just lounging around boring ourselves to death? I don’t know, that struck me reading it today in 2025.

There’s an amusing comment Mr. Metos makes, that there’s a building down the block from the Prometheans’ lair that houses a secret society that thinks Norse mythology is real. They’re all insane, of course. I do wonder about those guys sometimes…

Ursu could do a follow-up series to this if she really wanted to, but I don’t know if there’d be much point. This book accomplishes all that the trilogy set out to do. In the end, the world isn’t perfect, but it’s better for people, and our heroes can go home and live their lives without fear of being tormented by the gods.

A little bummed they never discover the deal with Mew, though.

—
“Answer the question. Does humanity deserve to be saved?”

[Addison · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A final confrontation looms. Charlotte and Zee encounter the Prometheans—humanity’s secret defenders—who hold a weapon to challenge Zeus himself. But the cost of using it is high. As they journey toward Mount Olympus with monsters in pursuit, the cousins must choose between destiny, loyalty, and sacrifice to protect a world hanging by a thread.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I need to learn that just because I love some of an author's works doesn't mean that I'll love all of them. As fantasy adventure epics for tweens go, this series is pretty good. Nice themes about revenge vs justice, and nice that the bravest kid just happens to be female (not, note, the typical 'spunky heroine' of most recent MG), and great that the complexities of the Greek Gods theology isn't dumbed down. However, even though this is much better than the Percy Jackson series, the subject matter is of no interest to me, and Ursu did not weave her subtle magic in this series. The second is even skippable, tbh. But there's some cool world-building in the first, and some nifty bits in the third, so if you are in fact interested in the genre, I do recommend them.

(This review duplicated for second and third books.)

[Lady Tea · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual Rating : 3.1 / 5

The best part of this book? Philonecron. Why? Well, because after being eaten by a monster, stuck in a wheelchair with no legs in said monster's stomach, and then finding a trident that not only gives him back his legs, but world power as well, what does he do? He hugs the thing! Seriously. This guy's the villain that will squeal in delight when his plans go right, the guy whose emotions seems genuine and who, no matter how evil the author might say he is, can never truly inspire "hate" in the readers. He was the best part of this entire series.

Unfortunately, however, he wasn't much present in this novel as he was in the other two. It still made for an okay read and all, but nothing truly exciting. Out of all the books, this one is my least favourite, I think, even though it's supposed to contain the climax of events. It just wasn't satisfying, and especially not the ending, because it concludes with Charlotte and Zee going home, with nothing more than a pat on the back after all they've gone through. It makes almost the entire series feel useless for them, you know? If I'm going to read a series about two heroes saving the world from supernatural forces, I'm interested in seeing them rewarded in the end, yes? Now, I understand the charm of having everything go back to normal at the end as well, since that's what most people would actually want after life-threatening experiences and all, but they should at least be able to change in some way from it, earn an advantage, right? That was sorely lacking in this novel.

Other than that though, fairly average read.

[Jennifer Heise · Rating 2 out of 5]

I want to like these books. I really do. I like Charlotte and Zee, the characters. But I kept getting stuck in the middle of these. What I think is interesting about them is that despite the characterization and the ideas and the humor, to me they feel like a reaction. It's sort of the opposite of Percy Jackson. Zee is just so... passive. Even when he is heroic it's passive. Even my teenage reader, who loves the books, noticed it: "I thought hey wow, Zee finally grew a spine..." Charlotte is active but she is kinda, well, varying in competence, sort of a Margaret Murray for the modern world. For tween and teen readers that may be reason enough to like her; unlike the Rick Riordan characters, Zee and Charlotte don't actually 'do' anything-- they don't build, they don't fight, they just deal with what is set before them and they try to save the world. Even Zee's soccer playing seems to have vanished. (Probably typical of middle-schoolers.) Mind you, there's a lot of thinky think going on here, which is a positive for parents and adults: Zee and Charlotte begin to understand what makes the adults around, normal caring adults, treat them the way they do, and how they have to interact with those adult. Also, it's pretty clear how Ursu feels about the Greek gods. Compared to her scorn, Tom Holt's is tempered. This means that most of the other characters in this series feel pretty paper-dollish.
I'd pair it with both the Percy Jackson books, and Iris, Messenger.

[Barbara ★ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was the weakest of the three books as it's only in the last third of the 500+ page book that Charlotte and Zee actually encounter Zeus and pull it all together. The remainder of the book is Charlotte's parents and Mr. Metos (teacher) calling them children and trying to protect them from danger. Granted our hero and heroine are only 13 but they have already gone up against Hades, Poseidon and Philonecron. Though in all honestly the parents don't know this but Mr. Metos certainly does. I found this rather irritating.

I felt the story really repetitive and again I found the author's writing style (that of detailing what might have happened if so and so did this instead of what actually happened) to be irrelevant to what was actually going on and it didn't add anything to the story except pages. I am not the intended audience (that would be young children) but I guess the repetitiveness and what-if scenarios might keep a child entertained especially if the book was read over a long period of time.

[Ashley...(BookNerd) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Real Rating: 2.5

The Immortal Fire was okay. The main characters were fine, though could have been greatly improved, and the plot was interesting enough. The adventure was fun to follow and it was exciting at some points.

But there were a few things I didn't like:
1. One of the main characters, Zee, becomes angry and it's very annoying because it is a shocker to everyone around him. Everyone is like, "You're British, you can't be even slightly rude!" It's like he's not allowed to be mad!

2. There were chapters made mostly for comedic purposes, but instead of funny they were long, drawn out, and useless.

3. In the end, it did not seem as if the cousins faced the villain together, even though they are supposed to be a team. One seemed to be lolly gagging while the other was fighting.

4. There was other unneeded chapters from a different point of view, that weren't needed and shouldn't have been placed in the book.

Overall, the plot was interesting, but the execution could've been better, I am disappointed in the ending book for this series.

[Julia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I imagine it's bit a letdown to be treated like children when at 13 cousins Charlotte and Zee have survived the Underworld and narrowly escaped Posiedon's wrath. Charlotte and Zee start this final installment of the Cronus Chronicles a bit out of sorts. Parents, teachers and mentors like Mr. Metos are acting very careful around the kids, making for a lot of HP-like teen angst about being babies. The action really picked up in the last third of the story. Our old buddy Philonecron is back, attempting to take control of Olympus from Zeus in his wish to rule all. Charlotte and Zee head out on their quest to save both humans and the dead from the likes of Phil, with help from an unexpected source, a little girl in a dream.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars best out of all three.
I'm not sure if I liked this one most because of the lack of Philonecron or the increased focus on the Greek gods affect on humanity. I did like the mystery involving the Flame of Prometheus it added a level of intrigue to the story.
I was a little disappointed that Charlotte nor Zee found out the true identity of Mew, but than again it would be a little weird knowing your grandma was reborn as your cat.
Note: I had to retype this review after it failed to save the first time so if it is a little confusing I did the best I could to make it as good as the original review. Good thing I'd kept the original short or I would have never remembered it all. :)

[Vera · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oliver and I started this book on the last night of his dad's life. We've already finished Part 1 and can't wait for our nightly reading. The whole series so far has been great although simply written - it would have been nice to have discovered this series a couple of years ago. It is full of things the boy can relate to, disguised in a good story. Philonecron, delightfully messed up Philonecron, entertains us more and more as the story goes on.

We finished this a couple of nughts ago. The boy laughed at the ending. Fitting indeed.

My only complaint was that everyone gaped. We might not have noticed had I not been reading it aloud and it wasn't as bad as JK Rowling's use of "breathlessly" but still. Otherwise, fun story and bummed the series is over.

[Susan Christopher · Rating 1 out of 5]

Finally, the last in the Cronus series and my least favorite . I had to force myself to read the story of Charlotte and Zee and their finally attempt to not only save the world but improve the treatment of the dead in the underworld. The miraculously travel around the world with a secret organization and an old friend from book 2 to find the key to motivating zeus in helping preserve humanity. phil is on the move with Poseidon's power and a secret weapon, which proves to be his undoing.The ending is truly anticlimactic and the final chapter does nothing more but set this up for more books in either a continuing series or spin-off series. I feel the series in underwritten and does not engage the reader with its characters, descriptions or pacing.

[Moriah Writes-a-lot · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have found in this series that there is always a slow start. Thankfully this time the start was much faster. Overall this was an average book, it was not nearly as good as the first book though and the second has all but slipped my memory. As for ending the series ti was a whatever. Not the best note to end on. It had two redeeming qualities: 1 The fun portrayals of the gods (though this is counteracted with Ursu's need to dumb things and and state the obvious, and her repetitiveness, though perhaps that's what I get for dawdling in the middle school section.) And her clever and amusing end for Philonecron, which I quote enjoyed and found suiting, pun not intended.