Magnus Chase and the Hammer of Thor (Magnus Chase #2)
Author: Rick Riordan
Published: 2016
On Goodreads
My Rating: 
Rated C for chaotic fun and games with creative and clever team building.
“Magnus Chase, you nearly started Ragnarok. What are you going to do next?”
Six weeks have passed since Magnus and his friends defeated Fenris and the fire giants. Magnus has since adjusted to life in Valhalla—as much as a once-homeless-kid can anyway. Magnus still doesn’t quite fit it, but he’s gained a few really good friends which is good.
After the assassination of a goat and one of Loki’s children as a new addition to Valhalla, things are about to shake up once again. Oh right, Thor’s hammer is also missing and Magnus is tasked with getting it back which may or may not require a wedding. It’s complicated.
Magnus Chase Reviews
Magnus Chase: The Sword of Summer
Magnus Chase was thinking he’d get back to some semblance of normal. Not going to happen. The stakes are higher than ever and not just for Magnus. He learns that he’s not the only one faced with issues. Sam’s relationship with Amir is put at risk when she’s forced into an arranged marriage by Loki. Hearthstone endures a family reunion when Blitzen is put in danger. The amount of depth added so much to the book. Riordan weaves such a beautiful but also humorous story and gives it to all of his characters not just the main ones.
This time around, things were a bit more intense than usual. This wasn’t a typical adventure. Futures and lives were on the line with underlying realism. I find Riordan to be one of the best authors out there because he incorporates real struggle and life for pre-teens and regular teens to relate to safely. Here, it’s the struggle of family loss/estrangement and finding family in new places and people while also discovering yourself. On top of this remarkable feat, he keeps mythos alive in such a fun and interactive way. He’s such a smart and caring writer and it shows through his work. I’m always in awe.
The addition of a new character was unavoidable, but Alex was so great! For one, there was a whole new adjustment period for Magnus. Alex is gender fluid and quite a force to reckon with, but that didn’t stop Magnus from befriending her. If he can be friends with Sam who always wants to hit him then Alex was easy. Still, Magnus encompassed what we all should. Acceptance, and even if we don’t understand. Riordan’s approach to sexuality was much like his approach to religion. Very open, accepting, and kind. This is a guy who gets it.
Hearthstone and Blitzen got a bit of a bigger role and that was pretty cool. While I get that they’re great friends much like the LOTR trio: Aragorn, Legolas, and Gimli, I can’t help but ship them! The way they look after each other and know such important details. I just love how much they care about each other. More so, Riordan’s attention to character growth is always natural and emotional. Always a punch to the feels and I fall in love with his characters more and more.
Getting to meet Sif and Thor was…interesting. Riordan always throws in the notables and Thor and Sif and Loki are major! He also really knows how to find the comical yet believable side in known mythos and I’m always impressed. These two were such dingbats and it offered a lot of humor right when it was needed. Of course, I’m pretty sure people were really hoping to see the thunder god, too.
Now, there was an incredible twist! Man oh man, Riordan is a master with twists and surprises. Annabeth was quite an honorable mention and so was the hint at The Apollo Trials but learning that Percy would be jumping back into the fray with her made me literally jump up from my couch. Not only will the Greeks and Romans have come together. But now the Greeks and Norse! How awesome!
I’ve decided that Riordan really throws world-building to the wind and wings it and that’s why it works. It’s almost as if he shrugs and says, “We’re rolling with it,”. It’s certainly kept me guessing through each chapter without questioning once why giant Godzilla was talking to Magnus or how Vahalla fits into a hotel. The transitions from action-packed moment to moment were perfectly seamless.
Overall
Though the adventure was fun, it was also a tad bittersweet. Though it ended with disaster on the horizon, there was a dash of excitement that left me excited for the final book. I did notice that this series is a bit shorter than his previous ones, but I bet it’ll end just as beautifully with a wholesome feeling of friendship and heroism.
Quotables:
“Etiquette tip: If you’re looking for the right to leave a party, when the host yells, “No on leaves here alive,” that’s your cue.” (p. 229)
“The night before a big massacre, you might think I would toss and turn. Nope. I slept like a rock.” (Magnus, p. 372)
“Is this goat on? Thor can you hear me?” (Magnus, p. 399)
More to come soon…
-K.
Song Today? White Wedding by Billy Idol.
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The Scarlet Reader 
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