Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow (Jake Ransom Series #1)

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Overview

When a mysterious envelope arrives for Jake Ransom, he and his older sister, Kady are plunged into a gripping chain of events. An artifact found by their parents—on the expedition from which they never returned—leads Jake and Kady to a strange world inhabited by a peculiar mix of long-lost civilizations, a world that may hold the key to their parents' disappearance.

But even as they enter the gate to this extraordinary place, savage grackyls soar across the sky, diving to attack. Jake's new friends, the pretty Mayan girl Marika and the Roman Pindor, say the grackyls were created by an evil alchemist—the Skull King. And as Jake stuggles to find a way home, it becomes obvious that what the Skull King wants most is Jake and Kady—dead or alive.

Blockbuster author of THE JUDAS STRAIN and THE LAST ORACLE, James Rollins brings all the twists and chills he's famous for to this breathlessly paced adventure—his first book about Jake Ransom. Fans of Indiana Jones, Alex Rider, and Maximum Ride will flock to this explosively entertaining adventure.

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble

At first, the arrival of the envelope simply puzzles Jake Ransom, but it doesn't take long before he realizes that its contents might help him and his sister, Kady, finally unravel the mystery behind their parents' disappearance. What he doesn't yet know is that the discovery will catapult these inexperienced siblings into a weird world populated by citizens of many long-lost civilizations. An evil alchemist and high adventure.

Publishers Weekly

This exciting time-travel adventure opens three years after Jake Ransom's archeologist parents have disappeared in the Yucatán, leaving him and his sister, Kady, nothing but their journals and a Mayan coin, broken in half. The siblings receive an invitation to attend an exhibition of Mayan antiquities at the British Museum, and are soon after catapulted into the prehistoric past where ancient Mayans, Romans, Egyptians, Vikings and even Neanderthals have joined together to do battle with the Skull King, a creature so evil that he only appears wrapped in shadows, "as if the darkness were scared of what lay hidden at its heart and attempted to hide the horror from the world." Jake, an Indiana Jones in the making, and Kady, a cheerleader who learns to channel her inner Viking, fight the Skull King to a draw, discovering clues about their missing parents. In this series opener, Rollins (The Last Oracle) presents a wide range of interesting historical information while telling a rollicking good story that should please a wide range of readers-and maybe even some of his adult fans. Ages 10-up. (May)Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

More Reviews (5) Fewer Reviews

Children's Literature

Jake and Kady are plunged into a gripping chain of events when an artifact found by their archaeologist parents may lead them to uncovering their disappearance. They set out on an expedition to a strange world in order to solve the mystery. The events are exciting and sometimes unexpected. The author has created the young character of Jake Ransom—who—like the Horowitz books lead the reader on great and almost impossible adventures. The female characters are just as good and add great interaction with Jake and others. It has it all—adventures, danger, exploration, discovery, excitement, history, great characters and much more. Teens want a book that keeps their attention all the way through and one that is easily readable. This story is most appealing and with its great cover, it seems to have it all. The format of the print and spacing are just right. The reader will be watching anxiously for another book by this author. Reviewer: Naomi Butler

VOYA

Jake is the son of two world-renowned but long-missing archaeologists. Living with his sister on the family's estate, he is a gifted but bored student. When he and his sister are invited to a museum opening of an exhibition of artifacts discovered by his parents, he discovers a new and dangerous world that could hold the key to their disappearance. The novel is an enjoyable and quick read. Rollins does very well in building a plot that encourages the reader to continue with the story. It moves quickly, and Jake is a likeable hero. Although the main story is a self-contained adventure tale, it is quite obviously the first in a series and sets up conflicts and mysteries that it never resolves. Rollins spends quite a bit of the beginning expertly establishing the clashes and underlying conspiracies, so much so that when Jake finally arrives in the land of Calypsos, the events there seem more a diversion than the novel's main plot line. In addition, some of the characterization seems very superficial, with characters who never really do more than provide exposition. The novel will appeal to readers looking for a quick, fun read, but will disappoint readers looking for something more. Reviewer: Steven Kral

School Library Journal

Gr 5–9—Eighth-grader Jake and his older sister Kady are invited to the British Museum to view the Mayan treasures their archaeologist parents discovered shortly before their disappearance three years earlier. Jake takes along what is left of their parents' possessions: a field log, a sketch book, and two halves of a gold Mayan coin (worn by the siblings around their necks). At the exhibit, Jake examines a two-foot-tall solid gold pyramid with a round hole in its side. He places the Mayan coin in the slot, which creates an explosion, transporting the siblings to another place and time. Calypsos is a land inhabited by dinosaurs, mythical and fantastical creatures, and people from long-lost civilizations. Upon their arrival, Jake and Kady befriend two teens, Pindor and Marika. Together they must save Calypsos from the banished Skull King who threatens to return and take over the land. The pace of the story is occasionally a little slow, but readers who stick with it will be caught up in the adventure, particularly those who are interested in Mayan culture. The characters are likable, especially Jake and Pindor, who experience the insecurities of most teens. Simple drawings add visual aid to the descriptions of Mayan glyphs and other objects. Unanswered questions surrounding their parents' disappearance and the connection between Jake and the Skull King will have readers eagerly looking for the next installment in the series.—Kelley Siegrist, Farmington Community Library, MI

Kirkus Reviews

Eighth grader Jake Ransom (he skipped seventh grade) and his older sister Kady have lived with guardians on their family estate in Connecticut since their archeologist parents disappeared on a Mayan dig three years ago. When the two are invited to a British exposition of the artifacts their parents discovered, they are magically catapulted to the strange jungle community of Calypsos, which is peopled by Mayans, Neanderthals, Romans and others. In the dinosaur-filled volcanic crater of Calypsos, alchemic crystals work magic, but science is unknown. When the community is attacked by an evil renegade alchemist who has dubbed himself Kalvernum Rex, Jake and his new friends among the natives are instrumental in thwarting his plans. The author's first for children starts out as a realistic thriller but takes a big left turn into fantasy without abandoning the thrills. Dollops of real science are nicely integrated, but the characterizations harbor no surprises. An author of science-fiction-tinged adventures for adults, Rollins has created a page-turning first volume in a series that will have readers with elastic suspension of disbelief clamoring for the next volume. (Fantasy. 10-14)

Children's Literature

This rollicking adventure story is a wonderfully startling mix of ancient Mayan culture, archeologists, prehistoric animals, and evil personified in the form of the Skull King. Main character Jake and his older sister Kady, the children of two missing archeologists, are physically pulled into an earlier era in human development to Calypso by an ancient Mayan artifact. In this place, Jake and Kady meet an eclectic group of people who also have been pulled from their own worlds and dropped into Calypso: Romans, Neanderthals, Norsemen, Egyptians, and so on. As Jake tries to use his scientific training to figure out how to get home and Kady uses her prowess as a cheerleader to lead a group of Norse athletes to the annual Olympiad, both find that there are larger mysteries at work in Calypso. When Jake finds a watch belonging to his missing father, he becomes even more determined to understand the power of the Skull King and the pull of Calypso on its people. This is the first in what is clearly going to be a series of Jake Ransom books, and it will definitely be a favorite with younger readers. Reviewer: Jean Boreen, Ph.D.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9780061473791
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date: 4/28/2009
Pages: 416
Sales rank: 336,808
Age range: 10 - 14 Years
Lexile: 680L (what's this?)
Series: Jake Ransom Series , #1
Product dimensions: 5.80 (w) x 8.40 (h) x 1.60 (d)

Meet the Author

James Rollins

New York Times bestselling author James Rollins holds a doctorate in veterinary medicine and resides in the Sierra Nevada mountains. An avid spelunker and certified scuba enthusiast, he can often be found underground or underwater.

Biography

James Rollins is the New York Times, USA Today and Publishers Weekly bestselling author of Black Order, Map of Bones and other adventure thrillers. He was born in Chicago and grew up in Ontario, Canada, and St. Louis, Missouri. He graduated with honors from the University of Missouri with a degree in veterinary medicine. And like most veterinarians, he presently shares his home with a Golden Retriever, a Dachshund, and a sixty-five year old parrot named Igor. Rollins currently practices in Northern California, and when not writing or working in his veterinary practice, he can often be found underground or underwater as an amateur spelunker and scuba diver. These hobbies have helped in the creation of his earlier books Subterranean, Deep Fathom, Amazonia, and Sandstorm. His thriller, Black Order, skyrocketed to the top of bestseller lists across the country, winning the author countless new fans, and was proclaimed by People magazine as one of last summer's "hottest reads." Map of Bones was chosen by Publishers Weekly as one of the most likely to win over Dan Brown's faithful audience, and the New York Times rated the book as one the summer's top crowd pleasers.

Author biography courtesy of HarperCollins.

Good To Know

Some fun and fascinating outtakes from our interview with Rollins:

"I often get asked if I still practice veterinary medicine. While I don't practice full-time, I still do volunteer. I work with a group that traps stray cats, brings them to the shelter, where I spend a day spaying and neutering them. It's basically eight hours of removing genitalia. It's a hobby."

"I am a TV junkie. I have two Tivos and they are constantly full."

"My first job was to flip pizzas. I once got a pie spinning that was ten feet across. I had to spin it on my back to keep it going. Yet, I still love pizza."

"Two hobbies I love -- caving and scuba diving -- are also essential research for my novels. Case in point:

I've always been an avid cave explorer, from the vast systems in Missouri to the lava tubes of Hawaii to the tighter squeezes of the California foothills. But one of my most frightening episodes also allowed me to better describe claustrophobia in my novels. While climbing out of the fairly technical wild cavern, involving lots of rope work, I managed to jam myself midway up a narrow vertical chute. Hung up on my ascending gear midway up the chute, I found myself unable to move up or down. My chest was squeezed between two walls, my left knee turned the wrong way. I could not maneuver, and there was not enough room to get a rescue climber to me. I was trapped. I remember the team leader, leaning down from above, shining his helmet lamp at me. ‘You either find a way to un-jam yourself, or you stay there forever.'

So over the course of a long hour -- wriggling, sweating, cursing, and clawing -- I managed to creep a millimeter at a time out of the jam. After this event, I had a better understanding for panic and the determination born of pure desperation, essential ingredients for to writing thrilling fiction.

But spelunking through caves was not my only ‘research' lesson. Two decades ago, I also took up scuba diving and went on dive trips all around the world: Monterey Bay, Hawaii, South Pacific, Australia. I particularly remember one trip to the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. I was informed by the dive master to beware of the many hazards found in the region. ‘On land, Australia has seven of the ten deadliest snakes. The seas are worse. Box jellyfish can kill in minutes. Local sea snakes are some of the most toxic. But worst of all is the stone fish. It looks like a stone, but its spines are loaded with paralytic poison. So be careful what you touch.'

And down we all went, buddied up in pairs, enthusiastic and excited. I dropped toward the reef and adjust my buoyancy until I'm floating just above the reef. All around spread amazing sights: giant clams, a flurry of colored fish, an astounding variety of coral. But I miscalculated my buoyancy, my weight shifted, and I planted a hand into the sand to stabilize my tumble, careful of the razor-sharp coral. Inches from my thumb, a jagged rock suddenly sprouted fins and swam away. I met the gaze of my buddy diver. His wide eyes firmed up the identification. The deadly stone fish. And I had almost slapped my hand on its back. As the fish scurried away, I understood at that exact moment how little Nature cared about the life of a scuba-diving novelist. Down here, Nature ruled. We were only visitors.

This mix of respect and terror is brought to life in my latest novel, The Judas Strain."

1. Hometown:
  
  Sacramento, California
1. Date of Birth:
  
  August 20, 1961
2. Place of Birth:
  
  Chicago, Illinois

Read an Excerpt

Jake Ransom and the Skull King's Shadow

Chapter One

School Daze

From his school desk, Jake Ransom willed the second hand on the wall clock to sweep away the final minutes of his sixth-period history class.

Only another twenty-four minutes and he would be free.

Away from Middleton Prep for a whole week!

Then he could finally get some real work done. He had already mapped out his plans for each day of the weeklong vacation break: to explore the rich vein of shellfish fossils he had discovered in the rock quarry behind his house, to attend a signing by one of his favorite physicists, who had a new book out called Strange Quarks and Deeper Quantum Mysteries, to listen to the fourth lecture by a famed anthropologist on the cannibal tribes of Borneo (who knew sautéed eyeballs tasted sweet?)—and he had so much more planned.

All he needed now was the school's last bell to ring to free him from the prison that was eighth grade.

But escape would not come that easy.

The history teacher, Professor Agnes Trout, clapped her bony hands together and drew back his sullen attention. She stood to one side of her desk. As gaunt as a stick of chalk, and just as dry and dusty, the teacher peered over her fingertips at the class.

"We have time for one more report," she announced.

Jake rolled his eyes. Oh, great...

The class was no happier. Groans spread around the room, which only hardened her lips into a firmer line.

"We could make it two more reports and stay after the last bell," she warned.

The class quickly quieted.

ProfessorTrout nodded and turned to her desk. One finger traced a list of names and moved to the next victim in line to present an oral report. Jake found it amusing to watch her thin shoulders pull up closer to her ears. He knew whose name was next in line alphabetically, but it had somehow caught the teacher by surprise.

She straightened with a soured twist to her lips. "It seems we will hear next from Jacob Ransom."

A new round of groans rose. The teacher did not even bother quieting them down. She plainly regretted her decision to squeeze in one more report before the holiday break. But after almost a year in her class, Jake knew Professor Agnes Trout was a stickler for order and rules. She cared more about the memorization of dates and names than any real understanding of the flow of history. So once committed to her course of action, she had no choice but to wave him to the front of the class.

Jake left his books and notes behind. He had his oral report set to memory. Empty-handed, crossing toward the blackboard, he felt the class's eyes on him. Even though he had skipped a grade last year, he was still the second tallest boy in his class. Unfortunately it wasn't always a good thing to stand out in a crowd, especially in middle school, especially after skipping a grade. Still, Jake kept his shoulders straight as he crossed to the board. He ignored the eyes staring at him. Not one to set fashion trends, Jake wore what he found first that morning (clean or not). He ended up with scuffed jeans, a tattered pair of high-top sneakers, a faded green polo shirt, and of course the mandatory navy school jacket with the school's insignia embroidered in gold on the breast pocket. Even his sandy blond hair failed to match the current razored trend. Instead it hung lanky over his forehead.

Like his father's had been.

Or at least it matched the last picture Jake had of the senior Ransom, now gone three years, vanished into the Central American jungle. Jake still carried that photograph, taped to the inside of his notebook. It showed his parents, Richard and Penelope Ransom, smiling with goofy happiness, dressed in khaki safari outfits, holding up a Mayan glyph stone. The photo's edges were still blackened and curled from the fire that burned through their hilltop camp.

Taped below it was a scrap of parcel paper. On it, written in his father's handwriting, was Jake's name along with the family address for their estate here in North Hampshire, Connecticut. The package had arrived six weeks after the bandits had attacked his parents' camp.

That had been three years ago.

It was the last and only contact from his folks.

Jake fingered the thin cord around his neck as he reached the front of the class. Through his cotton shirt, he felt the small object that hung from the cord and rested flat against his chest. A last gift from his parents. Its reassuring touch helped center him.

To the side, the teacher cleared her throat. "Class, Mr. Ransom will be teaching us... well... I mean to say his oral report will be on..."

"My report," he said, cutting her off, "is on Mayan astronomical techniques in relation to the precession of the equinoxes."

"Yes, yes, of course. Equinoxes. Very interesting, Mr. Ransom." The teacher nodded, perhaps a bit too vigorously.

Jake suspected Professor Agnes Trout didn't fully understand what the report was about. She backed toward her desk, as if fearful he might ask her a question. Like everyone else, she must have had heard the story of Mr. Rushbein, the geometry teacher. How after Jake had disproved one of the teacher's theorems in front of his whole class, he had suffered a nervous breakdown. Now all the teachers at Middleton Prep looked at Jake with a glint of worry. Who would be next?

Jake picked up a piece of chalk and wrote some calculations on the board. "Today I'll be showing how the Maya were able to predict such events as the solar eclipses, like the one that will occur next Tuesday—"

A balled-up piece of paper struck the board near his hand and caused the piece of chalk in his fingers to snap with a loud squeak on the board...

Customer Reviews

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Anonymous

Posted January 25, 2012

Fun read

Truely enjoyed this young adult title from James Rollins. While not as good as some of his adult fiction, I did enjoy the read. I will definately check out future titles of Jake Ransom.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted October 19, 2011

Highly recommend

The author is very articulate. Due to his graphic descriptions, it takes gut sometime to keep reading. Very well done. Any of his books are a great read!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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TacoTK

Posted March 18, 2011

Great Book

Its not like his other novels.. but i love how he captures the history entitled to the story. Great stuff!!!

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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JGolomb

Posted October 28, 2010

more from this reviewer

Fun Archaeo-SciFi-Fantasy

My 7-year-old is really enjoying this book. Me, not so much, but I'll rate based on the target audience.

I'm a James Rollins fan for the most part. I enjoy his stories which always move at a fast pace, are very well written, have a solid amount of viable science and history to make things believable, and have characters deep enough to sustain interest. Jake Ransom is no different, but adds more of a fantasy angle.

The book is definitely written towards young adults...maybe 6th grade and up. My son's in 2nd and certainly wouldn't be able to read it on his own, but he loves the adventure and mystery that Rollins strongly builds in each chapter. Think of Jake Ransom as a young Indiana Jones - that's pretty much the pull of the story and characters.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Dean_Kutzler

Posted May 8, 2012

I would recommend this to any and all ages! I finished this boo

I would recommend this to any and all ages! I finished this book in one day! You can't put it down!! I absolutely loved this adventerous tale and you will too! I'm going to get the second book, Jake Ransome and the Howling Sphinx right now!! Hopefully he will have completed another by the time I'm finished! MOVE OVER HARRY POTTER! There's a new craze in town!
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nozomi98

Posted April 14, 2012

A have-to read!!!!!!!!!

It's so weird when everyone just appears in the middle of the desert/storm !! And when those flowers turn out to be people!!!
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Anonymous

Posted April 4, 2012

Weird people........

Whos doin all this nicknamy crap? Its pretty gay. Good book though! (^:
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Anonymous

Posted March 29, 2012

Moonstar to Rebelpelt

Soulstar wants to see u at backup plan first result.
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Anonymous

Posted March 20, 2012

Best book

This is the best book i will ever read

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted March 4, 2012

Blaah

The pyramid looks copied from The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan, still like The Red Pyramid better

Coming from a twelve almost thirteen year old dont blameme if u dont likee me

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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CJaneReid

Posted February 14, 2012

To Enthusiasts of Adventure Fiction

The Story:
Young archaeologist. Ancient civilizations. An unknown evil. I was drawn to the story from the very beginning. Jake is a version of a studious Indiana Jones. He's had the training, but he's lacked the adventures, until now. And he's prepared for them, though not always in the manner he suspected. Surprisingly, his sister, who seems at the outset to be just another beauty queen in the making with her sights set no higher than the Captain of the Football Team and the next Big Cheer, turns out to be up to the challenge as well. They manage to hold their own throughout the adventures of the book, making allies and finding a niche for themselves among the people of Calypsos. Jake, the scholar, makes friends with the local masters of alchemy, men who study the magics of the land. Kady finds herself welcomed in the halls of the Vikings and discovers a unique comparison between baton twirling and sword throwing.

Jake also makes two close friends during his time in Calypsos: Marika, the Mayan daughter of one of the master, and Pindor, the Roman son of one of the Elders of Calypsos. The threesome manage to end up in the center of all the goings-on of Calypsos, which will, in the end, put them at the center of the Skull King's attempt to takeover the city and control its magic. The ways in which the trio, along with help fromKady, Pindor's older brother and Kady's squad of youthful Viking warrioresses, combat the evil of the Skull King is exciting and unique.

The Writing:
At first, I was leery of what I would find on the page of this young adult novel. But from the first few pages, I was hooked. The writing is descriptive but easy to read, with simply constructed sentences that don't try to do more than convey the essence of the story. It isn't Hemingway, for nothing is hidden under the language, but it is to the point and reveals just what the reader needs to know to paint a vivid and compelling picture of the scene and the characters interactions.

Better yet, just when I thought I knew what would happen next, something quite different occurred. The plot did not try to point me in the wrong direction, throwing up red herrings to lead me astray, but led me along naturally with the opinions and concerns of the characters, until they, and I, found out that we were mistaken. Sometimes to a dangerous degree.

And the Skull King, when he finally made his appearance, was not of the usual 'Mwahaha' variety of villain. He was terrifying in the manner of Voldemort or a Ring Wraith (and indeed shares qualities with both of these villains). What drives him hasn't been completely revealed, as this is only the first book of a series. But it is obvious that he will not stop to get what he's after and the depths of his cunning and plotting have only to be touched upon.

Recommendation:
I enjoyed this book immensely and have the second one on order now. The fact that I found the book sitting in a bargain bin made it all the more enjoyable, like finding a ruby sitting among costume jewelry. I recommend it for any enthusiasts of adventure fiction, and it is appropraite for readers age 12 and up. I'd set the age lower except it can be a bit frightening at times, and the loss of parents can be the hardest material for younger readers to handle. That said, mature 10-year-olds could easily handle the writing and language.
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Anonymous

Posted November 3, 2011

This book is the shit

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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8054619

Posted July 10, 2011

Best book (almost)

No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous

Posted June 27, 2011

I like it

I read this book at school and i enjoyed readin it

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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2472901

Posted June 10, 2011

Is+it+good%3F

+My+son+is+fourth+grade+and+I+wanna+see+if+he+can+read+it.

0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Anonymous

Posted May 5, 2010

I Also Recommend:

Liked it.

Great book by this author.
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theGhost1982

Posted October 8, 2009

more from this reviewer

I Also Recommend:

great story!!

The book was a great adventure... I read it with my daughter and she was just completely absorbed by the story! Can't wait until the sequel arrives so we can see what happens next!!!
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Anonymous

Posted October 5, 2009

My sons favorite book!!!

Bought this for my 10 year old son. He said that it was the best book he has ever read, finished it in less than 3 days. Liked it so much we gave it to the school library so that other kids could read it too.
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Anonymous

Posted August 24, 2009

good read

I read it in two days!
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AMSCHMITT

Posted August 16, 2009

Fun

This was a fun book to read. I can't wait until my nieces and nephews are old enough to read this book.
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Children's Literature

VOYA

School Library Journal

Kirkus Reviews

Children's Literature

Product Details

Meet the Author

James Rollins

Biography

Good To Know

Read an Excerpt

Customer Reviews

Rating Distribution

5 Star

4 Star

3 Star

2 Star

1 Star

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Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

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Fun read

Highly recommend

Great Book

Fun Archaeo-SciFi-Fantasy

I would recommend this to any and all ages! I finished this boo

A have-to read!!!!!!!!!

Weird people........

Moonstar to Rebelpelt

Best book

Blaah

To Enthusiasts of Adventure Fiction

This book is the shit

Best book (almost)

I like it

Is+it+good%3F

Liked it.

great story!!

My sons favorite book!!!

good read

Fun