Review: The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

The Red Pyramid
Author: Rick Riordan
Publication: Hyperion Book CH; 1 edition (May 4, 2010)
Description: Since their mother’s death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane. 
One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives. 

Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them--Set--has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe--a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family, and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.
My Thoughts: This was a great adventure story. It reminded me a bit of the 39 Clues series in that there are two main characters who are brother and sister. In this case, Carter is two years older than his sister Sadie. A unique feature is that while both children have an African-American father and a white mother, the children don't look like brother and sister. Carter takes after their father and Sadie their mother. They also don't really know each other very well when the adventure begins. They haven't lived together since their mother died six years ago. 
They get sucked into an adventure when their father does magic at the British Museum and disappears but not before unleashing ancient Egyptian gods and putting the children in the sights of the House of Life (a band of magicians). Carter and Sadie learn about the ancient Egyptian gods as they try to get their father back, elude the magicians from the House of Light, and defeat Set who wants to rule the Earth. This is where the book reminds me of the Percy Jackson series but with Egyptian gods rather than Greek gods.
Both Carter and Sadie have magical abilities that they didn't know about. The also find that they are hosts for Egyptian gods. In personality, Sadie is the louder and more reckless child. Carter has a lot of knowledge about ancient Egypt and is more cautious. His main skill is being a warrior while Sadie is a better magician. 
I thought that there were a number of interesting side characters including an intelligent baboon and a god who had been posing as Sadie's cat. Bast, the cat, has been charged by Sadie's father with protecting her. I liked that even when she was in human form she was still very much like a cat. The children also meet their Uncle Amos who is determined to protect them from the magicians of the House of Light. Carter is befriended by Zia who is a young magician and Sadie makes friends with Anubis.
The book was filled with adventure and lots of information about the Egyptian gods. I recommend it to middle graders and young adult readers who want adventure and magic in their books. I will be looking forward to more books in this series.
Favorite Quote:

I thought maybe she'd whisk us off by magic, or at least hail a taxi. Instead, Bast borrowed a silver Lexus convertible.
"Oh, yes," she purred. "I like this one! Come along, children."  
"But this isn't yours," I pointed out.
"My dear, I'm a cat. Everything I see is mine."
She touched the ignition and the keyhole sparked. The engine began to purr. [No, Sadie. Not like a cat, like an engine.]

Challenges: In the Middle Reading Challenge, RYOB Reading Challenge, 2010 YA Reading Challenge, Paranormal Reading Challenge