The Secret Cipher: A Secret Box Book

This follow-up to The Secret Box can also be enjoyed on its own. The action is exciting and satisfying, and the details of the first book are neatly recapped. The entertaining plot combines Greek mythology with a contemporary setting and intriguing mystery. Brisk pacing will keep readers hooked as Jax, Ethan, and Tyler's adventure takes them from New Jersey to Boston, through a comic-book festival filled with costumed fans, and to a fountain with a portal to ancient Greece. Humorous asides make this a fun read. Pyrrha, a girl who has time-traveled from ancient Greece, questions the trio: "But I don't understand why your sculptors and painters always portray Poseidon with a beard. . . . Why would a god who spends most of his life in the sea possess facial hair?" Jax and Ethan are well-developed main characters with distinctive voices. In alternating first-person narratives, Ethan is shy and nervous, while Jax is outspoken and adventurous. It's rewarding to see how their personality differences combine to make them a good team. Jax's wish to get to know her father, whom she's never met, is heartbreaking: "There were certain things I couldn't get out of my head. Like . . . did I look like him? Did I act, talk, or walk like him?"

After securing the mythical jar of Hope, cousins Jax, Ethan, and Tyler head to Boston's Museum of Fine Arts to help Great-aunt Juniper recover the jars of Faith and Love. Hot on their trail is an old enemy who wants to harness the artifacts' power for evil. Fans will enjoy the expanding story and close family ties that made The Secret Box a winner.

This follow-up to The Secret Box can also be enjoyed on its own. The action is exciting and satisfying, and the details of the first book are neatly recapped. The entertaining plot combines Greek mythology with a contemporary setting and intriguing mystery. Brisk pacing will keep readers hooked as Jax, Ethan, and Tyler's adventure takes them from New Jersey to Boston, through a comic-book festival filled with costumed fans, and to a fountain with a portal to ancient Greece. Humorous asides make this a fun read. Pyrrha, a girl who has time-traveled from ancient Greece, questions the trio: "But I don't understand why your sculptors and painters always portray Poseidon with a beard. . . . Why would a god who spends most of his life in the sea possess facial hair?" Jax and Ethan are well-developed main characters with distinctive voices. In alternating first-person narratives, Ethan is shy and nervous, while Jax is outspoken and adventurous. It's rewarding to see how their personality differences combine to make them a good team. Jax's wish to get to know her father, whom she's never met, is heartbreaking: "There were certain things I couldn't get out of my head. Like . . . did I look like him? Did I act, talk, or walk like him?"