by Rick Riordan
FREYA – the goddess of love; twin sister of Frey; ruler of Folkvanger
FRIGG – goddess of marriage and motherhood; Odin’s wife and the queen of Asgard; mother of Balder and Hod
GINNUNGAGAP – the primordial void; a mist that obscures appearances
GLEIPNIR – a golden rope made by dwarves to keep Fenris Wolf in bondage
HEIDRUN – the goat in the Tree of Laeradr whose milk is brewed for the magical mead of Valhalla
HEIMDALL – god of vigilance and the guardian of Bifrost, the gateway to Asgard
HEL – goddess of the dishonourable dead; born of Loki’s affair with a giantess
HELHEIM – the underworld, ruled by Hel and inhabited by those who died in wickness, old age or illness
HLIDSKJALF – the High Seat of Odin
HOD – Balder’s blind brother
HONIR – an Aesir god who, along with Mimir, traded places with Vanir gods Frey and Njord at the end of the war between the Aesir and the Vanir
IDUN – she distributes the apples of immortality that keep the gods young and spry
JORMUNGAND – the World Serpent, born of Loki’s affair with a giantess; his body is so long it wraps around the earth
JOTUN – Norse word for giant
LOKI – god of mischief, magic and artifice; the son of two giants; adept at magic and shape-shifting. He is alternately malicious and heroic to the Asgardian gods and to humankind. Because of his role in the death of Balder, Loki was chained by Odin to three giant boulders with a poisonous serpent coiled over his head. The venom of the snake occasionally irritates Loki’s face, and his writhing is the cause of earthquakes.
LYNGVI – the Isle of Heather, where Fenris Wolf is bound; the island’s location shifts every year as the branches of Yggdrasil sway in the winds of the void. It only surfaces during the first full moon of each year.
MAGNI AND MODI – Thor’s favourite sons, fated to survive Ragnarok
MIMIR – an Aesir god who, along with Honir, traded places with Vanir gods Frey and Njord at the end of the war between the Aesir and the Vanir. When the Vanir didn’t like his counsel, they cut off his head and sent it to Odin. Odin placed the head in a magical well, where the water brought it back to life, and Mimir soaked up all the knowledge of the World Tree.
MJOLNIR – Thor’s hammer
MUSPELL – fire
NAGLFAR – the Ship of Nails
NARVI – one of Loki’s sons, disembowelled by his brother Vali, who was turned into a wolf after Loki killed Balder
NIDHOGG – the dragon that lives at the bottom of the World Tree and chews on its roots
NJORD – god of ships, sailors and fishermen; father of Frey and Freya
NORNS – three sisters who control the destinies of both gods and humans
NORUMBEGA – a lost Norse settlement in their furthest point of exploration
ODIN – the ‘All-Father’ and king of the gods; the god of war and death, but also poetry and wisdom. By trading one eye for a drink from the Well of Wisdom, Odin gained unparallelled knowledge. He has the ability to observe all the Nine Worlds from his throne in Asgard; in addition to his great hall, he also resides in Valhalla with the bravest of those slain in battle.
RAGNAROK – the Day of Doom or Judgement, when the bravest of the einherjar will join Odin against Loki and the giants in the battle at the end of the world
RAN – goddess of the sea; wife of Aegir
RATATOSK – an invulnerable squirrel that constantly runs up and down the World Tree carrying insults between the eagle that lives at the top and Nidhogg, the dragon that lives at the roots
RED GOLD – the currency of Asgard and Valhalla
SAEHRIMNIR – the magical beast of Valhalla; every day it is killed and cooked for dinner and every morning it is resurrected; it tastes like whatever the diner wants
SESSRUMNIR – the Hall of Many Seats; Freya’s mansion in Folkvanger
SKIRNIR – a god; Frey’s servant and messenger
SLEIPNIR – Odin’s eight-legged steed; one of Loki’s children. Only Odin can summon him
SUMARBRANDER – the Sword of Summer
SURT – lord of Muspellheim
SVARTALF – a dark elf; a subset of dwarves
THANE – a lord of Valhalla
THOR – god of thunder; son of Odin. Thunderstorms are the earthly effects of Thor’s mighty chariot rides across the sky, and lightning is caused by him hurling his great hammer, Mjolnir.
TREE OF LAERADR – a tree in the centre of the Feast Hall of the Slain in Valhalla containing immortal animals that have particular jobs
TYR – god of courage, law, and trial by combat; he lost a hand to Fenris’s bite when the Wolf was restrained by the gods
ULLER – the god of snowshoes and archery
UTGARD-LOKI – the most powerful sorcerer of Jotunheim; king of the mountain giants
VALA – a seer
VALHALLA – paradise for warriors in the service of Odin
VALI – Loki’s son, who was turned into a wolf after Loki killed Balder; as a wolf he disembowelled his brother Narvi before he was gutted himself
VALKYRIE – Odin’s handmaidens, who choose slain heroes to bring to Valhalla
VANIR – gods of nature; close to elves
YGGDRASIL – the World Tree
YMIR – the largest of the giants; father to both the giants and the gods. He was killed by Odin and his brothers, who used his flesh to create Midgard. This act was the genesis of the cosmic hatred between the gods and the giants.
THE NINE WORLDS
ASGARD – the home of the Aesir
VANAHEIM – the home of the Vanir
ALFHEIM – the home of the light elves
MIDGARD – the home of humans
JOTUNHEIM – the home of the giants
NIDAVELLIR – the home of the dwarves
NIFLHEIM – the world of ice, fog and mist
MUSPELLHEIM – the home of the fire giants and demons
HELHEIM – the home of Hel and the dishonourable dead
RUNES (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)
DAGAZ – new beginnings, transformations
THURISAZ – the rune of Thor
FEHU – the rune of Frey
RAIDHO – the wheel, the journey
PERTHRO – the empty cup
EHWAZ – horse, transportation
ALGIZ – shielding
TIWAZ – the rune of Tyr
COMING AUTUMN 2016
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THE ADVENTURE NEVER STOPS …
THE GREEK GODS ARE ALIVE AND KICKING!
They still fall in love with mortals and bear children with immortal blood in their veins. Those kids who learn the truth about their parentage must travel to Camp Half-Blood – a secret base dedicated to the training of demigods. From there, young heroes like Percy Jackson, the son of Poseidon, embark on dangerous quests to prove their bravery.
The Percy Jackson series:
PERCY JACKSON AND THE LIGHTNING THIEF
PERCY JACKSON AND THE SEA OF MONSTERS
PERCY JACKSON AND THE TITAN’S CURSE
PERCY JACKSON AND THE BATTLE OF THE LABYRINTH
PERCY JACKSON AND THE LAST OLYMPIAN
THE DEMIGOD FILES
PERCY JACKSON AND THE GREEK GODS
PERCY JACKSON AND THE GREEK HEROES
THE GODS OF EGYPT AWAKEN!
When an explosion shatters the ancient Rosetta Stone and unleashes Set, the Egyptian god of chaos, only Carter and Sadie Kane can save the day. Their terrifying quest takes the pair around the globe in search of the truth about their family’s magical connection to the gods of Ancient Egypt.
The Kane Chronicles series:
THE RED PYRAMID
THE THRONE OF FIRE
THE SERPENT’S SHADOW
PERCY JACKSON IS BACK!
Join Percy and his friends from Camp Half-Blood as they face off against rival Roman demigods of Camp Jupiter, and set out on a deadly
new mission: to prevent the all-powerful Earth Mother, Gaia, from awakening from her millennia-long sleep to bring about the end of the world.
The Heroes of Olympus series:
THE LOST HERO
THE SON OF NEPTUNE
THE MARK OF ATHENA
THE HOUSE OF HADES
THE BLOOD OF OLYMPUS
THE DEMIGOD DIARIES
THE GODS OF ASGARD ARISE!
Magnus Chase has always run away from trouble, but trouble has a way of finding him. After being killed in battle with a fire giant, Magnus finds himself resurrected in Valhalla as one of the chosen warriors of the Norse god Odin. But now isn’t a good time to be joining Odin’s army. The gods of Asgard are preparing for Ragnarok – the Norse doomsday – and Magnus has a leading role …
The Magnus Chase series:
THE SWORD OF SUMMER
www.rickriordan.co.uk
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Puffin is over seventy years old. Sounds ancient, doesn’t it? But Puffin has never been so lively. We’re always on the lookout for the next big idea, which is how it began all those years ago.
Penguin Books was a big idea from the mind of a man called Allen Lane, who in 1935 invented the quality paperback and changed the world. And from great Penguins, great Puffins grew, changing the face of children’s books forever.
The first four Puffin Picture Books were hatched in 1940 and the first Puffin story book featured a man with broomstick arms called Worzel Gummidge. In 1967 Kaye Webb, Puffin Editor, started the Puffin Club, promising to ‘make children into readers’. She kept that promise and over 200,000 children became devoted Puffineers through their quarterly instalments of Puffin Post.
Many years from now, we hope you’ll look back and remember Puffin with a smile. No matter what your age or what you’re into, there’s a Puffin for everyone. The possibilities are endless, but one thing is for sure: whether it’s a picture book or a paperback, a sticker book or a hardback, if it’s got that little Puffin on it – it’s bound to be good.
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First published in the USA by Disney • Hyperion, an imprint of Disney Book Group, and in Great Britain by Puffin Books 2015
Copyright © Rick Riordan, 2015
Illustrated by Rhett Podersoo
Rune art by Michelle Gengaro-Kokmen
Magnus Chase icon based on an illustration by Eamon O’Donoghue
The moral right of the author and illustrators has been asserted
All rights reserved
ISBN: 978-0-141-34243-6
Table of Contents
Title Page
By the Same Author
Dedication
ONE: Good Morning! You’re Going to Die
TWO: The Man with the Metal Bra
THREE: Don’t Accept Rides from Strange Relatives
FOUR: Seriously, the Dude Cannot Drive
FIVE: I’ve Always Wanted to Destroy a Bridge
SIX: Make Way for Ducklings, or They Will Smack You Upside the Head
SEVEN: You Look Great Without a Nose, Really
EIGHT: Mind the Gap, and Also the Hairy Guy with the Axe
NINE: You Totally Want the Minibar Key
TEN: My Room Does Not Suck
ELEVEN: Pleased to Meet You. I Will Now Crush Your Windpipe
TWELVE: At Least I’m Not on Goat-Chasing Duty
THIRTEEN: Phil the Potato Meets His Doom
FOURTEEN: Four Million Channels and There’s Still Nothing On Except Valkyrie Vision
FIFTEEN: My Blooper Video Goes Viral
SIXTEEN: Norns. Why Did It Have to Be Norns?
SEVENTEEN: I Did Not Ask for Biceps
EIGHTEEN: I Do Mighty Combat with Eggs
NINETEEN: Do Not Call Me Beantown. Like, Ever
TWENTY: Come to the Dark Side. We Have Pop-Tarts
TWENTY-ONE: Gunilla Gets Blowtorched and It’s Not Funny. Okay, It’s a Little Bit Funny
TWENTY-TWO: My Friends Fall Out of a Tree
TWENTY-THREE: I Recycle Myself
TWENTY-FOUR: You Had One Job
TWENTY-FIVE: My Funeral Director Dresses Me Funny
TWENTY-SIX: Hey, I Know You’re Dead, But Call Me Maybe
TWENTY-SEVEN: Let’s Play Frisbee with Bladed Weapons!
TWENTY-EIGHT: Talk to the Face, ’Cause That’s Pretty Much All He’s Got
TWENTY-NINE: We Are Falafel-Jacked by an Eagle
THIRTY: An Apple a Day Will Get You Killed
THIRTY-ONE: Go Smelly or Go Home
THIRTY-TWO: My Years of Playing Bassmasters 2000 Really Pay Off
THIRTY-THREE: Sam’s Brother Wakes Up Kinda Cranky
THIRTY-FOUR: My Sword Almost Ends Up on eBay
THIRTY-FIVE: Thou Shalt Not Poop on the Head of Art
THIRTY-SIX: Duck!
THIRTY-SEVEN: I Am Trash-Talked by a Squirrel
THIRTY-EIGHT: I Break Down in a Volkswagen
THIRTY-NINE: Freya Is Pretty! She Has Cats!
FORTY: My Friend Evolved from a – Nope. I Can’t Say It
FORTY-ONE: Blitz Makes a Bad Deal
FORTY-TWO: We Have a Pre-Decapitation Party, with Spring Rolls
FORTY-THREE: Let the Crafting of Decorative Metal Waterfowl Begin
FORTY-FOUR: Junior Wins a Bag of Tears
FORTY-FIVE: I Get to Know Jack
FORTY-SIX: Aboard the Good Ship Toenail
FORTY-SEVEN: I Psychoanalyse a Goat
FORTY-EIGHT: Hearthstone Passes Out Even More than Jason Grace (Though I Have No Idea Who That Is)
FORTY-NINE: Well, There’s Your Problem. You’ve Got a Sword Up Your Nose
FIFTY: No Spoilers. Thor Is Way Behind on His Shows
FIFTY-ONE: We Have the Talk-About-Turning-Into-Horseflies Chat
FIFTY-TWO: I Got the Horse Right Here. His Name Is Stanley
FIFTY-THREE: How to Kill Giants Politely
FIFTY-FOUR: Why You Should Not Use a Steak Knife as a Diving Board
FIFTY-FIVE: I’m Carried into Battle by the First Dwarven Airborne Division
FIFTY-SIX: Never Ask a Dwarf to ‘Go Long’
FIFTY-SEVEN: Sam Hits the EJECT Button
FIFTY-EIGHT: What the Hel?
FIFTY-NINE: The Terror That Is Middle School
SIXTY: A Lovely Homicidal Sunset Cruise
SIXTY-ONE: Heather Is My New Least Favourite Flower
SIXTY-TWO: The Small Bad Wolf
SIXTY-THREE: I Hate Signing My Own Death Warrant
SIXTY-FOUR: Whose Idea Was It to Make This Wolf Unkillable?
SIXTY-FIVE: I Hate This Part
SIXTY-SIX: Sacrifices
SIXTY-SEVEN: One More, for a Friend
SIXTY-EIGHT: Don’t Be a No-Bro, Bro
SIXTY-NINE: Oh … So That’s Who Fenris Smelled in Chapter Sixty-Three
SEVENTY: We Are Subjected to the PowerPoint of Doom
SEVENTY-ONE: We Burn a Swan Boat, Which I’m Pretty Sure Is Illegal
SEVENTY-TWO: I Lose a Bet
Epilogue
Glossary
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Puffin Web Fun
The Story of Puffin
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