Kirsten Reviews: Marty Boggs & The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb by M.T. Acquaire
Marty Boggs & The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb by M.T. Acquaire
Have you ever wondered if curses really do exist? Marty's grandfather always said that superstition was nothing more than nonsense that hindered fools from discovery, but now Marty’s not so sure. Ever since his grandfather, a world-renowned archaeologist, discovered a tomb in Egypt his family has been plagued with tragedy. First Marty’s mother disappears, and then Reginald himself collapses at the museum in the weeks leading up to the mummy's unveiling. One by one children start to disappear as the town turns against Marty and his family, blaming them for unleashing the curse upon them.
Haunted by visions of creatures that shouldn't exist, Marty soon finds himself in a waking nightmare filled with demons running rampant in the streets, ghouls masquerading in the flesh of humans, and an evil necromancer who will stop at nothing to secure his own immortality. As if that wasn’t enough, then there's Daniel Richardson, the most beautiful girl Marty has ever laid eyes on. The only thing is, his competition isn’t another boy at school, it’s the monster behind the abductions, and now he has to find a way to stop her from being taken next. Marty Boggs & The Curse of the Mummy's Tomb is book one in a YA supernatural horror series.
Marty Boggs & The Curse of the Mummy’s Tomb by M.T. Acquaire (a husband and wife writing team) takes the titular character, Marty, and throws him into a mess of egyptology, mystery, and family drama.
Marty’s uncle has had an obsession for decades, which is to find the tomb of Kutkara whose burial ground actually does have a curse on it, and when that was set loose, Reginald fell under the sway of something evil. And, much like the classic tales, Reginald is unaware that he’s slipped from determination to achieve his goal into something more sinister.
Marty’s life changes when his grandfather collapses only a short time before revealing Kutkara’s mummy to the world. Before that, he sends Marty's mother an amulet from the tomb, she disappears, and Reginald falls into a coma. Then there’s Margarete, the nurse taking care of Reginald, who might actually have things growing inside her body.
The story has a colorful group of characters, and the choice of Egyptian history is a departure from the more standard fare of fairies that often dominates YA and fantasy writing lately. Marty’s friends are easily summed up in a word or two each, and it would have been interesting for them to be more fleshed out, but they serve the purpose of being loyal and having the necessary skills to help Marty solve the mystery.
Overall, the writing is often overly flowery when it would be better to focus on other details, such as plot and characterization. The result is some lengthy sentences, and a growing impatience with the overuse of some words. In addition, the repetition of certain facts, a school bully being an issue, and Marty not liking his new town gets stale fairly quickly, and hopefully in a sequel, more attention will be paid to the mystery itself.
(Received a copy from the author)
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