From School Library Journal
Grade 5-8 - In this sequel to
The Tiger's Apprentice, Tom and his friends flee to the underwater Dragon Kingdom. There they hope to be safe from Vatten and his followers who seek to steal the egg of the phoenix from Mr. Hu, its appointed guardian and Tom's teacher. Because of Mr. Hu's failing health, Tom continues his apprentice studies with the dragons, learning their lore, along with several giggle-inducing tries at magic spells. When the egg is stolen, Tom has suspicions that Mistral may be involved. He must decide if he can trust her and the other dragons as well as find the egg at great risk to his own life. Intrigue abounds, and the descriptions of the dragons' palace will have readers wishing they could visit it themselves. Those who have waited for the second book in the series will not be disappointed. Those who haven't read the first one may find themselves a bit lost, but expect them to remedy the situation by reading it and then asking when the third book is due out.
- Ginny Collier, Dekalb County Public Library, Chamblee, GA Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From Booklist
Gr. 4-7. In this installment in the Tiger's Apprentice series, the precious phoenix egg has eluded the evil Clan of Nine, but it still requires constant vigilance from its protectors: Tom, the egg's future Guardian; Mr. Hu, Tom's tiger mentor; and three allies straight from the Chinese zodiac. Their adventures shift from turf to surf as the friends seek refuge in the undersea dragon kingdom, accessed through a gateway hidden in San Francisco's Chinatown. Unfortunately, the dragons' haven is not as safe as expected, and Mr. Hu's need to recuperate from the previous book's toil puts Tom's training to the test. Yep devotes more energy to explicating the shifting battle lines than to developing his main character, but readers will be entranced by the dragons' watery wonderland, the trickster antics of Monkey and of Sidney, a wheeling-dealing rat, and the clashes with exotic demons drawn from the ancient
Shan Hai Ching text. As series fans await book three, suggest L. G. Bass' Chinese-folklore-infused
Sign of the Qin [BKL Ap 15 04].
Jennifer MattsonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
