The Sword of Summer

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2015

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Chapters 1-4Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 1 Summary: “Good Morning! You’re Going to Die”

The book opens with Magnus telling the reader they don’t want to die and end up like him, watching undead warriors fight. He introduces himself as a 16-year-old who’s been homeless in Boston for two years and says this is the story of “how my life went downhill after I got myself killed” (3).

On a winter morning, Magnus wakes when his friend Blitz kicks him and announces a middle-aged man and teenage girl are looking for him. Blitz disappears, and the man and girl come into view. The girl is Annabeth Chase, Magnus’s cousin whom he remembers from years ago. The man is Magnus’s Uncle Frederick (Annabeth’s father). Magnus hides and overhears Annabeth and Frederick discussing Magnus’s other uncle, Randolph.

Magnus hasn’t seen Randolph in 10 years. After a family fight, Magnus’s mother vowed to stay away from Randolph because she refused to “give him what he wants” (8). Magnus never found out what that was. Two years ago, wolves attacked Magnus and his mother in their home. After telling Magnus to run and not to get help from Randolph, she stayed behind and lost her life to the creatures.

Magnus honored his mother’s wishes and stayed away from his family all this time. Now with Annabeth and Uncle Frederick looking for him, Magnus wants answers, and he decides to break into Randolph’s townhouse.

Chapter 2 Summary: “The Man With the Metal Bra”

The townhouse is more like a mansion, complete with gargoyles and stained-glass windows. Randolph inherited it from his father, and Magnus hasn’t been there since the fight 10 years ago. Inside, the place is as Magnus remembers it—“dark, oppressive, creepy” (13), and full of antique artifacts and weapons.

In Randolph’s office, Magnus finds a bag of tiles with strange symbols. One is shaped like a letter F and makes his skin crawl. Looking out the window, he sees his friend Hearth, who is deaf. Hearth communicates in sign language for Magnus to get out of the mansion. Before Magnus can do so, his Uncle Randolph arrives and states that, since it’s Magnus’s 16th birthday, “they’ll be coming to kill you” (17).

Chapter 3 Summary: “Don’t Accept Rides from Strange Relatives”

An annoyed and freaked-out Magnus tries to leave, but Randolph refuses to move from the doorway. Randolph needs to talk to Magnus and doesn’t want “them” to get to him “after what happened to your mother” (18). The mention of Magnus’s mother brings back memories of the night she died and the wolf creatures with glowing eyes that killed her.

A deep rumbling shakes the mansion, like “the fall of a gargantuan foot” (22). Randolph begs Magnus to come with him. Magnus’s father hid something for Magnus to find that will protect him and “change the worlds” (22). Terrified and uncertain, Magnus agrees, and he and Randolph head for Randolph’s BMW.

Chapter 4 Summary: “Seriously, the Dude Cannot Drive”

While Randolph drives like a mad man through Boston, Magnus persists in asking questions until Randolph answers them. Despite historical evidence to the contrary, Randolph believes the Norse explorers made it as far south as Boston, where they found something important. Their ship sank, and they were unable to return with their findings. Randolph spent years searching for the sunken vessel, but on the last trip, a storm hit, killing his wife and daughter. Randolph believes Magnus was born in Boston because his father wants him to find “what he lost two thousand years ago” (26).

The implication that his father is 2,000 years old shakes Magnus. He tries to convince himself Randolph is crazy, but he fails. The more Randolph talks about Norse mythology, the more Magnus knows the stories are true. Finally, Randolph parks the car. Their destination is the Longfellow Bridge. Magnus stops Randolph from getting out of the car and asks who his father is. Randolph responds, “your father is a Norse god” (28).

Chapters 1-4 Analysis

Riordan links The Sword of Summer to his Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in Chapter 1. Annabeth is a main character from the Percy Jackson series, and her presence here shows that both series take place in the same story world. As a result, the book’s opening lines tell readers who are familiar with Percy Jackson to expect a similar experience. Riordan opens The Sword of Summer in the same way as he does The Lightning Thief. Like Percy does with the Greek gods, Magnus foreshadows the existence of Norse mythology amidst the modern world. Magnus also introduces himself and his situation, establishing himself as someone readers can relate to and, since Magnus is homeless, sympathize with. In Chapter 4, Randolph tells Magnus he’s the son of a god. As Percy Jackson is the child of a Greek god, Magnus is the demigod offspring of a Norse god, offering another promise of similarity between the two series. The F rune in Chapter 2 foreshadows the discovery that Magnus is the son of Frey (Norse god of peace, fertility, and growth).

Chapters 2-4 introduce Norse myth and build the story world. In Chapter 4, Randolph relays his research findings to Magnus, explaining Boston’s significance to the Norse explorers (Vikings). The sunken Viking ship foreshadows Magnus pulling the sword from Boston Harbor in Chapter 5. It also foreshadows the future trips Magnus will make into the harbor, including the journey to Fenris Wolf’s island at the book’s end. Randolph mentions the “worlds,” alluding to the Nine Worlds of Norse myth, and the weapons and artifacts in Randolph’s study build upon Randolph’s role in the story. He dedicated his life to studying Norse myth, which led to the loss of his wife and daughter. The Epilogue also takes place in Randolph’s study and shows Randolph’s reluctant association with Loki, who has Randolph’s wife and daughter trapped.

These opening chapters also introduce three of the main characters: Magnus, Blitzen (Blitz), and Hearthstone (Hearth). Magnus is the protagonist and point-of-view character. Blitz and Hearth have been his friends and protectors for the two years Magnus has lived on the streets. Blitz’s warning in Chapter 1 and Hearth’s insistence Magnus leaves Randolph’s house in Chapter 2 foreshadow how Blitz and Hearth are more than two homeless guys who look out for Magnus. Magnus later learns they are not human and that their attention to him began as an assignment to keep him safe because Magnus is the key to delaying Ragnarok.

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By Rick Riordan

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