I loved every second of this fast-paced, compelling story. Roanhorse’s writing is taut, funny, and creates compelling characters. Students (especially those who loved the Lightning Thief) are going to fight over this. Purchase multiple copies!

Lately, Navajo middle schooler Nizhoni Begay has been seeing monsters everywhere. She knows that they are monsters, but voices her concerns to only her younger brother, Mac, for fear of being mocked or not believed. But when the latest monster shows up at her basketball game--and turns out to actually be her dad's new boss--she knows something big is about to happen. At least, that's what Mr. Yazzie (her stuffed horned lizard) says. When Nizhoni learns that her father has been kidnapped, it sends her, Mac, and her best friend Davery on a quest to the Sun. Along the way, they encounter the Holy People of Navajo mythos, and Nizhoni learns more about her past as the descendant of the Hero Twins and her future as a monsterslayer...

A fantastic middle school debut from Rebecca Roanhorse, "Race to the Sun" is a brilliant novel featuring a Native American heroine and is a great introduction to Navajo legends just as the "Percy Jackson" series is to Greek myth. A wonderful addition to the Rick Riordan Presents line-up, I hope to see more Native American stories in the future from both Roanhorse and the imprint. Also, having been to many of the locations in the book in New Mexico and around the Navajo Nation, it was nice to return to these places in a fictional setting and I hope encourages readers to travel to the beautiful locations that Nizhoni and her friends visit. (Well. The ones we mere mortals can access, anyways...)

The compelling, well-written story jumps into the action immediately when Nizhoni, from the Diné (Navajo) people, sees a monster (disguised as a human) at her basketball game. Making matters worse, it's her dad's new boss who kidnaps her dad and wants her little brother, too. She escapes with her brother and best friend to ask the Spider Woman for help, learning that she and her brothers are the descendants of the Hero Twins. Her journey challenges her with heroic trials in order to meet the Sun who will give her weapons to fight the monsters and culminating in a fierce battle between the good guys and the monsters. I LOVED this story -- it's a fast-paced hero's journey with a rich, diverse mythology.

Yet another wonderful mythology novel from Rick Riordan presents! I loved exploring the Native American mythology as I haven’t really been exposed to this much in the past. Definitely recommend!

I am really enjoying the Rick Riorodan Presents series. This one takes place on the southwest. Nizhoni Begay has a special gift. She can detect monsters. Everyone else sees an ordinary person but she can see the true monster. Trouble starts when Nizhoni's dad's new boss turns out to be a monster and he has eveil plans for Nizhoni and her brother. When thier father disappears it is up to Nizhoni, her brother and best friend to save the thier father and the world. Great storyline.

Ever since the creation of Rick Riordian’s Greek mythology middle grade series other cultures stories are gaining momentum and exciting kids and adults equally of mythology from all over this world. I for one am so excited about this as it opens eyes to the hardship and lives of other cultures. Race to the Sun is the latest of this series. Race to the Sun is part of the new series presented but not authored by mythology giant Rick Riordian and it follows 7th grader Nizhoni Begay through the American Southwest. If you like ancient monsters, dashing heroes and destiny than this is a fun middle grade romp for you.

Nizhoni Begay is a relatable tween that is suddenly thrust into a quest to save her family. Adventure nonwithstanding, readers will resonate with the idea of standing up against bullies, protecting loved ones, and saving the environment. Not having any background knowledge of Navajo mythology, I was pleasantly immersed in a story that gently guided me through rich tradition in a way that I could follow.

The titles in the Rick Riordan Presents imprint are always reliable for their engaging stories and unique characters. Race to the Sun is no different. Having loved Roanhorse’s YA Trail of Lightning, I thoroughly enjoyed how she translated Native American mythology for a middle grade audience. MG readers will love this exciting book. Highly recommended.

This was amazing! I'm so excited for the next one in this series. I love wheat Rick Riordan is doing with this imprint and I'm definitely going to check out Roanhorse's adult offerings. This will go like hotcakes! (Also food descriptions are on point!)

A more detailed review is to come.

Clear, concise writing. One sentence flows effortlessly into the next, making this story accessible to a wide range of readers. The plot was enticing and cohesive.

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Book Group for sharing this ARC. I didn't hesitate in pre-ordering. Race to the Sun is another outstanding entry into the stellar Rick Riordan Presents imprint.

Rebecca Roanhorse is a gifted and sensitive writer. I was sad that this is a stand alone book, but I hope she continues to write for children.

This book was received as an ARC from Disney Book Group - Rick Riordan Presents in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

Coming from Rick Riordan publishers I knew that this book was going to be quite the adventure and Rebecca Roanhorse did measure up to that and more. However at first I was frustrated because I could not pronounce the main character's first name Nizhoni and as soon as I could pronounce it, I was able to enjoy the book much more (most of the time I called her Nizi). Then of course I love a book that takes a twist that shocks the universe and turns it upside down especially when your reality check transforms into an adventure of a lifetime and your life at stake. I can totally see this becoming a Disney movie someday and it will be a movie I definitely want to watch.

We will consider adding this title to our JFiction section at our library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

Another fabulous book from Rick Riordan Presents! Nizhoni Begay has suddenly started detecting monsters, and when an especially creepy one is trying to recruit her dad for a new job, she knows she must do something about it. Unfortunately, no one other than her best friend believes her. But when her father is kidnapped and her younger brother threatened with worse, Nizhoni takes matters into her own hands. Thankfully she receives helpful advice from a talking Horned Toad and other Diné Holy People along the way. But ultimately it is up to her to complete the trials and fulfill her destiny as a Monsterslayer. Highly recommended for grades 4 and up.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the arc of this book. I had a little free time before work the other day and opened this up. Before I knew it I was 1/4 of the way through and wondering if I could be late for work. It had a slower start that I expected, but the main characters and the plot are absorbing. I'll update this when I finish.

Update, I'm 3/4 done (in two sittings!). I love that Native kids are being represented. It's about freakin' time! And written by a Native author as it should be. R. Roanhorse brings all the action and adventure from her adult books and uses them to good affect in this middle grade novel. A totally relatable main character - relatable to all kids even though the setting and mythology are Native. I can't wait to tell my library kids about this book.

My review can't hold a candle to Betsy Bird's review. I can just say for myself that I was totally absorbed in the story and the characters.

This is my third book by Rebecca Roanhorse and I thoroughly enjoyed it! It is targeted for a younger age group than her books in the 6th World series, but her wonderful storytelling style comes through and you end up learning a lot about the mythology of the Dine people along the way. The story moves along at a brisk pace and never gets boring. The story is narrated by Nizhoni Begay, a seventh grade girl who discovers who she really is as she encounters trial after trial. You can see how much she has matured by the end, by going back to the beginning and see how she reacted to her trials at the beginning. She is accompanied by her brother and her best friend during most of the book and it all leads to a very satisfying ending. I absolutely love Rebecca Roanhorse's storytelling style and will be waiting anxiously for more of her work. Special thanks to Netgalley for the ARC so I could read this now! There is still some editing and formatting that needs to be done for the kindle version, but it didn't really take away from my enjoyment of the book.

This is one that I'll be adapting for classroom use with a unit study on Navajo folklore...so excited! My students really enjoy the Rick Riordan presents books, and I love how they get them reading more and can be used as jumping off points for further exploration of cultures. There have been a couple that were a bit over-the-top, so I like being able to screen them ahead of time, but this one is fantastic!

I adored the first 4/5ths of this book but felt the final 1/5 really let the rest of the work down. Most of the novel reads like the first part of a fun YA mythology multi-novel series. We're introduced to our unlikely hero & their difficult past, the evil that threatens their world, the hero's mentor, and a series of trials meant to test the hero and prove their value to both the Gods and the hero themselves. There's loss, growth, and sacrifice. It's standard stuff, but interesting, particularly for someone new to Diné/Navajo culture. But then the final fifth of the book is suddenly accelerated, resolving not only the hero's quest but also healing their past trauma, utterly destroying the invading evil, and somehow removing the need for any future heroes as well. It feels like the author was suddenly informed that their book would be a single standalone title and did what they could to wrap it up speedily. I wish the publisher would send this book back to the writing phase and give the author sufficient funding and future titles to properly explore and grow the story.