FROM AMAZON: You'd think it would be great being an Egyptian demigod, but if King Tut has to sit through eighth grade one more time, he'll mummify himself.

Granted the gift of immortality by the gods - or is it a curse? - Tut has been stuck in middle school for ages. Even worse, evil General Horemheb, the man who killed Tut's father and whom Tut imprisoned in a tomb for three thousand years, is out and after him. The general is in league with the Cult of Set, a bunch of guys who worship one of the scariest gods of the Egyptian pantheon - Set, the god of Chaos.

The General and the Cult of Set have plans for Tut - and if Tut doesn't find a way to keep out of their clutches, he'll never make it to the afterworld alive.

Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life by P.J. Hoover, caught my eye in the new books section of my local library. The title right away had my attention. I had to read it — immediately, if not sooner.

Hoover begins her version of things with his death, again a murder. There's a curse involved and the gods intervene and rather than being put back into his body as an animated mummy, he's brought back to life and made immortal. He's also placed under the protection of the gods.

Now interestingly, in Hoover's book, he's much younger than he actually was at the time of death. That's saying a lot since he was only about 18 or 19 at his death. Here he's about 12 and he's currently stuck going from middle school to middle school. Worse yet, he's stuck writing a report on himself, and he's got a nerd of a partner who is as much a fan boy as I am a fan girl. It's just more than he can stand.

Although Tut's partner is described as a blond guy, personality wise he was so much like Tucker from Danny Phantom that I just recast the role, making him a Black nerd. I'll admit to also picturing Tut looking a bit like Danny Fenton, so it comes out as a wash, as Tut is accurately described as having dark skin.

At first I had some serious qualms about this big gap in Tutankhamen's age of immortality and what's taught in the history books. What about Ankhenesamen, his queen? What about the body that's on display in his tomb? What about all the evidence that shows he lived six or seven years longer? The truth is, Tut doesn't know and therefore neither to do we. He's aware of the inconsistencies and doesn't have an explanation for it. It's just part of the cover up the gods made for him to protect him from the curse.

Meanwhile at home, Tut has a "brother" who is another immortal with his own tragic back story. A big part of the second half of the book is learning the brother's part in Tut's on going protection. They have a similar relationship as Sam and Dean Winchester, minus the actually being brothers bit.

I think anyone who has enjoyed Rick Riordan's books (either the Olympus ones or the Egypt ones) will like Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life. Although the book stands alone just fine, I would love to revisit the characters. Gil's story itself could be fleshed out into a book. There's a lot of possibility for more here. ( )

While I really like the melding of contemporary society with that of ancient Egypt, I found that Tut: The Story of My Immortal Life is entirely too far-fetched to even pretend to conceive. And trust me, I did try, but while I enjoy fantasy, this is a bit too much to swallow. ( )

I think this is the closest I’ve seen to a Percy Jackson novel. Rick Riordan lives in San Antonio, and the author of this book lives in Austin. Therefore, it must be great because both authors live in Texas!

King Tut didn’t die; instead, he was murdered and granted immortality as was his murderer. For thousands of years, he has been fourteen years old, meaning he has repeated the 8th grade multiple times. Gil is his “brother” protector who is also immortal. He really doesn’t do a good job convincing Tut to stay safe! Tut is constantly putting himself in danger and having to be rescued. He also has his shabti who are there to protect him and they are hilarious!

Tut lives in Washington, DC, and his murderer has found him and wants to kill him permanently. With his new friend Henry and a possible enemy (albeit really pretty) Tia, Tut feels he must kill his murderer or Washington will be taken over.

I think I liked this as well or better than Percy Jackson. The humor is very well done and the characters are appropriate for the story. I can’t imagine this not being a really popular book. ( )