Excellent for fans of Percy Jackson, Harry Potter, or Maximum Ride looking for their next great read.Not all heroes are lucky enough to be born as mutants, wizards, or demi-gods. Samantha and Lucas will just have to manage the best they can without any special powers as they try to prevent a war from breaking out in the dangerous and fantastic secret world of magic, monsters, and mad scientists.Samantha Hathaway is a normal 14-year-old suburban girl, except for the fact that five years ago her archaeologist parents died while saving the world. When a pair of wizards show up at the mall to arrest her for the theft of a powerful magical artifact used to resurrect an evil sorcerer with ties to her parents she is propelled headlong into an exciting adventure that will change the fate of the world.The first stop on her journey is the elite Miller's Grove Academy where she meets Lucas Fry, a video game champion anxious for a real life adventure. Instead of the usual cliques of geeks, nerds, jocks, and cheerleaders, she had prepared for in high school Sam finds herself the least talented student in a school full of eccentric inventors, monster hunters, pop stars, and wannabe world emperors. Not to mention the hover board experiments, ray guns, and exotic private zoo. But is there a sinister purpose behind this new school?Guided by nothing more than a riddle from her father Sam, Lucas, and their new friends must survive the hover cars, zombie dinosaurs, and masquerade balls, find the real thief, prevent a war between science and magic, confront the greatest evil wizard in recent history, and find the one weapon that could usher in the next, and possibly last, Heroic Age. Worst. Freshman Year. Ever.A new adventure series recommended for fans of Percy Jackson,Artemis Fowl, Maximum Ride, Infinity Ring, The Emerald Atlas, MichaelVey, Harry Potter, I Am Number Four, and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer.