Bones of the Sun God

Vegas, Peter. Bones of the Sun God (Pyramid Hunters#2)
August 1st 2017 by Aladdin
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

When Sam is pulled out of his private boarding school because he has won a scholarship to study opera in Switzerland, he knows that something is up. After his adventures in Pyramid Hunters, his uncle is in trouble, but Mary gets in touch with him and arranges for him to travel to Belize, where there was a ship found that has a strong connection to the Ark of the Covenant. Sam's parents (whom have been presumed dead, although Sam is sure they are alive) had gone down to investigate, and Sam hopes that he can pick up their trail. He does find some clues, but more importantly, he finds a boy who worked for them, Elio, who is able to give him some insight into the fight between the Keepers of the Light and the Committee. Unfortunately, he runs afoul of criminals who want the gold that was one the ship and who assume that Sam is there to take it from them. Because of this, Sam spends a lot of time running from bad guys who are trying to get him or from the crocodiles they try to get to kill him. Mary comes to help (have left a complicated electronic trail to keep her father out of the loop), and between her, Sam and Elio, someone is always needing rescued. In the end, the children manage to dispatch the criminals, get help from an unlikely source, and learn a secret that will make finding Sam's parents even more difficult.
Strengths: This had LOTS of action, bunches of ferocious crocodiles, good descriptions of Belize, interesting connections to the Maya and Olmec civilizations, and was quite the page turner. This was important, since it was over 400 pages long. It did not feel that long at all.
Weaknesses: The book started with Sam being bullied, which didn't add a lot to the story.
What I really think: I think I'm not warming to these because I'm having trouble believing that the children are traveling around the world on their own. If one of them were a magical unicorn, I would have no problem believing that, but this is realistic. Mary especially has endless money and the ability to go anywhere. Despite this, they are suspenseful and have entertaining characters, so I'm definitely purchasing them.