Hurrah! The Viper’s Nest is here! It’s the seventh book of The New York Times bestselling series, The 39 Clues.
In The 39 Clues, orphans Dan and Amy Cahill are given a choice at the reading of their grandmother Grace’s will: either inherit a million dollars each, or go a hunt for 39 Clues leading to the greatest power ever known. Whoever finds the secret becomes the most powerful person on earth.
What would you do? Well, Dan and Amy choose the Clues, and they find they’re part of a secret family that goes back 500 years. Their ancestors include Benjamin Franklin, Amelia Earhart, Mozart, Napoleon, Madame Curie, Einstein — who have left hints about the Clues all over the world. Oh, one problem. There were some other people at the reading of the will. They’re your relatives. They’re ruthless. And they’ll stop at nothing to win the hunt!
The 39 Clues is ten books, each written by a different best-selling author, and we’re constantly dreaming up ways to outdo one another (not that we’re competitive or anything!). What’s more, you can join the hunt right here! Find out which branch of the Cahill family you belong to — tough Tomas, creative Janus, scientific Ekaterinas, tricky Lucians …
I’m in the company of amazing authors: Rick Riordan (Book #1, The Maze of Bones, and the mastermind of the whole series!), Gordon Korman (#2: One
False Note and the upcoming #8), Jude Watson, aka National Book Award winner Judy Blundell (#4: Beyond the Grave and #6: In Too Deep), Patrick Carman (#5: The Black Circle), Newbery Award winner Linda Sue Park (#9), and Margaret Peterson Haddix (#10).
In my book (#3: The Sword Thief, which I’m proud to say was Amazon.com’s fifth bestselling children’s book of 2009!), Dan and Amy go to Japan to solve a riddle left by a ruthless conqueror. In spring ’09, I visited schools, bookstores, and festivals across the U.S. — 
while video-blogging my own hunt for a special clue. To see all five episodes (in New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Chicago), click on the image to the left. You can read about Book 7, The Viper’s Nest, here. I can tell you (1) it’s the most dangerous quest yet, and (2) Dan and Amy discover something HUGE — which Cahill branch they belong to!
I’ve been busy touring the country to promote the book (details here). Hope to see you in person or on the hunt!
