The Red Pyramid


 * This article is about the book. For the structure, see The Red Pyramid (structure).

The Red Pyramid is a 2010 fantasy/adventure novel written by Rick Riordan. It is the first book in The Kane Chronicles. The story is told as a transcription of a recording made by Sadie and Carter Kane, detailing the rise of the Egyptian gods in the modern world.

Synopsis
When Julius Kane tries to summon Osiris through the Rosetta Stone in the British Museum, he also releases Set, who seals him in a coffin, as Julius's children, Sadie and Carter Kane, watch. He also releases the other children of the Demon Days: Nephthys, Isis, Horus, and Osiris. The British police come to Carter and Sadie's grandparents' home, as Carter is with Sadie because of the twice-a-year visit, and question Carter and Sadie. Amos Kane, the children's uncle and Julius's brother, brings them to the family mansion in Brooklyn. That night, Carter's soul (known as a ba), travels to Phoenix, Arizona, where he sees Set, and learns that he will summon an extreme storm on his birthday. The next morning, Carter and Sadie describe what happened, and Amos tells them he will go search for Set for more information. He also tells them not to go to the library but disobeying him they decide to go into the library anyway. While in the library, Set's warriors attack the house and Bast the cat goddess, who is disguised as Sadie's cat, Muffin, saves them. She is later overcome by Serqet, the scorpion goddess. They soon meet Zia Rashid who helps distract Serqet while Sadie and Carter escape through a portal. Zia takes them to the House of Life, to be trained as magicians. Once the Chief Lector Iskandar, dies, and is replaced with Desjardins, the Kanes have to flee again, as the House of Life see them as a threat, as they host the gods Horus and Isis. They go to Paris to retrieve a book which tells them how to defeat Set. They find out that they need the Feather of Truth to help defeat Set so they then go to the Egyptian underworld, the Duat, to retrieve the Feather of Truth. On the way out they are attacked by Sobek the crocodile god but they escape when Bast sacrifices herself to save Carter and Sadie. Desjardins calls upon Sekhmet, the lion goddess, but Zia saves them. With the help of their uncle, Carter and Sadie go to the Red Pyramid in Phoenix. While Carter and Set battle each other, Sadie performs a spell that transports the pyramid to Washington, D.C. However, before she can seal the spell, Sadie spots Apophis, who was going to use the red pyramid to escape Cleopatra's Needle. After forcing Set to join their side to stop Apophis from escaping into the world, Zia is revealed to be a shabti. Carter and Sadie release the gods, and Julius decides to stay in the Duat as Osiris with their dead mother, Ruby Kane. Horus and Isis reward them by repairing the rest of Amos's house and reviving Bast. Carter and Sadie then go to recruit others to their cause.

Humans

 * Carter Kane - Age 14, Carter is the descendant of Ancient Egyptian Magicians; he is one of the main protagonists. Described as always dressing 'impeccably' in khaki pants, dress shoes, and a button-up shirt. The host of Horus, his main weapon is a khopesh, an Ancient Egyptian sword favored by guards of the Pharaoh. His specialty is combat magic.
 * Sadie Kane - Age 12, Sadie is Carter's sister, and shares his magical ability. She was raised in England by her grandparents after her mother died. She has light skin, caramel colored hair with one red streak on the left side, blue eyes, and never goes anywhere without combat boots. She is a powerful and natural magician who can read hieroglyphics and understand Ancient Egyptian. She becomes the host of Isis.
 * Julius Kane - Carter and Sadie's father and husband to the late Ruby Kane, PhD in Egyptologist. He has dark brown skin, piercing brown eyes, a bald head and a goatee. He becomes the host of Osiris.
 * Amos Kane - Brother to Julius Kane, described as dressing in a classy suit with sunglasses, and has the appearance of a barrel shaped Jazz musician. He is a powerful magic user. He was the temporary host of Set until he was done with using him.
 * Zia Rashid - A powerful magician who Carter Kane has affection for. Considered the most promising student in the First Nome. She is the unknowing host to Nephthys.
 * Michel Desjardins - Current leader of the House of Life, strongly opposed to using the power of the gods.
 * Mr. and Mrs. Faust - The grandparents of Sadie and Carter.

Gods

 * Isis - Goddess of magic and wife of Osiris. Her host is Sadie Kane, formerly her mother Ruby Kane.
 * Horus - Falcon-headed son of Osiris, destined to reclaim the Throne of Ma'at. His host is Carter.
 * Bast - Goddess of cats, her host is Muffin, Sadie Kane's cat. Also a deadly combat mage. She is sworn to protect the Kane siblings.
 * Set - God of evil and chaos, represented by the colour red. Possesses Amos Kane when he is Set's captive.
 * Osiris - God of the dead. His host is Julius Kane.
 * Anubis - God of funerals and assistant of Osiris, takes the form of a human with a jackals head, or an attractive teenaged boy. He and Sadie show strong and mutual feeling towards eachother.
 * Thoth - God of wisdom and thought, illustated as a 'mad scientist' character.
 * Nut - Goddess of the sky. Her children are Osiris, Set, Horus, Isis, and Nephthys.
 * Geb - God of Earth, husband of Nut, children are Osiris, Set, Horus, Isis, and Nephthys

Others

 * Khufu - Amos's pet baboon and ally to the Kane family
 * Philip of Macedonia - Amos's pet crocodile. It is a shabti.
 * Doughboy - Julius Kane's shabti. Doughboy answers to Carter and Sadie also.

Chapter list

 * 1) A Death at the Needle
 * 2) An Explosion for Christmas
 * 3) Imprisoned with My Cat
 * 4) Kidnapped by a Not-So-Stranger
 * 5) We Meet the Monkey
 * 6) Breakfast with a Crocodile
 * 7) I Drop a Little Man on His Head
 * 8) Muffin Plays with Knives
 * 9) We Run from Four Guys in Skirts
 * 10) Bast Goes Green
 * 11) We Meet the Human Flamethrower
 * 12) A Jump Through the Hourglass
 * 13) I Face the Killer Turkey
 * 14) A French Guy Almost Kills Us
 * 15) A Godly Birthday Party
 * 16) How Zia Lost Her Eyebrows
 * 17) A Bad Trip to Paris
 * 18) When Fruit Bats Go Bad
 * 19) A Picnic in the Sky
 * 20) I Visit the Star-Spangled Goddess
 * 21) Aunt Kitty to the Rescue
 * 22) Leroy Meets the Locker of Doom
 * 23) Professor Thoth's Final Exam
 * 24) I Blow Up Some Blue Suede Shoes
 * 25) We Win an All-Expenses-Paid Trip to Death
 * 26) Aboard the Egyptian Queen
 * 27) A Demon with Free Samples
 * 28) I Have a Date with the God of Toilet Paper
 * 29) Zia Sets a Rendezvous
 * 30) Bast Keeps a Promise
 * 31) I Deliver a Love Note
 * 32) The Place of the Crosses
 * 33) We Go Into the Salsa Business
 * 34) Doughboy Gives Us a Ride
 * 35) Men Ask for Directions (and Other Signs of the Apocalypse)
 * 36) Our Family is Vaporized
 * 37) Leroy Gets His Revenge
 * 38) The House is in the House
 * 39) Zia Tells Me a Secret
 * 40) I Ruin a Rather Important Spell
 * 41) We Stop the Recording, for Now
 * Author's Note

Awards

 * School Library Journal Best Book of 2010.

Graphic Novel

 * A graphic novel is planned to be released in 2012.

Trivia

 * The book makes occasional references to the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, as it takes place in the same world:
 * Towards the beginning of the book Amos states that Manhattan has its own set of gods and that they must be kept separate from Egyptian gods. He says this while looking at The Empire State Building, the current home to Mount Olympus.
 * Later in the book, Thoth mentions that the Greeks would confuse him with Hermes, something he takes offense to as Hermes is apparently of a very different character.