Evil Star (novel)
Encyclopedia
Evil Star is the second book in The Power of Five
series by British
author Anthony Horowitz
. It was published and released in the UK
on April 1, 2006 by Walker Books Ltd and in the United States
on June 1, 2006 by Scholastic Press
under the adjusted series title, The Gatekeepers. It is preceded by Raven's Gate
, released in 2005, and followed by Nightrise
, released in 2007.
, Matt goes to a new school which the Nexus are paying for, but is left friendless because of a bully named Gavin Taylor, causing Matt to injure Taylor by using his powers. Susan Brushwood and Fabian, members of the Nexus, ask him to help them acquire an old diary which could enable them to stop a second gate being opened. He refuses. Meanwhile, Gwendolyn, his aunt, has fallen under the influence of dark forces. She kills her spouse Brian, steals a petrol tanker, and drives it into Matti's new school in a desperate attempt to kill him. Fortunately, he uses his clairvoyance
powers and manages to evacuate the whole school before it happens. Matt realizes that he must stop the gate from being opened and agrees to meet the bookseller, Morton, at St Meredithe's Church after a meeting with the Nexus. Morton affirms him to be one of the Five, but he is killed in the process and the diary is stolen by Diego Salamander, another bidder who wants to use the diary to open the second gate. The Nexus persuade Matt and his carer, Richard Cole, to fly to Peru, find the second gate, and stay at a house belonging to Fabian. However, on their way to the planned rendezvous, the Hotel Europa, the car is ambushed and Richard is kidnapped but Matt manages to escape.
with the help of a local Peruvian, Pedro, Matt manages to get to the meeting place but is captured by the Peruvian police at the hotel, led by the sadistic Captain Rodriguez, and brutally beaten. Pedro saves him. Then, they escape to the Poison Town, where Pedro lives. Strangely while all the town is affected by diseases, the street in where Pedro lives in seems unaffected. Here, they meet the man Sebastian (who can speak English, unlike Pedro), who agrees to help Matt. As night passes, Matt meets Pedro in a dream, revealing that he is one of the Five. Matt finds the markings of his previous beatings have all gone. Thinking Salamander had Richard kidnapped, Matt and Pedro travel to his hacienda
in Inca, but they are discovered. Salamander reveals that he does not have Richard. An Incas, Minos, one of Richardo's kidnappers, helps them escape, and he is killed in the process. He tells them to travel to Cuzco before he dies, and there, Matt manages to contact Fabian and the Nexus on their whereabouts. However, Rodriguez and the police arrive but Matt and Pedro escape with the help of several Incas, led by Taco, Minos' brother. Then they are taken to the Mountain of the Sleeping God Mandingo. From there, they descend into the town of the last Incas, Clambake, where Richard, having been staying there after being separated, is waiting for them. There, Richard reveals that the kidnapping was conducted to prevent Matt from reaching the Hotel Europa. Based on the Salamander's knowledge of their movements, Matt and Richard deduce that there is a traitor in the Nexus tipping him off. At the village, it is learned that the gate is located somewhere in the Nazca Desert. They travel to the Nazca Desert with Professor Chambers, an expert on everything Peruvian, and Matt realizes that the Nazca lines are the second gate. The gate will only open once all the stars align with each of the drawings, however, the gate has been constructed such that the stars will never all align at once, and in this case, the star Cygnus is not in its proper position. However, Salamander has sent a satellite as a substitute star, an evil star, to open the gate. Matt and Pedro break into Salamander's headquarters with some help of the Inca’s in an attempt to stop his plan by destroying the radio mast controlling the satellite. At the control center, it is revealed that Fabian is the traitor in the Nexus, having believed it was pointless to try and stop the opening of the gate. Rodriguez then bursts into the room and shoots Fabian when he tries to stop Matt and Richard from being killed. The radio mast is destroyed and falls into the building, flattening Rodriguez. In his dying moments, Fabian reveals that Salamander had taken control of the satellite once it was in range, using a different satellite dish out in the desert. taco takes Matt and Pedro on a helicopter to the dish, but the helicopter crashes, killing Taco and breaking Pedro's ankle. Matt has no choice but to stop the gate from being opened alone. He manages to trigger his power, destroying the dish and trailer Salamander is using, and kills Salamander when he shoots at Matt by deflecting two bullets back to him. However, the satellite is revealed to still be continuing on its trajectory, opening the gate. The Nazca lines crack open and an army of demons arise, before the King of the Old Ones himself appears, and challenges Matt. Matt uses his powers to wound them but he over-exerts himself and falls into a coma. The Old Ones, biding their time, temporarily hide from the world.
in 1983-1989, Pentagram. Pentagram was meant to have five books, but only four were ever published. The second was The Night of the Scorpion, on which Evil Star was based.
The Power of Five
The Power of Five is a series of fantasy and suspense novels, written by British author Anthony Horowitz. Four installments have been published to date but another one is to be released...
series by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
author Anthony Horowitz
Anthony Horowitz
Anthony Craig Horowitz is an English novelist and screenwriter. He has written many children's novels, including The Power of Five, Alex Rider and The Diamond Brothers series and has written over fifty books. He has also written extensively for television, adapting many of Agatha Christie's...
. It was published and released in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
on April 1, 2006 by Walker Books Ltd and in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on June 1, 2006 by Scholastic Press
Scholastic Press
Scholastic is a global book publishing company known for publishing educational materials for schools, teachers, and parents, and selling and distributing them by mail order and via book clubs and book fairs. It also has the exclusive United States' publishing rights to the Harry Potter book...
under the adjusted series title, The Gatekeepers. It is preceded by Raven's Gate
Raven's Gate
Raven's Gate is the first book in The Power of Five series, written by Anthony Horowitz. It was published and released in the UK on 1 August 2005, by Walker Books Ltd and in the United States by Scholastic Press under the adjusted series title The Gatekeepers...
, released in 2005, and followed by Nightrise
Nightrise
Nightrise is the third book in The Power of Five series, written by Anthony Horowitz. It was published and released in the UK on April 2, 2007 by Walker Books Ltd. It is preceded by Evil Star, released in 2006, and followed by Necropolis, which was released on October 30, 2008...
, released in 2007.
Plot summary
After the events of Raven's GateRaven's Gate
Raven's Gate is the first book in The Power of Five series, written by Anthony Horowitz. It was published and released in the UK on 1 August 2005, by Walker Books Ltd and in the United States by Scholastic Press under the adjusted series title The Gatekeepers...
, Matt goes to a new school which the Nexus are paying for, but is left friendless because of a bully named Gavin Taylor, causing Matt to injure Taylor by using his powers. Susan Brushwood and Fabian, members of the Nexus, ask him to help them acquire an old diary which could enable them to stop a second gate being opened. He refuses. Meanwhile, Gwendolyn, his aunt, has fallen under the influence of dark forces. She kills her spouse Brian, steals a petrol tanker, and drives it into Matti's new school in a desperate attempt to kill him. Fortunately, he uses his clairvoyance
Clairvoyance
The term clairvoyance is used to refer to the ability to gain information about an object, person, location or physical event through means other than the known human senses, a form of extra-sensory perception...
powers and manages to evacuate the whole school before it happens. Matt realizes that he must stop the gate from being opened and agrees to meet the bookseller, Morton, at St Meredithe's Church after a meeting with the Nexus. Morton affirms him to be one of the Five, but he is killed in the process and the diary is stolen by Diego Salamander, another bidder who wants to use the diary to open the second gate. The Nexus persuade Matt and his carer, Richard Cole, to fly to Peru, find the second gate, and stay at a house belonging to Fabian. However, on their way to the planned rendezvous, the Hotel Europa, the car is ambushed and Richard is kidnapped but Matt manages to escape.
with the help of a local Peruvian, Pedro, Matt manages to get to the meeting place but is captured by the Peruvian police at the hotel, led by the sadistic Captain Rodriguez, and brutally beaten. Pedro saves him. Then, they escape to the Poison Town, where Pedro lives. Strangely while all the town is affected by diseases, the street in where Pedro lives in seems unaffected. Here, they meet the man Sebastian (who can speak English, unlike Pedro), who agrees to help Matt. As night passes, Matt meets Pedro in a dream, revealing that he is one of the Five. Matt finds the markings of his previous beatings have all gone. Thinking Salamander had Richard kidnapped, Matt and Pedro travel to his hacienda
Hacienda
Hacienda is a Spanish word for an estate. Some haciendas were plantations, mines, or even business factories. Many haciendas combined these productive activities...
in Inca, but they are discovered. Salamander reveals that he does not have Richard. An Incas, Minos, one of Richardo's kidnappers, helps them escape, and he is killed in the process. He tells them to travel to Cuzco before he dies, and there, Matt manages to contact Fabian and the Nexus on their whereabouts. However, Rodriguez and the police arrive but Matt and Pedro escape with the help of several Incas, led by Taco, Minos' brother. Then they are taken to the Mountain of the Sleeping God Mandingo. From there, they descend into the town of the last Incas, Clambake, where Richard, having been staying there after being separated, is waiting for them. There, Richard reveals that the kidnapping was conducted to prevent Matt from reaching the Hotel Europa. Based on the Salamander's knowledge of their movements, Matt and Richard deduce that there is a traitor in the Nexus tipping him off. At the village, it is learned that the gate is located somewhere in the Nazca Desert. They travel to the Nazca Desert with Professor Chambers, an expert on everything Peruvian, and Matt realizes that the Nazca lines are the second gate. The gate will only open once all the stars align with each of the drawings, however, the gate has been constructed such that the stars will never all align at once, and in this case, the star Cygnus is not in its proper position. However, Salamander has sent a satellite as a substitute star, an evil star, to open the gate. Matt and Pedro break into Salamander's headquarters with some help of the Inca’s in an attempt to stop his plan by destroying the radio mast controlling the satellite. At the control center, it is revealed that Fabian is the traitor in the Nexus, having believed it was pointless to try and stop the opening of the gate. Rodriguez then bursts into the room and shoots Fabian when he tries to stop Matt and Richard from being killed. The radio mast is destroyed and falls into the building, flattening Rodriguez. In his dying moments, Fabian reveals that Salamander had taken control of the satellite once it was in range, using a different satellite dish out in the desert. taco takes Matt and Pedro on a helicopter to the dish, but the helicopter crashes, killing Taco and breaking Pedro's ankle. Matt has no choice but to stop the gate from being opened alone. He manages to trigger his power, destroying the dish and trailer Salamander is using, and kills Salamander when he shoots at Matt by deflecting two bullets back to him. However, the satellite is revealed to still be continuing on its trajectory, opening the gate. The Nazca lines crack open and an army of demons arise, before the King of the Old Ones himself appears, and challenges Matt. Matt uses his powers to wound them but he over-exerts himself and falls into a coma. The Old Ones, biding their time, temporarily hide from the world.
Trivia
- In the first book, Raven's GateRaven's GateRaven's Gate is the first book in The Power of Five series, written by Anthony Horowitz. It was published and released in the UK on 1 August 2005, by Walker Books Ltd and in the United States by Scholastic Press under the adjusted series title The Gatekeepers...
, the character Fabian says he is married and has two children, but in Evil Star he says he is not married and does not have any children (this may have been a lie to set an example to Matt that no one must know about the Nexus or it is merely just an error). - In Evil Star, the remaining Gatekeepers (Scott, Jamie and Scarlett) are described as being white and fair-haired; however, none of the Gatekeepers are fair, and the three remaining Gatekeepers are all dark-haired and non-pure white (Jamie and Scott are Native AmericansIndigenous peoples of the AmericasThe indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, and Scarlett is ChineseChinese peopleThe term Chinese people may refer to any of the following:*People with Han Chinese ethnicity ....
).
Pentagram
The Power of Five series is based on ideas from a series written by Anthony HorowitzAnthony Horowitz
Anthony Craig Horowitz is an English novelist and screenwriter. He has written many children's novels, including The Power of Five, Alex Rider and The Diamond Brothers series and has written over fifty books. He has also written extensively for television, adapting many of Agatha Christie's...
in 1983-1989, Pentagram. Pentagram was meant to have five books, but only four were ever published. The second was The Night of the Scorpion, on which Evil Star was based.