The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan

Please be aware that this is the fifth book in a series. In order to give even the briefest synopsis, this review may contain spoilers to the first four books. You can read my reviews of The Lightning Thief here, The Sea of Monsters here, The Titan's Curse here, and The Battle of the Labyrinth here.

The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Released: May 5, 2009
Age Group: 9-12
Pages: 400
Source: Library
Series: Book 5 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians


In the fifth and final book of the Percy Jackson series, both the cryptic prophecy and the fate of the world are finally revealed. Percy, Annabeth, and the rest of Camp Half-Blood must defend Mount Olympus from Kronos on their own, while the Olympians are off fighting their own battles against the other Titans and their evil monsters.

I wasn't overly satisfied by the end of the series, but then again I wasn't really in love with the other books to begin with. I'm not sorry I read them, and I would definitely recommend them to others; however, I think it's important to keep in mind that these books are aimed at a much younger age group and don't contain the maturity level or depth of story and characters that older youths and adults crave. Of course the fact that these books were all released within the wake of the phenomenon that was the Harry Potter series didn't exactly help. I haven't brought it up until now because I was trying to be fair, but it's hard to refrain from comparing young adult series to Harry Potter, which - in my opinion - just don't.

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Please be aware that this is the fourth book in a series. In order to give even the briefest synopsis, this review may contain spoilers to the first three books. You can read my reviews of The Lightning Thief here, The Sea of Monsters here, and The Titan's Curse here.

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Publisher: Disney-Hyperion

Released: May 6, 2008

Age Group: 9-12

Pages: 368

Source: Library

Series: Book 4 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians

After blowing up the school band room, Percy retreats to Camp Half Blood to join Annabeth and Grover in the fight against Luke and the Titans. Soon after his arrival they learn that Luke has found a passage straight into the camp through Daedalus's Labyrinth. In order to stop Luke from invading camp and resurrecting the Titan lord Kronos, Percy must enter the Labyrinth himself. What ensues is a plethora of challenges, choices, and threats devised to throw Percy and his friends off track.

Labyrinth was definitely my favorite of the Percy Jackson series. Daedalus's Labyrinth is just fascinating to me, and putting a contemporary twist to the maze's road blocks was definitely entertaining. Percy really grew up in this installment, and I enjoyed seeing him deal with normal teenage issues in addition to the whole being-the-son-of-a-god thing. As the fourth book in a series of five, Labyrinth was full of action and leaves the reader anxious for book five.

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan

Please be aware that this is the third book in a series. In order to give even the briefest synopsis, this review may contain spoilers to the first two books. You can read my reviews of The Lightning Thief here and The Sea of Monsters here.

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Released: May 1, 2007
Age Group: 9-12
Pages: 320
Source: Library
Series: Book 3 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians


The Titan's Curse picks up soon after The Sea of Monsters left off. During a battle against the manticore, Annabeth and the goddess Artemis are both lost to the enemy. It is up to Percy, Thalia, Grover, and the hunters to find and rescue both. Percy and his friends must find Artemis before the winter solstice when the gods on Mount Olympus will vote on whether or not they go to war against the Titans. Meanwhile, also on Percy's mind is the mysterious monster Artemis was hunting before she was captured - a monster so powerful, the gods wouldn't stand a chance against it. But who could have kidnapped a goddess? Percy is afraid of the answer.

I'm really enjoying this series. I feel like I keep saying the same things - I love Greek mythology, I love the way the gods are portrayed - but Riordan keeps me pleasantly surprised with each new book. I find his stories original, the dialogue funny, and the writing easy (in a good way). Reading about Percy Jackson is sort of like having a conversation with an old friend - not overly stimulating or intense, but very familiar and comfortable. I would recommend this series to anyone in need of something light and funny, those with an interest in Greek mythology, and young boys who think books are yucky ;)

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

Please be aware that this is the second book in a series. In order to give even the briefest synopsis, this review may contain spoilers to the first book. You can read my review of The Lightning Thief here.

Percy Jackson somehow makes it to the end of seventh grade with relative ease. All year he manages to stay out of trouble. No fighting off evil monsters, no visits from satyrs, and virtually no contact from Camp Half Blood. The highlight of Percy's year is defending the homeless kid, Tyson, from his classmates' cruel jokes. Soon enough things return to normal - normal for Percy, that is - when a game of dodgeball becomes fatal. After Annabeth comes to Percy's rescue, he is quickly informed the magical borders of Camp Half Blood have been poisoned and are failing. A quest is granted for Percy and his friends to journey through the Sea of Monsters in search of the elusive Golden Fleece to save Camp Half Blood.


You know, in my review of The Lightning Thief, I don't think I gave Rick Riordan enough credit. No, it's not the most engrossing book I've ever read. No, it's not the greatest piece of children's literature ever written. No, it's most definitely not Harry Potter. However, Percy Jackson is a light, very enjoyable series, and I genuinely cared about Percy and his friends and what happened to them. I loved Percy's point of view and the way it sometimes felt like he was talking directly to the reader at times. I also loved the constant bickering between Percy and Annabeth, very seventh grade. Overall, I really liked The Sea of Monsters and am eager to get started on Book 3, The Titan's Curse.

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson is just your average juvenile delinquent. He moves from boarding school to boarding school, being kicked out of each one, because he just can't manage to stay out of trouble. Or so it seems. You see, Percy doesn't go looking for trouble. Trouble finds him.

On a school field trip, Percy is attacked by his algebra teacher - turned evil monster and begins a life-threatening trek to Camp Half-Blood. On the way, Percy discovers that the gods and goddesses of ancient Greek mythology are very much alive today and that he is, in fact, a son of one of those gods. Percy must use the help of friends Grover and Annabeth to fight off scores of monsters and make it to camp alive. Once at camp, Percy learns of his ancestry and trains to fight evil monsters. When the camp discovers Zeus's master lightning bolt has been stolen and Percy is the accused thief, Percy begins a quest to find the bolt and clear his name.


I think the biggest thing to keep in mind while reading the Percy Jackson series is that it is targeted for 9-12-year-olds. I read a few harsh reviews on Goodreads, which I completely respect and understand, but I think in order to enjoy this series and not nit-pick it to death is to appreciate it for what it is - a middle grade novel. That said, I thought it was a really cute book. I'm a huge fan of mythology, so the whole premise was very appealing to me. I also thought Percy's "disabilities" and the locations of Mount Olympus and the Underworld were very clever. I also enjoyed the way the gods, goddesses, and other mythological creatures were depicted. Overall, it wasn't quite the page turner I was hoping it would be, but I will be continuing with the series.