The Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero - Rick Riordan

If you were with me on my blog earlier this year, you'll know that I spent some time reading the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and fell in love with it. I know Riordan came out with The Red Pyramid a few months ago but I just couldn't bring myself to read it because it was a new series and didn't take me back to Percy's world.

When I found out that he was starting a new series based around Camp Half-Blood and Percy, Annabeth, and company were going to make appearances, I think I literally squealed out loud.

So when the husband was ordering stuff off of Amazon, I asked him to add the book that was on my wishlist to the cart (it was scheduled to come out the next day). Two days later I had The Lost Hero in my hands and I probably just stared at the cover. Yeah, I know. It's a middle grade book and I'll be 26 in two weeks but WHO CARES? There's just something about this series and these characters that I absolutely adore.

I've now read the book and loved it just as much as I hoped I would. We're introduced to three new characters: Jason, Piper, and Leo. These three are now the main characters but the rest of the campers are still around and they're all faced with new problems.

I was intrigued right from the get-go. Jason has no memory of anything and before he knows it, he and his friends are up against Venti while on their field trip at the Grand Canyon. Next thing we know Annabeth is whisking them away to Camp Half-Blood and they're finding out all these new, crazy things and are sent out on their first quest. I really enjoyed Jason, Piper, and Leo and it's hard who to pick as my favorite (good thing I don't have to).

I started reading The Lost Hero and Freefall at the same time but as usual, Rick Riordan sucked me in and I had to stop reading (and playing Angry Birds) until I finished his book.

I know this post is kind off all over the place but I'm just so dang excited about having read it! I'm so bummed that I have to wait a year for book two to come out so I guess I'll just have to practice patience.

Waiting on Wednesday - The Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Jill at Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that you're eagerly anticipating.

 

 Released October 12, 2010

 

You guys! When I found out about this a week or two ago I literally made an "eeeeee!!" sound. How could I not have known about this before? I'm so excited for this next Camp Half-Blood installment. I was so bummed when I finished reading the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series because I loved it so much. I can't wait to see what's going on with Percy, Annabeth, and Grover (even if they only end up being secondary characters).

Also, check out CampHalfBlood.com (password newhero) for an excerpt of the new book. What do you think?

From Goodreads:

Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up on a school bus holding hands with a girl. Apparently she’s his girlfriend Piper, his best friend is a kid named Leo, and they’re all students in the Wilderness School, a boarding school for “bad kids.” What he did to end up here, Jason has no idea—except that everything seems very wrong.

Piper has a secret. Her father has been missing for three days, and her vivid nightmares reveal that he’s in terrible danger. Now her boyfriend doesn’t recognize her, and when a freak storm and strange creatures attack during a school field trip, she, Jason, and Leo are whisked away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood. What is going on?

Leo has a way with tools. His new cabin at Camp Half-Blood is filled with them. Seriously, the place beats Wilderness School hands down, with its weapons training, monsters, and fine-looking girls. What’s troubling is the curse everyone keeps talking about, and that a camper’s gone missing. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist they are all—including Leo—related to a god.

 

Happy Reading!

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian

Well it's official. I am done reading the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and it makes me sad. I loved The Last Olympian but I am not ready to say goodbye to these characters.

The Titan Kronos is planning an attack to take over Olympus and the time is almost near. With the gods off fighting monster Typhon, Olympus is left unprotected and Kronos's army advances on New York City, and ultimately, Olympus.

Percy and the rest of the campers at Camp Half-Blood must protect the city when the gods do not take Percy's claim seriously and with his sixteenth birthday only days away, Percy knows the Great Prophecy is about to come true. Is he really the one whose decision will decide the fate of the gods? Will Kronos be able to be stopped before it's too late?

There is just something about this series that just makes me want more and after talking to Leah, I found out that I'm not the only one that feels this way. We both agreed that while waiting to read The Last Olympian, we couldn't think about anything other than reading this book. Currently, I am reading A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon, Leaving Gee's Bend by Irene Latham, and Cut by Patricia McCormick but all I could think about while reading these was that I needed to know what happened to Percy and friends and I couldn't wait any longer.

I really hope Riordan decides to publish more books that follow Percy into the next stage of his life. The ending did wrap the series up, but it also left a perfect in to another series. In the meantime, I plan on getting my hands on a copy of The Demigod Files so the fun, action-packed, mythological ride won't be over just yet.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth

Something is coming and it's only a matter of time. In The Battle of the Labyrinth, the people of Camp Half-Blood are worried about a possible invasion from former camper Luke and his cronies whose goal is to resurrect the evil Kronos. Although the camp boundary is protected by the golden fleece, Percy and Annabeth accidentally stumble upon an entrance to Daedalus's labyrinth and soon they realize this is how Luke is planning on invading the camp. Percy and his friends must go on a quest to find Daedalus and try to persuade him not to team up with the other side. However, navigating the labyrinth can be tricky because the maze changes and people who go in, are not guaranteed to come back out the same.

It's no secret that I have been liking the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. These books are just quick, fun reads that I cannot seem to get enough of. There seems to be so much stuff going on, but with the way Riordan writes it, it's not overwhelming and it just works. It's not difficult to envision what is going on and I only wish that future movies stay true to the book because they could be fantastic.

Although I only have one book left to read of this series (sad!) I cannot wait to see what happens next to Percy, Annabeth, Grover, Tyson, and even newcomer Rachel.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Titan's Curse - Rick Riordan

OK, so I know I said I was going to drop everything to read Hex Hall but I changed my mind since I was 3/4 of the way through Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Titan's Curse.

The Titan's Curse finds Percy, along with Thalia and Annabeth, rushing to Grover's side to return to the two half-bloods he has found, back to Camp Half-Blood. Before they are able to leave, the group is surrounded, a fight ensues and ends with Artemis and her Huntresses jumping in to help them out. Unfortunately, when the monsters retreat, Annabeth disappears along with them.

Upon returning to Camp Half-Blood, Artemis decides to go on the hunt for the monster that is rare and so powerful it can bring down all of Olympus. Later, the Oracle reveals that Artemis must be rescued and that two of the five who go on the quest will perish. The huntresses must find Artemis before the Winter Solstice because she holds a swaying vote in Olympus on the upcoming war and Percy is determined to find Annabeth before it's too late.

So far, this has been my favorite book of the series. The characters are a little more mature due to what they've had to deal with and with the possibility of an upcoming war. Like the best of heros, Percy learns that the people he cares for most is his fatal flaw and his enemies know he'll do anything to protect his loved ones. When the time comes, can he put his duty before his loyalty or will the prophecy come true?

Although a small part, I loved Apollo. His addition to the story helped to lighten it up with his love of bad haiku's. Zoe Nightshade was another character that I enjoyed, when she was talking about her past, I felt a little sorry for her and could feel her pain.

There is quite a bit that went on in this book but Riordan's introductions into each event was seamless and the pictures he painted were vivid in my mind. I can't wait until I start book four, The Battle of the Labyrinth.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters - Rick Riordan

When it comes to a book series, I really like to pick the next book up as soon as I put the one I just finished down. Sometimes it's super easy and other times it feels like a daunting task, however, the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series has fallen into the former category.

These books are such easy, fast reads but I find them quite entertaining and I had to make sure I picked up the fourth book today so I would have it upon completion of The Titan's Curse.

In book two, The Sea of Monsters, Percy finds himself in yet another boarding school and other than being made fun of for being friends with Tyson, a huge homeless kid who is a little slower than everyone else, the year has been relatively quite.

With Annabeth's arrival, Percy soon learns that Camp Half-Blood is in trouble and that Chiron has been removed as activities director with accusations of poisoning the tree that provides the magical boarders around camp.

On top of all of this, Percy has been having dreams about Grover who is in trouble and needs rescuing. In order to save the camp from being overtaken by monsters and his close friend from death, Percy must go to the Sea of Monsters to retrieve both his friend and the healing Golden Fleece. It's a race against time to save his best friend AND get the Golden Fleece to Camp Half-Blood.

Besides the mythological aspect, I think a big part of what I like about this series is that there is a continuous story, the bigger picture, but there are also various smaller stories that give you satisfaction for having a start and an end. I like how each book has had its own "right now" opponent but that it's not just peppered in as filler.

I also like the fact that each book seems to introduce you to a new god or two and they're like the frontrunner for that book. We met more in The Lightning Thief than we did in The Sea of Monsters but it's nice not to just have them all dumped on you from the get go.

I've already started book 4 so look for that in the next few days as well as Leaving Gee's Bend by Irene Latham.

Teaser Tuesday - The Sea of Monsters

Thanks to MizB at Should Be Reading for hosting Teaser Tuesday's. If you'd like to participate all you have to do is grab the book you're reading, open to a random page, share 2 teaser sentences (non-spoilers please!), and list the name of the book, page number, and author.


"Eventually," muttered Tantalus, staring at Dionysus's Diet Coke. "Do you have any idea how dry one's throat gets after three thousand years?"

Page 59 of Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief - Rick Riordan

So as you can tell, I've kind of been MIA around here the last week. We moved last week and it has been quite hectic since and even though we've been here since Tuesday, we're just now spending the night in the house. It doesn't quite feel like home and I'm kind of depressed. I really hope this feeling goes away soon. Anyway, I wanted to get my review of The Lightning Thief posted before too long and before procrastination sunk in.

In anticipation of the movie based on Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, I decided that no matter what I was going to read the book before seeing the movie. My husband and I went last weekend and although the movie was enjoyable, this is yet another case where the book was a lot better.

The Lightning Thief follows twelve year old Perseus (Percy) Jackson as he learns that everything he's been learning about in his mythology class is not just a myth. After Percy is accused of stealing Zeus's master bolt, he is taken to Camp Half-Blood to hone his skills and learn about this new life and his father. A prophecy sends him on a quest with his two friends, Grover and Annabeth, to retrieve the bolt and if it is not returned by the summer solstice then war will break out in Olympus.

As many will say, this book reminds them of the Harry Potter series and although that rings true, it wasn't to the point where I couldn't finish a chapter without thinking, "Well that's not what Harry would have done," or something similar. I picked this book up expecting similarities because of the synopsis I had read so it didn't take anything away from the book.

I think part of the reason I liked this book so much is because I enjoy mythology. I took a mythology class my freshman year of high school (I actually came across the paperback I used in the class while moving) and was thoroughly interested in the subject matter. I will say this about the movie, the visual effects were fantastic but some of the storyline was changed and it just left me slightly irked.

Look for a few more updates coming tomorrow morning or afternoon.