Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
Release date: April 1, 2005
Excerpt
Percy Jackson is a good kid, but he can’t seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse—Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster and tried to kill him. When Percy’s mom finds out, she knows it’s time that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the one place he’ll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter of Athena—Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in Hollywood) and prevent a [close:]
catastrophic war between the gods.
Review
I'll admit i bought this book on a whim due to the fact the movie is coming out very soon. I am very very glad i did. To things into perspective i started this book at 4pm. Took a short break to take care of my rabbits and eat dinner. Then kept reading till 2am in the next morning. I could not put this book down. It literally sucked me in and the last time a book did that to me was the Harry Potter series.
Percy Jackson and Harry Potter shares a numerous amount of similarities. Enough to surmise that the author was probably inspired by Jk Rowlings writing. Both Harry and Percy look alike (black hair and green eyes), never knew who they were (wizard and demi-god) till a person who was not all the way human told them (Hagrid & Grover). This book even follows the brainy girl and typical male sidekick that Harry Potter has. In a way you could really call it Harry Potter mets the Olympian Gods. I still severely enjoyed it though. It had enough differences to be enjoyable and not completely be a copy right infringement on JK. Looking ahead besides the uber bad guy and the good guy who was working with the bad guy things seem to be different from Harry. This series didn't completely spark my imagination like Harry did, but it has led me to go out and immediately buy the next two books in the series.
So all in all 5 bunnies
Percy Jackson and and the Olympians: The Sea of Monsters
Release date: April 1st 2006
Excerpt:
After a summer spent trying to prevent a catastrophic war among the Greek gods, Percy Jackson is finding his seventh-grade school year unnervingly quiet. His biggest problem is dealing with his new friend, Tyson, a six-foot-three, mentally challenged homeless kid who follows Percy everywhere, making it hard for Percy to have any normal friends. But things don't stay quiet for long.
Percy soon discovers there is trouble at Camp Half-Blood: the magical borders that protect Half-Blood Hill have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and the only safe haven for demigods is on the verge of being overrun by mythological monsters. To save the camp, Percy needs the help of his best friend, Grover, who has been taken prisoner on an island somewhere in the Sea of Monsters, the dangerous waters Greek heroes have sailed for millennia. Only today, the Sea of Monsters goes by a new name: The Bermuda Triangle.
Together with his friends, Percy must retrieve the Golden Fleece from the Island of the Cyclopes or Camp Half-Blood will be destroyed. But first, Percy will learn a stunning new secret about his family, one that makes him question whether being claimed as Poseidon's son is an honor or simply a cruel joke.
Review:
Another book i finished in less that 12 hours. This one wasn't as good as the first one, but it was still written quite well. It really should be titled "Percy Jackson and the Clash of the Titans" because it borrowed heavily from that story. Complete with sirens, circe, cyclopes, and multiple other monsters. We get introduced to some new characters and you can start to see a romantic relationship between Percy and Annabeth start to form. This book did have something the other didn't and it was George, Martha, and the other centaurs. All of them are minor characters, but their the funniest characters of the book. George and Martha are Hermes snakes. I kept cracking up when those who were being featured. I seriously hope they're back in the next. Also the centaurs aka Party Ponies. Too die. ^^
Rating: Four bunnies
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Titans Curse
Release Date: 2007
Excerpt:
When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped. And now it's up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess?
They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the Titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared -- a monster rumored to be so [close:]powerful it could destroy Olympus forever
Review:
I started this book after having a really bad and rough two days. I wanted to read something that i could really escape into and this book really fit the bill. I could have finished this book in one day, but being already sleep deprived i decided to split it up.
I give the author promps for this book since it seemed the most original plot wise out all of the Percy Jackson books so far. I do believe this book was supposed to be following the "Hercules" legend, but i don't know much about the original to say so or not. The only Hercules i know is the Disney one or Kevin Sorbo. The newness of the plot really made it my favorite book out of the Percy Jackson series. Combine that with some new characters and you have one awesome book. I really adored Thalia and severely hope she appears in the other book. Besides Percy she is my other favorite character in the book. I do think she is much better than Annabeth who has the tendency to get annoying at times. Something that i was rather glad that she was absent most of the book.
This book also introduced "The Hunters" and their leader Artemis. The Hunters are a group of girls who have renounced adulthood, men, and love. They are an immortal group of maidens who follow Artemis on her hunts and where-ever else she chooses to go. Zoe, one of the hunters, is a main character of the book and i rather enjoyed her presence. I was rather sad to see her die at the end. Artemis, herself, seems to be one of the fewest gods or goddess that seem to directly favor Percy and his companions. If anything it's because she is an eternal maiden herself.
This book also really introduced and gave the gods and goddesses more spotlight that they did not have in the previous books. We meet Ares, again, in the book, but we also meet Aphrodite and Apollo as well. Both whom i immensely enjoyed. Aphrodite really reminded me to the Aphrodite from the Hercules and Xena shows. Mr. D also played a bigger part in this book. We also find out why he hates all heroes. It's something that took me completely by surprised and so i will not say.
All in all this book was a wonderful and immensely enjoyable read. ^w^
Rating: 5 bunnies
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth
Release date: September 2007
Excerpt:
Percy Jackson's fourth summer at Camp Half-Blood is much like his previous three—high-octane clashes with dark forces, laced with hip humor and drama. Opening with a line for the ages—The last thing I wanted to do on my summer break was blow up another school—this penultimate series installment finds Percy, Annabeth and the satyr Grover furiously working to prevent former camp counselor Luke from resurrecting the Titan lord Kronos, whose goal is to overthrow the gods. When the heroes learn that Luke can breach Camp Half-Blood's security through an exit from Daedalus's Labyrinth, they enter the maze in search of the inventor and a way to stop the invasion. Along the way they encounter a lifetime supply of nightmare-inducing, richly imagined monsters. Grover's own quest to find the lost god Pan, meanwhile, provides a subtle environmental message. Percy, nearly 15, has girl trouble, having become something of a chick magnet. One of Riordan's strengths is the wry interplay between the real and the surreal. When the heroes find Hephaestus, for instance, he's repairing a Toyota, wearing overalls with his name embroidered over the chest pocket. The wit, rousing swordplay and breakneck pace will once again keep kids hooked.
Review
For some reason this book just didn't do that much for me unlike the rest of the series. I just found it to be so.... Bland. It was supposed to be a exciting adventure through the Labyrinth, but it just didn't work out. It was exceedingly obvious the moment Daedalus was mentioned that Quintus was him. So no surprise there. I usually laugh a couple of times in the series, but i only laughed at one part with Hera. The part with Kronos coming back to a full body was also extremely anti-climaitc. It was like "I got a body." Percy: "I hit you! Oh No's! The sword bounces off of you". Kronos "That's because i'm the man of steel" *poses in superman pose*. Percy: "I run". Percy flees. *raising eyebrows and looking unimpressed*. It was boarding on stupid. That's not to say it wasn't an engrossing read, but i feel that it didn't live up to it's processors.
That and Annabeth was so! annoying. Every time Annabeth showed up in the book i wanted her gone. Something about her character just really rubs me the wrong way. After this book i'm a total Percy/Rachel shipper. If Nico weren't a child i would ship him with Percy too. *blushes*. Rick was trying to shove the whole Annabeth/Percy thing the whole book and i'm just not buying it. I felt that Percy had more chemistry with Rachel and Nico. lol Speaking of Nico he's now one of my favorite characters. I just love his character development as the son of Hades and his angst. I have such a soft spot for angusty characters. I also fully enjoyed the Gods & Goddesses in the book as well (course they're always good).
So with saddness i have to give this book 3 Bunnies.
* Plot falls flat, Irritating character, anti-climatic, Not a good stand alone book, & overall general disappointment.*
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian
Release Date: May 5th, 2009
Excerpt:
All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of a victory are grim. Kronos’s army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan’s power only grows.
While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it’s up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time.
Review:
Ok. I just finished the book. Daisy is sleeping on my legs all nice and comfy. Gum is starting to lose its flavor. And the only thing i can think of is "THAT IS IT?". WTF how anti-climatic. Seriously. The book didn't seem like an ending for a story. It was HP & Half Blood Prince waiting for Deathly Hallows. The ending really really sucked. No big battle between Percy and Kronus. No big revelation. Where's the big final heroics? Luke is the person the prophecy was talking about? Thought it had to deal with Percy or was Percy only involved with not killing the Ophiotaurus. I'm so disappointed with the ending.
Also, Why no good guy character die? I'm not talking about people we meet once or twice or was mentioned. I'm talking about repeated characters. Not one of those people died. Everytime one of these characters got seriously hurt some ambrosia or nectar was magically near by. You can't write a story involving a war or fights without killing someone important. J.K Rowling knew this. J.R.R. Tolkien knew this. Real sacrifices have got to be made to make a story good. I'm not talking ditsy Aphrodite girls either.
So all in all i was really rather disappointed in this book. Riordan fell flat trying to tell Luke's story (Hello Voldemort's story in HP 6. Complete with visions), feel flat on battle scenes, no humor, anti-climatic ending, and well some really pointless parts in the book. I did rather enjoy Clarisse killing the Drakon, but even that rang like a carbon copy of Neville rising up and killing Nagini in DH. I'm hoping if what i'm hearing is true that Riordan is going to continue the series that he'd give it a more fitting ending.
Rating: 3 bunnies
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