The Last Hero

Rick Riordan has released two new series. He is continuing his Greek Mythology series with a new group of heroes in The Heroes of Olympus, Book One: The Lost Hero. His second new series begins an exploration of Egyptian Mythology with the story of a brother and sister. The Red Pyramid (The Kane Chronicles, Book 1) introduces readers not only to new characters, but a slightly different format for readers familiar with the Percy Jackson series.

Most of the reviews I have read about the Lost Hero have been excited about the new series. I liked the first book but am not as excited about it as I was the after reading The Lightening Thief.

The story begins with Percy Jackson missing and Annabelle setting off to find him. Three students, who we predictably know will be half bloods, are on a bus traveling to a field trip. Jason awakens not knowing who he is and the story begins with a typical Percy Jackson pace. The Titan's have been replaced with a more frightening opponent that even the Gods cannot defeat alone.

The author is trying to establish an arc using Jason's past and the issues arising from The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 5). The goddess Hera is missing and the Gods have stopped speaking. This was one of the great weaknesses of the book. The quest to find Hera was fine. However, one of the great strengths of the Percy Jackson series was the humor provided by Hermes, Hades, and the other Gods. Their missing interactions with the half bloods left a hole in this novel. While parent Gods and the missing Hera are still included the lack of the others was something I hope will not continue in the rest of the series.

The hints about Jason's past start to get old. Riordan has an interest in introducing the Roman Gods to the Percy Jackson series. This could have been a fascinating story line. He did a great job providing parents and teachers with a wonderful way to interest children in Greek Mythology. This new series is a great way to demonstrate the connections between Greek and Roman Mythology. The first book was disappointing in achieving this goal. He did introduce the idea that the Greek and Roman Gods were connected. We learn Zeus and Hera's Greek and Roman names.

Students familiar with the original Percy series will already be wondering why Jason was uncomfortable at Camp Half Blood. They will want to know if there are Roman Half Bloods where are they housed. Here Riordan does make an interesting connection to United States History. I thought that was one strength of the story.

For those concerned with the fate of Percy, the explanation of why Jason is at Camp Half Blood gives hints of Percy’s destination. Suspicions are confirmed at the end of the story when Riordan reveals Percy’s location and some of the dangers he faces.

As typical with the Percy Jackson series, the end of one book sets up the next. As the first book concludes the reader is left with Jason, planning the next adventure for his friends in their efforts to complete the task Jason now understands he was sent to Camp Half Blood to begin.

The author's website says the next book in the series is due to be published in October of 2011. The title listed is The Son of Neptune.


Riordan is promising a book a year for both series, so readers will have a book from each series to look forward to in 2011.

The Last Olympian

The Last Olympian (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 5) finishes the Percy Jackson story arc. Riordan plants the seeds for a sequel to a new series The Heroes of Olympus, Book One: The Lost Hero.

The Last Olympian starts slowly and Riordan has a great deal of information to share with the audience in a limited amount of time. Unlike many finales, Riordan provides a satisfying conclusion to the mysteries he established in the previous volumes. Luke's outcome was predictable, but satisfying. Nico and Luke's background stories have some common threads that are revealed and explained as the story unfolds. Hades and Hermes’ relationships with their sons become a very important part of the story.

Percy's human friend has an interesting destiny that becomes more predictable as we learn more of Luke's past.

Less is explored about Percy's background in this novel, but his relationships with his human and God families grow stronger. His stepfather comes to accept his half-blood son and Poseidon responds to his son's advice on fighting the Titans.

Percy's final wish is a culmination of the experiences of the half bloods he has known through the series. Zeus is not crazy about the request, but grants it.

This was a satisfying end to the series.

The first time I read this series in print form. I have really enjoyed Jesse Bernstein's audio version. While he read the complete Percy Jackson series, he is not the reader for the next book and he is missed.

Battle of the Labyrinth

The Battle of the Labyrinth (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 4) continues Percy's adventures. Camp Half Blood is under threat as the supporters of Kronos are on their way to Camp Half Blood through the Labyrinth. Percy will need the assistance of a mortal and his fellow campers to survive this new threat.

This book answers some questions established in the first book and others added during the following two books. Pan's fate is finally revealed. The author also explains Luke's involvement with Kronos. Nico, son of Hades, works through his issues with the death of his sister, but still has unresolved issues regarding his place in the world as the end of the story. The story introduces readers to more Greek mythology.

This is the fourth story I have listened to Jesse Bernstein read and I am really enjoying his narration. I read this series when it was originally published, but listening to it on CD has allowed me to enjoy it in a new way.

While I was pleased Riordan started to resolve more of the story in this book, he could have used some editing to make it a stronger novel. The previous three books were tighter books with better plot and character control. This book tried to accomplish too much. As a result, it often lost focus.

The Titan's Curse

The Titan's Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 3) delves more deeply into Greek Mythology. This book starts with Annabelle missing and Percy anxious to start a quest to find her. However, Annabelle is not the only problem facing Camp Half Blood. Artemis arrives with her hunters on the quest to find a monster that has been stirring with the threat of Kronos rising. She leaves her hunters at the camp and sets off alone.

Riordan has been slipping pieces of the Titan myths into the books from the beginning discussing Kronos and his relationship to the Greek Gods. However, in this novel another Titan appears tied to Artemis and Annabelle’s fates. Percy must learn the tricks of a previous hero, Hercules to defeat the Titan and save his friends.

The book deals with death. Not all the characters make it to the end of the story. The prophecy the God's have been worrying about regarding Percy has an interesting turn not predicted in the previous novels.

Careful readers of the previous books are rewarded if they remember Annabelle and Percy's trip to a hotel that does not like its guests to leave. While the information is revealed eventually to all readers, those who remember are rewarded by figuring out the mystery first.

This is a great series to engage children in learning about Greek Myths. This book in particular will make readers want to go back and check the details. I know I found myself Googling a few details I had forgotten about the Titans. If you want to encourage children to explore Greek Mythology this series is a great way to engage students in reading and then exploring the actual myths. You will find they can make comparisons, demonstrate where the author got the material for the stories, and even be able to write their own.

Free Teaching Materials:

Teacher's Guides

The Sea of Monsters

I listened to The Sea of Monsters (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 2) while working on various writing and craft projects. It had been a while since I read the book and the audio version held my attention.

Percy Jackson's adventures continue. Camp Half Blood is in trouble. Percy is denied his request to go on a quest to save the camp, but as any reader of the series expects he becomes involved in the effort to retrieve the Golden Fleece regardless of the rules.

Unlike the Alcatraz series, the Percy Jackson series does maintain momentum and quality writing throughout the series. This story continues to move the individual book plot as well as the series plot along at a solid pace. We know more about the Titans, we see a developing relationship with Percy and his father Poseidon, and his relationship with the other half blood heroes.

As a former teacher, one of the things I like about this series is that it is a natural way to generate interest in Greek mythology. Children can read this story without much knowledge about Greek history and come away knowing a bit more about the Greek Gods. However, a clever teacher or parent can use this series to interest students in learning more about Greek myths. While the Greek Gods are given a modern update in this series, it is easy to motivate students to learning more about the casual references to myths that the author leaves in the stories for the reader to explore further on their own.

Free Teaching Resources:

Teaching Guides

Alcatraz Smedry meets Percy Jackson

I found the Percy Jackson and the Olympians Hardcover Boxed Set (Percy Jackson & the Olympians) at a discount book store several years ago. Recently in my quest to find audio CD's to exercise with I borrowed The Lightning Thief: Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Book 1 from the library. I am always looking for ways to distract myself from how much I dislike exercising. As I found myself getting lost in the reader's voice, I realized that listening to a good reader inspired some interesting thoughts. As I listened to the opening of a story I had previously read, I was making connections I had not made when I had just read the books.

One of the exercises I used to do when I used literature circles with my students was asking them to make connections with other books. How would the characters in this book relate to characters in other books they had read? It has been a while since I helped students create questions for literature circles. However, as the reader described Percy Jackson and his experience at school, my mind immediately made the connection to Alcatraz. I wondered how these two boys would have dealt with each other. What would a story be like if the two attended school together prior to setting off on their adventures? Would they have been friends? How would their powers have interacted? Would they have been allies or enemies? Would they have understood each other's worlds?

When I taught students, these were questions many did not have experience with answering. While they eventually got used to exploring these types of questions, in the beginning it was challenging to get students to think beyond traditional expectations. Sadly, many only are taught to read the book, answer the questions and move on to the next book. If reading a series of books by genre or author there might be some expected questions. However, most of my students had little experience thinking out of the box about literature.

It would be interesting to see what kids would say about Alcatraz and Percy. There is no right or wrong answer. There is enough supporting material to suggest they could be friends or that their issues would end up having them choose not to be united.

I will be exercising to Percy Jackson while reading Alcatraz Versus The Shattered Lens. I will have more time to think about how these two characters would have interacted. This is a great activity to try with your own children as you read to them. Choose age appropriate questions and this kind of reading comprehension practice can be started with even young readers. Children can find ways to compare and contrast their favorite characters learning valuable skills in a fun way.

Why is there a sea creature picture? Well those of you who have read Percy Jackson will know.

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