The Titan’s Curse (Percy Jackson and the Olympians #3)

My fifth grader has read all the Harry Potter books but often spends his time reading graphic novels which are, in my opinion, of questionable literary value. I\’m not complaining – I mean he does read so there\’s that, but I was very pleased that he started on these and is reading through them on his own. He says they are not as good as Harry Potter (I mean, it is a high bar) but he does really like them and they seem interesting and don\’t have any questionable material that you wouldn\’t want your fifth grader reading. Overall very pleased.

When I first read the *Percy Jackson* series, I was a bit underwhelmed. I mean, I had heard so much about how awesome it was, and it seemed just such a let-down. It appeared to me to be, quite frankly put, a weaker version of *Harry Potter*. Now, I know that isn\’t fair or accurate, but that was my first impression. While the second book in the series, *The Sea of Monsters*, helped to change my mind on this, it was still a bit underwhelming. Yes, this is not just a takeoff of *HP*, it is it\’s own unique series. Not only are there many differences beyond the surface-only similarities, but I learned recently (as of the writing of this review) that Riordan started writing this series before *HP* was published, so, yah, not based on *HP*. So critics who use this argument, including *myself* at first, are just silly. I\’m admitting I was an idiot, yes. As I said, though, the second book still didn\’t quite wow me. The whole narrative felt like basically an endless series of cliff-hangers with little to no character development and not enough plot. The cliff-hangers seemed to be far more numerous than most quest books in fantasy settings. Now, this isn\’t to say that I didn\’t enjoy the first two volumes, but just that they didn\’t quite (other than some interesting stuff such as likable characters and references to myths) *do* it for me, so to speak. This third book, however, really did make me a major *Percy Jackson* fan, and was absolutely a great read. The rest of the review will show why. The plot is simple. In a rescue mission to save two fellow demi-gods, Percy, Annabeth, Grover, and their new friend Thalia, encounter trouble. Though they save the twin half-bloods, Annabeth goes missing, and to make matters worse, so does a powerful goddess ally, Artemis. Of course, a quest is in order. But the questions are rather more complicated than one might think in this case. Normally, these quests are, of course, quite dangerous. But in this case, the sense of danger, really the *fact* of danger, is more persistent. Because a prophecy from the Oracle is that at least two of the members of the quest will not make it back alive… While the plot is relatively straight-forward at first, the narrative and plot developments this time were quite a bit more complicated. Not only did Riordan expand on the mythology of the series, and the connections to Classical Greek myths, but the structure was different. Gone was the nearly every chapter cliff-hanger, with the accompanying desperate rushes from one danger to the next, one clue to the next. In it\’s place was a slower and more long-term story progression. Don\’t get me wrong. The sense of excitement and adventure was just as strong, but the story was a better one in this way. This is because there was more time taken to spend more time exploring the characters and their thoughts and the world-building, as well as both delving into the past of this world and laying down groundwork for future plots. This all was a net plus for the book and made it far, *far* better than the predecessors. Included in this are tidbits that answer the big questions that some might have, including, why, oh why, do the Olympians not *do* anything to remedy these problems themselves. Well, the answer is that they are a) kinda personality-driven, and this interferes with some proactiveness, as they have their own stuff to attend to and their personalities dictate this, and b) related, they are *busy*. Not only do they have the duties they have always had, but they are also dealing with the fact that the coming hostilities with the forces of Kronos are causing other supernatural gods and god-like beings to cause problems that make their jobs harder. For that matter, there is a delicate power balance that too much action on the part of *anyone* will upset. The reason I liked this one as well is that the characters are kinda coming into their own and beginning to grow up. Annabeth is becoming more mature and able to forgive and see others\’ points of view more. Meanwhile, Percy is faster on his feet where he can handle things without constant directions. Though he still isn\’t the strategist that Annabeth is, and thus doesn\’t do as well as when he\’s teamed up with her, he still acquits himself admirably. Grover, though, is a disappointment here. He\’s reduced to little more than comic relief. That annoys me in that while he was the weakest member of the quest, he\’s still a knowledgeable and capable guy. Or should be. I hope that he gets more impressive again in coming books. I can\’t say much about other characters so as to not give away their roles, but just to say that Riordan does a good job with fleshing out their characters and arcs in a way that really makes them vivid to the reader and gets you to care about them. I can honestly say now that I really enjoy this series and that it has become one of my favorites. Highly Recommended. Rating: 5/5 Stars.

Another great book in the Percy Jackson series. We meet both Bianca and Nico who are being pursued by monsters. Of course, Percy and Annabeth are there to assist, along with Thalia, who made her appearance as a daughter of Zeus in the last book. The one part of this book I don\’t care for is the fact that Annabeth is not featured as prominently. I loved the plot and why she was taking for, but as she is my favorite character I wanted her around more. Percy and Thalia must work together to find Annabeth with the assistance of Bianca. I felt sorry for Nico after Bianca makes her choice, not saying what it is, but I know he will come into his own as a character. One of the big villains in this book is Atlas forever condemned to hold up the sky. Rick Riordan is a phenomenal talent and I love his contemporary handling of the ancient Greek gods and goddesses.

MY RATING SYSTEM 5 stars–WOW 4 stars–would read again 3 stars–was good, won\’t read again 2 stars–read it, but didn\’t enjoy it 1 star–didn\’t finish, it was so awful Do I need to read books before this one: yes Cliffhanger: a little SUMMARY Grover sends a distress call just before winter break; he\’s found 2 demigods, Bianca and Nico, and smells a monster. Percy, Annabeth, and Thalia go to Bar Harbor to help. Artemis and her Hunters join the half-bloods to fight the manticore and its human mercenaries. It falls off a cliff with Annabeth on his back. Artemis accepts Bianca as a Hunter, then orders her Hunters to Camp Half-Blood and calls Apollo to give them a ride. Artemis leaves to hunt the monster sought by the manticore, leaving Zo in charge. At Camp, Percy and Thalia can\’t convince Mr D to send them in a quest to get Annabeth. Clarisse is already on a sneaky one. Both Percy and Zo have nightmares, demand to go on quests, denied. After a game of Capture the Flag, the Oracle comes to the river to deliver the quest: Five shall go west to the goddess in chains, One shall be lost in the land without rain, The bane of Olympus shows the trail, Campers and Hunters combined prevail, The Titans curse must one withstand, And one shall perish by a parents hand. Percy isn\’t chosen to go. EVALUATION Another fun telling of Greek myths! Percy\’s 14 now, aware of and awkward around girls, especially Annabeth. Thalia is old enough to drive. Nico plays a Greek gods card game with miniatures; is that Pokmon or Magic the Gathering? Apollo\’s explanation of the astrological sun and the philosophical sun is spot on. RECOMMENDATION Everyone who\’s read books 1 and 2. If you haven\’t read those yet, get on it! FAVORITE QUOTES One of thy parents was mortal. The other was an Olympian. An Olympianathlete? No. One of the gods. Cool! said Nico. No! Biancas voice quavered. This is not cool! Nico danced around like he needed to use the restroom. Does Zeus really have lightning bolts that do six hundred damage? Does he get extra movement points for That boy in Colorado, Zo said. You turned him into a jackalope. Ah, yes. Artemis nodded, satisfied. I enjoy making jackalopes.\” The least the Oracle couldve done was walk back to the attic by herself. If there were ever any half-bloods who needed to worry about [being killed by a parent], it was Thalia and me. I wondered if maybe I shouldve sent Poseidon that seashell pattern tie for Fathers Day after all. Its cool. No sword. See? No sword. Calm thoughts. Sea grass. Mama cows. Vegetarianism. [to a sea cow] It took foreverI mean, it was worse than the time Id had to untangle all my video game controller wires. The clerk looked so lonely, I bought a rubber rat. Zo got bored and started shooting arrows at random billboards as we flew by. Every time she saw a Target department storeand we passed dozens of themshe would peg the stores sign with a few bulls-eyes at a hundred miles an hour. Apollo\’s haikus, Blackjack\’s Jersey accent POSSIBLE TRIGGERS (SPOILERS) Sex: none Language: 0 F words, 12 Lord\’s name in vain, 0 S words Violence: fights with myths

My 9 year old son adores these. He is not massively bookish but he has now got through 3 in the series and requested more. I\’ve read a chapter or 2 to him to see what they are like. As expected, good accessible with enough action to keep you interested. The interweaving of Greek mythology into a modern day setting is clever (sort of like blending vegetables into dinner so the kids don\’t notice!) I would recommend. But really the recommendation is that it keeps boys interested in reading…

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