An Egyptian-Greek Mash-Up

When Carter and Percy came together to fight a monster, we thought it was a fluke. A fabulous fluke, mind you, but a fluke nonetheless. Now that Sadie and Annabeth have had to come together to fight a monster, the writing on the wall is clear. Something is going on to bring the Greek and the Egyptian worlds together, and it is scary. IN The Staff of Serapis by Rick Riordan, two beloved series connect once again in magic-wielding, monster fighting goodness. 

Annabeth can't catch a break. Just when she thinks things will be normal for a moment, a monster shows up. But something is wrong with this monster. Not that it has two very different heads and seems to be struggling to work together despite being connected. Nope. It is running away from her! Monsters don't run away from demigods! When she decides to follow it, she is surprised by something even stranger- a girl who can see the monster too! 

OK. I am really hoping all these short stories are leading up to a final Egyptian, Greek Cross-over series by Riordan. Seriously, dude. Don't hold out on us. We need the Kane's and the demigods together in one magnificent series, and we need it now! I don't even need to review this fabulous little short, because we all knew it was going to be awesome. But still, Rick, bro. Please? Give us what we want! Kanes meet demigods! And we want it NOW!

A Few Demigod Shorts

The demigods are as diverse as us mere mortals, and so are their adventures. In this companion to the Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus series' Riordan Riordan gives us a few sneak peaks back in time to fill in gaps around the other stories, and his son, Haley Riordan, takes the groundbreaking series his father started as his own bedtime stories and gives us his first story set in the world of demigods. 

"The Diary of Luke Castellan"
Luke is a character we see as a bad seed, but there has to be more to him. In this diary excerpt, we see Luke and Thalia fighting for their lives out in the world against the monsters who hunt them. What they don't expect is to find another kind of demigod who could be their very undoing. 

"Percy Jackson and the Staff of Hermes"
The gods can be many thing, but one thing they can be counted on for is to need the demigods to do their dirty work. All Percy wants to do is spend time with Annabeth, his newly anointed girlfriend, but Hermes has another plan for their time, and of course, it involves one bizarre and cantankerous monster!

"Leo Valdez and the Quest for Buford"
As a son of Hephaestus, Leo is an amazing tinkerer. Unfortunately, by failing to properly care for a magical end table, he may have lost the key to stopping certain disaster (Windex is NOT the same as Lemon Pledge!). Luckily, his friend would never let him fail. 

"Son of Magic"
Claymore doesn't have time for questions, and certainly not questions that will cause him as much trouble as Alabaster's question. As the leading expert on death, Alabaster hopes Claymore can help him stop the evil woman who is coming after them, but he has no idea how dangerous it is to even know Alabaster. 

This was a cute selection of short stories separated by word jumbles and quizzes to test your knowledge of the Greek vs. Roman gods. The short stories were not necessary for understanding the rest of the series', but they are certainly fun for the Olympus buff. The final story, "Son of Magic," is interestingly written by Riordan's son, Haley Riordan. Before the story, in a short note, he explains the Percy Jackson sagas began as bedtime stories to his son, and Haley was given the opportunity to write a story for this book. To be honest, that story has a very different tone from Rick's stories, which you have to be prepared for (it is very dark!), but I was quite impressed. It is a different kind of story, but the idea that the original audience for these stories delivered this contribution at the age of 16 is pretty impressive! Of course, he doesn't have the same abilities of his father, but if he keeps writing like this, he will get there some day! 

Oh My Gods!

The Roman and the Greek camps have always been divided because the Gods and Goddesses themselves have been divided. In the third installment of The Heroes of Olympus called The Mark of Athena, Rick Riordan brings the biggest sections of the world's mythology together in a way no other author could.

Now that the two camps know about each other, New Rome and Camp Half-Blood, the group from Half-Blood travel to New Rome in an attempt to collect Percy Jackson, their missing hero. They suspect the Roman demigods will have to team up with the Greek demigods in order to keep evil Gaia from reforming and wreaking havoc on earth, but convincing two sides who have always hated one another to cooperate is harder than beating Medusa, or two disco giants, or crazed sea gods who collect monsters. When New Rome thinks the group of demigods has come to harm them, they attack Leo's ship and send the seven from the prophecy running to escape. 

Once they are out of range of New Rome's weapons, the group realizes they have a bigger mission than Gaia- Hazel's brother Nico has been trapped and is quickly running out of time before he suffocates. They must find two evil giants who work for Gaia in order to get him back, but that is easier said than done. meanwhile Annabeth must follow the Mark of Athena, but any children of Athena who have gone before her were lost forever, unsuccessful in their mission. With so much riding on this journey, including Nico's life, the demigods begin to feel the pressure of their mission. Will they get to Nico in time, or will saving the world require some sacrifice?

OK, it is absolutely no shock to anyone that anything Riordan writes is pure genius. If you made it this far, you are a total Riordan freak like myself and would read his grocery lists scribbled on old tissues if he let you. But there is more to  this series these days. So I won't convince you to read these books (because if you haven't already you are missing out!), but I will tell you about the interesting turns in this book.

First, I loved how the mission became so much more serious. There were always issues with death and near death experiences, but the seriousness of this particular mission tangled with the relationships that have formed amongst the group make the stakes much higher. And Percy Jackson, who was missing from the first part of the series, really evolves in this book. He feels left out when other demigods go to speak to the ancient sea gods and is resentful of his inability to help the group. It was a realistic portrayal of this group's age and dynamic, and I think it really drove the series to a place it has never been until now: maturity. It has been fun (hilarious actually), educational (although is getting my mythology from these books like getting my news from the Daily Show?!), and exciting, but these books have always been a little young. Now they are growing up, and you had better get to them before they are gone! 

Two God-Filled Worlds Collide

What do you get when you mix Greek Gods with Roman Gods? One big, fantabulous mess of mythological fun! When you pick up the Heroes of Olympus: Son of Neptune, by Rick Riordan, you will expect to hear about the characters from the first book in the series. But Riordan has a plan... a plan that will make you obsess about the next book a whole year! Riordan is a masterful, evil genius who keeps us engrossed and makes us love his characters like they are our own friends and relatives.

Juno (Roman Hera) had an interesting plan- put a Roman demigod in the Greek camp (Jason) and a Greek demigod in the Roman camp (Percy). What she did next was mean, but it served its purpose- she wiped their memories. In The Lost Hero, we watched Jason find his purpose. In this book, we see Percy meet up with two Roman demigods, Frank and Hazel, to start their part of the quest to stop Gaia from rising. Gaia, the oldest mother goddess of the earth is one mean cookie who will send everything to stop the demigods from foiling her plan to return- mean cyclops, basilisks, even creepy little grain gods. (Imagine being stalked by the God of Wheat?!)

While they know they have a greater purpose, both Hazel, a daughter of Pluto and the underworld, and Frank, a reluctant son of Mars (Ares) still have their own demons to deal with. They embark upon a quest to stop Gaia's first giant son from returning, but they know the Roman camp is still in danger. along their quest, they learn just how dangerous things have gotten out in the mythological and the modern worlds. With monsters and beast roaming around searching for them, they aren't sure they will get their quest finished, let alone get back in time to stop the raid on the camp. But what Gaia and the monsters failed to realize is that Percy and the demigods have friends, lots and lots of friends. Will they defeat the monsters this time? Will it stop Gaia's plot to destroy the Greek and Roman gods forever?

I picked up this book expecting to see Jason, Piper, and Leo, and I was surprised (although not unpleasantly) that this book was not about them. With this new trio, I expect the six will come together with another demigod (Annabeth?) to create the seven from the prophecy that save the world from Gaia. The worst thing about these stories is that a year in between each installment is literally painful. They are so tied to one another that it is awful to wait that long to find out what happens next. I have a feeling I know where Riordan is going with this, but you never know! Ole Ricky is a tricky duck!

Like the other Riordan books, these are phenomenal for all ages. Perfect for middle readers, funny enough for older readers, even my grandmother loves these books! Everything written by this man should be on the selves of every library and classroom in the country. They are so accessible, exciting, and hilarious, they make the perfect go-to book for any struggling or strong reader. Not to mention, it makes everyone wish they were a demigod. Who would you want to be related to? Neptune? Pluto? Hera? Aphrodite? I simply can't decide!

Percy Jackson is MY Hero!

I am sure you have all seen the trailer for the movie of the first installment of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, by Rick Riordan. It looks exciting, action packed, and who can resist Greek Gods and Heroes?! But I have something to important to tell you... I haven't yet seen the movie of course, but I am SURE the books are BETTER. Not only better, mind you. Perhaps even Mind-Blowing! Earth-Shattering! These books are simply addictive.

The first book, The Lightning Thief, is about a young boy who bounces from school to school thanks to the trouble that always seems to follow him. It also doesn't help that he is dyslexic and has ADHD. Then, something mysterious happens while he is on a short vacation with his mother- monsters seem to be following him! A minotaur to be exact! Percy and his friend Grover survive the Minotaur attack by the skin of their teeth and find themselves at Camp Half-Blood. There, Percy finds out he is actually a demigod- the son of a Greek God. And once he is claimed by his father, Poseidon, he finds out he carries a great burden. Percy must stop a battle of the Gods by recovering Zeus' lightning bolt. In this hilarious, action-packed first installment you learn to love all the half-bloods and their mythical friends like the naiads, satyrs, and centaurs.

In the second book, The Sea of Monsters, you find Percy and Annabeth off to save their satyr buddy, Grover, when he finds himself trapped with a scary Cyclops who wants to make Grover his wife. When they arrive at the Cyclops' lair, they realize he has the Golden Fleece- the only thing that can heal the Thalia Tree which protects the boundaries of Camp Half-Blood from monsters and mortals alike. Battling flesh-eating sheep, a half-blind cyclops with an attitude, and learning about his interesting new sibling, Percy's adventures continue to keep you hooked and laughing.

The Titan's Curse continues the amazing tales of Percy, Grover, Tyson, and Annabeth. With another Half-Blood definitely stirring the ancient pot to get revenge on his wayward father, the group must find a way to slow down the raising of the Titan Kronos. This includes saving two new Half-Bloods, losing Annabeth (but to where they have no idea), and coming across the Goddess Artemis and her Hunters- beautiful, immortal pre-teen girls with a silvery glow and arrows that could nail a fly at 50 paces. Don't forget the creepy General and his forces at the Hoover Dam!

The Battle of the Labyrinth really heats up the stories as Percy and his friends are forced to enter The Labyrinth- Daedalus' masterpiece that is full of monsters, tricks, prisons, and any number of ways to torture or imprison a demigod. Unfortunately, the demigod turned evil Titan-raiser, Luke, has been sending spies to navigate the Labyrinth. And now the demigods know why- there is an entrance to the Labyrinth right in the middle of Camp Half-Blood. If Luke's forces can find it, they won't have to worry about crossing the Camp's magical boundaries because they will pop out right in the middle of the camp. So Percy and the group set off to find Daedalus and seek his help, but they bite off more than they can chew with this excursion.

And finally, The Last Olympian sails the series home with an amazing final chapter in Percy Jackson's story. The battle of Manhattan has come and Percy and the Half-Bloods are the only thing standing between the Titan army and Mount Olympus (which is conveniently perched atop the Empire State Building). With the Gods all fighting the Titan Typhon as he tears his way across the country headed straight for New York, the heroes are the only hope to saving the era of the Gods. But with the Ares cabin refusing to fight, the demigod's seriously depleting from defecting heroes going to the Titan's side, and a whole host of strange prophecies, visions, and dreams, this is going to be a battle no one will ever forget- unless of course the Mist does its job!

These books are quite simply amazing. Every review I have read or blog I have perused makes the same comparison to Harry Potter, but I think that cheapens the greatness of these novels. They are amazing, and by Gods! They can stand on their own! And how great is it that the books explain all the demigods' ADHD and dyslexia as being a side-effect of being a demigod who is always ready for action and heroism and can read Greek better than English?! I literally couldn't put these books down, and have taken it upon myself to get as many people to read them as possible- you won't be sorry! Well, you will be sad when you finish the fifth book of course, because you want more- but you won't be sorry you read them! Bring Percy, Grover, Tyson, Annabeth, and all the other Gods, creatures and characters into your life- the Gods are telling you to!