Sunday, May 26, 2013

Book Review: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan


THE LOST HERO by RICK RIORDAN
(The Heroes of Olympus Series)
Book 1


Genre:
Young Adult
Fantasy/Mythology

Published:
October 12th 2010 by Hyperion Books for Children
Literary Awards:
Goodreads Choice Award Nominee for Favorite Book, Young Adult Fantasy (2010)
Pages:
Hardcover
557
My Rating:
 ☆☆☆☆
(4.5)
SYNOPSIS:
Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up in a bus full of kids on a field trip. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper and a best friend named Leo. They’re all students at a boarding school for “bad kids.” What did Jason do to end up here? And where is here, exactly?

Piper has a secret. Her father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out.

Leo has a way with tools. When he sees his cabin at Camp Half-Blood, filled with power tools and machine parts, he feels right at home. But there’s weird stuff, too—like the curse everyone keeps talking about. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist that each of them—including Leo—is related to a god.
MY THOUGHTS:
 Jason wakes up on a bus full of kids, next to a pretty girl named Piper who is holding his hand and another guy named Leo who claims to be his best friend, but he can't remember a thing. Not even his name. Next thing he knows is that they are being attacked by storm spirits on the edge of the Grand Canyon and being whisked off in a flying chariot to some camp. Why can't he remember anything and why doesn't any of this come as a surprise to him? Better yet, how does he know the things he knows if he can't even remember who he is or where he came from?

Rick Riordan is such a talented writer. He took mythology and made it the 'craze' among readers of all ages. The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series has been compared to Harry Potter in terms of popularity and it is totally worth the hype. They really are amazing books and I've seen people of all ages fall in love with them. The Heroes of Olympus series is closely tied to the Percy Jackson series and pretty much continues off from the last book, with a few new main characters but also with the much beloved older ones as well. We are thrust back into the world of demi-gods, Camp Half-Blood, and Greek Gods/Goddesses. But The Heroes of Olympus goes a little further and includes many new elements such as the Roman Gods and wraps them all into this wonderfully suspenseful and adventurous story.

I especially enjoyed the return of characters, such as Annabeth, but loved how we were given all new characters to befriend. These characters are faced with dire events and consequences that really make you 'feel' for them and their plights. I personally liked Leo the most. I thought his character was the most prominently described, even if he felt like a third wheel. He was well written, with a personality that didn't waver, a sense of humor, and a hobby that saved them many times. Piper was very likeable as well even though I can't say much about her without giving away her god/goddess parentage. She was always true to herself even when faced with a great and terrible decision. Jason was, I think, the most vague character, possibly from his memory loss, but still the most important character of the story. Over all, Riordan knows how to create awesome, memorable characters and I'm very glad that he continued the Olympian stories.

I just loved all the new elements that Riordan included in The Lost Hero; new characters, new settings, new evil. I can't wait to continue on with this series!


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