The Heroes of Olympus, Book 1: The Lost Hero (Heroes of Olympus Series) [ペーパーバック]

When I first heard that Rick Riordan was setting another series in the same universe that he had created for Percy Jackson, I was both excited and a little wary. Excited because I had enjoyed that world and felt it had lots of potential for new adventures; wary because I feared the new series might not meet my expectations and that, if it didn't, it might somehow cast a pall over my affection for the Percy Jackson books. I need not have worried. The Lost Hero, the first book in that new series - the Heroes of Olympus - managed to meet all of my expectations and did so in a style that made me glad Riordan had gone ahead with the idea. While having read the Percy Jackson books is not a pre-requisite for enjoying The Lost Hero, I do think those who have done so will be able to immerse themselves in this world much more quickly and will enjoy the book more than those unfamiliar with Percy's story.

The Lost Hero introduces three new main characters - Jason, who has no memory of his life before page one of the story, Piper, a girl with "kaleidoscope eyes" (all together now - Lucy in the sky-yi with diamonds...) who has the gift of persuading people to give her things and Leo, whose clever and creative hands need to be always busy. As the story begins, the three are part of a group from a school for troubled kids on a field trip to the horseshoe shaped Skywalk that curves out over the Grand Canyon. Since the very existence of this Skywalk in real life kind of freaks me out (seriously, have you seen the pictures of it?), I wasn't particularly surprised when freaky occurrences ensued almost as soon as our new heroes stepped onto it.

Readers are pitched head-first into one of the first forays in a new battle the demi-gods will soon find themselves embroiled in. In short order we learn that the gods have gone silent and that Percy Jackson is missing. Jason, Piper and Leo are all having visions, dreams or reawakened memories, many of which revolve around Hera who, we discover, is being held prisoner. Along with a new Great Prophecy (Seven half-bloods shall answer the call/To storm or fire the world must fall/An oath to keep with a final breath/and foes bear arms to the Doors of Death), a new quest must be undertaken by the trio of newbies to find and free Hera.

I appreciate that Riordan continues to give us both strong female and ethnically diverse characters and that he seems able to hit many of the right notes in depicting teenage language, actions and emotions. For me, he has a knack for making his characters seem real and believable and, in The Lost Hero, he once again succeeds in making me care about them. My sympathy for and interest in the trio builds as details of their lives are revealed in the early chapters of the book (each chapter is told from either Jason, Piper or Leo's third person POV) and by the time they head off on their quest, I'm fully invested in seeing them through their adventures.

One of my favorite aspects of The Lost Hero is the inclusion of Roman mythology with the Greek that was the focus in the Percy Jackson series. I found the discussions of the subtle differences in the gods from one culture to the other really interesting and reading about them made me want to learn more about both.

Lastly, for those dying to know, Percy Jackson definitely plays a role in this series. How significant that role will be remains to be seen. Next up in the series is The Son of Neptune, due in the fall of 2011.

Highly recommended. Riordan has laid the groundwork here for another fun and exciting series and I'm already looking forward to the next book.

Rick Riordan's son told him that The Lost Hero, the first in the author's new Heroes of Olympus series, was his best book yet, even better than break-out sensation Percy Jackson and the Olympians. He was absolutely right. In May, I said The Red Pyramid, the first in new Egyptian series The Kane Chronicles was Riordan's best book yet. I loved the way he had come into his own as an author with a distinguished voice all his own. Unlike with PJ, you weren't comparing things to other popular series such as Harry Potter. This was a Rick Riordan book. It was HIM. I'll say the same thing about The Lost Hero. Riordan has really become a talented storyteller.

One thing I love about Riordan is the way he uses mythology, a genre that's always been dear to my heart. One thing that made The Kane Chronicles so fantastic was the fact that I learned so much about Egyptian mythology. I already knew a lot of the Greek mythology emphasized in PJ and it wasn't as detailed. With The Lost Hero, even though Riordan is delving into Greek mythology once more, he's taking the time to focus on little-known details and facts. There's a lot more information on the Romans, for example, as well as little-known gods and goddesses such as Khione, the goddess of snow.

The new book feels very tight and detailed. By the time the five-book series reaches its conclusion, there will be an epic tale for readers to return to. I like the way Riordan made the decision to split the book into the viewpoints of three different demigods, much as he did with The Kane Chronicles. It really allowed you to get into the head of everyone on the quest, not just one of the heroes. You could see the way they each struggled to come to terms with their new powers and immortal parents in their own way. I anticipate that every book will be this way as we are introduced to each of the seven demigods revealed in the Great Prophecy. I also feel that there's a good chance the next book will feature characters we haven't met yet and that the heroes we've encountered in this volume either won't appear at all, or not until the finale. If this proves to be the case, it will further solidify Riordan's merit as an extremely talented writer; breaking your characters up between volumes writers can make the writing process harder, as seen by struggles that have delayed authors such as George R. R. Martin from releasing material more frequently.

As with his other books, Riordan creates a fast, nail-biting pace from the get-go in his new series and introduces new characters for his readers to fall in love with. There's Jason, whose name brings back memories of one of the greatest heroes of old, Piper, who takes everyone by surprise by having such powerful gifts, especially given her parentage, and finally Leo, a son of Hephaestus with a wicked cool toolbelt and a penchant for fire-breathing dragons. We're also given updates regarding the new of what has become of our favorite heroes and heroines from the first Camp Half-Blood series. The nice thing about The Lost Hero is that you don't have to read the PJ series in order to get into this one. The two series complement one another and work together, but for a first-time reader, things will still make sense.

The series is designed to keep readers on their toes. If you're astute and know your mythology, you'll probably realize who the main villain is early on. Given enough clues, you'll probably realize the truth about Jason as well. There's also a good chance that you may figure out the truth revealed in the final chapter (and the reason Riordan wouldn't reveal the name of the next book at the live simulcast launch party on Tuesday). At the same time, you may be blown away with each new discovery. I tend to be one of those readers who reads too many books for her own good and learned how to read with a critical eye, which makes fooling me harder than most. At the same time, I still thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Some of my theories were very wrong and proven to be from almost the beginning, others developed as the novel progressed and I had an "Ah-ha!" moment, pleased with myself when my suspicions proved true. I was so involved in the novel and fate of all the characters. I wish I had the next book in my greedy little hands already. Scratch that. I wish I had the next two, if we don't get to see these characters again until book three.

If you liked Percy Jackson (or even disliked it due to its similarities to other novels, like some people I know) or enjoy mythology, this book is one of this fall's must-reads. My only hope for the rest of the series is that a closer eye is paid to the editing process. You could tell the book was rushed to press; I'm one of those annoying readers that can be pulled out of the moment when there's a word or comma where there shouldn't be (or something glaringly missing, too). These books are too good to let such neglect mar them and allow for criticism in the future.

First, I highly recommend reading the Percy Jackson books first (but don't bother with the movie -- it kinda sucked). It's not essential for understanding the story, but that way you're able to jump right in and enjoy.

Lost Hero takes place a few months after Last Olympian. Enter Jason, a boy with no memory, and his friends Piper and Leo. They make their way into Camp Half Blood, and are granted a quest to rescue a goddess. But this isn't simply a rehashing of Percy Jackson, for there are surprising complications, and of course, new monsters to face. We briefly get to see Annabeth, who is fiercely searching for Percy Jackson who is missing. And Rachel makes an appearance, and a prophecy or two. This was a fun read, with great characters, and just different enough that you don't feel like you're being told the same story as last time.

Fair warning: Lost Hero is the first in the series, so by reading this, you are setting yourself up for a long wait. This story wraps up one story arc, but throws out teasers of what's to come.

As an aside, I miss the awesome chapter titles from the Percy Jackson books.

These are also great books to listen to. Jesse Bernstein did a great job of narrating the Percy Jackson books.