If Only She Stayed a Tree: The Titan’s Curse Review

The Titan’s Curse
by Rick Riordan

Genre: Fantasy-Adventure, Young Adult, Greek Mythos
Pages:  304 pages

Summary: When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped. And now it’s up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess? They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared—a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever.

BARON REVIEW:  I was never a huge fan of Thalia or Nico jumping in on the prophesy at the last second. They both felt like a combination of Scrappy Doo and Jade from Jackie Chan Adventures stealing all the glory from the already established and beloved protagonists.

The world would finally make sense. 

The sexist antics of the Artemis Hunters didn’t amuse me either. I’m all for female power… but there’s just something creepy about the amazonian Artemis Hunters and their pretentious cult.

When I first read this book it was by far, my least favorite of the three written. Going back and re-reading the book however has made me realize that the book really isn’t all that bad. When I let go a little of my hatred of Thalia, a girl who reminded me far too much of girls I knew in high school, the book doesn’t upset me nearly as much.

I just couldn’t take Thalia. She was the type of personality that rubs me the wrong way. The bossy know-it-all who can’t ever admit when she’s wrong. Who hides behind make up, whacky hair and spikes to cover up her own insecurities. However, once Thalia joined the hunters, she became a lot less annoying to me. And once Zoe died, well, the Hunters seemed a lot less pretentious.

But these are all a matter of opinion. This book is still just as well handled as the other books in the series. I still enjoyed reading it. And even if re-reading it a fourth time didn’t cause me to warm up to Thalia, it did make me see her from a new angle. Once you understand why she acts the way she does, she’s a lot more tolerable.

Still annoying… but more tolerable.

Quality: ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 out of 5
Enjoyment: ★ ★ ★  3 out of 5
Rereadable: It may be one of my least favorite in the series but I’ll probably pick it up again as I go through the rest of the books.
Overall: ☺ Good book

Going Back to Our Roots: The Sea of Monsters Review

The Sea of Monsters
by Rick Riordan

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Greek Mythos
Pages:  279 pages

Summary: The heroic son of Poseidon makes an action-packed comeback in the second must-read installment of Rick Riordan’s amazing young readers series. Starring Percy Jackson, a “half blood” whose mother is human and whose father is the God of the Sea, Riordan’s series combines cliffhanger adventure and Greek mythology lessons that results in true page-turners that get better with each installment. In this episode, The Sea of Monsters, Percy sets out to retrieve the Golden Fleece before his summer camp is destroyed, surpassing the first book’s drama and setting the stage for more thrills to come.

BARON REVIEW: This book, unlike the first one, is based on the Odyssey and Aeneid myths (mainly the Odyssey); which could be seen as a good and kinda of a bad thing. I personally enjoyed it. It brought more of the actual mythology into the series, whereas before the myths were more of Riordan’s loose modern interpretations. This worked well for the first book but I’m glad he brought it back to its roots in the second. Gave it a more structured adventure quest feel.

However, I do think that it also feels a bit disconnected when held in comparison to other books in the series. The Sea of Monsters book takes place in, you guessed it, the sea of monsters. A whole different plane of existence than what Percy and the others have been currently romping about in. When they finally do make it back to land- it’s a little jarring; after all that time they spent in the metaphorical narnia wardrobe (i.e. the bermuda triangle).

Still, I enjoyed the character development. The introduction of Percy’s step brother was an interesting twist. And even Thalia being thrown into the mix promised to be exciting. (I end up not enjoying Thalia at all but that’s for a different review at a different time.)

All in all, I loved this book almost as much as the first. I had to give it five stars as well. Great book for kids and the young at heart.

Quality: ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 out of 5
Enjoyment: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★  5 out of 5
Rereadable: This was like standard greek mythology retold in a modern setting. Of course I’ll be rereading it.
Overall: ❤ Awesomesauce book

Greek Mythology Is In Again! Somebody Get My Toga: The Lightning Thief Review

The Lightning Thief
by Rick Riordan

Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Greek Mythos
Pages:  377 pages

Summary: Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school… again. And that’s the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy’s Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he’s angered a few of them. Zeus’ master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus’ stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

BARON REVIEW: I really was taken by surprise with this book. I went into reading it a skeptic and came out a fan. Now by no means is this book the crème de la crème of writing. But as a young adult novel, it does its job well. I loved how mythology and modern adventure were combined to create this new world that I actually bought hook line and sinker.

I actually use this book as framework for my own novel. This is the best kind of protagonist. The down on his luck kid who’s pretty average but then becomes extraordinary. These are the kinds of heros I like to read about. I think Riordan really hit the nail on the head with this book. And the massive following that exploded behind these series really shows it.  Percy’s a good protagonist. He has a strong voice and carries the story well.

I think the world was what sold it to me. I love ancient mythology and reading a modern take on it was just bound to thrill me. Heck, I even liked Disney’s take on Hercules for the same reason.

I won’t say much more because I’d like to keep at least some of my reviews spoiler free. But I’ll just say that I enjoyed this book. If you enjoy adventure novels with a bit of the fantastic thrown in and don’t mind YA books, then I’d say- give this book a chance. You’ll probably enjoy it too.

Just don’t use the movie as any comparison. The movie was really bad.

Quality: ★ ★ ★ ★ 4 out of 5
Enjoyment: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5 out of 5
Rereadable: My paperback is starting to show some wear and tear, I’ve reread this so many times.
Overall: ❤ Awesomesauce book