Title: The Last Olympian, Percy Jackson and The Olympians #5
Author: Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney Hyperion Books for Children
Publication Date: May 5, 2009
Format: Paperback, 381 pages
Genre: Juvenile/ Middle Grades Fiction, Fantasy
Summary from website:
All year the half-bloods have been preparing for battle against the Titans, knowing the odds of victory are grim. Kronos’s army is stronger than ever, and with every god and half-blood he recruits, the evil Titan’s power only grows.
While the Olympians struggle to contain the rampaging monster Typhon, Kronos begins his advance on New York City, where Mount Olympus stands virtually unguarded. Now it’s up to Percy Jackson and an army of young demigods to stop the Lord of Time.
In this momentous final book in the New York Times best-selling Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the long-awaited prophecy surrounding Percy’s sixteenth birthday unfolds. And as the battle for Western civilization rages on the streets of Manhattan, Percy faces a terrifying suspicion that he may be fighting against his own fate.
Review:
***There are some spoilers, so read at your own risk***
I have yet to mention how much I enjoy the chapter titles. Some from The Last Olympian are:
Chapter 1: I go cruising with explosives
Chapter 5: I drive my dog into a tree
Chapter 18: My parents go commando
Chapter 19: We trash the eternal city
They always make me chuckle. I think the cover for this book is my favorite. The greenish-shite and black colors, the perspective, and the art deco feel, the way Percy's sword (in a goldish yellow) pops off the cover, it's an attention grabber. There's also a Battle Map of Manhattan after the table of contents, so readers definitely know what they're in for at the start.
Percy's summer has been busy and unpleasant, and is coming to a close (which everyone thinks means war and his potential death). The demigods have spent the summer training hard and ambushing Kronos' army. Fortunately, Percy has been able to take short breaks from camp to visit with his mom, stepfather, and his friend Rachel Elizabeth Dare. In fact, Percy is at the beach, practicing his driving skills with Rachel (who wants him to practice his parking skills) when they're inturrupted by a camper and a pegasus landing on the hood of the car. It's time for Percy and the other demigod (I'm not telling you who) to sabatoge the Princess Andromeda (the cruise ship carrying part of the monster army). While the ship is destroyed, there are losses, and Percy is so badly injured that he has to recover at his father's palace.
From there, Percy sees the damage that the Titans and ancient monsters are taking on his father and the underwater realm. (There is also a rather uncomfortable meeting with his stepmother and half-brother Triton.) The story moves along, sending our favorite half-blood back to camp in time for a funeral, bad news, and mounting pressure angainst the gods. Niko has a plan, not a very safe one, but one that might work, if Percy is strong enough.
There is a lot of loss in The Last Olympian, and the book pretty much starts with it. While most campers were more like background characters, one death particular was very sad. Riordan mentions everything this character had going for them (skills, college, a significant other) to further underline the unfairness of the demigods' lives and the awfulness of Kronos' war. What's very gratifying is that a lot of loose ends are tied up. We learn why Luke chose the path he did, how Olympian parents are trapped by the restraints of prophecies as much as their children, Niko's origans, and the ending is satisfying and a little sad. (It's so hard to write this review without giving too much away.)
I enjoyed The Last Olympian, but it seemed... long. Not in a bad way, but once the battle started going, there were these lulls. Maybe "lull" isn't correct. It just seemed like the battle stopped and started a lot. It was still a good story and a good end to the series.
The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series in order:
Verdict:
As I said earlier, there is a lot of loss and violence in this book. It's not gratuitous, but it's sad and it might be harder on younger readers. Fourth grade and up shouldn't have any problems. A very satisfying read, but I'm going to give it 4 stars because of the stops and starts in the action at the end.
Related Reviews:
Read in a Single Sitting review
The Spotted Mushroom review
Life With Karma review
Other online resources:
Rick Riordan's website (includes a recommended reading list for kids)
Rick Riordan's blog
Percy Jackson and The Olympians US website
Percy Jackson and The Olympians UK website
Giveaway Registration:
International giveaway for the complete set of Percy Jackson and The Olympians
US giveaway for a pre-order copy of The Lost Hero, The Heroes of Olympus book #1
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4 comments:
I really need to start the series..Thanks for sharing ;p
October 6, 2010 12:32 PMi loved this one the most out of all 5, thought it was a crazy good ending :) and i liked the violence/fighting :p plus i think percy just grew up a bit more, which rocked. nice review!
October 9, 2010 6:18 PMthis book completely BLEW ME AWAY!!! It has everything: romance, action, suspense. I love how Percy and Annabeth fall in love at the end. You can really tell that the characters have matured a lot and it makes me want to start at the beginning all over again. So basically I LOVED the book and I think it was the best book in the series BY FAR!!! I am really going to miss this series a lot!!!!!!!
October 11, 2011 9:04 PMThanks so much for linking to my review. I've really enjoyed this series, and look forward to Riordan's next one. :)
February 6, 2012 8:48 PMPost a Comment