The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan: Started* Review

The Heroes of Olympus series feels like reading a Pixar film. Not Cars 2 or Wreck It Ralph, but a 2005 kind of Pixar film that gets 97% on Rotten Tomatoes. It’s funny, squeaky clean and well paced, and it’s been polished until nearly everything, even reading it, looks like a cartoon. There’s nothing to complain about. But there’s probably never going to be that much substance to think about either. 

That doesn’t mean I can’t be over the Empire State Building every time Percy and Annabeth have a dramatic moment (less than the corner half three-fourths of my brain that is still twelve years old would like). But the over polished, Disney-ified feel does take something away from these books. The first five had a bit rougher edge to them somehow that I feel like we've lost. The evolution of Camp Half-Blood has its benefits and its drawbacks.

I grew up reading Rick’s** books, and the first five Percy Jackson novels will always have a very special, geek-friendly place in my heart. The Heroes of Olympus series is different, but unlike most follow up series, (cough, cough, three more books in the City of Bones series, really, cough, cough) these novels actually feel necessary to the story established during Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

When I met Rick at a signing on his Lost Hero tour, I asked him why he felt the need to create a follow-up series. He said, in Greek mythology there was a natural kind of “follow-up series” to the Titan war, and he wanted to mirror that in his stories. I smiled and nodded and thought, Confound the gods of Olympus, don’t give me sensible trash answer. We all know it was for the money. But the more I read this series, I realize I was wrong. These books really do build on the last five. I don’t regret reading them.

Out of everything I’ve ever read aloud, I prefer Rick Riordan books. I’m currently employed reading The Mark of Athena to a group of 10-13 year olds. I have the best excuse in the world to still be reading these books in high school. I can make any character I feel like at the moment British while reading. And while my voice box is slowly disintegrating from overuse, I'm not ready to give up on the Olympians just yet. In Mark of Athena, Rick has provided me with a decent excuse not to grow up. Again. 

Fingers crossed he'll pull through for us one more time next fall. 

For a spoiler full review of Mark of Athena, book signing reviews (including Neal Shusterman and Shannon Hale), and SLC readers' guide to the best local reading nooks, check back here at Read My Print every Friday this fall.

*When I was little and saw "A Starred Review!" on the back of a book, I always read it wrong. I thought it said 'started' and meant that the dumb book critic had only bothered to read the first few pages. Come on, people.
 I get the real process now, but have written this article as a genuine started review. Seeing as Mark of Athena is over five hundred pages long, I didn't think it would be fair to make you wait that long for an article. This review is based on my experience reading the series and the new book so far. 


**I can’t bring myself to be mature enough to call this guy by his last name like a real, sensible book review. I just can’t. Secretly I am twelve years old, I swear.