Book Review: The Son of Neptune
I just finished the Son of Neptune (hereafter SoN) yesterday. And now I am going to blog about it.
NOTE: This is Book #2 in the Heroes of Olympus books. (Book #1 is titled The Lost Hero)
The Son of Neptune
Rick Riordan
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi (Greek Mythology isn't a genre, but there is much of that in this book, but with a Roman spin on things)
Summary:
Percy is confused. When he awoke from his long sleep, he didn't know much more than his name. His brain fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa told him he is a demigod and trained him to fight with the pen/sword in his pocket. Somehow Percy manages to make it to a camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he has to keep killing monsters along the way/ But the camp doesn't ring any bells with him. The only thing he can recall from his past is another name: Annabeth
Thoughts:
I was really actually quite pleased with book #2 in this series. Sometimes the author of a series does excellent on the first book and flops on the second, or vice versa. This one I think was really quite good, perhaps better than the first.
The language was clean, although there was a horse cursing through its horsey language about its sore hooves. No, the horse really wasn't talking, and no, they didn't say any bad words in the book. Percy's just gifted with the art of understanding horsey language.
The plot was excellent. There was a lot of times where the author threw in a curveball that I failed to catch, and therefore, was not ready for the tidbit of information that I forgot and was flung back in my face like a flying squirrel on a sugar high. That was actually something I was looking for when reading this book. Can the author catch me off guard? Can he keep me guessing through the whole book? The answer was yes. He caught me off guard, he kept me guessing.
The humor? I was laughing so hard that I earned myself odd looks when I was sitting on a memorial reading it. But then again, I'm a totally insane writer, so it doesn't bother me. The author threw in some super ironic things and when using a simile like, "the trio ran across the border like a flock of geese" (that wasn't really in the book, I just made it up for an example) the author would usually then say, "the flock of geese descended to the battlefield with their swords drawn, yelling hoarsely." Which I thought was a great idea. Take your similes and twist them into something funny. There also was a part in the book where the rainbow goddess, Iris, gives someone a man purse to carry his stuff in and had him recover by eating wheat germ. That had me laughing again, and earned me even MORE odd looks.
The characters had their individual personalities, which I always look for, and the author did well with their characterization. (How they changed from the beginning of the book to the end.) That was something that gave boosted the rating as well.
This time, unlike the first, there wasn't any editorial typos. I kept an eagle-eye watch for those, and thankfully, I found none.
Star Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰
5 Stars. I don't give this rating lightly, only for the ones I like most. This is going on my list of "Corners of Awesomeness" *writes down SoN on paper* And ta-da! It is now on the most coveted list in the world of books.
<3 Seana
PS: To the right of this post, you see the picture of the guy with the teddy bear right? If you've read the book you know who it is. (: He's so odd. How rude of him to take Percy's panda pillow pet! >:( Bad Octavian! Bad!
NOTE: This is Book #2 in the Heroes of Olympus books. (Book #1 is titled The Lost Hero)
The Son of Neptune
Rick Riordan
Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi (Greek Mythology isn't a genre, but there is much of that in this book, but with a Roman spin on things)
Summary:
Percy is confused. When he awoke from his long sleep, he didn't know much more than his name. His brain fuzz is lingering, even after the wolf Lupa told him he is a demigod and trained him to fight with the pen/sword in his pocket. Somehow Percy manages to make it to a camp for half-bloods, despite the fact that he has to keep killing monsters along the way/ But the camp doesn't ring any bells with him. The only thing he can recall from his past is another name: Annabeth
Hazel is supposed to be dead. When she lived before, she didn't do a very good job of it. Sure, she was an obedient daughter, even when her mother was possessed by greed. But that was the problem--when the Voice took over her mother and commanded Hazel to use her "gift" for an evil purpose, Hazel couldn't say no. Now, because of her mistake, the future of the world is at risk. Hazel wishes she could ride away form it all on the stallion that appears in her dreams.
Frank is a klutz. His grandmother says he descended from heroes and can be anything he wants to be, but he doesn't see it. He doesn't even know who his father is. He keeps hoping Apollo will claim him, because the only thing he is good at is archery--although not good enough to win camp war games. His bulky physique makes him feel like and ox, especially in front of Hazel, his closest friend at camp. He trusts her completely--enough to share the secret he holds close to his heart.
Thoughts:
I was really actually quite pleased with book #2 in this series. Sometimes the author of a series does excellent on the first book and flops on the second, or vice versa. This one I think was really quite good, perhaps better than the first.
The language was clean, although there was a horse cursing through its horsey language about its sore hooves. No, the horse really wasn't talking, and no, they didn't say any bad words in the book. Percy's just gifted with the art of understanding horsey language.
The plot was excellent. There was a lot of times where the author threw in a curveball that I failed to catch, and therefore, was not ready for the tidbit of information that I forgot and was flung back in my face like a flying squirrel on a sugar high. That was actually something I was looking for when reading this book. Can the author catch me off guard? Can he keep me guessing through the whole book? The answer was yes. He caught me off guard, he kept me guessing.
The humor? I was laughing so hard that I earned myself odd looks when I was sitting on a memorial reading it. But then again, I'm a totally insane writer, so it doesn't bother me. The author threw in some super ironic things and when using a simile like, "the trio ran across the border like a flock of geese" (that wasn't really in the book, I just made it up for an example) the author would usually then say, "the flock of geese descended to the battlefield with their swords drawn, yelling hoarsely." Which I thought was a great idea. Take your similes and twist them into something funny. There also was a part in the book where the rainbow goddess, Iris, gives someone a man purse to carry his stuff in and had him recover by eating wheat germ. That had me laughing again, and earned me even MORE odd looks.
The characters had their individual personalities, which I always look for, and the author did well with their characterization. (How they changed from the beginning of the book to the end.) That was something that gave boosted the rating as well.This time, unlike the first, there wasn't any editorial typos. I kept an eagle-eye watch for those, and thankfully, I found none.
Star Rating: ✰✰✰✰✰
5 Stars. I don't give this rating lightly, only for the ones I like most. This is going on my list of "Corners of Awesomeness" *writes down SoN on paper* And ta-da! It is now on the most coveted list in the world of books.
<3 Seana
PS: To the right of this post, you see the picture of the guy with the teddy bear right? If you've read the book you know who it is. (: He's so odd. How rude of him to take Percy's panda pillow pet! >:( Bad Octavian! Bad!
Octavian is my favorite. I'm big on self-promotion, so please read this:
ReplyDeletehttp://insideliamsbrain.wordpress.com/2012/01/16/the-son-of-neptune-and-the-mark-of-athena/
It's a combination review and prediction for the next book, coming out on October second.
I enjoyed your review, and think you're spot-on. This was definitely better than the first.
Aha. That was a really great review that you did. With much predictions that I can see happening in the book, and brilliant code names, stir well and you've got a great mix.
ReplyDeleteGlad you enjoyed this review. I'm going to head to the library soon to see if I can find anymore good books since my READ ME list is down to zero. Again.
Well, I'd have a suggestion, perhaps. I'd need to know your age before suggesting anything, however, because I cannot quell my protective spirit while speaking of YA fantasy/fiction. If you're younger than 14, I wouldn't suggest it. (It isn't that bad, though...)
DeleteAye, I am but a year below that age there. I've been told I am an advanced reader, but what on earth would you classify "advanced" as when it comes to the content? What is this book you are speaking of anyways? I can always read some reviews on it and whatnot before deciding to read or not.
DeleteI recently did a double review, half of which was devoted to this book: Airborn. It's quite good. If you were fine with the concepts in HG, I think you'd be okay with this trilogy. The first book is perfectly clean, however.
DeleteAh, scrap it all. Go read Airborn. It's by Kenneth Oppel. If you like it, read the other two.
Hmm. My library has the first and second ones in. It is a trilogy I take it?
DeleteIndeed it is, as I said in my comment...
DeleteAha. I must have skimmed over that. Oops.
DeleteI skim over things all the.
Delete