Reviews with content warning for Domestic abuse - The Lightning Thief

As a 31-year-old, I know I'm not the intended audience for this book, but I really enjoyed it now that I'm finally getting around to reading this series! This book came out in 2005, so I was nearly in high school and missed the boat on the series, but I'm really excited to get to the rest of the series now.

I wish these had come out in, like, 2001, because 10-year-old me would have loved this book so much and would have been more mythology-obsessed than I already was. The twist at the end is epic, especially for a YA novel!

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lacrimaeignis's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny inspiring lighthearted tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

If you want a quick read that is fun and mythological inspired then please pick up this series if you haven't yet!!! It's got action and adventure and sass and healthy friendships and makes some very good points about real world issues. I definitely recommend this series to anyone who enjoys mythology or wants to start learning about Greek mythology regardless of age. Yes, it is a middle grade read but adults can enjoy this series just as well as kids.

Percy Jackson has always been a much beloved series for me. I first read the books when I was about 16 years old. I remember being absolutely obsessed from the beginning and read the first 3 books in two days on a two week camping trip and then reread the first book on the way home because I could not find the 4th book in stores on our trip.

Now at 29, I decided to do a reread and I still absolutely loved it! This time, I decided to annotate the book and boy was that fun. I was very nervous to do a reread because I studied Classics in college and being a huge mythology nerd I was afraid I would end up hating the book. Luckily, that wasn't the case. Yes, certain things about myths mentioned had to be changed to fit the narrative or be edited to be age appropriate but overall the myths are still quite accurate. There were also so many moments I had to keep reminding myself of Percy's age in the novel. Also, as an adult, I found myself relating way more to the Chthonic gods mentioned over any other character. I'm very excited to continue my re-read and I can't wait to delve into Percy's latest adventure later this year!

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gerlinen's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.25

Spoiler

All was well up until the heroes reached Tartarus and the story just went stale from there. I don't know if it's cos I'm tryna reconcile my memory of the film with the book but I completely understand why they adjusted the plot in the adaptation cos the revelation of Ares and Luke being the true antagonists was sooo weak.

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morganmendez's review against another edition

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adventurous dark funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

I wish I read these books as a kid who was diagnosed with ADD with dyslexia at such a young age, but I really appreciate it so much now. It’s so fun! I have a good bit of knowledge of Greek mythology, so the cameos would make me excited even when I could tell they were coming.

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sammiesreadathon's review against another edition

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adventurous funny hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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raisinbrann's review against another edition

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adventurous funny inspiring lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

The way Mr. Riordan describes both his characters and the scenes is somehow both evocative and elusive. While I can see exactly what he describes when a character does or feels something, I appreciate that he leaves the actual physical description of his characters (and the gods) to his readers. I spent my childhood reading books where every single person is presumed white unless explicitly stated, it’s been fun to put my own ideas of what Grover and Annabeth look like (they’re both Black, argue with your mother)! This is a fun start to a very formative experience for mythology kids everywhere!

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kefowler's review against another edition

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adventurous medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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