Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Percy Jackson: The Titan's Curse Book Review

Rawr Reader,

   This is the third book in the Percy Jackson series, The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan. The synopsis is provided by Goodreads:


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.


Reference:
    This is the third in a series and I own the box set, so the first two books! :)


Review:
(safe for those who haven't read this book yet)
   I'm determined to finishing this series before returning to school, and these are easy reads so I'm quite confident I will. And I'm loving this series so much, while I can't wait to see how it all ends, I'll be a little sad to say bye to Percy and Annabeth (who I keep calling Annabelle, woops!) and Grover and everyone at Camp Half-Blood. But no more sappy Nicole, on to the review!
  While I enjoyed the story more or less, I found this one to be a bit slower paced. I had so much fun with the second one, and this one I was a little disappointed for a slow start. But, I'm never a fan of beginnings, so it's just a personal issue. However, this book absolutely doesn't disappoint with adventure and action and new monsters! Also we meet some new characters in this book that just blows this series even more out of the spectrum of epic, I seriously cannot see how Riordan can keep the ball rolling. 
   And while I liked the adventure, it was simply liked, not really finding any favorite moments until the end. The humor in this book wasn't as omnipresent as the preceding ones. Actually, in a way this one was a little sadder (no spoilers!). 
    And I don't remember why or when, but all I know is when reading this story, I truly began to appreciate how cool Riptide is. It's probably the coolest weapon ever to exist and if I were a half-blood, I'd want one. Heck, I want one now! Just the fact that you can throw it to your enemy or lose it and BAM it'll return to you. It's like a never ending ammunition sword, which doesn't make sense but I swear it does in my head. xD
    There are more characters that are introduced, gods, half-bloods, monsters, titans, perceptive mortals, this story gives a new meaning to family and friendship. I'm beginning to get suspicious about certain character's motives, and I wonder how Riordan will play them out. And I loved the black pegasus, Blackjack. Every time he said boss, I just heard it in a Boston accent-- please tell me someone else did, or another accent maybe?
    Just like the second book, the ending reveals some important stuff for the rest of the series and is continuing to set the stage for the finale and Aghhh I can't wait! I'm pretty sure that Riordan isn't going to disappoint and can't wait for the Heroes of Olympus series to all come out so I can get the boxed set and also read the Kane Chronicles which revolves around Egyptian gods and such. :)
    Out of all the books, I have to say this book cover is my favorite. Followed by the second one, The Sea of Monsters and the fourth one, The Battle of the Labyrinth. The first and last covers are all right. 

I give this book 3.5/5 stars.


Author's Quote:
“Boys are usually forbidden to have any contact with the Hunters. The last one to see this camp…” She looked at Zoe. “Which one was it?”
That boy in Colorado,” Zoe said. “You turned him into a jackalope.”
Ah, yes.” Artemis nodded, satisfied. “I enjoy making jackalopes…” 
― Rick Riordan, The Titan's Curse


My Goodreads:


Next To Read:
Percy Jackson: The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan


River Song's Spoilers:
(unsafe for those who haven't read this book yet, so don't read this section)
   Okay, starting this book I was so excited, so when it had a slow start I was painfully waiting for the story to pick up. It sort of got interesting when Artemis was introduced, but I didn't know that she and her Huntresses would play important roles throughout the remainder of the story. Especially Zoë. Yeah, when she died I was really sad. But I think her final words, that scene overall was really beautiful, definitely one of my favorite moments in the series.
   When Bianca di Angelo died, I was a little caught off guard. I was waiting for her to miraculously return somehow, and maybe she will. But now, unless I see the breath be stopped like Zoë, I don't really believe the death. I mean look at Luke. Honestly I was more sad at his death than Bianca's, I believe like Hermes, Annabeth, and Poseidon (I think it was him) that still believes that he has good in him and can be redeemed. Luke is just hurt because of the neglect from his father, he doesn't have a pure pit of evil residing inside him. 
   When Percy realized that Nico and Bianca were Hades's kids I was so completely surprised. Well, not so much after Percy knew the little statue Bianca wanted to give Nico was Hades, but still when he revealed it: me= shocked. I'm curious to see how Nico plays out in the next two books nonetheless.
    So many characters I loved in this story, let me try to think of them all: Blackjack, Artemis, Hermes, Dionysus, Annabeth, Percy of course. Listing them out, I feel like they weren't as much as I thought hehe. Some characters I wished I liked more though are Thalia, Bianca, Zoë, Luke, and Grover. The one disappointing the most has to be Thalia. And no, it wasn't because of the ending (her joining the hunt in the place of the recently deceased Zoë), it's because I imagined her in my mind to be the female Percy, and yet she was more resentful and a little more ruthless like Annabeth, but I like Annabeth more than her. My feelings, I wonder if they'll ache soon. 
    I don't know why, but I found myself becoming distracted from this adventure. Like I said in the review above, this one is slower paced, and honestly I think it has to do with the absence of Annabeth. Apparently in each book someone is kidnapped and missing, so now I'm wondering who will be kidnapped in the next two.
    I wonder if Rachel Elizabeth Dare will somehow return in the next book or maybe the last one. I mean, why would Riordan give her a name unless maybe she was to be mentioned again? I don't even know Annabeth's last name and she's a main character. I would even forget Percy's if they didn't mention it so much, or the series be called after him. xP
    Okay, I have to say my favorite chapter was the Dam chapter. Seriously, I was cracking up so much when Percy and Thalia and Grover were making jokes and Zoë was so genuinely confused. I could imagine myself elbowing Percy or Grover and being all, ooo look at all that Dam food or check out my new Dam shoes and I wonder if this is a fine Dam day or what? 
   I would like to say, I guessed that the hero that betrayed Zoë millenia ago was Hercules. I don't know if it was the apple task that gave it away, but I just automatically thought it was about Hercules. When I learned I was right, I proudly jabbed my fist in the air and brought back down with so much win.

Until Next Time,
Nicole Ciel

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