Title: The Lost HeroAuthor: Rick Riordan
Publication: October 12th 2010, Puffin Books
Pages: 551 Pages, Paperback
Source: Library
Rating: 5/5 CUPCAKES! (Quite fitting seeing as Coach Hedge always calls his students cupcakes, don't ya think?)
Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up on a school bus holding hands with a girl. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper. His best friend is a kid named Leo, and they’re all students in the Wilderness School, a boarding school for “bad kids”, as Leo puts it. What he did to end up here, Jason has no idea — except that everything seems very wrong.I love Rick Riordan's books. I am a major fan. When I read Percy Jackson and the Olympians, I completely fell in love with his books and once the series had finished, I was not a happy camper. Then, a year ago or so I heard about The Heroes of Olympus which is set in Percy Jackson's world and I was like, YES PLEASE. I actually tried reading The Lost Hero a few months ago and I only got up to page 10 or so, for what reason I can't remember. However, since I recently received House of Hades to review, I decided to start reading this series ASAP! I'm so glad I've finally read TLH as it was AMAZING.
Piper has a secret. Her father, a famous actor, has been missing for three days, and her vivid nightmares reveal that he’s in terrible danger. Now her boyfriend doesn’t recognize her, and when a freak storm and strange creatures attack during a school field trip, she, Jason, and Leo are whisked away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood. What is going on?
Leo has a way with tools. His new cabin at Camp Half-Blood is filled with them. Seriously, the place beats Wilderness School hands down, with its weapons training, monsters, and fine-looking girls. What’s troubling is the curse everyone keeps talking about, and that a camper’s gone missing. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist they are all—including Leo—related to a god.
The story starts with Jason who has woken up on a bus full of rowdy kids, holding the hand of a pretty girl whom he doesn't know, as well as sitting behind his supposed best friend Leo. This all would've been dandy, had Jason any idea of where he was or who he was. Jason is suffering from amnesia, he can't collect any thoughts about he is and what he is doing here, yet everyone seems to know him, as if he's been there for weeks. Yet when ferocious beasts start attacking Leo, Piper and Jason, as well as Coach Hedge who they find out is a satyr, they begin to think that perhaps things aren't as normal as they seem.
When a girl named Annabeth (so glad to read about her again!) and a guy name Butch arrive in carriage, flown by pegasi, Jason, Piper and Leo find out that they are in fact demigods - half mortal, half god and are being whisked away to Camp Half-Blood, a place for demigods, a place for them to train and be protected.
When the trio arrive at Camp Half-Blood, they discover that they are indeed three of the seven chosen demigods that the Oracle has predicted. They are part of a prophecy. And their lives, as well as the gods', are in mortal peril.
Monsters unlike any other are being released from the hellish pit of Tartarus, but it's not Kronos that are rejuvenating them. It's something more sinister, older, and more despicable than before. And unfortunately for Jason, Leo and Piper, they're going to have to take it on with their own bare hands (and maybe a little help from the gods along the way).
This book was amazing, every aspect of it was perfect! The character development and the relationships were written perfectly, as well as the eventful plot that had me falling off me seat. I didn't think I would love this series nearly as much as I loved Percy Jackson, but I did love it and I cannot wait to read the sequel.
The characters were perfect. They each had their own vulnerabilities, flaws and troubled pasts that shaped them into the three marvellous heroes that we see before us today. All fiercely loyal, brave and ready to die fighting.
The leader of the group is Jason. The boy trying to regain his memories from his past, some of them coming in flickers and helping him piece together clues from where he's from. In the beginning, I wasn't a fan of Jason, I just wasn't able to connect to him like I was able to with the other characters but towards the end I warmed up to him. He is a great leader and I think he has had a tumultuous past - one that I eagerly look forward to learning about! There were quite a few surprises in here to do with Jason, that I hadn't predicted at all. *Spoiler* Him and Thalia being brother and sister was completely unexpected and I honestly couldn't believe it. I'm glad that they added that in though, as I always wanted to learn more about Thalia. Also, him being Zeus's son was incredibly cool, especially when we see that he possesses intense powers.*Spoiler*
Then there was Piper. Her dad is one of the most famous actors in Hollywood and all Piper wants is for him to, just for once, pay attention to her. Piper can have everything she wants, yet she chooses not to. She just wants to blend in. Piper is sent to the Wilderness school due to her thievery, which is, when you learn about who her mother is, it's not exactly thievery...she's just extremely persuasive. I liked Piper, she was sweet and just wanted to fade into the background, yet her character really developed throughout the book and she showed just how fierce, brave and dangerous she can be. I felt sorry for her too, though. She was facing a difficult test, as a terrifying giant called Enceladus has her dad held hostage, and he wants Piper to lead Jason and Leo to their death in order for the safe return of her father. It tore me to pieces to see Piper thinking of herself as a worthless traitor and that there was no way out and I was so relieved when she confided in Jason and Leo and they helped her out.
My all time favourite character though was Leo. Son of Hephaestus, god of fire, blacksmiths and craftsmanship. The thing I love about Leo is how that he's so humble and honest and tries to make everybody feel better by cracking pointless jokes. I love how he is so clever with his tools and can build just about anything. Leo has had a terrible past. His mom dying when he was merely eight years old, and how he was almost killed by one of his nannies. My heart broke for him when he confessed to us how broken and useless he had always felt, and how he constantly viewed himself as the third wheel. Yet his power and wise-thinking revealed just how needed he is.
The secondary characters were fabulous too! I loved seeing all the gods' personalities and seeing them interact with each other and the demigods too. I loved Coach Hedge, he was hilarious and often had me laughing. The other minor characters were flawless too.
The plot was fantastic. I met so many interesting characters and went to so many exotic yet dangerous places, as I, along with the three demigods, travelled on the back of a bronze, mechanic dragon. I was constantly sitting on the edge of my seat and wondering how on earth the demigods were going to fight their way through a new obstacle. The conclusion that Jason and Annabeth came to at the end about where Jason is really from and about where Percy might be astounded me and I am ecstatic to see where the author takes it next!
The Lost Hero is a fantastic novel that I absolutely adored. With unique characters that are fiercely brave and lovable, a fantastic yet dangerous quest that will leave you breathless and the intricately woven stories about the Greek gods added in, make The Lost Hero a book that anyone person will enjoy. I utterly adored it and I look forward to reading The Son of Neptune!
I give it: 5/5 CUPCAKES!
