March 19, 2014

Review - Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Ryordan


There may be spoilers for any of the books in the series, but I -think- I managed to write it spoiler-free.

All Olympians please forgive me. Or is it Half bloods that you call yourselves? But I didn't love this series.

I liked it. And I kind of almost loved it. But I couldn't. I love Nebador, I love Mists of Avalon, I love Lord of the Rings and I love Harry Potter, but Percy Jackson is... Shallow. It's a story without depth.

So I was trying to write a review for each of the books, but I read them one after the other, during one week, and I can't really tell them apart... So I guess I'll just write one review.

The thing is, while Hera Queen of Gods and Hera, Queen of Mortals are great books about the greek gods and goddesses, where they show their true nature, their issues, after all, the Greek gods and goddesses aren't perfect, they have their good and bad points and each to their own skills, in Percy Jackson, we can almost divide people into good and bad, the good guys and the bad guys, when Greek narrative isn't about the good and the bad, it's about people and how anyone can be anything, for a price, and how you can be both good and bad at the same time, because decisions have to be made and sometimes, there is no right way.


In the end, all Half-Bloods are awesome, great, good people, in general. They just need the right push of love and recognition. And all gods and goddesses are kind of evil (cold and harsh) except... Poseidon, I guess, since he's the main character's father. That's not how they are usually represented. They can be mean and cold, but they can be loving and caring, when there's something to be done or when they can get something.

Also, Percy is a child. I mean, of course, when we start reading he's around 12 and he's supposed to be a bit clueless and childish and girls that age (Anabeth) are supposed to be more grown up-ish, but by the time we finish the series, they are 16 and the only thing they evolve is... They become boyfriend and girlfriend. Basically, after saving the world a few times, almost dying and all, all they manage to grow is trust your friends, love people, value family and get a relationship? Nope, sorry, can't handle that.

Overall, it's a fun and entertaining series for teens aged 12 to 16. But it's not a great YA classic for all ages, like some of the same genre. I may or may not review them one by one, if I eventually change my mind or my memory improves and separates the books... But I wouldn't expect it.