Tuesday, May 06, 2008

The Battle of the Labyrinth


Riordan, Rick. 2008. The Battle of the Labyrinth.

Oh my. Trust me it's good. Really really good. The Battle of the Labyrinth is the fourth novel in the Percy Jackson series, a contemporary fantasy series built around the premise that the Greek gods are alive and well and living in modern-day America. The others include The Lightning Thief, Sea of Monsters, and The Titan's Curse. Rick Riordan is one of my favorite authors. His Percy Jackson novels in a way illustrate the ultimate when it comes to the can't-put-downability experience. Once you start, you really can't stop. They're just that good, that suspenseful, that magical.

What can I say about The Battle of the Labyrinth? It's good. It's intense. It's very intense. There really isn't a calm or dull moment in its 361 pages. The story? The plot? Well, I won't be spilling that here. For one, I don't think you'll need the incentive to go and read this one if you've read the other three. You'd read it no matter what I said. You might already have a copy in hand or on order. If you haven't read any of the Percy Jackson books yet, you really need to correct that...and soon! It's fun and educational. The weaving of Greek mythology into a modern-day adventure story starring unforgettable characters...is just brilliant. Each novel adds more depth, more substance, more meaning into the story. New characters, new plot twists, new ways of making this series oh-so-magical.

First sentence: The last thing I wanted to do on my summer break was blow up another school.
Last sentence: "Come inside for cake and ice cream," I said. "It sounds like we've got a lot to talk about."

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

10 comments:

Kelly said...

Oh, yay! I'm glad you loved it so much. Kids and I are waiting for audible credits on the 8th :)

Go, Percy! And thanks for your thoughts, Becky.

DesLily said...

yep yep.. this set of books is on the wishlist! So .. it's good to read good things about any of them!

Sarah Miller said...

Argh. I'm convinced I'm one of three people on the planet who doesn't get these books.

Annette Laing said...

I will only read one chapter per night of the Percy Jackson books to my eight-year-old son. He then wrenches the book from my hands and reads it himself.
The problem? The following night, I have to read from wherever the kid left off. So I love these books (witty, snappy and informed as they are)...but I have no idea what's going on in them. Which also tells you how dismal is my knowledge of Greek mythology. Ahem.

Anonymous said...

Ohh this sounds fun! Thanks for the review.

Ana S. said...

Oooh, I really need to get my hands on this series!

Somer said...

I don't guess you were at TLA this year, were you? There was a great session (panel-style) with Libba Bray, Suzanne Collins, Cinda Williams Chima, John Flanagan, and Jacqueline Kolosov, moderated by Rick Riordan. I only caught the 2nd half, but it was great!

Kim said...

Oh. My. Goodness. My son is SO into these books!!! He made me pre-order this latest one in the series because he couldn't bear the thought of being hold #295 on the hold list at our library. I just checked amazon and the book was delivered today--(I am still at work, but don't think Sam checked the mail yet)--he will be ecstatic!!
Glad this one is as good as the rest!
*smiles*
Kim
http://pageafterpage-kim.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

I loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

i loved this book! once i started reading it, i couldn't put it down! i finished it in 3 days!!!