The Lost Hero

Title: The Lost Hero

Author: Rick Riordan

Publication Date: October 12, 2010

Genre: Fantasy, Greek and Roman mythology, Young adult

Summary (by Goodreads):

Jason has a problem. He doesn’t remember anything before waking up in a bus full of kids on a field trip. Apparently he has a girlfriend named Piper and a best friend named Leo. They’re all students at a boarding school for “bad kids.” What did Jason do to end up here? And where is here, exactly? 

Piper has a secret. Her father has been missing for three days, ever since she had that terrifying nightmare. Piper doesn’t understand her dream, or why her boyfriend suddenly doesn’t recognize her. When a freak storm hits, unleashing strange creatures and whisking her, Jason, and Leo away to someplace called Camp Half-Blood, she has a feeling she’s going to find out. 

Leo has a way with tools. When he sees his cabin at Camp Half-Blood, filled with power tools and machine parts, he feels right at home. But there’s weird stuff, too—like the curse everyone keeps talking about. Weirdest of all, his bunkmates insist that each of them—including Leo—is related to a god. 

Join new and old friends from Camp Half-Blood in this thrilling first audio book in The Heroes of Olympus series.

Review:

          Oh my Gods (for all the gods and goddesses of Olympus)! That was my first reaction after I finished reading this book. If you love Greek and Roman mythology, you’ll surely love The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan –the Heroes of Olympus Series book one. But before you read this book, may I just advise you to read first the Percy Jackson Series (The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan’s Curse, The Battle of the Labyrinth, and The Last Olympian). The Lost Hero is actually a continuation of the adventure of the demigods in Camp Half-Blood though it revolves around a different set of characters other than Percy Jackson. Jason (a son of Zeus, King of the Gods), Piper (daughter of Aphrodite, goddess of Love), and Leo (Son of Hephaestus, god of fire and metalworking) are the main characters of the story. 

          In The Lost Hero, Rick Riordan created a whole new world for the Greek and Roman Gods that we have all been reading from mythology books. I liked how Rick Riordan preserved the characteristics of the gods of Olympus and yet I enjoyed the modern plot of the story. 

          Another thing that I liked about The Lost Hero is how Riordan crafted the characters of the book. After I read the Percy Jackson Series I was quite excited of whose demigod child will be the next to be in the spotlight. I wasn’t surprised that it was a son of Zeus (Jason) or a son of Hephaestus (Leo) but I was definitely surprised with how Piper, a daughter of Aphrodite stepped up and it was like “Hey! I’m not just a pretty face. I also have courage and brains!” And they were such a perfect combination of a fun-filled adventure.

          Over all, I really loved this book and I strongly recommend this for those who are looking for a fun book to read!

Preceded By: The Last Olympian

Followed By: The Son of Neptune

Singing the Witch Song

Title: Witch Song

Author: Amber Argyle

Publication Date: September 1, 2011

Genre: Young-Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

           The world is changing. Once, Witch Song controlled everything from the winds to the shifting of the seasons-but not anymore. All the Witches are gone, taken captive by a traitor. All but Brusenna. As the echo of their songs fade, the traitor grows stronger. Now she is coming for Brusenna. Her guardian has sworn to protect her, but even he can't stop the Dark Witch. Somehow, Brusenna has to succeed where every other Witch has failed. Find the traitor. Fight her. Defeat her. Because if Brusenna doesn't, there won't be anything left to save.

Review:

           At last! After a long time, I’m doing another book review that you will definitely enjoy to read. Here’s a book by Amber Argyle entitled Witch Song. Well, it’s the first time that I’ll be reviewing a non-series novel. I like how Argyle created and crafted a whole new world of witches, a different land of fantasy and amazing set of characters.  The story is the epic, kinda Before-Christ setting and what I like most is how Argyle played with her imagination of giving a breath of fresh air to the common witches that we have been reading in books. I also love the idea that the witches' spells are made in to songs with witches song lyrics to cast Brusenna's power being a witch.

           Moreover, the story is action-packed and it seemed that every chapter has a climax to get excited for. I liked how the main character Brusenna dealt with her fate being the only witch alive to save the other witches captured by the evil witch. Brusenna’s journey to dangerous lands made me so engrossed reading the book! Besides that, the amazing cover of the book reflects the amazing plot of the Witch Song.  It’s simply awesome! However, in the first part of the book, I was slow getting into the story but eventually, I realized that that’s what makes it engrossing to read because of the mystery that won’t make you stop reading until you unveil it. 

            Well I guess it’s another novel to watch out for in the big screen. I’d really love to see a movie version of Witch Song!