[BookWorm] Review: The Mark of Athena

So I wrote an entry about Pchum Ben which happened for the past three days, but I forgot to post it, so that's going into the trash bin.

I had a lot of things to do during the long Pchum Ben holiday (not really) but I only managed to finish a few of those goals because half of the time was spent sleeping (curse you Decolgen Forte!). But one thing's for sure, I did finish reading The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan. It was my ultimate goal, and I was able to complete it. BooYah!

Quick Summary:

Basically, the story picks up right where we left off at the end of 'The Son of Neptune'. They board the Argo II, and then head off to their new adventures. They have their quests, of course, and one of which is a quest that the offspring of Athena must do alone. By the end of the book, they pretty much complete their quests - as usual. 

(I know, I suck at making summaries, but I don't want to write spoilers, too.)

Review:

I give it - **** (4 Stars)

Personally, I've grown attached to Percy Jackson. This book does not give me so much of that 'Percy-time' that I was waiting for, but at least there are some parts. However, I do get that the series is about 'The Heroes of Olympus' and no longer 'Percy Jackson and the...' so I got over the lack of 'Percy-time'. BUT I STILL WANT IT.

Also, there were too many voices in my head. Hard to follow a certain voice... sort of. LOL

And then there was the grown up part. I get it... characters grow up, too. I wish they did not have to grow up though. But I totally respect that. They deal with love now.. ick. And unfortunately, Riordan just had to remind me constantly that they were kissing and kissing and worrying about their partners. It throws them off focus, yo! But I guess that only makes them more human. 

Based on the cover, I predicted that there would be some kind of tension between Jason and Percy. Although Percy is a reluctant leader of sorts and Jason was trained to lead, I still felt there would be some kind of tension between them. There is tension, but not what I expected. I did feel like Jason was shoved to a corner. I like it! Hahaha

There are so many things going on in this book, and because it is just one book with so many things, I feel that these would have been better if they were explored more. Not just as a few snippets or flashes of what happened. I would have loved to read about the several battles that happened but did were not described. And I would have loved to learn about how several of the demigods escaped certain situations but was directed to the other drama happening on the other end. Also, I would have preferred if they were battling out, like the crazy fight that happened when Percy fought with the Titans. 

But that's just me.

Still, I will be waiting for the next book. Too bad I have to wait for another year.

I also cannot wait to start reading the Norse mythology books!!

Go and read The Mark of Athena and see for yourself.