The Titan's Curse.

The Titan's Curse

by: Rick Riordan

When the goddess Artemis goes missing, she is believed to have been kidnapped. And now it's up to Percy and his friends to find out what happened. Who is powerful enough to kidnap a goddess? They must find Artemis before the winter solstice, when her influence on the Olympian Council could swing an important vote on the war with the titans. Not only that, but first Percy will have to solve the mystery of a rare monster that Artemis was hunting when she disappeared—a monster rumored to be so powerful it could destroy Olympus forever

Another stellar addition to this series. I honestly enjoyed The Sea of Monsters more than this one, but this was still a fantastic book. Really, truly fantastic. I am again left questioning why I didn't read these sooner, although I appreciate them probably more now than I would have had I read them earlier.

Wonderful and Brave Hero: CHECK

I have said it in my reviews of the other two books, but I just really, really love Percy. He is truly a hero and a really brave, despite being only fourteen. He just gets cooler and cooler as he learns more about the mythology aspect of things.

Intelligent and Kick-Butt Heroine: CHECK

Thalia: I did not like Thalia at first, I thought she was conceited and mean. I found out that she was, in fact, both of those things. But she was also brave, loyal, and funny. I respected her choice to join the hunters and let the prophecy fall to Percy, as I think it was supposed to. Thalia wavered when confronted with the choice of overthrowing Olympus. That was her biggest problem. She was too close to Luke and too angry at her father. While Percy was sort of close to Luke and also sort of angry with his dad, the difference Percy would never choose to overthrow the gods. Also, I missed Annabeth. a lot.

Extraordinary Supporting Characters: CHECK

Grover: I still just love him. He's my favorite little satyr and a hilarious one at that.

Zoe Nightshade: I also disliked her, but I worked up to appreciating her in the end. She was brave and strong and she has been through a lot (with Hercules and her dad and her sisters and whatnot). And I love how loyal she was to Artemis, even to the end.

Artemis and Aphrodite: I was super excited to finally meet some goddesses. Up until this book we'd really only heard about various gods, which is fun, don't get me wrong, but only part of the story. Anyway, they both obviously stand on the exact opposite sides of the spectrum (Artemis with her hatred of all men and Aphrodite with her overestimation of how important romantic love is). I tended to side more with Artemis, because she was all in favor of women fighting their own battles. However, I will admit that guys might serve some purpose, sometimes...I guess (only joking, obviously they're important). Artemis took it too far, but at least she didn't depend on tragedy to get by, like Aphrodite.

Apollos: I loved meeting Apollos. oh wait, "I feel a haiku coming on..."

                                        

                                                                    Apollos is cool

                                                           and he's really quite helpful

                                                                hope we meet again

The General (Atlas) and Dr. Thorn: creeps. Dr. Thorn is a wannabe and Atlas is awful at escaping and fighting... and succeeding. Although, going in to this book I thought "The Titan's Curse" meant Kronos, so that was a fun plot twist.

Bianca: Not my favorite character, but she redeemed herself by saving the others. I felt so bad for Nico when she decided to join the hunters. I know it would be hard to have to parent your little brother for your entire life, but her choice was very selfish. She thought only of her own freedom and not of the danger and risk for Nico.

Nico: I felt so very bad for him. He was such an innocent little kid without parents who found out that he was a demigod at the same time and almost immediately his sister runs off for immortality and doesn't quite make it back. So he does what any ten year old would do, he projects his anger on the person that he believed was to blame for everything that had happened.

Bessie (Ophiotaurus): Oh, I love Bessie! He was so adorable. I had no idea he was going to be so important either. Considering he had the power to take down Olympus and whatnot. I can't wait to see more of Bessie in the future. (Can someone buy me a cow-serpent...please?).

Original Setting and Unique Plot: CHECK

I applaud Rick Riordan for coming up with new quests and adventures to send his characters on with every book. Every quest is completely different and yet they're all working toward the end conflict of the series. That is one of the amazing things about these books, Rick doesn't just come up with different plots for each book. He weaves all of the plots together into one complete and epic story. He places each of the characters in the exact right spot to continue the trek to completing the series and yet keeps the story arc of each book completely interesting on its own. And he finds a way to resolve different things in each book, even while leaving plenty of things unresolved for the next book

Plot Twists and Page Turners: CHECK

Yes, most definitely. That is another one of the great things about these books, the action never stops for a second. You think, "oh, look! Percy and the rest are finally going to get to rest for a few seconds..." and then BANG. more monsters. But, even more amazing than that is the fact that the never-ending action never, ever gets boring.

Quotes:

"It was bad enough I had to depend on my mom to drive me to my battles."

"...before they go astray...Grow up. Become smitten with boys. Become silly, preoccupied, insecure. Forget themselves."

"Then he raised his hands in a stop everything gesture. "I feel a haiku coming on...

                                                    Green grass breaks through snow.

                                                       Artemis pleads for my help.

                                                                    I am so cool."

"Glad you're back. I hate it when pretty girls turn into trees."

"I thought the sun was a big fiery ball of gas!"

"Apollo chuckled and ruffled Nico's hair. "That rumor probably got started because Artemis used to call me a big fiery ball of gas."

"Sometimes mortals can be more horrible than monsters."

"You might as well as an artist to explain his art, or ask a poet to explain his poem. It defeats the purpose. The meaning is only clear through the search."

"The current that takes one by surprise. And before you know it, you have been swept out to sea."

"She really was beautiful. And not just because of she had a pretty face or anything. She believed in love so much, it was impossible not to feel giddy when she talked about it."

"Exquisitely painful, isn't it? Not being sure who you love and who loves you? Oh, you kids! It's so cute I'm going to cry."

"I looked at Thalia and Zoe, and I decided it wouldn't be the worst thing in the world to die fighting with friends like this."

"A brave man," Artemis said with grudging approval."

"Let the world honor you, my Huntress...Live forever in the stars."

"Even the bravest can fall."

"You do not know when it is time to cut your losses. To save a friend, you would sacrifice the world."

"The most dangerous flaws are those which are good in moderation...Evil is easy to fight. Lack of wisdom...that is very hard indeed."