The Last Olympian

By Rick Riordan

Rating: 4 1/4 stars

Riordan ends his Percy Jackson and the Olympians series with a bang, or rather, several bangs. Finally, the Great Prophecy's time is at hand as Percy is turning 16 and one of the children of the gods is due to possibly bring about the end of Olympus if they reach that age. Is Percy the one to save or destroy the kingdom of the gods? From chapter one on out, readers are plunged into one action scene after another as Percy has to make some terrible choices. Does he become invincible like Achilles did so he can take on Kronos face to face like Nico suggests? What does it mean that he keeps seeing visions of Luke from the past, long before he allowed Kronos to take him over? What should he do when a spy is discovered in their midst? As always, friends may sometimes betray you, and others may come through when you least expect it. Percy and fellow campers from Camp Half-Blood join forces to defend Manhattan and the entrance to Olympus, but time and their forces are running out and Kronos only seems to grow stronger. Can Percy step up and be the hero of the prophecy? Serious fans of the series may see what final twist the plot takes before it happens, but they'll enjoy it all the same. Is there a happy ending? Readers will have to wait and see what the final pages bring (maybe even another series?), but they will have a riproaring good time getting there and no one will be disappointed.