Imagine spending your days watching out for monsters and angry gods. You never knew your father because he was a little preoccupied as Poseidon the god of the sea. Imagine jumping into the ocean to save your life, and finding out that you can breathe underwater and that you can speak to all sea creatures. Imagine meeting and helping a kid in school who is bullied, then later finding out that this “kid” was a Cyclops and the Cyclops was your brother! These are typical days for Percy Jackson, a hero or demi-god. Percy’s adventures have taken him to Hades and back, literally.

In his adventure “The Titan’s Curse” Percy must save his best friend Anna Beth and Artemis, the goddess of the Hunt from Luke, Percy’s archenemy and the uprising titan, Kronos with the help of Artemis’s Huntresses. The Huntresses have minds of their own. Since these girls have sworn off the companionship of men and boys. Their leader, Zoe is less than enthusiastic about Percy’s participation in finding Artemis. However, throughout their adventure an understanding is established and friendships are gained. After an epic battle with Atlas, Artemis honors one of the Huntresses by creating the constellation “The Huntress”. References to constellations, history and geography are made frequently throughout the novels.

If you enjoy mystery, mythology and adventure than this is the book for you. This book balances humor and suspense perfectly. Two new demi-gods are introduced in this novel, Bianca and Nico, I don’t want to give too much away but let us just say that their past is a bit “shady”. There are many light hearted moments in this novel as well. Percy’s satyr friend, Grover always has something witty to say while munching on his tin cans and burritos. After their last adventure Grover has been looking for Pan, the god of shepherds and flocks. Pan helps Percy through this latest adventure, giving Grover hopes to find him, the first satyr to see Pan in two thousand years. Grover is convinced that Pan came to their aid because he was drinking coffee, when they get back to Camp Half-Blood (where the demi-gods live), Grover convinces all of the satyrs to drink vast amounts of coffee so Pan will come. This makes for a humorous scene.

The suspense in this novel is exhilarating as Percy must save Anna Beth and Artemis in four days or the world could end. Plus he has to get through Ares, god of war who is currently holding a grudge against Percy, and Aphrodite goddess of love, who wants an “epic” romance between Percy and Anna Beth and he must get through Hephaestus, god of fire and metal working’s junkyard, which is full of “rejects” who try to kill Percy and his companions. There are some perks to Percy’s adventures as well; including a ride in Apollo’s chariot, which drags the sun around the world everyday in the form of a sports car.

This is a great novel for young readers and a good read for older teens as well. The writing can be appreciated by all age levels and experiences. This book is the third of five in the “Percy Jackson and the Olympians” series by Rick Riordan, an author with two sons. The Titan’s Curse is definitely recommended to all levels of readers. Go Ahead and Let the Adventure Begin!!