“The end of the world started when a pegasus landed on the hood of my car.”

From Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian.

Every time Percy tries to enjoy a few moments of normalcy, the impending doom of the world comes crashing down and he must once again try to gather his friends to save the world and all that the gods of Ancient Greece hold close.  Percy is tasked with destroying the cruise ship full of monsters before the final battle begins in the hopes of preventing Half-Blood (children with one human parent and one godly parent) deaths later.  Former Camp Half-Blood camper Luke shows up and reveals that he is now fully prepared to host Kronos (lead bad guy Titan) in the coming war that will end the Greek gods.  All the pieces begin to quickly fall into place and Percy is forced to rally all the help he can for a battle that will be almost impossible to win.  How much can Percy and his friends sacrifice to end the war between the titans and the gods.  This battle will be the culmination of all Percy’s quests, battles, and interactions… if he can only find a way to unite the gods and demigods.

The final installment of this Percy Jackson series is as packed full of both action and humorous wit that readers have come to expect from the books.  The confusion of the prophesies and the complexity of what this battle will require develops a multi-layered story that drives the reader to continue with the reading.  The Greek mythology is woven into the story in a way that seems completely realistic and attractive.  Riordan has succeeded in creating a book that works well as its own novel, but works best as a concluding chapter for the many stories of the series.  The Last Olympian is a satisfying read all the way through and not a book to be skipped.