Review // The Lightning Thief - Rick Riordan

Published - 1st April 2006
Published By - Disney Hyperion Books
Format - Paperback
Goodreads Synopsis - Percy Jackson is about to be kicked out of boarding school... again. And that's the least of his troubles. Lately, mythological monsters and the gods of Mount Olympus seem to be walking straight out of the pages of Percy's Greek mythology textbook and into his life. And worse, he's angered a few of them. Zeus' master lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect.

Now Percy and his friends have just ten days to find and return Zeus' stolen property and bring peace to a warring Mount Olympus. But to succeed on his quest, Percy will have to do more than catch the true thief: he must come to terms with the father who abandoned him; solve the riddle of the Oracle, which warns him of betrayal by a friend; and unravel a treachery more powerful than the gods themselves.

After reading many reviews and getting many recommendations for this book, I have finally read the first in the series, The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. I wasn't sure what to expect. I'd seen the film but I was a little concerned that the writing wouldn't be great. I had nothing to worry about though!

I read the first few chapters and immediately loved the book and the characters. Percy is charming and funny (though i'm annoyed he is portrayed as a 12 year old!) and very likeable, as are other characters such as Annabeth, Grover and Chiron. The writing style was brilliant and not too 'young' and I honestly just couldn't put this book down. I wanted to know what they were doing, where they were going and more importantly, who was the lightning thief?

The Lightning Thief really didn't disappoint and I think these books are going to be popular for a long time to come amongst children and adults. I can't wait to read the next installment - The Sea of Monsters.