The Son of Neptune is book two of The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan and it circles back to Percy Jackson. In the previous book we had learned that Percy had mysteriously disappeared and no one knew what had happened. This book opens by revealing that Percy had also lost his memory and was on the west coast in California trying to figure out where he needed to go. After a run in with some monsters and with Hera, he ends up at Camp Jupiter which is the Roman version of Camp Half-Blood. There he makes friends with Hazel, a daughter of Pluto, and Frank, an unclaimed demigod later claimed by Mars, and tentative allies with Reyna, the Praetor in charge of the camp. After some minor misadventures in camp Frank is offered a quest by Mars and decides to take Hazel and Percy with him. They end up trying to stop another giant from rising while under a bit of a time crunch as they also work to help prepare the camp for an attack by the forces of Gaea. During all of this Hazel works to face her past, Frank works to face his fears, and Percy works to regain his memories.
This book was an interesting addition as it returned to a familiar character in the form of Percy but also continued the theme of introducing new heroes in the form of Hazel and Frank. It also continued the format of rotating narrators every chapter or ever few chapters which was new for this series. While that makes for a bit of an adjustment from the first series where almost everything was Percy’s point of view, it does allow for a more well-rounded perspective on what is going on as we get to see all of the things that happen when Percy is not around or not paying attention. I feel like that does add a little more depth to the story in some ways. It does allow us to get to know more characters than just Percy as we see their thought processes and how they view things. This book also does a good job of creating a parallel of the previous book, The Lost Hero, in many ways as it shows how Percy works on fitting into the Roman camp as a counterpoint to Jason trying to fit into the Greek camp. It makes me curious about how well the meeting and integration is going to go in the next book. One thing I really liked about this book is how the author is branching out in his mythology and history as this series continues. There are more Roman references than there are Greek though there are many Greek references still and with the dual groups it can be confusing when they use multiple names but it also helps to show how the duality of these mythological or historical figures actually works and functions. Overall another incredible book in an incredible series and even more incredible world. I am happy giving it 4.5 out of 5 stars.
This book is a great example of teen or young adult fantasy so it will probably hold the most appeal for readers of that age range who prefer that genre. It would also hold considerable appeal for readers who enjoy books with a bit of comedy as the entire Percy Jackson series is seriously funny and I frequently find myself laughing at the antics of the characters. The book may be aimed at teens and young adults but I would also think it may hold at least some appeal for older readers as it is a pretty good series that is really well written. It probably would not be suitable for readers younger than about twelve or thirteen due to the mild violence and the general length of the books. As I said before though it is a great book and a great series so I hope you would consider trying it. If you do feel free to share your thoughts in the comments.