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| The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan |
This penultimate novel begins not at the end of the school year, but at the beginning of the summer (shush, that is not the same difference), and we find Percy at the freshman orientation for his new high school - yes, the one that his mom's recently acquired boyfriend, Paul Blofis, teaches at. But of course Percy can't get through even this without some type of hitch, and the problem of the day begins with him seeing the last person he wants to see: none other than Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the mortal girl who can see through the Mist that he met at Hoover Dam the prior summer. She saves his butt, though, by warning him that the cheerleaders are both inhuman and evil. So then he has to deal with that. Typical day for a typical demigod. Immediately after orientation, Percy and Annabeth head to camp, where they meet Quintus, the new sword instructor, and find out that Luke is leading an army of demigods and monsters in an attempt to infiltrate Camp Half-Blood. And the route he's taking is right through the Labyrinth, a living, underground maze that probably spans the entire continent and is known to drive people insane. It is up to Annabeth, Percy, Grover, and Tyson to enter the Labyrinth, find the workshop of Daedalus (the man who built the Labyrinth thousands of years before), and prevent Luke from using the maze against them. The prophecy is ominous, the Labyrinth is deceptive, and the stakes are higher than ever.
As I explained in my post for Titan's Curse, this is my very close third-favorite in the series. Almost fourth. This book is positively scrumptious. I love love love watching the adorable tension grow between Percy and Annabeth, especially with the reintroduction of the spectacular Rachel Elizabeth Dare. (Yes, she is me, in case you had not made the connection. Two superb Rachels with frizzy red hair and green eyes and freckles? Duh. It seems that Rick Riordan heard about me and my awesomeness and thought, "Obviously I must base a character off of her, and then there will be no end to the character's awesomeness." Or something like that.) Now, this girl. She is great. And I am being objective when I say this; I am not thinking of her in terms of myself. She is just a great character, totally strong and stubborn and unique. And she is the perfect compliment to Percy and Annabeth - like, the three of them just mesh together perfectly. I'm not saying they get along well, just that the three characters work well together. Rachel's easy-going nature is like a reverse reflection of Annabeth's tendency to worry and overthink things, and the way she deals with Percy - a combination of I-trust-and-respect-you-as-a-person and your-typical-boy-obliviousness-and-recklessness-utterly-exasperate-me - is hilarious. Girl power! Plus it's fun to watch Annabeth get jealous. And then there is Nico, who was just an innocent little boy in the last book. He was a side character, but a year later we find him hardened and matured since his sister's death, and with an agenda. He's an incredibly intriguing character with his own flaws, fears, burdens, ghosts, and haunting side story. He's one of my favorite characters, and, personally, I would love to read a series about him. Also, as usual, we have new Greek myths woven into the novel in the usual Rick Riordan way; the most central and interesting story told is that of Daedalus and the Labyrinth, and Ariadne's string, but there is much more than just that. And it continues to be fast-paced and exciting, and Percy's voice continues with his lovable sarcasm and oblivious-boy routine. This book comes to an intense climax that hits like an affectionate bro-punch to the gut and leaves you reeling pleasantly. Not to mention the end. Talk about insane cliffhanger.
Fingers crossed for no movie? Blow on your dandelions, people!
Thanks to my mom for driving to B&N at nine in the morning again to get me this book the day it came out and drop it off at school for me. You're the best!
And then one day, a couple weeks later, I found out that Rick Riordan was going to be doing a book signing about an hour away from our town later that day. Thank you so so so much, Mommy, for driving me out there! It is because of you that I got to meet the author of my favorite series, got to get all my books signed, got to ask him when Percy's birthday is (August 18th), and got to win the absolute last Battle of the Labyrinth T-shirt he was giving away that day (because I correctly answered the trivia question asking what Athena's sacred animal is) (it's a stag, by the way). I love that T-shirt. Mother Dearest, you are positively divine!
Also, thank you to my dear friend Liana, though we haven't hung out in a while (which is a disgrace and needs to be remedied), for finding my copy of this book on her shelf more than a year after she borrowed it and a long, long time after I had given up hope of ever finding it again. Which would have been a fierce dreadful shame, seeing as how I got it signed. I don't blame you, love; I thought you had returned it as well. I'm just glad you found it!
Recommendation: Really, guys? EVERYONE. Just read them in order, okay? I mean, what pleasure can you possibly get from reading them out of order? Is it, like, a satisfaction in going against the grain? Cause that's just immature. It's just juvenile. Really. I expect more from you.
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