Title: Battle of the Labyrinth
Author: Rick Riordan
Series: Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Camp Half-Blood Chronicles
Publish Date: June 3, 2014 (originally published May 6, 2008)
Publisher: Disney Hyperion Books
Format: Paperback
Goodreads Summary:
Percy Jackson isn’t expecting freshman orientation to be any fun. But when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears at his potential new school, followed by demon cheerleaders, things quickly move from bad to worse.
In this fourth installment of the blockbuster series, time is running out as war between the Olympians and the evil Titan lord Kronos draws near. Even the safe haven of Camp Half-Blood grows more vulnerable by the minute as Kronos’s army prepares to invade its once impenetrable borders. To stop the invasion, Percy and his demigod friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth – a sprawling underground world with stunning surprises at every turn.
Review: The plot thickens, battle lines are being drawn, and all the players are taking their sides.
Starting this book for the first time since I was a teenager was an experience. The series has managed to mature with the characters, which I believe is helped by the fact that each book represents a summer (barring the previous book, which was the only winter book of the five, and the midpoint). Percy is getting older, and it’s clear that a crush (mutual, though he doesn’t know it yet) is growing in Annabeth.
The decisions that the heroes have to make are more serious then ever before, such as deciding to not kill Ethan in a battle to the death. Percy sees the dark side of being a demigod, and how his actions have massive consequences.
Though there are times I had to remind myself that these kids are just fifteen or so, the choices and mistakes they make are completely believable, but also tragic. They are, after all, tasked with an almost impossible quest for the fourth time in their young lives. But they survive it, though not without loss.
The decision to start wrapping up series spanning plot lines works well here, starting with Grover’s journey to find Pan. I was saddened to see such a scene be so short in comparison to the size of the quest, but I also understood it. And it was a warning to all that read the books, that we need to do more.
I’m actually hesitant to read the fifth book coming out of this one (which is the same feeling I was left with the last time I read through the series). I almost don’t want it to end, but I do because I have the entire rest of the saga to read through. I mean, I’m absolutely going to, but still. STRESS.
For being a book that leads into the finale, it doesn’t feel like a set up. Yes, there are plotlines left waiting to be wrapped up, but the main storyline is completed, and it holds up. I’m happy with this one.
Rating: 5/5
Goodreads Goal 6/52
[Edit Update: This novel was originally read on March 28, 2022.]
