With The Lost Hero Riordan sucked me into a new series. It definitely helped that this was a continuation of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. It also helped that the Greek pantheon has a stronger sway on mythology and fables that I learned growing up than the Egyptian pantheon which appeared in The Kane Chronicles. I had no intentions of reading this book any time soon, but it came in at the library and I had to read it or send it back. Thankfully I enjoyed it and it was a quick read (550ish pages in two days).
The Lost Hero follows the story of Jason, Piper and Leo from the journey of normal teenagers to demigods. However, not all is as it seems. Although I discovered the ‘secret’ not very far into the book and assumed the last chapter’s revelation earlier than I probably should have, but I assume that comes from the novel being written for a younger audience. Aside from this, I quite enjoyed this series. And how could you not enjoy a series that’s back-to-back action and packed full of Greco-Roman mythology brought into the 21st century?
Although I enjoyed this book, it was not as good as the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. The Kane Chronicles does have potential but this first introduction seemed too much like an adaptation of the first with slight twists. Regardless of this, it was a fun read and I enjoyed the quick action and Egyptian Mythology. And give me some magic, some ancient history, and coming of age tales and I’m happy for a quick read.
[For an updated response from when I re-read the book in 2016, 
So this is the most recent book in the Artemis Fowl series and I have to say it was a bit of a let down. Colfer does once again show off his mastery of random knowledge and creativity with the genius world of Artemis Fowl, but overall the book seemed rushed and somewhat tangential to the other novels. As I haven’t read the graphic novels or the additional material I’m not sure if that covers a lot of what I feel is missing, but it is still a bit of a random book.
So Colfer pumped some volume back into the series with The Lost Colony, but how does he keep it going? By bringing back a psychotic mastermind. This novel begins after the last novel ends (clearly) and picks up with Artemis who hasn’t aged at all, but is supposedly three years older than he was due to the final trip in time during the last novel and bringing Hydras back to the current plane of existence.