Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters

Percy Jackson And The Sea Of Monsters By Rick Riordan is the epic second book in the Percy Jackson series. 

Percy Jackson’s seventh-grade year has been surprisingly quiet. Not a single monster has set foot on his New York prep-school campus. But when an innocent game of dodgeball among Percy and his classmates turns into a death match against an ugly gang of cannibal giants, things get well…. UGLY. 

Also, the unexpected arrival of Percy’s friend- Annabeth, brings more bad news.  The magical borders that protect Camp Half-Blood have been poisoned by a mysterious enemy, and unless a cure is found, the only safe haven for demigods will be destroyed.

Summary

The book starts off with Percy having a nightmare about his friend Grover the satyr. He later goes to school and all throughout the day feels like someone is following him, and at some point, calling his name. But things really start to kick off during an unexpected game of dodgeball, where he and his friend Tyson are attacked by a bunch of gigantic cannibals.

When narrowly escaping, after blowing up his gymnasium, Percy is greeted with a very tattered Annebeth who hurries the two to camp half-blood. 

Knowing something disastrous awaits them ahead, Percy Jackson and Tyson are welcomed warmly into the camp by two bronze-plated-metal-fire breathing bulls.

As Percy gets cornered, Tyson comes between him and the flame, leaving Percy unharmed. 

After the bulls are defeated, Tyson comes out of battle without a single scratch and one eye. 

The reason is that Tyson was a cyclops, and his eye had been hidden in the mortal world will help from the Mist.

The reason the bulls were allowed in and not blocked by the barrier formed by Thalia’s tree was that the tree had been poisoned; Thalia was dying all over again. 

Percy Jackson returns to a dishevelled camp, no longer the safe haven for demigods, only to find Chiron, the camp advisor being replaced with Tantalus!

But this isn’t the end to the new changes. The biggest shocker comes in when a Sea Blue Trident appears above Tyson just as the camp gets ready to settle down for a feast! Another twist in the storyline sets in with Poseidon claiming him to be his son! That’s when things really begin to kick-off…

Review

I have been itching to read the second book in the Percy Jackson series, after having finished reading Percy Jackson And  The Lightning Thief. I was anything but disappointed with the plot, twists and action.

Linking back to the first story, Percy Jackson And The Sea of Monsters is more focused around the budding relationships between the characters. 

The brotherly affection that Percy comes to share with his cyclops brother or the friendship shared between him and Grover after fulfilling their self-taken quest form highlights of the storyline.

Although, the part of the storyline that appealed to me the most was to unravel the mystery of the secret prophecy,Something which even Percy is completely unaware of ! Stating one half-blood, child of the big three, was to decide the fate of Mount Olympus. This new variable in the equation adds mystery and a sense of excitement pointing to how well thought out the plot is !! I had never expected it and it came as a big twist in the plot in the littlest of ways. Readings the book was like a big game of ‘What has Percy gotten himself into this time?’

 Even though this is just the second book in an impossibly long series of Percy Jackson adventures and quests, you can see how well thought out the entire plot is from the very start to finish.

“Families are messy. Immortal families are eternally messy. Sometimes the best we can do is to remind each other that we’re related for better or for worse…and try to keep the maiming and killing to a minimum.”

-Hermes, The Sea of Monsters

Another thing I want to talk about in this book is the relationship between Percy and his newly found brother, Tyson. 

I feel his appearance was perfectly timed in the story line with their corresponding quest to find Grover and the Golden F+leece, as it is guarded by a large cyclops; Polyphemus. 

The ongoing circumstances in the story not only challenge how Percy feels about his brother but also on the way in which Tyson feels about himself. 

Tyson finds himself torn between whether to fight with his kind or his half-brother. This created a very interesting animosity between all the characters until it comes down to the final blow.

However, it is not just Percy who had mixed feeling towards Tyson; Annebeth Chase wasn’t the biggest fan of  Tyson either. We get to know this through her backstory when she was still just a child and was fleeing with the help of Luke, Grover and Thalia. 

It was the main reason Thalia had been turned into a tree in the first place; a cyclops had attacked them, slowing them down and allowing more monsters to catch up to them, ultimately leaving Thalia to make her sacrifice.

I have loved reading the book with this silent unease in the background as it adds an extra flavor to the book. But the cherry on the top comes in its concluding sentence, the biggest twist in the entire plot of this book !! 

I will try not to disclose anything except for the fact that it’s a real shocker. It has definitely left me on my toes to read the next book, titled Percy Jackson And The Titan’s Curse.

In conclusion, I would like to give Percy Jackson And The Sea of Monsters a top-rated five out of five stars as the story is full of thrilling twists and turns in the plot leaving you wanting to ask for more…

About the author

Rick Riordan is a former teacher and full-time author of American origin. He has written numerous books and series including The Percy Jackson series, The Kan Chronicles and the Magnus Chase series. All for younger readers.

Rick’s ss first job was teaching at both public and private schools in the San Francisco Bay area and in Texas. 

While teaching, Riordan went on to write his famous mystery novel series for adults titled Tes Navarre, which brought him many awards. He then started writing the ever so famous Percy Jackson series.

Currently, his books have sold millions of copies, and have been sent to more than 37 different countries. 

Rick Riordan is a full-time writer and is presently living with his wife and two sons in Bosto