Brainfullofbooks

The writer for the gods has picked up his pen!  He may have taken a break during the pandemic like the rest of us, but he’s back—and better than ever.  It’s been some time since Rick Riordan, author of the best-selling and famous Percy Jackson Series wrote anything, but now fans not only bask in the news of an upcoming tv show adaptation—but a new book: The Chalice of the Gods.  As if that weren’t enough “Uncle Rick” has already announced yet another novel The Wrath of the Triple Goddess which comes out next year.  This is truly a Percy Jackson renaissance and I for one could not be happier.  I’ve read all of Riordan’s books mostly because they were my childhood: I loved Percy Jackson so much even after I technically grew out of the age range, I kept asking for his books every year for my birthday (Thanks for the B-day gifts Uncle Rick).  So of course, as soon as I heard about it, I knew I had to pick up Chalice of the Gods.  

Obviously, Percy and Annabeth are the stars of the show, as they have been from the beginning.  Coming away from the book, they are one of the main things I remember, mostly because of thier love.  At several points in the book, it’s bleedingly obvious how much Percy cares for her; and it’s clear Anabeth adores him just as much.  They’re so obviously disgustingly in love it gave ME heart eyes several times.  No wonder they’re the most iconic book couple even to this day.  I would even go so far as to say that “Percabeth” as fans have dubbed their relationship is one of the main themes running through Chalice of the Gods.  And of course, not only is Anabeth one of the most important things in his life but he’s doing all this for her.  The reason he undertakes this quest is because he wants to get into college—and he only wants to get into college to be with her.

Speaking of, I know many people have bashed Riordan for the plot, but to me it works.  Yes, he could have thought of something better and more interesting than Percy needing to complete three quests to get recommendation letters from the gods so he can go to uni.  After all this is the guy who’s thought of some of the most insane and hilarious things to put into his books.  And yes, I see where they’re coming from; however, after reading the book for myself, I have to say it works.  I found myself liking it, perhaps because of how well he executed it: with his trademark sarcasm and wit of course. It might seem a little boring or ridiculous at first sight but if there’s one thing Riordan knows it’s how to be relatable: and this is just that.  Remember, most of his readers are going to have to go through this themselves.  Alright, yeah, maybe they won’t have to complete three quests to do it, but they will have to face the scary college admissions process eventually.  Because of that, this will be quite timely and relevant to them.  It may be a controversial opinion, but to me the recommendation letter plot fits with the overall theme of the book.  In fact, I would go so far as to say nothing would have fit the theme better.

This whole book is a nostalgia trap.  Of course, it is, it’s designed to appeal to those who have stuck with Riordan on his journey—into HOO and even his most recent series The Trials of Apollo.  He essentially goes back to his roots with The Chalice of the Gods: it’s the original trio journeying on quests again, just Annabeth, Percy, and Grover, like old times. It feeds on the childhood nostalgia of the original series, but that’s not a bad thing.  I would go so far as to say nostalgia—particularly childhood nostalgia is a theme of the book therefore it’s only appropriate it evokes the same emotion in its readers.  Anyone who read these books as a kid will get a warm fuzzy feeling picking this one up.  However, those feelings mainly arise because Percy’s most recent adventure is designed to speak directly to them to impart a valuable lesson.

What exactly is the message you ask? Good question. That would be the final theme I picked up in this book: coming to grips with growing older.  Like Percy himself many of the original readers have left their childhood behind. They are entering or have already set foot into the terrifying world of adulthood.  I can’t think of a more fitting moral or end for this book –with Uncle Rick sitting his reader’s down and telling them it’s okay.  It’s okay to look back at your childhood, to feel nostalgic and wish for it back but growing old is okay too; it can actually be pretty awesome in a lot of ways.  This is an amazing and especially important message, given his audience not to mention in this world we live in—where growing old is seen as some kind of curse.  In many ways people get the feeling that aging is some shameful awful thing that needs to be avoided at all costs.  People think they’re ancient at 30 and their lives end at 40 but this book is here to tell you it’s not like that.  Aging is something to be proud of, to welcome and embrace.  After all, like my mom (and many other wise people such as Paul Blofis) would say: it sure beats the alternative.  And I for one can’t wait to see Percy grow a little more in The Tripple Goddess. Lucky for fans like me who are already rabid for him to get that next letter we don’t have long to wait.  Riordan’s upcoming book will be released in September of next year.  The second it does you better believe I’ll be in line to grab a copy.