Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth (Book 4)

This instalment in the Percy Jackson series sees Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Tyson delve into the frightening depths of the Labyrinth. The mythical maze, like other ancient Greek places of legend, moves with the Western World. It current sits under America and has various entrances concealed around. Moving through the Labyrinth isn't the same as regular travel, people can move faster but it's incredibly easy to get lost.

Percy and his friends are on a quest to stop Luke and the Titan's army from using the Labyrinth to invade Camp Half-Blood. This time Annabeth is the quest leader. Though she's very excited, she is quite stressed under the immense pressure to succeed. As always she is also given a troublesome prophecy for her quest and is deeply concerned about it.

We also got to learn more about other characters such as the goddess Hera and the god Hephaestus. In the previous book, Percy met a mortal named Rachel who was able to see through the Mist. She became a larger character in this book which I loved, it was great to see a mortal human in this fantastical world. She's also an artist with spunk which is fun and her conservations with Annabeth were quite entertaining.

This book is filled with betrayals, action and mystery even more than the last. It's a fun read and I loved exploring the Labyrinth with the young heroes. Everything is building up to the final book and I can't wait to read it.

If the previous three novels in the series were amazing, The Battle of the Labyrinth was phenomenal. The adventure was never-ending and the new take on Greek mythology was absolutely fascinating.

In the fourth novel, Annabeth and Clarisse have been researching and attempting to locate an entrance to the Labyrinth, a perpetual maze created by the Greek architect Daedalus for King Minos, which Luke plans to use as a way to invade Camp Half-Blood. Percy, Annabeth, Grover and Tyson are sent on a quest inside the Labyrinth to find Daedalus, who is supposedly still alive, and convince him not to give Luke the secret to navigating the Labyrinth. The gang needs to discover a way not to get lost in the Labyrinth and find Daedalus before he gives up the secrets of the Labyrinth – otherwise Camp Half-Blood will be destroyed and the gods, and Western Civilization, will fall.

By far the most interesting aspect of this novel was the Labyrinth itself, primarily Riordan’s creative modern take on it. In the original Greek myth, the Labyrinth was an intricate structure designed by Daedalus for King Minos in order to hold the infamous Minotaur. The hero Theseus was able to navigate the Labyrinth through the assistance of Minos’ daughter Ariadne, where he then killed the Minotaur. Minos was so angry at Daedalus, who he kept prisoner along with his son Icarus in order to prevent Daedalus’ knowledge from getting out, that he spent the rest of his life searching for Daedalus who had escaped. In the escape, Icarus died after he flew too close to the sun on his home-made wax wings.

In the novel, the Labyrinth is an ever-changing and growing entity that continually develops new rooms and corridors and stretches across the entirety of America. I found Riordan’s take on this classic to be ingenious. It was such a fascinating idea and I loved every second the gang spent in the Labyrinth. New mythological creatures were introduced, a few I had never even heard of before such as the Hekatonkheires (who was even sweeter than Tyson), the creepy Geryon and the terrifying Antaeus. This new cast of villains was a great inclusion in the story as it shows the power Kronos has and how the Olympians and the Half-Bloods have almost no chance against them in the final novel.

Every scene in the story was infused with tension and suspense. The action scenes did not stop, so much to the point that I was finding it difficult to breathe. I thoroughly loved these scenes and wouldn’t change a thing about them, even if I almost had a panic attack while I was reading.

I loved the portrayal of Hephaestus in The Battle of the Labyrinth. He has never been my favourite Olympian god but I loved how Riordan developed his character and made him very likable and sympathetic. I couldn’t help but feel for Hephaestus as he is often the brunt of many jokes due to his features. Hera, his own mother, even tried to kill him when he was a baby. Riordan did a fantastic job with Hephaestus’ character, who I believe is often looked over, even in Greek mythology.

One of the most touching scenes in the entire series occurred in this novel where Percy washes up in Ogygia and meets Calypso, daughter of the Titan Atlas, who was punished and exiled for her father’s sins. She is cursed in that she cannot leave her island and the young heroes who find themselves on Ogygia’s shores are destined to never stay. Percy practically falls in love with Calypso, but knows in his heart that he must return to the mortal world and fight the prophecy. Calypso’s island shows that, although we are rooting for the gods to defeat the Titans, the gods have done terrible, unwarranted things too and we should not forget that.

Another character I fell in love with was Nico di Angelo, who, it is revealed, is the son of Hades. Nico feels left out of Camp Half-Blood and is still holding a grudge against Percy for the circumstances involving his sister’s death. Nico’s troubles are heartbreaking and I only hope that he gets the happy ending he deserves. I can’t wait to discover more about his identity.

The Battle of the Labyrinth was a thrilling roller-coaster ride of a novel. As the second-last novel in the series, you just know that the finale is going to be just as good, if not better.

This is my absolute favorite in the whole series! Everything about it from the quest to the new characters to the myth this book was based off of. It was all awesome!
Just all over awesome.

*reviewed by Chance

I love the idea of this Percy Jackson, to based on the story of Minotaur and the Labyrinth. I found this very clever, and I like that he used this idea but changed it so it wasn't exactly the same.

Percy Jackson isn’t expecting freshman orientation to be any fun. But when a mysterious mortal acquaintance appears on campus, followed by demon cheerleaders, things quickly move from bad to diabolical.

In this latest 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 them, Percy and his demigod friends must set out on a quest through the Labyrinth—a sprawling underground world with stunning surprises at every turn. Full of humor and heart-pounding action, this fourth book promises to be their most thrilling adventure yet. In this book, the ever-raging war with the evil Titan, Kronos, gets bigger, harder and ever more dangerous.

I loved the Percy Jackson books, every single one of them. I thought that everything about this book was as good as the last ones, maybe even better. I wish they didn't stop after the next one!!!

The more you read on the better the series become and the darker and more dangerous it becomes for the young heroes. Relationships are tested and hard choices are made. A great read for anyone looking for a thrilling adventure.

Reader reviewed by Tommy

One of my favorite books this summer was The Battle of the Labyrinth.  It was written by Rick Riordan.  It is about a boy named Percy who has to go into a huge, expanding, and complicated tunnel.  Percy and his friends have to stop the evil kid, Luke, from invading their base.  When Luke gets his army through intact, the fight gets destructive. The author made the story clear with great detail and kept the plot moving.  The author could have made the book a little less stressful, but that's the only flaw. I think readers that like action, mystery and comedy should read this book. My rating is five stars easily.  

Reader reviewed by big-brain

Percy Jackson has been invited to Goode High. While at the freshmen orientation Percy has a run in with Rachel Elizabeth Dare, the mysterious mortal he met the previous winter at the Hoover Dam who can see through the Mist, and two demonic cheerleaders, the empousai. He's able to defeat one of the empousai, but the other, Kelli, escapes, but not before she sets the school on fire. With Rachel's help, he's able to get out of the school and runs into Annabeth, fellow demigod, and daughter of Athena. They were supposed to have a "date", but with the sudden interruption of the empousai and Rachel, their afternoon together is canceled and they head for camp.

On their arrival, Percy discovers Dionysus' absence and he attends Grover Underwood's hearing with the Council of Cloven Elders, who feel that they should revoke his searcher's license since he has found no evidence of Pan after six months of claiming to hear him. In attendance, is also Grover's girlfriend, Juniper, a dryad. They give him one week to find proof of Pan's existence. Percy also meets the new swordsman trainer, Quintus, an adult half-blood and his gigantic hellhound pet, Mrs. O'Leary.

As Luke's forces are gathering and plan to invade Camp Half-Blood, the demigods begin preparations. While playing a deadly game with giant scorpions, Percy and Annabeth discover an entrance into the dangerous Labyrinth.
Annabeth is chosen to the lead the quest to find the workshop of Daedalus, inventor of the Labyrinth and holder of Ariadne's string, and consult the Oracle. She's vague about the last line of the prophecy and breaks the rules by allowing three questers, Percy, Tyson, and Grover to come with her instead of two. Percy receives a mysterious Iris message that shows Nico talking to a ghost adviser, who turns out to be King Minos, and raising the dead by using cheeseburgers and soda to get answers to find a way to get a soul for a soul. Before descending into the Labyrinth, Quintus gives Percy a dog whistle, that when blown, will summon Mrs. O'Leary to him whenever he is trouble.

Once in the Labyrinth, they immediately get lost and don't know which way to turn. They meet Janus, the two-faced god of choices, and Hera, Queen of Heaven and the goddess of marriage. She guides them and tells them to seek out Hephaestus, who might have kept track of Daedalus≤ over the ages. Nico summons Bianca's spirit, who lets him know that Percy wasn't to blame for her death. Nico decides to remain behind at the ranch, while the others continue.

As they continue their quest to find Hephaestus, they come across the Sphinx, who upsets Annabeth by not having more challenging riddles, instead of just fact questions. They escape the grasp of the Sphinx and discover Hephaestus in one of his forges fixing a Toyota. He tells them that he'll help them find them find Daedalus if they found out whose been using his forge at Mount St. Helens. They agree, but split up along the way when Grover gets a scent of Pan. Tyson decides to go with him, leaving Percy and Annabeth to head to the forge. They discover telekhines, called sea demons, there, making a weapon for Kronos. Percy tells Annabeth to escape while she can, and she kisses him for good luck and departs to report back to Hephaestus.

The telekhines discover Percy and injure him by throwing lava on him. Percy summons all his powers to get rid of the lava and the telekhines, and ends up causing Mount St. Helens to erupt. He is then sent while unconcious to Calypso's island by Hera. Hephaestus arrives and tells him what he wants to know about Daedalus and what he'll need to guide him through the Labyrinth: Rachel. He leaves Calypso's island and heads for camp. He and Annabeth go looking for Rachel and finds her in Manhattan.

Together, they descend into the Labyrinth again, this time with Rachel as their guide, whose eyes are harder to fool since she can see directly through the Mist. They run across an underground arena being used to entertain, a giant son of Poseidon, Antaeus and Luke. Percy duels against a half-blood named Ethan Nakamura, who he spares in the battle.He then challenges Antaeus to battle and successfully kills him. The monsters begin to overwhelm them and he calls Mrs. O'Leary by use of the dog whistle to help them out. They escape and finally find their way to Daedalus' workshop to discover Daedalus is actually Quintus. Daedalus has built five bodies for himself over the millennium, by casting his soul into the humanoid automatons. Monsters attack again in his workshop, led by Kelli who has taken Nico captive. He had left the Labyrinth, but he was advised by Minos to return because Minos said Percy and Annabeth would be in danger. It is a trick , because Minos wants revenge on Daedalus for his treachery and giving the daughters of a rival king the tools to kill him. He reveals that once Nico got the soul, he would use it for himself, and not on Bianca. Percy, Annabeth, Nico and Rachel are able to escape on bronze wings and fly out of Daedalus's workshop, leaving him to battle the monsters with Mrs. O'Leary.

Rachel convinces a chauffeur to drive them into the city due to her wealthy status and she spots another entrance to the Labyrinth in a museum. Once in the Labyrinth, they come across a tunnel that leads to Mount Tam and the palace of Kronos. Percy can't help but check it out and discovers the telekhines from Hephaestus' forge have finished the new weapon for the Lord of Time, the scythe.Percy opens the coffin to discover Luke,who looks dead. Ethan,son of Nemesis(a minor god), enters with the telekhines and pledges his allegiance to Kronos. This is the last person Kronos needs to be complete, and he is resurrected in the form of Luke's body. Percy and his friends barely escape, and Nico uses his powers to cause the ceiling of the palace to cave in.

They continue on their journey back to New York and begin to sense something ancient and powerful in another tunnel. They find Tyson and Grover, and discover the lost god Pan in a crystal cavern. He wants Grover to tell the world he has died, since his kingdom has faded and that his spirit shall live inside all of them. He leaves Percy, Annabeth, and Rachel cryptic messages about their futures. Pan then dies and the crystal cavern vanishes along with its wonders. They then return to Camp, where Luke's forces have begun the invasion. They're able to beat them back, but have a few causalities. After the battle, Daedalus, by order of himself, is killed by Nico to destroy the Labyrinth.

The Council of Cloven Elders decide that Grover should be exiled and that the search for Pan should continue, but Dionysus returns and outvotes them. Percy hears the last line of Annabeth's prophecy and is upset to hear that And lose a love to worse than death, wasn't about him as she had thought, but Luke. She decides to stay at camp a while and Percy heads home to celebrate his fifteenth birthday with his mom, Paul Blofis, and Tyson. He gets a surprise visitor in the form of Poseidon, who gives him a sand dollar as a birthday gift. He also gives him a warning that ancient forces are stirring, the great monster Typhon is stirring from his imprisonment under Mount St. Helens due to the Titans rising and Percy's outburst.
I recommend this book for kids ages 10 and up. In my opinion, it is the best book of the year! it is frickin' awesome!!!!!