I enjoyed this book, even if it does show its Harry Potter roots a bit too much. Percy is a misunderstood almost teen with a bad habit of attracting mysterious monsters and strange happenings which ordinary people don't seem to see or notice. He's dyslexic, ADD and the butt of most of the bullies in school. When he finds out he is the son of the sea god Poseidon and is sent to Half-Blood camp where other children of gods and mortals train to become heroes, he thinks life might get a bit better. But that would make for a very dull story. So Percy, along with a brainy female sidekick and a brave satyr friend, get to fight monsters and outwit gods on a quest to save the Big Three - Zeus, Poseidon and Hades - from tearing apart Olympus in a civil war. Rick Riordan has learned his lessons well and throws in all the right elements for a fun romp.