I shied away from reading this one for a while because the cover was so reminiscent of Harry Potter, and I didn't want to read a knock-off. But it kept gnawing at me until I picked it up, and from the get-go, I was hooked. 
 I was hooked even though I didn't initially like how juvenile the book was - I am not 12 years old dammit (ignoring the fact that it was MEANT for young people). 
 I was hooked even though the dialogue made me shake my head in some places. 
 By the end, I was bought, hook, line and sinker. 
 Rick Riordan has truly created a world where Greek mythology comes to life, in a modern, fun way that still preserves the integrity of the ancient stories. And by the end, I had come to enjoy the dialogue. 
 Percy is a perfect underdog, and I enjoyed reading his perspective, Chiron is awesome! 
 Dare I say I was even more wowed at the end of this book, than I was at the end of the first Harry Potter? 
 This book is a winner (and one of the ones I'm gonna make my kids read) 
 I wish I was the daughter of Poseidon!