I was incredibly excited to start reading the Heroes of Olympus series because I loved the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series so much. Right off the bat, I noticed that The Lost Hero was going to be much different in tone and writing style. This spin off series is now told from multiple points of view and in the third person. I guess I was expecting the same approach as last time so it's a rather big difference in the approach of storytelling. Considering this was a spin off in the same universe with a lot of the same characters, I assumed it would have to be similar in tone and structure. I'm not 100% certain if that's a fair assumption or not but it's just how I personally felt about it. I think this really comes down to expectation vs. reality. 
 I was expecting to get more of the same things I knew and loved such as the clever humor and the snarky chapter titles. Those were some of my favorite little details from the first series and I missed them when they were gone. I wonder if this was a conscious creative decision. In The Lost Hero we are starting to see the Greek gods in their Roman aspects. While the Greek myths had a bit more whimsy, the Roman ones were more serious and militaristic. In reality this probably explains why the change in tone is so apparent due to its introduction of the Roman characters. The Lost Hero was definitely darker and our new heroes (Piper, Leo, and Jason) have much more tragic backstories. Maybe this was because they were all a bit older (15 rather than 12) when the story is being told. They are all likeable and interesting characters in their own ways but I really missed the clever humor from the first series. These characters were a bit more tragic in reality rather than the lightheartedness I was expecting. 
 I just couldn't get over my expectations to see this as a unique story yet. It's not that I didn't think it was good. It was! Really! I think, overall, I'm just "in like" with The Lost Hero instead of being "in love" with it. I guess I just really wanted to see Percy again. He was my favorite little guy and he wasn't even in this one at all! I know that Percy's narrative is technically over but still... I guess I just really wanted more and because I didn't get it in The Lost Hero I was left with a sense of ennui after finishing the book. However, book two is called The Son of Neptune so I'm sure that's going to be pretty Percy heavy and I'm definitely looking forward to that! 
 P.S. I got so annoyed that no one would just effing say what was going on. Why? This cryptic shamanism behavior is bullshit. The story could have been edited down at least 100 pages if it just had a clear direction. Like... just get to the point already! There was a line in there to explain this. Essentially, you can't be told your destiny. It needs to be discovered on your own or the triumphs won't have any meaning. But still, why couldn't anyone just say "Hey... I think the bad guy is (view spoiler)[Gaea (hide spoiler)] so maybe be aware of some things relevant to this."? That doesn't tell them what to do but it points them in the right direction quicker. I'm just saying the story could have been shorter if they would have gotten to the point sooner and it wouldn't have been any less compelling.