A new era of Percy Jackson is finally upon us, with the new Disney show set to launch us and our Camp Half-Blood orange shirts all back to when Rick Riordan was first publishing the book sagas and we were all living and breathing them. But how do you keep all those books in order?
I say “sagas,” plural, because the world of Percy Jackson has considerably expanded through the years, spanning multiple series and following a wide number of characters who are all connected by the same basic premise—the gods, goddesses, and monsters of Greek mythology are all real; they have just mostly moved across the ocean to America.
So if you already know that Disney’s new show is going to inspire a rereading marathon or if you’ve never had a chance to pick up the Percy Jackson books, here is a reading guide meant to make finding your way through this maze of more than twenty titles as easy as possible.
Percy Jackson & the Olympians
The very first introduction to Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and the world made of demigods and monsters they inhabit, the initial segment of the Percy Jackson & the Olympians saga was published between 2005 and 2009 and consists of five books: The Lightning Thief, The Sea of Monsters, The Titan’s Curse, The Battle of the Labyrinth, and The Last Olympian.
The story follows young Percy as he discovers that he’s a demigod, the son of a mortal woman and the Greek god of the sea Poseidon, and that he has a pretty significant role to play in the struggle the gods will have to face against their old mythological enemies, the Titans, led by Kronos.
Recently, Riordan has picked this saga up again to continue following Percy’s story with the novel The Chalice of the Gods, published in 2023, and Wrath of the Triple Goddess, which is expected for 2024. Now a college-age kid, Percy has to deal with some issues that seemingly prevent him from entering New Rome University that, of course, the gods promise to solve if he embarks on a quest for them.
The Heroes of Olympus
Immediately after Percy Jackson & the Olympians comes The Heroes of Olympus, published between 2010 and 2014 and consisting of five books: The Lost Hero, The Son of Neptune, The Mark of Athena, The House of Hades, and The Blood of Olympus.
The Heroes of Olympus expands on the world that was established in Percy Jackson & the Olympians, introducing us to New Rome—the Roman mythological equivalent to Camp Half-Blood—and a new cast of characters that, together with Percy and Annabeth, make up the “seven demigods of the prophecy” who will help the gods in their fight against the primordial goddess Gaia and Tartarus, the darkest and deepest part of the Underworld.
Spinoffs: The Kane Chronicles, Magnus Chase and The Trials of Apollo
Set in the same universe as the Percy Jackson books, The Kane Chronicles follow siblings Carter and Sadie Kane, two powerful magicians descended from ancient pharaohs, as they encounter figures from Egyptian mythology. Percy and Annabeth both make an appearance in the anthology Demigods and Magicians—consisting of short stories The Son of Sobek, The Staff of Serapis and The Crown of Ptolemy—where they work together with Carter and Sadie to defeat the evil magician Setne.
As the title suggests, Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard focuses on Norse mythology. The story revolves around the titular Magnus Chase, who is Annabeth’s cousin and the son of Frey. His family relationship with Annabeth is what links these two sides of the Riordanverse together, and both she and Percy make brief appearances in two of the three main novels of the saga: The Sword of Summer, The Hammer of Thor, and The Ship of the Dead.
Finally, The Trials of Apollo returns to the Greek and Roman world, after the events of The Blood of Olympus. Its five-plus-one books—The Hidden Oracle, The Dark Prophecy, The Burning Maze, The Tyrant’s Tomb, and The Tower of Nero, plus The Sun and the Star—follow the god Apollo as he’s cast down to Earth by his father, Zeus, as punishment. Once there, he discovers he has to save five undiscovered oracles to regain his godhood—and of course, he will need the help of the demigods of both Camp Half-Blood and New Rome to do so.
So here is the complete reading order, divided into sagas and including the spinoffs:
Percy Jackson & the Olympians
1. The Lightning Thief
2. The Sea of Monsters
3. The Titan’s Curse
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth
5. The Last Olympian
The Heroes of Olympus
6. The Lost Hero
7. The Son of Neptune
8. The Mark of Athena
9. The House of Hades
10. The Blood of Olympus
Demigods and Magicians (spin-off)
11. The Son of Sobek
12. The Staff of Serapis
13. The Crown of Ptolemy
Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard (spin-off)
14. The Sword of Summer
15. The Hammer of Thor
16. The Ship of the Dead
The Trials of Apollo (spin-off)
17. The Hidden Oracle
18. The Dark Prophecy
19. The Burning Maze
20. The Tyrant’s Tomb
21. The Tower of Nero
22. The Sun and the Star
Percy Jackson & the Olympians (again)
23. The Chalice of the Gods
24. Wrath of the Triple Goddess (to be published in 2024)
(featured image: Disney+)
