I'm gonna be honest. I had so much more fun with this than The Lightning Thief! And I don't know if this is because the story's more captivating or I just don't remember much of it after reading it for the first time several years ago.

Sea of Monsters was jam-packed! There are more stuff about Greek mythology (from the creatures, to the stories, to the heroes and villains, and the gods), the bigger plot and the prophecy is finally revealed to Percy, plus the characters are also a highlight (Tyson appearing and worming his way onto Percy's life, Annabeth opening up more about herself, Clarisse trusting Percy and working with him). It was all so good and every element worked well together. I also loved that it's humorous but also philosophical at the same time.

In this book, I also realized that Percy really did have the makings of a villain, or at the very least, a bad guy. He's powerful (and still has more potential in the coming years), sassy, insecure, and can also be prideful at times, has an absentee father, and is contantly being used as a pawn. What makes him different though, is he's still compassionate. He trusts people and sees kindness, and he takes the time to reflect and he admits his flaws, his doubts, and wrongdoings. I'm pretty sure we have Sally Jackson to thank for that.

Also, can I just say, that ending?! It's truly brilliant and so well executed that I still had goosebumps even though I already knew exactly what was coming. It's so good! Loved this! 

(And yes, I'm still so mad that the movie adaptation changed and omitted so many details from the book. Ugh.)

(This book review is a part of Enthralled Bookworm's Percy Jackson and the Olympians: Series Review.)