'Percy Jackson' on Disney+
If you’re interested in reading Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians—or your kid is—the good news is that it’s easy to get into. The five books in the original series were published in reading order, and although they’re marketed to middle-grade readers they can also be enjoyed by teens and adults.
What gets more complicated is discerning where the Percy Jackson books begin and end. Technically, Percy is only the main focus in the original series (we’ll call it PJO). He narrates those books by himself but shares the limelight with six other characters in its follow-up, another five-book series called The Heroes of Olympus (HOO).
Additionally, Riordan added a sixth book to PJO in 2023, set after the events of HOO. And if you want to get really into it, Percy makes appearances in spinoff series like The Trials of Apollo and Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, though not as a main character.
So, which of these series should you read—and does it matter if you read them all? Here’s the complete guide to reading the Percy Jackson books in order.
How to read the Percy Jackson Books in order
Start with the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series
Every wannabe Percy Jackson reader must start at the very beginning, with Percy Jackson and the Olympians (PJO). This series kicks off Percy’s journey as a demigod—half human, half god—and introduces Riordans’ unique take on Greek mythology.
PJO is told from Percy’s perspective as he discovers his true identity as Poseidon’s son and what that means for him (usually, running from monsters and saving the world). Along with friends Annabeth and Grover, he battles Greek gods and ancient creatures while navigating life as a 12- to 16-year-old kid in New York City. It’s a great blend of fantasy and contemporary fiction and Percy is an ultra-relatable protagonist.
What makes Percy Jackson such a hit with readers, young and old alike, is the way Riordan manages to transform millennia-old stories into modern, digestible and fun adventures. The first two books were even made into movies in 2010 and 2013, though Disney+ has now taken the reins for a TV adaptation premiering Dec. 20.
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Here’s the reading order for PJO and when each book was published:
1. The Lightning Thief (2005)
2. The Sea of Monsters (2006)
3. The Titan’s Curse (2007)
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth (2008)
5. The Last Olympian (2009)
Note: A sixth book was later added to the series, titled The Chalice of the Gods, but shouldn’t be read directly after The Last Olympian. Instead, readers should move on to The Heroes of Olympus series.
Next, read The Heroes of Olympus series
The Heroes of Olympus (HOO) is a five-book series that follows the events of PJO but with a new set of characters and mythology. In fact, Percy doesn’t even appear in the first book, The Lost Hero. Instead, Jason, Piper and Leo narrate the story as they uncover their godly heritage and embark on a quest to rescue the goddess Hera.
However, much of the setting will be familiar to PJO readers as the new demigods travel to Camp Half-Blood, the much-beloved demigod camp that featured in the original series. There, old characters find their footing in the story, and in later books Percy’s narration returns. In total, there are seven narrators who all get their moments to shine.
A main difference between PJO and HOO is the introduction of Roman mythology, much of which is based in Greek mythology. The characters are also aged up a bit, ranging from 14 to 17 across the series, and the plot and narrative tools are more complex to reflect this.
Here’s the reading order for HOO and when each book was published:
1. The Lost Hero (2010)
2. The Son of Neptune (2011)
3. The Mark of Athena (2012)
4. The House of Hades (2013)
5. The Blood of Olympus (2014)
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Last (for now), readThe Chalice of the Gods
Recently, a sixth book was added to the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series that returns focus to the original trio: Percy, Annabeth and Grover. It’s also only told from Percy’s point of view.
The Chalice of the Gods (2023) is set after the events of The Heroes of Olympus—specifically, after The Blood of Olympus—so should only be read after completing that series. In it, Percy must go on three quests to receive the necessary recommendation letters to attend colleg—because, as a Rick Riordan rule, things are about 10 times more complicated for demigods than they are for mortals.
Riordan has already announced that this book will be part of a “trilogy” comprising Percy’s transition from senior year to college at New Rome University. Seeing as he tackles the first quest in The Chalice of the Gods, he will be on the second quest in the next book, Wrath of the Triple Goddess, which releases Sept. 24, 2024.
Compared to previous Percy Jackson books, these ones are more laid back. As Riordan described to Comicbook.com, “This is, 'What is it like to be Percy Jackson on your average Tuesday?' I wanted to give readers a sense of that slice of life,” he said. “It's such a breakneck pace in most of my books that you never really get to see Percy at rest or just kind of chilling with Annabeth and Grover and hanging out. It felt important to make that part of this story.”
Other Riordan series
Percy appears in other Riordan series, though never as a main character. The books are all set in the same universe, which makes it easy for Riordan to inject him into the story.
In the FAQs page of his website, Riordan addresses this: “Annabeth and Percy also make cameos in the Magnus Chase series, since Magnus is Annabeth's cousin. I know there is interest in a big Avengers-type mash-up with characters from all the different series together. Maybe some day I'll write a book like that, but that would be pretty complicated!”
Percy also pops up in The Trials of Apollo series, but like in Magnus Chase, he serves a minor role.
Readers who enjoy the Percy Jackson books may also enjoy Riordan’s other series, though, as they follow similar premises but each with a unique twist. Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard is based on Norse mythology, the Kane Chronicles is based on Egyptian mythology and The Trials of Apollo is based on Greek mythology, but this time from a god’s perspective.
Final Percy Jackson book list in order
There are many books set in the Riordan mythological universe, and not all of them are Percy Jackson books. To read the Percy Jackson books in order and get his full story, you’ll want to start with the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, move on to The Heroes of Olympus series and finish with The Chalice of the Gods, the newest book featuring Percy Jackson. Making the final list as follows:
1. The Lightning Thief (2005)
2. The Sea of Monsters (2006)
3. The Titan’s Curse (2007)
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth (2008)
5. The Last Olympian (2009)
6. The Lost Hero (2010)
7. The Son of Neptune (2011)
8. The Mark of Athena (2012)
9. The House of Hades (2013)
10. The Blood of Olympus (2014)
11. The Chalice of the Gods (2023)
Riordan has at least two more books planned after The Chalice of the Gods that will also feature Percy as the protagonist. But if you’re itching to read more before they’re released, you can always try out his other series with different protagonists.
