For all you Rick Riordan fans, the book you have been waiting for is finally here:  Son of Neptune.  Don’t worry, Percy Jackson has been found and stars in this installment of The Heroes of Olympus along with two new heroes that I just loved.  This adventure races through with battles, monsters, and unexpected help from unlikely sources.  Behind the action lurk secrets that might destroy them all.

Even though he can’t remember anything about himself or his past other than his name and the name of Annabeth, Percy has been fighting monsters across the country looking for the Roman camp to take him in and offer safety.  He just makes it only to discover that things are not well at Camp Jupiter.  The monsters are not staying dead, and some would seek to sow discord between campers.  Even so, Percy is accpted into the least of the legions and befriends the two lowliest campers.

Hazel would prefer to fight on horseback, but the Roman legions are strictly infantry.  Besides she holds a secret and a curse that she dares to share with no one.  Only her brother Nico (yes, that Nico) knows her secret, but he is not welcome in camp either.

Frank is clumsy except with his bow and arrow, and he still has not been claimed by his godly father.  Once he is claimed (and, no, I’m not telling), he is mortified beyond belief.  It is just one more person that he will fail, just as he disappointed his fierce grandmother.

The three unlikely heroes travel beyond the realm of the gods to try to succeed in an impossible quest with an impossible deadline.  The must return victorious before the Feast of Fortuna, and there is little any can do to help them on their way.  They must face down all manner of monsters and giants to free death from his bonds.  To do so will require the ultimate sacrifice, putting duty above all else.

The bad news?  Even if they are successful (and no one at Camp Jupiter believes these three can succeed), the real battle is still to come.  Can the heroes of Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter overcome their differences to work together to defeat Gaia once and for all?  We won’t find out until the release of The Mark of Athena in the fall of 2012.  Beyond that there are two more books planned.  Write fast, Rick!