Wrath of the Triple Goddess

Percy Jackson has fought monsters, titans, and gods. But now he faces his greatest challenge yet: college admissions. In order to attend New Rome University, Percy needs to earn three recommendation letters from Greek gods. After earning his first letter by finding the cupbearer Ganymede’s missing chalice, Percy was enjoying living a quest-free life. But as the son of Poseidon, Percy rarely gets a break from being a hero. When Hecate, the goddess of magic and crossroads, promises to write a recommendation letter for Percy in exchange for a week of pet sitting, he can’t refuse.  

With the help of his girlfriend Annabeth, and his best friend Grover, Percy hopes that looking after Hecate’s hellhound and polecat will be a piece of cake. But Hecate’s mysterious mansion is filled with temptations, and her mischief-minded pets are eager to cause trouble. When Grover’s appetite gets the better of him and he drinks one of Hecate’s potions, chaos is unleashed. And so are Hecate’s pets. As Grover tears through the house in a potion-induced frenzy, Hecuba the hellhound and Gale the polecat escape to romp around New York City.   

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover must find Hecate’s missing pets and repair her mansion before she gets home, or they will face the goddess’s wrath.  

Percy Jackson is a witty, strong, and heroic character. As the narrator, he guides the reader through the story in a way that is engaging and humorous. Throughout the novel, Percy proves himself to be a compassionate and capable leader. He learns from his mistakes and uses the knowledge that he has gained from previous experiences to ensure that he keeps his friends safe. He also maintains a positive outlook, despite the challenging circumstances. 

Percy is joined by Annabeth and Grover, who are both strong and inspirational characters. Annabeth, the daughter of Athena, is a fierce warrior and strategist. She often uses her wisdom and intelligence to think her way out of situations, and she uses her skills to protect her friends. Grover is a selfless satyr with a big heart. He is in tune with nature and his emotions, using these skills to advocate for the natural world.   

While Wrath of the Triple Goddess is the seventeenth book in the Percy Jackson universe, it is still understandable and enjoyable for readers who are unfamiliar with Rick Riordan’s previous works. The main details are summarized for new readers, and the plot is straightforward. Readers also do not need to be familiar with Greek mythology to enjoy this book. Longtime fans will appreciate reading about the adventures of familiar characters and will enjoy many references and callbacks to the previous books.  This novel contains Rick Riordan’s recognizable style and humor but differs from Riordan’s previous works since the conflict is less high-stakes, and the overall tone is more whimsical.    

This story contains themes of friendship, perseverance, and compassion. Throughout the novel, Percy and his friends succeed because of the faith they place in each other. They are stronger as a team and work together to solve their problems. The trio also faces many different challenges, but they are determined to keep on fighting. They don’t give up on each other or their goals. Ultimately, the characters are compassionate and forgive one another for the mistakes they make. Rather than blaming Grover for the pets going missing, Annabeth and Percy reassure him that it wasn’t his fault and work with him to find a solution. Wrath of the Triple Goddess is a light-hearted and entertaining addition to the world of Percy Jackson.  

Sexual Content   

• Before parting ways, Percy and Annabeth kiss goodbye outside Annabeth’s school. “She gave me a big wet kiss.”  
• Percy and Annabeth kiss after eating an antidote, which helped them recover from a magical gas that gave them animal features. “I kissed Annabeth, though my breath probably smelled like cinnamon and bug shells.”   

Violence   

• Percy discovers a hellhound puppy with a wound on its back. Percy suspects the puppy was attacked by some type of monster. “His black fur was matted with gunk. Flies buzzed around his cherry-red eyes. His ears were back, and he trembled with fear. A nasty-looking cut zigzagged across his back, like he’d been attacked by something with claws.” The puppy recovers.  
• Zombies attack Percy, Annabeth, and Grover. Percy “cut down the first reanimated corpse, then sliced another two undead into dust. Meanwhile, Annabeth launched herself at another dead guy, driving her dagger into his face, while Grover goat-kicked one right through the windshield of a parked Toyota.” The trio defeats the zombies. 
• A bear-monster attacks Percy, Annabeth, and Grover. Percy “got to the bear before she could claw Annabeth and [he] slashed with [his sword]—cutting clean through [the monster’s] right paw. The paw went flying.” The bear-monster recovers.  

Drugs and Alcohol   

• Percy and Annabeth drink nectar to regain their strength. “Percy gulped it down. A surge of warmth washed through [his] organs. [He] recognized the sensation. It was nectar—the drink of the gods.”  

Language     

• Percy learns that he will be picked up from school by a family member, rather than taking the subway by himself. When he learns this, he thinks “it made me look like a doofus. . .”  
• Animals called “hellhounds” are referred to frequently. 
• Characters rarely say expressions such as “Oh, gods.”  
• Percy jokingly calls his friend Leo a doofus twice.    

Supernatural   

• Hecate is referred to as the “goddess of ghosts.” 
• Percy thinks he sees a ghost while walking towards a park. Percy “thought [he] saw a glowing blue apparition—the figure of a child on a bicycle, pedaling away from us in terror. When [Percy] blinked, it was gone.”  
• Percy communicates telepathically with three eels in Hecate’s mansion. The eels lie to Percy to try to get him to feed them extra fish. “The eels were telling me all about it telepathically. Their thoughts chiseled their way into my skull like ice picks.” Percy occasionally communicates with the eels throughout the novel.  
• Grover drinks a potion from Hecate’s laboratory that turns him into a giant goat. Percy discovers him sleeping on the floor in Hecate’s ruined mansion. “And in the middle of all this chaos was a mountain of hairy flesh, snoring with gusto, its two massive shaggy legs propped against the kitchen island, its moose-size hooves pointing towards the ceiling.” Grover recovers and goes back to normal after letting out a large belch.  
• During a battle against zombies, a zombie touches Percy, and he has a vision of the Siege of Troy. “When I looked up, I was no longer in Queens. I knelt on a barren, battle-scarred hillside. To my right, the city of Troy was burning.” Percy wakes up from this vision and continues fighting.    
• Grover goes into a trancelike state and summons a large number of squirrels. “Then the squirrels began to arrive. Three scrambled down the nearest tree trunk and hopped onto Grover’s back. Another raced out of the bushes and leaped onto his shoulder. Two more tunneled through the leaves and skittered up Grover’s legs. Within a minute, there were dozens, maybe hundreds.” Grover speaks with the squirrels, and they help him find Hecate’s missing pet polecat. After communicating with Grover, the squirrels leave, and Grover recovers. 
• Percy shadow-travels with Hecuba, the pet hellhound. Shadow-travelling is a type of teleportation that hellhounds are capable of. Percy “was pulled off [his] feet. A dark portal whirled at the edge of the roof, and as Hecuba jumped through it [he was] sucked into the shadow-world.” Percy and Hecuba shadow-travel across the world for seven pages and stop when they get back to Hecate’s mansion.  
• Percy is sprayed in the face with a potion that paralyzes him. “The [potion] got in my nostrils, my eyes, my mouth. . . Then my mouth stopped working. My arms turned into sandbags. My legs crumpled. I crashed sideways to the floor, completely paralyzed.” Percy recovers after being revived by Grover.  
• A magical gas hits Annabeth, Percy, and Grover, which transforms them. Annabeth’s head turns into an owl’s, Percy’s arms turn into octopus tentacles, and Grover’s goat legs turn into human legs. “Where [Annabeth’s] face had been a second before, two huge black eyes stared out over a hooked golden beak. Her head had turned into a heart-shaped expanse of white plumage, rimmed with speckled brown feathers. From the neck up, [Annabeth] was a barn owl. . . Where my arms used to be were eight thick purple tentacles lined with pink suction cups. . . [Grover] was staring down at his legs and weeping. Where his furry goat hindquarters had been, there was bare skin, forward-articulating knees, and instead of hooves. . . feet.” They all return to their normal selves after eating a magical antidote.  
• Percy makes a magical antidote to return himself and his friends to normal after the magical gas transformed them. “Annabeth tore into the second [antidote] with her sharp, hooked bill. . . She doubled over, breathing heavily. When she straightened again, she was normal Annabeth – human face, human hair, with the scent of her usual apple shampoo.” The antidote is effective, and they return to normal.  
• Percy, Annabeth, and Grover summon ghosts in a graveyard to help them repair Hecate’s mansion. “The dark silhouette deepened, peeling itself from the bricks and taking on a smoky form like a cloud of coal dust.” They take the ghosts to the mansion, and once it is repaired, they release the ghosts.    

Spiritual Content   

• This novel is centered around Greek mythology and contains frequent depictions of and references to Ancient Greek gods.  

by Kelly Barker