The Demigod Diaries By: Rick Riordan

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• Title: The Demigod Diaries (The Heroes of Olympus)
• Author: Rick Riordan
• Publisher: Hyperion Books
• Publication Date:  August 14, 2012 
• Pages: 256
• Genre: Fantasy
• Recommended Age(s): 9+
• First Read: 2015
• Source: Purchase 
• Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 stars

These types of books are probably some of my favorites in the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians/Heroes of Olympus Series because they provide the most interesting backstories on the characters. 

This particular volume includes short stories on Percy and Annabeth, right after the Battle of Manhattan, as seen in The Last Olympian, as well as a story from Thalia and Luke from when they were still on the run. Additionally, there is an interesting interview with George and Martha, Hermes' snakes, and even an adventure with Leo, Jason, Piper, and a bunch of crazy Maenads who just want to party. 

Every single one of these stories was absolutely fascinating because I got to glimpse a little of what my favorite heroes were doing in their *free* time. It was really nice just seeing Percy and Annabeth together, attempting to have a nice day, and getting some of that classic Percy first person POV that I've kind of missed while I've been reading the Heroes of Olympus series. I thought that Luke's adventure with Thalia was especially eye-opening and I got a little sad, reading about Luke and seeing what might have been if things had gone in Luke's favor. And of course Leo's story was absolutely hilarious and I just couldn't stop imagining him and his friends getting into even more entertaining trouble!

The last story in this book is actually by Haley Riordan, Rick Riordan's son, who actually inspired Rick to write down the original Percy Jackson series after Rick ran out of the original Greek myths to tell his son. I thought it was great for Rick to debut his son's writing, because Haley's story, called "The Son of Magic" was by far my favorite story in the entire collection. It certainly was darker and grittier than his father's style of writing, but it was nonetheless fantastic. Haley addresses questions that I'm sure many of us have had about various aspects of the demigod world, like what's up with The Mist? And what happened to all the kids who were on Kronus' side during the war? 

I recommend reading this book after finishing the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians series and after the first Heroes of Olympus book, The Lost Hero, so that you are up to speed on everything that is happening. But regardless of when you really end up reading this book, you sure will not be disappointed!