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Hot Take : The Heroes of Olympus might be Rick Riordan's worst written series, with the most interesting characters.
Compare this series with PJo. Though it was written in the first person, both the story and characters were three dimensional. I usually have a visual representation running in my head when I read books, and this series became my favorite because I was able to feel the emotions and plot like it was personal.
On the other hand, HoO was much more two dimensional when it came to the plot. Half of the time, most of my re-reads were just skipping to parts I liked.
The characters were the most interesting part in the story for me, and they too could have been much better.
I understand why Leo is a big favorite. The way Leo was written was top tier, and he would have been my favorite if I didn't get distracted by Piper Mclean, and Jason Grace.
Both characters have so much potential, and its that reason that drew me to them.
Piper Mclean was so much more to me, because she was strong and smart, and reliable, and someone the rest went to for comfort or strength. But she was also beautiful, the daughter of a goddess who usually sat in the sidelines watching the drama (that she usually started) unfold around her.
Piper Mclean wanted to take a stand.
Jason Grace was the golden child, the one who was handed the baton, and was told to be the child he should be, and he took it with no questions asked. He was hardworking, resilient, loyal, and he loved his friends so much that he died for them.
He was a hero, and it wasn't because of his father.
All the characters are so beautifully intricate and human, but the writing doesn't allow us to see it.