From now on, this is what I will think of when I think 'boy book'. It's well-written and tautly plotted, but the fighting just goes on and on and on. The series comes to a close in a truly epic and satisfying way, the loose ends are tied up in lovely little bows and the curtain falls at precisely the proper moment. I've enjoyed these five books mightily. And the last Olympian may be my favorite character in the whole series.All that being said, the constant battling just wasn't my thing, though I'm very glad to have read it so I could find out the ending. And I'm not ruling out reading the next Half-blood series that Riordan half-promises.