Percy Jackson Books in Order: How to Read Rick Riordan’s Books

Whether you’re brand new to the series or coming back to it after a long break, this guide will help you read the Percy Jackson books in order without getting lost in the spinoffs, companion books, and crossover stories. Once you move past the original series, Rick Riordan’s books start to connect in ways that aren’t always obvious from the covers.

Below, you’ll find a clear Riordanverse reading order presented in three different ways, so you can pick the approach that fits how you like to read—whether that’s publication order, following the chronological order, or focusing one series at a time.

Just want the core Percy storyline? Start with Percy Jackson and the Olympians, then The Heroes of Olympus, then The Trials of Apollo. Everything else is extra.

Want the quick version? Download my free printable checklist.

Jump to:

• Percy Jackson Books in Publication Order
• Percy Jackson Books by Series (Recommended)
• Percy Jackson Books in Chronological Order
• Percy Jackson Adaptations
• About Percy Jackson
• Percy Jackson Books FAQ

Percy Jackson Books in Publication Order

The simplest way to read the Percy Jackson books in order is by publication date. Even when Percy isn’t the focus, the books share the same world, and characters and references often carry across series.

The tradeoff is that this order can feel jumpy, since Rick Riordan’s books rotate between different series and casts. If you’d rather keep each saga together, keep reading for “by series” order below.

Main Riordanverse Books

1. The Lightning Thief (2005)
2. The Sea of Monsters (2006)
3. The Titan’s Curse (2007)
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth (2008)
5. The Last Olympian (2009)
6. The Demigod Files (2009) (Short Story Collection)
7. The Red Pyramid (2010)
8. The Lost Hero (2010)
9. The Throne of Fire (2011)
10. The Son of Neptune (2011)
11. The Serpent’s Shadow (2012)
12. The Demigod Diaries (2012) (Short Story Collection)
13. The Mark of Athena (2012)
14. The Son of Sobek (2013) (Short Story)
15. The Singer of Apollo (2013) (Short Story)
16. The House of Hades (2013)
17. The Staff of Serapis (2014)
18. The Blood of Olympus (2014)
19. The Crown of Ptolemy (2015) (Short Story)
20. The Sword of Summer (2015)
21. The Hidden Oracle (2016)
22. The Hammer of Thor (2016)
23. The Dark Prophecy (2017)
24. The Ship of the Dead (2017)
25. The Burning Maze (2018)
26. 9 From the Nine Worlds (2018) (Short Story Collection)
27. The Tyrant’s Tomb (2019)
28. The Tower of Nero (2020)
29. The Sun and the Star (w/ Mark Oshiro) (2023)
30. The Chalice of the Gods (2023)
31. Wrath of the Triple Goddess (2024)
32. The Court of the Dead (w/ Mark Oshiro) (2025)

Companion Books (Optional)

1. Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods (2014)
2. Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes (2015)
3. Hotel Valhalla: Guide to the Norse Worlds (2016)
4. The Trials of Apollo: Camp Jupiter Classified: A Probatio’s Journal (2020)

Percy Jackson Books by Series (Recommended)

Most people will prefer reading the Percy Jackson books in order by series because it’s the most cohesive way to experience the story. Instead of bouncing between different casts and timelines, you’ll follow one saga at a time from start to finish.

For that reason, this is the simplest—and the most recommended—way to read Rick Riordan’s books across the connected universe. It also minimizes spoilers compared to jumping between series midstream.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians

1. The Lightning Thief
2. The Sea of Monsters
3. The Titan’s Curse
4. The Battle of the Labyrinth
5. The Last Olympian

Optional Extras

• The Demigod Files (Short Story Collection)
• The Singer of Apollo (Short Story)

The Heroes of Olympus

1. The Lost Hero
2. The Son of Neptune
3. The Mark of Athena
4. The House of Hades
5. The Blood of Olympus

Optional Extras

• The Demigod Diaries (Short Story Collection)

Percy Jackson: Senior Year Adventures

1. The Chalice of the Gods
2. Wrath of the Triple Goddess

The Kane Chronicles

1. The Red Pyramid
2. The Throne of Fire
3. The Serpent’s Shadow

Demigods and Magicians

1. The Son of Sobek (Short Story)
2. The Staff of Serapis (Short Story)
3. The Crown of Ptolemy (Short Story)

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard

1. The Sword of Summer
2. The Hammer of Thor
3. The Ship of the Dead

Optional Extras

1. 9 From the Nine Worlds (Short Story Collection)

The Trials of Apollo

1. The Hidden Oracle
2. The Dark Prophecy
3. The Burning Maze
4. The Tyrant’s Tomb
5. The Tower of Nero

Nico di Angelo Adventures

1. The Sun and the Star (w/ Mark Oshiro)
2. The Court of the Dead (w/ Mark Oshiro)

Companion Books (Optional)

1. Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods
2. Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes
3. Hotel Valhalla: Guide to the Norse Worlds
4. The Trials of Apollo: Camp Jupiter Classified: A Probatio’s Journal

Percy Jackson Books in Chronological Order

The third way to read the Percy Jackson books in order is by the in-universe chronological timeline. I wouldn’t recommend this as your first read-through, because the short stories and crossover pieces can interrupt the momentum, and a few entries are difficult to place cleanly on a single timeline.

That’s not a flaw—it’s just a reality of how Rick Riordan’s books were published across multiple series over many years, with events that overlap. But if you’ve already read the main sagas, this is a fun “revisit” that shows how everything lines up behind the scenes.

Percy Jackson: Core timeline

1. Diary of Luke Castellan (Short Story)
2. The Lightning Thief – PJO #1
3. The Sea of Monsters – PJO #2
4. The Titan’s Curse – PJO #3
5. Percy Jackson and the Stolen Chariot (Short Story)
6. The Battle of the Labyrinth – PJO #4
7. Percy Jackson and the Sword of Hades (Short Story)
8. Percy Jackson and the Bronze Dragon (Short Story)
9. The Last Olympian – PJO #5
10. Percy Jackson and the Singer of Apollo (Short Story)
11. The Staff of Hermes (Short Story)

Heroes/Kane era

12. The Lost Hero – HOO #1
13. Leo Valdez and the Quest for Buford (Short Story)
14. Son of Magic (Short Story)
15. The Red Pyramid – KC #1
16. The Throne of Fire – KC #2
17. The Son of Neptune – HOO #2
18. The Mark of Athena – HOO #3
19. The House of Hades – HOO #4
20. The Blood of Olympus – HOO #5
21. The Serpent’s Shadow – KC #3

Crossover + Senior Year

22. The Son of Sobek (Short Story)
23. The Staff of Serapis (Short Story)
24. The Crown of Ptolemy (Short Story)
25. The Chalice of the Gods – PJO #6
26. Wrath of the Triple Goddess – PJO #7

Magnus/Trials overlap era

27. The Sword of Summer – MCGA #1 (Overlaps with The Hidden Oracle)
28. The Hidden Oracle – ToA #1 (Overlaps with The Sword of Summer)
29. The Dark Prophecy – ToA #2 (Overlaps with The Hammer of Thor)
30. The Hammer of Thor – MCGA #2 (Overlaps with The Dark Prophecy)
31. The Burning Maze – ToA #3
32. The Tyrant’s Tomb – ToA #4
33. The Ship of the Dead – MCGA #3 (Overlaps with The Tower of Nero)
34. 9 from the Nine Worlds (Short Story Collection)
35. The Tower of Nero – ToA #5 (Overlaps with The Ship of the Dead)

Nico books

36. The Sun and the Star – NdAA #1
37. The Court of the Dead – NdAA #2

Percy Jackson Books in Order Checklist

Want the quick, printable version?

You can grab my free Cosmere reading order checklist (PDF) and check off each book as you read. It’s the same list from this guide—just condensed into an easy tracker.

Percy Jackson Adaptations

The two live-action Percy Jackson movies (released in 2010 and 2013) are a very loose interpretation of the books, and they’ve always been a sore spot for a lot of readers. Riordan has been blunt that, like most authors, he didn’t have creative control once the film rights were sold, and his involvement was limited to reading a script and offering notes.

The newer screen version is the Disney+ series, which was built specifically to be more book-faithful from the start, with Riordan involved creatively. Disney has described the show as created by Rick Riordan and Jonathan E. Steinberg, with Riordan and Rebecca Riordan among the executive producers—so it’s a very different setup than the film era.

Season 1 debuted in December 2023, and Season 2 arrived in December 2025, continuing the “one main book per season” approach. The series also keeps the core trio closer to the ages and vibe readers expect, with Walker Scobell as Percy, Leah Sava Jeffries as Annabeth, and Aryan Simhadri as Grover.

If you’re coming here from the show, the best move is still to start with the books (publication order or by series) so reveals land the way they were written. If you’ve already read the main saga, the movies can be treated as an alternate take, while the Disney+ series is the closest “on screen” companion to the reading orders above.

About Percy Jackson

Percy Jackson is modern, fast-paced middle grade fantasy with Greek mythology baked into the real world—think the “found family” momentum of Harry Potter with the wit and adventure-forward pacing of Artemis Fowl. The core series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, follows Percy as he discovers he isn’t just a regular kid with bad luck—he’s a demigod, and the myths are very real.

In the first book, Rick Riordan drops Percy into a world of monsters, prophecies, and gods with a speed that makes it hard to put down. Percy starts out trying to survive school and understand why he never quite fits, but once the truth about his parentage comes out, his life flips into a dangerous new “normal” almost overnight.

And while Percy is the heart of it, the world doesn’t stop with him. The story expands into connected series that follow other characters and corners of the same universe—so if you finish the original run and want more, there’s plenty of road left.

After Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Rick Riordan expands the same universe into connected series like The Heroes of Olympus, The Trials of Apollo, Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, and The Kane Chronicles, plus crossover stories in Demigods and Magicians. Percy shows up beyond the original series, but he isn’t the main character in every branch—so if you’re continuing past the core books, you’ll be following the same world even when he’s off-page.

Percy Jackson Books FAQ

Do I need to read the Percy Jackson books in publication order?

You don’t have to, but it’s the safest default if you want the world to expand the way readers originally experienced it. Publication order also prevents you from accidentally jumping into later-era callbacks before you’ve met the characters (or seen the big turning points).

Do I need to read the companion books and handbooks to understand the main story?

No. The main plot is in the novels/series themselves. Companion-style books (guides, mythology retellings, behind-the-scenes extras) are best treated as optional bonus reads once you’re already comfortable in the world.

Do I have to read the short stories in exact order?

Not for a first read. Most short stories are “nice to have” character moments or small bridges between bigger arcs, but they’re rarely required to follow the core narrative. If you want the cleanest experience, read the main series first, then come back to the shorts.

Do Rick Riordan Presents books belong in the Riordanverse reading order?

No. They’re recommended by Riordan and published under that imprint, but they aren’t part of the Percy Jackson/Riordanverse canon and don’t slot into the same continuity.

Is the Riordanverse one continuous story, or can I stop after Percy Jackson and the Olympians?

You can absolutely stop there and feel like you’ve finished a complete saga. The universe does continue in later sequel series (especially The Heroes of Olympus and The Trials of Apollo), but those are “continue if you want more,” not “required to understand what you already read.”

Looking for more books in order?

If you want more fantasy authors and reading-order guides like this one, start with my Fantasy Books in Order index.

• Books in Order (Full Index)
• All 20+ Harry Potter Books in Order
• 2 Ways to Read the Chronicles of Narnia
• All 10+ Artemis Fowl Books in Order