There’s a very specific kind of sadness that hits after you finish watching Percy Jackson on Disney+.
It’s not dramatic or devastating. More like, this quiet, low-level ache.
You close Disney+, stare at the ceiling for a second, and think… now what?
You miss Camp Half-Blood. You miss the chaos. Not to mention, you miss Percy being Percy and pull of Percabeth.
And suddenly you’re just sitting there, mythologically unemployed.
If you’re in your Percy Jackson era again because of the series and now you don’t know what to do with yourself, this post is for you. These are the books to read if you’re hungover after watching Percy Jackson and you need something to fill the space.
We’re going to start with the obvious answer. Then we’ll branch out into different vibes depending on what part of the series you’re craving most.
Because there are layers to this.
First of All… Just Keep Reading Rick Riordan
I know. I know.
But hear me out.
If you finished the show and you haven’t read the books, that’s your next move. Immediately.
And if you have read the original series, you still have more Percy waiting for you.
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The Heroes of Olympus Series
After Percy Jackson and the Olympians, the story continues with The Heroes of Olympus.
Percy is still there. Annabeth is still there. The world expands. The stakes get bigger. The mythology deepens. You meet Roman demigods. The prophecy tension increases. Everything feels more intense.
It grows up slightly without losing the heart of the original series. Honestly, I think I liked this series just as much as the first, and it’s great to see Percy and Annabeth’s relationship deepen as they mature.
If you’re looking for books to read if you’re hungover after watching Percy Jackson and you’re not ready to leave him behind, this is the safest, most comforting choice.
The Trials of Apollo
Then there’s The Trials of Apollo.
Apollo gets turned into a human teenage boy. Yes. It’s chaotic.
Percy appears. So do other familiar faces. But this series feels slightly different. A little more self-aware. A little more reflective. You see consequences. You see growth. You see what happens after the “chosen one” arc.
If you’re attached to this world, just stay in it longer.
Sometimes the cure for a book hangover is not moving on too quickly.
Now.
If you have already read all of that and you still feel empty…
Let’s talk recommendations.
If You Want Intense Greek Myth Energy: The Crucible series
I’ve listened to both of the books that are currently on Audible.
The first one, I played during a long drive and got pulled in pretty quickly. By the end of it, I was already planning when I could start the second.
And the second one? It really got me.
It’s easily one of the best books I’ve read in 2025 so far. Five stars, no hesitation.
This series kind of took over my routine for a minute. I was listening while cleaning, walking, doing random errands… it just stayed on. Book two especially felt hard to pause.
If Percy Jackson is what made you love the idea of gods interfering in human lives, fate, prophecies, and all that mythological tension, this leans fully into that.
But it does feel different.
It’s bigger in scope. A little more layered. It reads older, and yeah… a bit spicier too.
The emotions hit harder. The relationships are more complicated. And the mythology feels less playful and a little more sharp around the edges.
This feels like a natural next step if you grew up with Percy but want something that still connects to Greek myth without feeling middle grade.
If you’re looking for books like Percy Jackson but want something that feels a little more grown, this is probably the one I’d point you to first.
Currently impatiently awaiting the third book in the series.
And if it’s the romance side you’re craving more than the mythology, you might also like The Best Steamy Historical Romance Novels (For My Soft, Bookish Girls), completely different setting, but the same immersive, can’t-put-it-down feeling.
If You Want Gritty, Violent, Feminine Rage: The Blood of Hercules
Okay. Let’s talk about this one honestly.
I did a soft DNF.
Not because it was bad.
Because it was violent. Like very much so.
The Blood of Hercules is a dark retelling of Hercules from a woman’s perspective. Imagine the Hercules myth but reimagined through a girl forced into brutality. It’s gritty. It’s heavy. It does not soften the violence.
But the premise?
It hooks you immediately.
If what you loved about Percy Jackson was the concept of being chosen, being powerful, being tied to something mythic and larger than yourself, this taps into that. Just in a much darker way.
This is not Camp Half-Blood vibes.
This is blood, expectation, destiny, and rage.
If you’re the type who watched Percy and thought, “What if this was more intense?” this might be your lane.
Just know what you’re walking into.
If You Want Romance + Soft War-Torn Myth Vibes: Divine Rivals
This one is Greek-adjacent.
Not directly Percy-coded. But adjacent enough in tone.
Divine Rivals has gods at war in the background, but the heart of the story is romantic tension.
Letters.
Yearning.
Slow-burn emotion.
Some people feel that the books are a bit slower and not super exciting, but I loved the pacing. It was soft, it was genuine, and the romance was so endearing.
If you’re hungover after watching Percy Jackson because you miss the Annabeth and Percy dynamic, this scratches that itch in a different way.
It’s softer. It’s quieter. It’s less action-driven and more emotionally centered.
There is tension. There is longing. And there is that feeling of fate pulling two people together.
Lowkey, that’s sometimes the part of Percy we miss most.
And if you realize you’re in the mood for more romance-heavy reads in general, I also put together my Summer Romance Reading List (2025) with a mix of soft, emotional, and slightly chaotic love stories.
If You Want YA Camp Chaos Again: Oh My Gods by Tera Lynn Childs
This one feels the closest in tone to Percy Jackson.
It’s fun. It’s chaotic. It’s self-aware and it’s YA.
I remember laughing out loud reading this in High school.
If you’re specifically looking for books to read if you’re hungover after watching Percy Jackson and you don’t want darker, heavier, or more romantic…
This is your girl.
It leans into the humor. It leans into teen awkwardness. It keeps the mythological backdrop without turning everything into a war epic.
It feels like summer.
It feels like lockers and drama and gods acting messy.
And sometimes that’s exactly what you need.
If You Want Angsty, Star-Crossed YA Romance: Star-Crossed
This one is for the dramatic girls.
The yearning girls.
The “we are doomed, but I love you anyway” girls.
Star-Crossed gives you Greek myth reimagined through intense YA romance. There’s fate. There’s tension. There’s that constant feeling of something bigger pulling the strings.
No spice. Still YA.
But emotionally? It’s high. Think a ABC Family drama on a Friday night in high school.
If Percy Jackson made you attached to the idea of destiny and prophecy but you wish it leaned more into romance tension, this could hit.
It’s angsty in that early-2010s way. And sometimes that nostalgia feels right.
So… What Should You Actually Pick Up?
If you want:
- More Percy immediately → Read Heroes of Olympus.
- Older, bigger myth energy → The Things Gods Break.
- Dark and brutal retelling → The Blood of Hercules.
- Soft romance + gods at war backdrop → Divine Rivals.
- Pure YA chaos fun → Oh My Gods.
- Doomed lovers + prophecy tension → Star-Crossed.
There isn’t one correct answer.
Your Percy Jackson hangover is personal.
Maybe you miss the humor.
Maybe you miss the found family.
Maybe you miss the mythological drama.
Maybe you just miss being in that world where the ordinary kid turns out to be something more.
The good news is there are plenty of books to read if you’re hungover after watching Percy Jackson. You don’t have to sit in that empty feeling for long.
And if you’re ready to step outside of Greek mythology but still want magic, romance, and strong female leads, check out my list of Romantasy by Black Authors: Stories Where Black Women Are Magical and Loved.
A Quick Reminder
If you haven’t read the original Percy Jackson and the Olympians series yet…
Please do that.
The show is fun. The show is nostalgic. But the books? They hold more. More humor. More depth. More time with the characters.
And if you already love the show, reading the books feels like getting extended scenes you didn’t know you needed.
If you pick up any of these, tell me which one you choose. I genuinely want to know what vibe you’re in.
Are we staying at Camp Half-Blood?
Are we entering our dark myth era?
Are we falling in love during a god war?
Your next obsession is waiting.
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