It's all been leading up to this: Apollo, as awkward teen Lester Papadopoulos, is finally facing down the big bad. Nero, the head of the triumvirate, has lured Lester and Meg, who's none too eager to be reunited with her adopted "father," to his Manhattan headquarters for a final showdown, and everything's on the line. Riordan's fifth and final installment in the Trials of Apollo series continues with more of what made the preceding novels so great--cinematic action, witty banter, and a dynamic cast of characters to root for. In particular, Meg's growth and healing, as she prepares to face Nero, whose emotional abuse and gaslighting are perhaps his most insidious, evil feature of all, is a high point; Riordan uses a delicate hand not only in depicting the reverberating effects of Meg's experience of parental abuse but also in crafting Apollo's compassionate understanding of his friend's deep trauma. Readers will want to be familiar with the rest of the series before diving into this one (naturally), but newbies will likely have no problem devouring all five books in a row.

In this tumultuous series closer, Apollo, transformed into a mortal teenager, takes on both a deified emperor in a luxurious Manhattan high-rise and an older adversary. Lester/Apollo's coast-to-coast quest reaches its climactic stage as, with help from both eager squads of fledgling demigods from Camp Half-Blood and reluctant allies from realms deep below New York, he invades the palatial lair of Emperor Nero--followed by a solo bout with another foe from a past struggle. Riordan lays on the transformation of the heedless, arrogant sun god to a repentant lover of his long-neglected semidivine offspring and of humanity in general, which has served as the series' binding theme, thickly enough to have his humbled narrator even apologizing (twice!) to his underwear for having to change it periodically. Still, the author delivers a fast, action-driven plot with high stakes, lots of fighting, and occasional splashes of gore brightened by banter and silly bits, so readers aren't likely to mind all the hand-wringing. He also leaves any real-life parallels to the slick, megalomaniacal, emotionally abusive Nero entirely up to readers to discern and dishes out just deserts all round, neatly tying up loose ends in a set of closing vignettes. The supporting cast is predominantly White, with passing mention of diverse representation. A brisk, buffed-up finish threaded with inner and outer, not to mention sartorial, changes. (glossary) (Fantasy. 10-14) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.