Rick Riordan reveals secret password for 'Heroes of Olympus' preview

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Rick Riordan, the internationally bestselling author of the Percy Jackson series, is set to release a spin-off series called The Heroes of the Olympus. On June 20, the author revealed the cover of the first book in the series, The Lost Hero, as well as a previously well-guarded secret password allowing fans to read the first two chapters of the book online.

In the Percy Jackson series, a 12-year-old boy diagnosed with dyslexia and ADHD discovers he is the son of a Greek god and is sent to Camp Half-Blood, a camp for children with a Greek god for a parent. Due out October 12, The Lost Hero will feature a new cast of characters from the Percy Jackson books, but the series, says Riordan, is "set in Percy Jackson's world, and Percy has an important role to play in the series." Five Heroes of Olympus books are planned in all.

A Heroes of Olympus website was launched on June 1, but the "locked" sample chapters were initially accessible only to a select few who had obtained special bronze coins at BookExpo America. All fans can now visit the site and enter the password "newhero" to see what the series has in store.

Rick Riordan made international bestseller lists with his Percy Jackson series, which includes five titles published between 2005 and 2009. The first of those titles, Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief was made into a feature film released internationally in February. Riordan's other current projects include The Kane Chronicles, of which a first title, The Red Pyramid, was released in May.

To read the first two chapters of The Lost Hero, visit http://www.camphalfblood.com and enter the password "newhero."