The gods of Olympus are alive in the 21st century. They still fall in love with mortals and have children who might become great heroes, but most of these children meet horrible fates at the hands of monsters. Such is the revelation that launches Percy Jackson on a quest to help his father, Poseidon, avert a war among the gods.

After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disorientated, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the 4,000-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world, until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favour. But Apollo has many enemies - gods, monsters and mortals - who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and...