What books are similar to The Lost Hero?

The 10 closest matches to The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan on ReadingList include The Mark of Athena, Powerless, The Indian in the Cupboard, Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, and 11 Birthdays. Each is scored on shared themes (mythology, heroism, and memory), shared award lists, genre, and reading level (grades 5–9), and links to the curricula, states, and grades where it is assigned in US schools, with primary sources.

Are books like The Lost Hero reading-level appropriate?

Yes — every match is a reading-level match, not just a topical one, scored on Lexile and grade band (grades 5–9), so the picks stay grade-appropriate. See how ReadingList judges text difficulty on the /standard methodology page.

How does ReadingList choose similar books?

Matches are ranked by shared themes, shared award and reading-program lists (two books picked for the same state award were chosen by the same committees for the same readers), same genre, comparable Lexile and grade band, and publication decade — computed from cited public curriculum data, not editorial opinion or AI-generated summaries.

Books like The Lost Hero

If you liked The Lost Hero, read The Mark of Athena, Powerless, or The Indian in the Cupboard — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes, shared award lists, and reading level.

Looking for books like The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan (Fantasy · grades 5–9)? It’s most often read for its themes of mythology, heroism, and memory. The 10 titles below are the closest matches in the ReadingList database — each scored on shared themes, shared award lists, genre, and reading level, and each linked to the curricula, states, and grades where it’s assigned, with primary sources.

These are reading-level matches, not just topical ones — so the picks stay grade-appropriate for a grades 5–9 reader. See how we judge text difficulty on our methodology page.

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Why each is a match

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The Mark of Athenagrades 5–9: Shares themes of mythology, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (5–9). Amazon →
Powerlessgrades 4–7: Shares themes of memory, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
The Indian in the Cupboardgrades 3–6: Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon →
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Skygrades 4–7: Shares themes of mythology, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
11 Birthdaysgrades 3–5: Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–5), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Amari and the Night Brothersgrades 4–7: Both on the Volunteer State Book Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon →
Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Librarygrades 4–6: Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–6), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
New Kidgrades 4–8: Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (4–8), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
Refugee800L: Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s). Amazon →
The Giver760L: Shares themes of memory, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–8). Amazon →

Books like The Lost Hero for younger readers (K–2)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps K–2— same scoring, different audience.

The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Fantasy), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).
Dog Man by Dav Pilkey · 390L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, overlapping grades (2–5), and the same era (2010s).
The One and Only Ruby by Katherine Applegate · grades 2–5 — Shares themes of memory and overlapping grades (2–5).
The Yellow Bus by Loren Long · grades K–3 — Shares themes of memory.

Books like The Lost Hero for elementary readers (grades 3–5)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 3–5— same scoring, different audience.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–6).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s).
A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz · grades 4–7 — Same genre (Fantasy), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo · 610L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (3–5).
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis · 950L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–7).

Books like The Lost Hero for middle school (grades 6–8)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 6–8— same scoring, different audience.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo · grades 3–6 — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–6).
Wonder by R.J. Palacio · 790L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (3–7), and the same era (2010s).
A Tale Dark and Grimm by Adam Gidwitz · grades 4–7 — Same genre (Fantasy), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).
Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis · 950L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list) and overlapping grades (4–7).
City of Ghosts by Victoria Schwab · grades 4–7 — Same genre (Fantasy), overlapping grades (4–7), and the same era (2010s).

Books like The Lost Hero for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

Closest matches whose grade range overlaps 9–12— same scoring, different audience.

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of heroism and overlapping grades (7–12).
The Maze Runner by James Dashner · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of memory and overlapping grades (7–12).
A Fate So Cold by Amanda Foody · grades 7–12 — Same genre (Fantasy) and overlapping grades (7–12).
Divine Rivals by Rebecca Ross · grades 9–12 — Same genre (Fantasy) and overlapping grades (9–12).
Eragon by Christopher Paolini · grades 6–9 — Same genre (Fantasy) and overlapping grades (6–9).

What to read after The Heroes of Olympus

The Lost Hero is book 1 of 5 in Rick Riordan’s The Heroes of Olympus series. Not done with the series yet? Follow the The Heroes of Olympus reading order first — then come back for the matches above.

Book data last updated 2026-07-07. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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