Books like The Lost Hero

If you liked The Lost Hero, read The Mark of Athena, The Red Pyramid, or City of Ghosts — 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.

10 books similar to The Lost Hero

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Why each is a match

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The Mark of Athenagrades 5–9
Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, shares themes of mythology, and same genre (Fantasy). Amazon → books like this →
The Red Pyramidgrades 3–8
Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
City of Ghostsgrades 4–7
Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Powerlessgrades 4–7
Shares themes of memory, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
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 → books like this →
The Maze Runnergrades 7–12
Shares themes of memory, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (7–12). Amazon → books like this →
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Skygrades 4–7
Shares themes of mythology, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
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 → books like this →
Amari and the Night Brothersgrades 4–7
Both on the Volunteer State Book Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
Eragongrades 6–9
Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (6–9). Amazon → books like this →

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 Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan · grades 3–8 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan · 740L — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
  • Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein · grades 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).
  • New Kid by Jerry Craft · grades 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).
  • Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s).

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

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

  • The Sword of Summer by Rick Riordan · grades 3–8 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8).
  • Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer (Book 1) by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan · 740L — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).

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

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

  • Magnus Chase and the Sword of Summer (Book 1) by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan · grades 6–9 — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list, and overlapping grades (6–9).
  • Refugee by Alan Gratz · 800L — Both on the Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award list (+1 more shared list), overlapping grades (5–9), and the same era (2010s).
  • Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of heroism and overlapping grades (7–12).

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.

Common questions

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, The Red Pyramid, City of Ghosts, Powerless, and The Indian in the Cupboard. 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.

Book data last updated 2026-09-05. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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