What books are similar to The Mark of Athena?

The 10 closest matches to The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan on ReadingList include The Lost Hero, The Red Pyramid, City of Ghosts, The Dragonet Prophecy, and The Indian in the Cupboard. Each is scored on shared themes (mythology, friendship, and quest), 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 Mark of Athena 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 Mark of Athena

If you liked The Mark of Athena, read The Lost Hero, The Red Pyramid, or City of Ghosts — the closest matches in our database, matched on shared themes and reading level.

Looking for books like The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (Fantasy · grades 5–9)? It’s most often read for its themes of mythology, friendship, and quest. 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.

Reading the whole similar-books list? Kids who struggle with the print versions often finish the assigned books by listening.

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Why each is a match

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The Lost Herogrades 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: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7). Amazon → books like this →
The Dragonet Prophecygrades 3–7: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–7). Amazon → books like this →
The Indian in the Cupboardgrades 3–6: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–6). Amazon → books like this →
The Liftersgrades 3–8: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →
Dog Man390L: Shares themes of friendship, both on the Wisconsin Golden Archer Award list, and overlapping grades (2–5). Amazon → books like this →
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatchergrades 4–6: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–6). Amazon → books like this →
Keeper of the Lost Citiesgrades 4–8: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–8). Amazon → books like this →
Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotismgrades 3–8: Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (3–8). Amazon → books like this →

Books like The Mark of Athena for younger readers (K–2)

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

Bink & Gollie by Kate DiCamillo · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (2–8).
Real Friends by Shannon Hale · grades 2–8 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (2–8).
The 13-Story Treehouse by Andy Griffiths · 560L — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (2–5).
The Forbidden Library by Django Wexler · grades 2–8 — Same genre (Fantasy), overlapping grades (2–8), and the same era (2010s).
A Lot to Like! by Derek Anderson · grades 2–5 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (2–5).

Books like The Mark of Athena 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, shares themes of friendship, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Pax by Sara Pennypacker · 760L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Wisconsin Golden Archer Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Powerless by Matthew Cody · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of mythology, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).

Books like The Mark of Athena 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).
The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Book 1) by Rick Riordan · 740L — Is by Rick Riordan, the same author, shares themes of friendship, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Pax by Sara Pennypacker · 760L — Shares themes of friendship, both on the Wisconsin Golden Archer Award list, and overlapping grades (4–7).
Powerless by Matthew Cody · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of friendship, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).
Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky by Kwame Mbalia · grades 4–7 — Shares themes of mythology, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (4–7).

Books like The Mark of Athena for high school & teens (grades 9–12)

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

Eragon by Christopher Paolini · grades 6–9 — Both on the Wisconsin Golden Archer Award list, same genre (Fantasy), and overlapping grades (6–9).
Drama by Raina Telgemeier · grades 5–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (5–9).
Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (6–9).
Posted by John David Anderson · grades 6–9 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (6–9).
The Maze Runner by James Dashner · grades 7–12 — Shares themes of friendship and overlapping grades (7–12).

What to read after The Heroes of Olympus

The Mark of Athena is book 3 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 2026-08-11. Matches are computed from each book’s cited attributes — see the methodology.

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