Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.00 stars
Genres: Middle Grade, Fantasy, Mythology
Trigger warnings: violence, death
“Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,
To storm or fire the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.”
Hello! In addition to reading PJO, I also reread the Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan! It has been about 5 years since I read the last book, but I did manage to remember most of the important plot points in this series! As with PJO, I focused more on the plot and character development rather than the writing style this time (since this series is also middle grade).
I really like the concept of this series and the idea of the Greek and Roman demigod camps overcoming their differences and banding together to defeat a common enemy. The overall plot was alright; there were battles that led to significant character development and other battles that were kind of unsatisfactory for me. I really enjoyed the first two books since it introduced the new characters and allowed us as readers to learn more about them and their story. I also enjoyed the third and fourth book for the character interactions and development, though I wished the pacing of the last book was better. I really disliked the final battle because it was super fast paced and short. The buildup to the battle was done alright, but the battle itself was completed in just two or three chapters. The ending of the last book reminds me of the last season of Game of Thrones, where the past seven seasons were spent building up to a huge battle that was completed in just one episode :/
I love all the characters in this series, but I didn’t enjoy some of RR’s portrayal of them later in the series and some of their development (especially his tendency to pair everyone up with someone). When I first read this series, I didn’t really care for Jason, and upon reread, I still didn’t care for him much. I do like his character, but his personality is pretty bland. I think it’s because Jason is a naturally born leader, who follows the rules and is responsible. Those are good qualities to have, but when your entire character revolves around those traits, it gets boring to read. Piper is one of my favorite characters in this series because her development was done decently. I enjoyed seeing her grow to accept her parentage and using the skills she has to become a more powerful demigod. I also enjoyed Frank and Hazel’s characters, though I wished they ended up as best friends rather than lovers. The age difference (which isn’t huge, but still significant given that Hazel is 13 and Frank is 15, and there are differences in their maturity level) and the power imbalance doesn’t sit well with me. I do think Percabeth had alright development, as they grappled with such huge expectations and had to depend on each other in Tartarus. I also really enjoyed the development in Nico and Reyna’s characters, but I’ll discuss more of it later in the individual book reviews. Leo is one of my most favorite characters in this series, and his development disappointed me so much. He had a lot of potential as a character and RR ruined it (I’ll rant later in the book review).
Overall, this series is enjoyable, but it paled in comparison to PJO. Perhaps if the series was longer (maybe 7 books), there could’ve been enough space for each character to get their substantial development while also having more time for the final battle. I will now write my thoughts of each of the books in HoO, along with their ratings, but with spoilers!*
*the following are in no way formal reviews of these books. i am mainly rambling sharing my thoughts on the characters and plot, with the occasional screaming/fangirling.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The Lost Hero
Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 stars
“You must forge your own path for it to mean anything.”
I really enjoyed this book since we’re introduced to brand new characters and it was a good set-up for the rest of the series. I like the concept of Greek and Roman demigod camps and the stark contrast between their camps and the gods in their Greek and Roman forms was interesting to read! I really liked the attempt at diversity RR brought with this first group. Piper being Cherokee and Leo being Latino is super important for representation (since pjo mainly had white main characters). I feel like this book is a lot more plot focused compared to PJO, but it also manages to give time to character development! I think this is mainly due to the fact that we’re given different POVs of the characters, so it’s much easier to learn about them. I love the interactions between Jason, Piper, and Leo and I wished we got more of their interactions in the later books.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The Son of Neptune
Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 stars
“He threw one arm around Hazel and one arm around Frank.
‘Come on,’ he said. ‘Let me introduce you to my other family.’”
This book was also fun to read! The plot was interesting and took on a different tone than the previous one, since it involved most of the characters confronting their past. PERCY IS BACK!! I missed him so much and the fact that he only remembers Annabeth
Percy being willing to lose the mark of Achilles so he can find Annabeth!! Percy seeing New Rome and envisioning a future for him and Annabeth there!! Percabeth!! PERCABETH!!
I enjoyed reading about Hazel and Frank and their backstory! I also love the rep they bring to the group. They’re characters who are outcasts and suffer from a curse, and this understanding brings them together. Hazel’s story is tragic and I wish her trauma and her overcoming her trauma was dealt with better. Frank’s story was also super interesting, and he really grew more confident and into a great leader. It’s also interesting to see how both Hazel and Frank were struggling with their parentage, and together they manage to accept their godly parents.
I also wanted to mention how much I loved Percy this book 🥺🥺🥺 Percy doing what he can to save Ella the harpy and his clear loyalty and faith in Frank and Hazel shows how he is the bestest boy :’) i love him
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The Mark of Athena
Rating: ★★★★☆ 4 stars
“‘We’re staying together,’ he promised. ‘You’re not getting away from me. Never again.’”
The plot and character development in this book was enjoyable. We finally see the seven demigods from the prophecy join together and figure out how to defeat Gaia. The plot does drag at some points (especially when they’re on their way to Greece) but there are some good revelations and development with the characters. My favorite scenes are when the seven demigods are working together, the last scenes where Annabeth finds the Athena Parthenos, and when Percabeth fall into Tartarus. One scene that really stood out to me was when Percy understood how Luke became so spiteful against the gods. Percy and Annabeth had literally fought a war for the gods the summer before, and a few months later they are pulled into the gods’ schemes once again. (I honestly think this would’ve been a great opportunity for dark!percy bc he’s been through so much shit and he’s just tired of fighting the gods wars for them).
I honestly have grown to love Piper A LOT upon this reread I just think she’s a really great character despite how horrible RR writes her character 🥴🥴 [This might be a little off topic, but RR really does not know how to write female characters imo. He manages to write pretty nuanced male characters, such as Percy, Luke, and Nico, but most of his female characters have the same traits aside from their own powers as a demigod. He literally thinks that strong female characters have to be loud, know how to fight, and go against the norm of what is assumed of their identity. I mean, why can’t you have strong female characters who know how to beat someone up and still embrace the qualities that define their godly parent? That they can like ‘girly’ things and still be badass?]
On another note, Frank annoyed me a couple of times in this book :/ Like his overprotectiveness and lowkey possessiveness of Hazel is NOT cute and weird since she’s like 13. The fact that he straight up antagonizes Leo was not fun to read and made me want to punch Frank!! Sometimes he really does act like a baby man. Also the fact that he didn’t tell everyone about his life being connected to a piece of firewood...bro y’all need to work together since everyone’s lives depends on the group’s teamwork and trust and Frank..sigh..
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The House of Hades
Rating: ★★★★☆ 4.25 stars
“Tell the sun and stars hello for me.”
Did I originally give this book a 4 star rating but then bumped it up to 4.25 stars purely because of Percabeth? It’s more likely than you think. This book had some really good Percabeth and I enjoyed their development as well! Percabeth really fell into Tartarus holding hands like 😭😭 I love them so much!! Percy and Annabeth just wanted to be happy like they just fought for their lives and saw their friends die in the war against Kronos at the age of 16 (sixteen!!!). Percabeth just wanted to chill with one another for a couple of months/years but then Hera was like ‘damn there’s another war coming sorry i need to separate y’all to save the world!!’ And they have barely been reunited before they’re plunged into Tartarus! Fun!
What I really loved was how Percy and Annabeth grew as characters while in Tartarus. We see them gain a new perspective of not all Titans and Giants being inherently evil. We see Annabeth learning to accept Bob and Damasen and depend on them to get her and Percy out of Tartarus. Things are exactly as black and white as she initially perceived it to be, and she grew from that understanding. We see Percy grappling with all the curses monsters and other beings have sent his way. I think it was great to see Percy feeling guilty about Bob and Calypso for leaving and forgetting them, yet it doesn’t make him a horrible person. Percy’s case is special because of how self-sacrificing and loyal he is to his family, friends, and companions, and how so much had rested on his shoulders since defeating Kronos.
There was some decent development done in Frank and Hazel’s characters: Frank embraced his parentage and used the abilities a child of Mars has, while Hazel learned to use the Mist and embrace her lineage. I do wish there was more mention of Hazel acknowledging and overcoming her trauma though. I also enjoy Jason and Piper’s relationship, but I wish this series allowed them to gradually fall for each other rather than having their fake memories and feelings for one another drive the formation of their romantic relationship.
Ah, Leo and Calypso. Their dynamic isn’t bad, and actually it’s kind of cute. But was this Calypso subplot really necessary? Given that RR tends to pair up all his characters (including Grover, Tyson, and Ella the Harpy). I hate how RR made Leo’s character revolve around a romantic relationship than give Leo the opportunity to realize that he doesn’t need, to begin with, a romantic relationship to feel whole. Leo’s character and journey should’ve been about him finding self love and realizing platonic relationships are just as important as romantic ones. Leo should’ve learned to be proud of who he is, love himself, and know that he is enough and not being in a romantic relationship doesn’t make him lesser of a person. I hated how Leo changed after meeting Calypso, especially when he gets mad at Percy for hurting Calypso and leaving her. Yes, Percy did forget to make sure the gods kept their promise about Calypso, but at the time, what could he do? Like Leo, Percy was in the middle of a war and he had to get back to his friends. Calypso’s situation is unfair but the fact that Leo made it out to be Percy’s fault...something’s not right ://
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The Blood of Olympus
Rating: ★★★☆☆ 3.5 stars
“No one can hate you with more intensity than someone who used to love you.”
There were some good moments and some good character development in this book, but I overall disliked it the most out of the books in this series. The series of events leading up to the awakening of Gaia and the battle to defeat her was interesting and executed well. However, the final battle itself was very disappointing and was much too short imo. I feel like writing one or two chapters with the two camps fighting alongside one another could’ve made the ending a lot better. It felt really rushed and just unsatisfactory overall :/
One thing I absolutely adored about this book is how we got Reyna and Nico’s POVs 🥺🥺🥺. Their relationship was so important for both of their characters’ development and I’m glad RR took the time to give them their much needed POVs. Reyna is first depicted not necessarily as an antagonist but like...someone who gets in the way of people’s relationships? I disliked how RR wrote Reyna to fall for both Jason and Percy because it felt so unnecessary to her character. RR also writes Reyna like he does all his female characters, as an “I’m not like other girls” character. He writes her out to be loud and angry, just like Annabeth and Piper. His characterization of his female characters falls so flat from that of his male characters that it’s sad. (This might go into TOA spoiler area, but the fact that RR shipped Reyna out to the hunt with a bunch of 12 year old girls rather than have her be a strong Praetor who is strong and independent really pisses me off).
I love Nico di Angelo with my whole heart and I’m so happy we got his POV in this book!! It was so hard seeing how much pain and anguish he has suffered these past few years, from Bianca dying to being in Tartarus alone, and I’m happy him and Reyna were able to understand each other. His relationship with Reyna is so important to his healing and his understanding that he isn’t alone, that there are people out there, people who are his friends, who care for him. I love how their relationship is based on a mutual understanding of one another’s pain and realizing that they aren’t alone in the world. Ugh their relationship is just so endearing :’) I also love Nico and Will they are so cute ahhh
But Leo… I am so sad and angry that RR ruined his character in this last book. I hated how Leo’s character revolved around Calypso and trying to get back to her. Leo had barely any character development this book since he was so obsessed with getting Calypso back. The only thing I liked about Leo in this book was how he was ready to sacrifice himself for the greater good. I think this aspect was consistent with his character, and it would’ve been even more consistent if Leo realized beforehand that he is enough. I wanted him to realize that his platonic love with his friends are enough, that it makes him whole. And yet he is still willing to sacrifice himself because it is what he needs to do, and that it’s what his friends would’ve done for him. But no, instead we have Leo, who sacrifices himself and manages to find Calypso. Who tells Calypso he’ll take her anywhere in the world, who doesn’t even think of going back to CHB first and telling his friends, who are STILL mourning and blaming themselves for his death, that he is alive. RR absolutely ruined a character who had so much potential and I will honestly never forgive him for this.
On a lighter note, this book was still enjoyable! I don’t regret rereading it a second time, but I’m not sure if I would reread it again. There are some great moments and character interactions in this book, but my disappointment with other aspects of it outweigh them.
I still love this series and it holds a special place in my heart :) There are many problems with the series as a whole, and there are so many things I would change, but at the end of the day, HoO is an interesting, fun, and decent middle grade series.
-lian
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