Book of the Week-The House of Hades

I was so excited to read this book, viagra sale and have been waiting so long for it to come out that I decided, what a wonderful idea to start reading it as soon as it downloaded to my Kindle and stay up ALL night reading it. At 3 am, I finally finished reading it, my eyes were bloodshot, and I was exhausted, both physically and emotionally.

But I will tell you this: it was definitely worth, it.

But don’t worry, I realize that its very very early in the release of this book to be posting this review, so its COMPLETELY spoiler free. I mean, this took me a painstakingly long time in order to make sure that I didn’t reveal anything to anyone.

If you DO want to talk about the book, send me a message, post on the forum, or hit me up on Facebook.

For now, enjoy this review!

The House of Hades by Rick Riordan 

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Good Reads / Amazon / Barnes and Noble / Book Depository 

If you’re feeling crazy, you can head to Book Depository to buy a limited edition, signed and numbered copy for 85 dollars!

Genre: 

Young adult, Middle Grade, Fantasy, Greek Mythology

Part of a Series? 

Yes, the fourth novel in The Heroes of Olympus series

Please keep in mind that while there will NOT be spoilers for HoH, there will be spoilers for any previous novel, including those of Percy Jackson and the Olympians 

You May Like if You Liked: 

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan, The Covenant series by Jennifer L. Armentrout, Circle of Magic by Tamora Pierce

Age Recommendation: 

12+; I know that a lot of kids will read this book, but I will warn you, this book is a LOT darker than any of the previous books. Be aware of this with your children.

Plot Summary: 

From GoodReads:

At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy’s instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea’s forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?

They have no choice. If the demigods don’t succeed, Gaea’s armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.

The Bad: 

I wish I could have gotten a little more of Piper. Piper is one of my favorite characters, as you may have seen in my most recent Tuesday Top Ten. I think that she has way more to her than she thinks she does. She does have a moment where she really proves herself, and its seriously awesome. I just wish I could have gotten more of her.

The Good: 

The hardest part about doing this particular review is that I have to be spoiler free, since I have finished it before most other people. I started reading at at 10 pm, which was midnight EST, when it released. I finished it at 3 am. Most people couldn’t even go to a store and buy a book to even begin reading it.

So I need to be careful. Its only been out for two days and so I just want to make sure I tell you how much I loved it without spoiling it for anyone.

Bottom line: I LOVED this book, and it was way worth the year that it took to get here. The Mark of Athena leaves off on the most ridiculous cliffhanger EVER, which left me staring at the last page, thinking, “No. No way. There’s NO way he just did that!” Yeah, yeah, he did. And he enjoyed it too. Check out the dedication page of The House of Hades

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That made me laugh. I knew I was in for a good ride once I saw that, and you all will be too.

This book is considerably darker than the books that we’ve seen before. We are left with this ridiculous seemingly impossible task: Leo, Hazel, Frank, Piper, Jason and Nico are racing to The House of Hades to get to the door, while Percy and Annabeth fall into Tartarus, with the plan to meet them at the Doors of Death. Both are crazy, dangerous, impossible tasks. Even though our heroes are demigods and they wield powers and weapons that are beyond this world, they are also just kids, and they make mistakes and their world gets hard and complicated. Demigods don’t usually get to live very long.

The journeys that each group takes are both incredible. The twists and turns, the warnings. The help they get along the way, the help that they may or may not be able to trust. The weapons that are used, and the obstacles they must all face. Its incredibly. Every time you think it can’t get any worse, or any better, or any more nerve wracking or entertaining, it does.

And all the characters grow so much in this novel. They are older teens, at the verge of adulthood, and in this book, you see them all grow up a lot. Everyone is faced with so much in this novel, and in different ways. Each character is tested, and the way they handle it is amazing, and you’re literally watching them grow up before your eyes. This is especially notable with Annabeth and Percy, the characters that we’ve known since they were children. I also think the growing up that Leo does in this novel is also HUGE.

I’m starting a thread on my forums, that you can access here, for those you want to discuss the books with spoilers and all that fun stuff. I hope to see you there, because I love this book, and its so hard to write this without wanting to burst out all the spoilers!

Rating: 

5 out of 5 Stars. Duh!

Recommended or Not? 

Yes. I mean, if you’ve already read the first three in the series, I’m sure you’re dying to read this one. So go out, buy a copy and dive in. It was definitely worth the wait. Now I just need to sit back and wait for the fifth book, The Blood of Olympus, which is set to release sometime in 2014.

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I hope you enjoyed this week’s edition of the Book of the Week, and that you loved The House of Hades just as much as me.

Happy Reading!