Review Special - The Blood Of Olympus

WARNING: THIS REVIEW IS RIDDLED WITH SPOILERS

Title: The Blood Of Olympus (Heroes of Olympus #5)

Author: Rick Riordan (From Website: Pronounced Rye'-er-dan. (Rhymes with fireman, sort of.)
About the Author:
Rick Riordan is the #1 New York Times bestselling
author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the Kane Chronicles, and the Heroes of Olympus. He is also the author of the multi-award-winning Tres Navarre mystery series for adults.
For fifteen years, Rick taught English and history at public and private middle schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and in Texas. In 2002, Saint Mary’s Hall honoured him with the school’s first Master Teacher Award.
While teaching full time, Riordan began writing mystery novels for grownups. His Tres Navarre series went on to win the top three national awards in the mystery genre – the Edgar, the Anthony and the Shamus. Riordan turned to children's fiction when he started The Lightning Thief as a bedtime story for his oldest son.
Today over forty million copies of his Percy Jackson, Kane Chronicles, and Heroes of Olympus books are in print in the United States, and rights have been sold into more than 37 countries. Rick is also the author of The 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones, another #1 New York Times bestseller. 
Rick Riordan now writes full-time. He lives in Boston with his wife and two sons.
Author Website: http://www.rickriordan.com/home.aspx

Publisher: Puffin
Genres: Fantasy, YA, Adventure, Mythology.
Release Date: October 7th 2014
Pages: 514
Where Acquired: A Birthday present from my Parents
Buy at Amazon Here
- Best Book Price: £6.37 Kindle Price: £5.99 (as of when posted)

Book Merchandise I Love from Etsy.com:

A Heroes of Olympus Necklace. You can buy it for £10.52 HERE

A Very Festive HoO bauble for £8.53 that you can buy HERE

A Camp Half Blood Necklace for £9.86 that you can buy HERE

A Camp Jupiter Necklace for £9.86 you can buy HERE

A Camp Half Blood T-Shirt for £8.54 you can buy it HERE

A SPQR Camp Jupiter T-Shirt for £9.85 you can buy it HERE

UK Cover:


Covers From Elsewhere:

USA

Indonesian

Dutch

Goodreads Description:
Though the Greek and Roman crew members of the Argo II have made progress in their many quests, they still seem no closer to defeating the earth mother, Gaea. Her giants have risen—all of them—and they're stronger than ever. They must be stopped before the Feast of Spes, when Gaea plans to have two demigods sacrificed in Athens. She needs their blood—the blood of Olympus—in order to wake.

The demigods are having more frequent visions of a terrible battle at Camp Half-Blood. The Roman legion from Camp Jupiter, led by Octavian, is almost within striking distance. Though it is tempting to take the Athena Parthenos to Athens to use as a secret weapon, the friends know that the huge statue belongs back on Long Island, where it "might" be able to stop a war between the two camps.

The Athena Parthenos will go west; the Argo II will go east. The gods, still suffering from multiple personality disorder, are useless. How can a handful of young demigods hope to persevere against Gaea's army of powerful giants? As dangerous as it is to head to Athens, they have no other option. They have sacrificed too much already. And if Gaea wakes, it is game over.

My Review:
Rick Riordan is by far my most favourite author. I own all of his YA books minus a couple of the graphic novels and I will continue to buy all of his books for as long as he keeps writing them. He is a sassy and witty author who is not afraid to put his characters in difficult situations that are both heart-wrenching and exciting at the same time. He is one of those authors you can love with all your heart but hate at the same time for the evil cliffhangers and heart pounding scenes.
The Blood Of Olympus was not an exception to these traits i have written above. It was stock full of drama, excitement and scenes that made me cry - from both sadness and laughter. Some scenes I was laughing so much that I think my family probably assumed I was just crazy. 
I am going to spilt this review into parts; first I am going to comment on each of the main characters. The first image is the official artwork released for the books and the second image is the fan art I think looks most like my idea of the character.
Percy Jackson

Percy Jackson has always been there from the beginning even though he did have a smaller role in this book so the other characters can stand out a little more but his sass and wit still managed to come through. I love his and Annabeth's ending when they get to stay together and live monster free at camp Jupiter. Percy is powerful and cute a great combination and he will always been one of my favourites. I love all the percybeth moments in this book especially when they both reach Athens and kiss to prove a point that children of Poseidon and Athena can be together. However Percy's reaction to Nico's confession of having a crush on him just killed me though, literally killed me I was laughing so hard! It had to be my favourite Percy moment of TBOO
Annabeth Chase

Annabeth has also always been there since the beginning so I love her for that. She grew so much as a character in this book especially when she was in Sparta fighting with Piper when she had to forgo knowledge for emotion. She is so wise, smart and clever; a great role model for girls all over the world. She did take a back seat a little in this novel again however to help the other characters stand out. I loved her ending but I was really really wishing for a percybeth wedding as I ship them both so much! The scene where Annabeth and Percy accidentally woke Gaia broke my heart but I was so glad when no one blamed them for what happened. I really love Annabeth's friendship with Piper and at the end Reyna it was very sweet!
Jason Grace

Jason is a powerful character, I loved the scene when he first met his father in his greek form. He wasn't afraid to stand up to his father when he needed to either and that made me love him more. Jason did take a back seat in the novel letting characters like Nico, Leo and Piper to take charge but some of the action was written from his point of view still. The scene where he had to face his mother was so heartbreaking it nearly broke me right from the start!
Jason's ending was one of my favourites, he got the position of a priest and got to go between camps making sure all gods are worshipped and no one is left out - it is such a noble cause and he can then go between camps and see all of his friends still. And he is still with Piper and they can live happily ever after aww!
Piper McLean

Piper has to be one of my favourites! She was an underrated character before but now as she came into her powers she became incredible! Her charmspeak was one of the best weapons used in the novel - maybe other than her horn of plenty. Piper was the source of most of my laughs in the battle scenes, some of her fighting tactics were just hilarious and random and this made me love her! She became one of the best characters in this novel and one of the most powerful.
Hazel Levesque

Hazel wasn't in this novel as much as she was in the others but it was her relationship with Nico that stood out so much. I love Nico and it's lovely seeing that he has some family again. Hazel was Incredible when she grew into her powers however, her control of the Mist helped with the quest more than she realised.
Frank Zhang

Frank also took more of a backseat but his ability to turn into an animal was used in the most hilarious ways. All I can now think of when his name is mentioned is him as a Rhino knocking 20 foot Giants over! Haha! I was glad him and Hazel had a happy ending going back to Camp Jupiter to live their lives out, leading the Roman legions together.
Leo Valdez

Leo has always been my favourite character in HoO his Witt and bravery made me fall in love with him. He was one of the main characters in this book and his plans were near enough worthy of Athena and his bravery worthy of a Hero. His sacrifice had me crying my eyes out, I honestly believed he had died in his quest to save everyone and this made me love him more. I was devastated seeing his friends all miss and cry for him and thinking of Calypso left alone on the island waiting for Leo to return. However I was screaming for joy when Leo's name appeared above the next chapter and it had turned out that Festus had saved him!! I was even happier when it turned out that he rescued Calypso and was going to return to his friends - I would have loved to have been able to read a chapter about his return. He is so brave and lovely and ahhhh *dies*
Coach Hedge

Coach hedge is there for amusement mostly - especially when Buford the Table was set to imitate him. I found it so sweet that he had to race home for his wife though to get home in time to see his son being born awww. And just the thought of Clarisse as a birthing partner/godmother just left me laughing.
Nico Di Angelo

First off I hate the official art work of Nico, wrong hair colour, wrong eye colour and that expression *shudders*. I love Nico, he is so full of pain and anger but deals with it so well, he is strong and courageous and always knows when to get involved or when to stay away. It was his growth of characters that I noticed most in this novel. He discovered more he could do with his powers and he overcame the feelings he had for Percy. His confrontation with Percy regarding his feelings was hilarious and I am really shipping him and Will - I would love a novella surrounding them both! I have always liked Nico and always will, like all of Riordan's characters he is very well developed and my heart ached along with his for the majority of his chapters. When Nico decided to stay at camp half blood it really warmed my heart - seeing he was wanted and loved and seeing him more open to having friends; even letting people hug him just made me melt!
Reyna Avila Ramirez-Arellano

Reyna surprised me in TBOO, She never used to be my favourite but in this book I begun to like her a lot. She is strong, very, very strong and courageous. I loved reading about her history and relationship with her sister and her friendship with Nico made me like her even more! When she fought Orion towards the end is when my feelings for her solidified even more however. I would love to read a Novella centred around her as I am really intrigued to find out who she will fall in love with as she was told it would never be a demi-god, that would make a great read.

The enemies in this book were formidable, I had no idea how any of the heroes were going to pull through - I mean how do you destroy the earth, dozens of 20 foot tall Giants, hundreds of earthborn and legions of monsters at the same time as uniting warring camps, overthrowing a crazy roman, carrying a statue half way across the world and all without the help of the gods who were too busy fighting themselves.....Hmm.... This book is nothing but full of drama!
The massacre of the Amazonians and Hunters of Artemis killed me slightly though, I was so sad as I always appreciate a strong, independent woman in my books! However this book had enough humour to counter the dire and desperately sad plot lines therefore being very well balanced and making it an incredible read. I couldn't have loved the ending of this series more - i was hoping beyond hope that the camps never merged and stayed separate; my wish came true with the bonus of regular holidays between camps which I loved as it meant all the main characters in the book could continue to see each other and continue to be friends. I also appreciated the idea that everyone could chose what camp they live in and swap camps at any time to get the best of both worlds. This series has always been incredible, and will be one i re-read time and time again. This is a Goodbye to both the old Percy Jackson series and a Goodbye to heroes of Olympus I will truly miss it - but at least there are the crossover novels and mythology guides from Percy's point of view to still look forward to! But it is still very sad to see it end, I grew up on these books...
Goodbye - I will miss you - you will forever be in my heart!

Quotes:

Buford The Table “The intercom crackled. Buford’s Mini-Hedge yelled over the speakers, “PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!”

Coach Hedge “I have orders to bring Reyna in alive to stand trial for treason. I have no orders to bring you in alive, or the faun.” “Satyr!” the coach yelled. He kicked a skeleton in its bony crotch, which seemed to hurt Hedge more than the redcoat. “Ow! Stupid British dead guys!”

Nico “For a long time,’ Nico said, ‘I had a crush on you. I just wanted you to know.’ Percy looked at Nico. Then at Annabeth, as if to check that he’d heard correctly. Then back at Nico.
‘You –’
‘Yeah,’ Nico said. ‘You’re a great person. But I’m over that. I’m happy for you guys.’
‘You … so you mean –’
‘Right.’
Annabeth’s grey eyes started to sparkle. She gave Nico a sideways smile.
‘Wait,’ Percy said. ‘So you mean –’
‘Right,’ Nico said again. ‘But it’s cool. We’re cool. I mean, I see now … you’re cute, but you’re not my type.’
‘I’m not your type … Wait. So –’
‘See you around, Percy,’ Nico said.”

Reyna “This is for Pheobe,' she snarled in his ear ' for Kinzie. For all those you killed. you will die at the hands of a girl.' Orion thrashed and fought, but Reyna's will was unshakable. The power of Athena infused her cloak. Bellona blessed her with strength and resolve. Not one but two powerful goddesses aided her"

Frank "Frank run out of arrows. He changed into a rhinoceros and leaped into battle, but as fast as he could knock down the giants they got up again"

Hazel “Oh, no!" Hazel wailed. "Popcorn! Our fatal weakness!”

Jason “We were surrounded by thirty-foot-tall giants who were about to kill us. Then the sky opened up, and the gods descended."
"Grandad," the kids said, "you are full of schist."
"I'm not kidding!" he protested.”

Piper “And why shouldn't Piper intimidate them? Aphrodite was the most ancient Olympian, born of the sea and the blood of Ouranos. She was older than Poseidon or Athena or even Zeus. And Piper was her daughter.”

Percy “So this is where the rivalry started," Percy said.
"Yeah."
Percy pulled Annabeth close and kissed her....
When Percy pulled away, Annabeth looked like a fish gasping for air.
"The rivalry ends here," Percy said. "I love you, Wise Girl.”

Annabeth "Annabeth, I never ignore your advice.' Piper kept her voice soothing. 'But this time I have to. We can't defeat this place with reason. You can't think your way out of your emotions."

Leo “Leo smiled nervously. Maybe he and Percy did share something else – a stupid sense of humour. ‘Yeah, I bet that would totally be against her sponsorship deal. THOSE ARE NOT THE OFFICIAL SHOES OF THE OLYMPICS! YOU WILL DIE NOW!’  

About Leo "Hazel rolled her eyes. ‘You’re both impossible.’

“Commander Tool Belt" Jason said.
"Bad Boy Supreme" Piper said.
"Chef Leo the Tofu Taco Expert."
They laughed and told stories about Leo valdez, their best friend. They stayed on the roof until dawn rose, and Piper started to believe they could have a fresh start. It might even be possible to tell a new story in which Leo was still out there.
Somewhere...”

About Gaia “That is correct," Zeus said. "The blood of Olympus was spilled. She is fully conscious."
"Oh, come on!" Percy complained. "I get a little nosebleed and I wake up the entire earth? That's not fair!”

Rating:

However It is not truly devastating that HoO is finished as coming next Autumn is Magnus Chase!
 

Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard: The Sword Of Summer!

Magnus Chase has always been a troubled kid. Since his mother's mysterious death, he's lived alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits, keeping one step ahead of the police and the truant officers. One day, he's tracked down by an uncle he's never met—a man his mother claimed was dangerous. His uncle tells him an impossible secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god. The Viking myths are true. The gods of Asgard are preparing for war. Trolls, giants and worse monsters are stirring for doomsday. To prevent Ragnarok, Magnus must search the Nine Worlds for a weapon that has been lost for thousands of years. When an attack by fire giants forces him to choose between his own safety and the lives of hundreds of innocents, Magnus makes a fatal decision. Sometimes, the only way to start a new life is to die . . .

 

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