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kal517's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Mental illness, and Death
Moderate: Blood and Violence
Minor: Death of parent and Homophobia
kbairbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
4.25 stars
This was everything I’ve ever wanted for Nico. I am SO happy he got a book, and for so many things within the book I don’t want to share because ✨ spoilers ✨ but wow. I’m sitting here with a huge grin on my face. That ending? So feel good. I think the only thing I didn’t love the most was the back and forth of the first 60ish percent in the audiobook form. It probably would’ve been totally fine in physical book form because of clues within the formatting. But as an audiobook there were times where I was confused if we were in a flashback, the present, or the beginning? Either way I was always able to figure it out and enjoy the story. It was such a heart filling quest and I really enjoyed this book.
This was everything I’ve ever wanted for Nico. I am SO happy he got a book, and for so many things within the book I don’t want to share because ✨ spoilers ✨ but wow. I’m sitting here with a huge grin on my face. That ending? So feel good. I think the only thing I didn’t love the most was the back and forth of the first 60ish percent in the audiobook form. It probably would’ve been totally fine in physical book form because of clues within the formatting. But as an audiobook there were times where I was confused if we were in a flashback, the present, or the beginning? Either way I was always able to figure it out and enjoy the story. It was such a heart filling quest and I really enjoyed this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Death, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
camiclarkbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Grief, Blood, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Death of parent and Eating disorder
marenm's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment and Grief
eloise648's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, Kidnapping, Homophobia, Death of parent, Murder, and Torture
Minor: Fire/Fire injury and Panic attacks/disorders
jayecard's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This is the book that was written specifically for me.
I can't even put into words how it feels to go from Nico being a favorite character, to him becoming more and more beloved and relatable for me, to him becoming a protagonist and going on a journey that struck me terribly deeply. Nico and Will's story is not about falling in love, it's about going from "in love" to loving each other fully and truly. And I've never, NEVER seen that written with such a powerful authenticity. Every emotional interaction, every little misstep, and every little progress, felt like a punch right in the gut. I'm mentally ill, I have a relationship, and this is EXACTLY what it's like. Nico being scared that letting Will help him will scare Will away or put too much strain on him. Will not knowing how to reach Nico and how to really help him when he's struggling. Them having to accept parts of each other that are so terribly hard to open up about. It's so real and raw and not at all what I would have expected when I first got into Percy Jackson all the way back.
And at the same time, it still IS a PJO book. It's quirky and there are silly incarnations of old legends and monsters, there's adventures and sudden troubles and a touch of mysterious force from gods that more and more are becoming a reflection of their concepts. I was having fun and processing emotional trauma at the same time. What more do you want. This is probably one of my all time favorites now.
I can't even put into words how it feels to go from Nico being a favorite character, to him becoming more and more beloved and relatable for me, to him becoming a protagonist and going on a journey that struck me terribly deeply. Nico and Will's story is not about falling in love, it's about going from "in love" to loving each other fully and truly. And I've never, NEVER seen that written with such a powerful authenticity. Every emotional interaction, every little misstep, and every little progress, felt like a punch right in the gut. I'm mentally ill, I have a relationship, and this is EXACTLY what it's like. Nico being scared that letting Will help him will scare Will away or put too much strain on him. Will not knowing how to reach Nico and how to really help him when he's struggling. Them having to accept parts of each other that are so terribly hard to open up about. It's so real and raw and not at all what I would have expected when I first got into Percy Jackson all the way back.
And at the same time, it still IS a PJO book. It's quirky and there are silly incarnations of old legends and monsters, there's adventures and sudden troubles and a touch of mysterious force from gods that more and more are becoming a reflection of their concepts. I was having fun and processing emotional trauma at the same time. What more do you want. This is probably one of my all time favorites now.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Confinement, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, and Death
Minor: War and Outing
A character's behaviour closely reflects (and could be considered allegorical) to an abusive parent. There are brief moments of evil spirits trying to tempt characters into suicide.mothie_girlie's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Grief
icedlemonade's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death, Child death, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment, Gore, Blood, Eating disorder, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Outing, Mental illness, Homophobia, and Emotional abuse
fronk10's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
A wonderful addition to the PJO universe, focusing on two of my favourite characters. As expected, the plot was a great reimagining and mixing of classical myth, and I loved that it was so open and trauma and growth. The main message is that the only person who defines you is you, and that is lovely to see in a book aimed at young teens. It’s only a 4* because some of the writing in the early part of the book made me cringe, but a younger reader wouldn’t have the same issue.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Kidnapping, and Torture
maylinmunoz's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
a great follow-up to the riordanverse that explores how to heal from your past and navigate relationships. the book also addresses and ties up a lot off loose ends and places of discomfort from previous books, such as Nico's forced outing by Cupid and the ethical/moral implications of Bob the titan, in a way that felt very satisfying. it feels like such a safe place for conversation around mental illness as well as explicit queer representation, I'm sure in large part thanks to Mark Oshiro's contributions. the way it handled Piper's unsureness about any particular label at the end felt so genuine. the writing of it itself if great even if my own personal headcanons around Piper were technically confirmed false. I always felt like she never was really attracted to Jason; it felt like textbook comphet. so for her to say directly that she was felt strange to me, and as a bisexual person now makes me feel more disappointed in that form of representation throughout HOO retroactively. i think it could have been a cool thing to show her come to that conclusion, as it is a process that can be very difficult for lesbians to go through and accept in themselves. though i also think the message of it's okay to not have a label or have everything figured out is also a very important one, so I'm not terribly upset at this alternative. my only other critique I can think of at the moment is that I don't buy straight Percy Jackson for a second lol.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Grief
Moderate: Blood, Panic attacks/disorders, and Torture
Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Outing, and Bullying