Scan barcode
alyxinthestars's review against another edition
- 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
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Homophobia, Torture, Violence, Vomit, and Outing
alys055's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death and Grief
Moderate: Mental illness, Torture, Death of parent, and Abandonment
Minor: Eating disorder, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Transphobia, Kidnapping, and Outing
erins_bookshelf_'s review against another edition
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
the only thing I'd say that I didn't like is the number of pop culture references, it feels less timeless than the og pjo books, but I didn't mind it that much
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Violence and Blood
Minor: Homophobia and Outing
dlrosebyh's review against another edition
- 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
- You could tell which one is Rick’s and which one is Mark’s. Their writing styles aren’t really different from one another, but I could still tell that Mark wrote the first chapters, and starting from the build-up of the climax, you could tell that Rick wrote them.
- Since the characters are like 15-16, expect some very cheesy, “childish” dialogues. But again, cheesy doesn’t always mean bad. If you can acknowledge that something is cheesy with freeing yourself a bit, it wouldn’t hurt you. Expect also some miscommunication as they’re just teenagers (they don’t miscommunicate a lot, and when they do, it’s not like other miscommunication where I want to bang my head to a wall; it’s more of them masking to make each other stronger especially that they’re in the Tartarus.)
- As I’ve said earlier, this book is anti-climactic especially for a book set in one of the scariest place in Greek mythology.
- If we’re talking about adventure-wise out of all the Rick Riordan novels, I’m sorry, but this is probably the worst one. It’s not bad, it’s just not that adventurous compared to the others. It was low staked, but not in a cozy fantasy type of way because this was not cozy at all.
Graphic: Mental illness, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Eating disorder, Violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Body horror, Homophobia, and Outing
the_real_al_cal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I was fortunate enough to be at the event in which Rick Riordan originally gauged interest in this book by asking the audience, and I couldn't believe how many screams and cheers there were for it. So I guess he must have taken that to heart! I really appreciate that he brought in Mark Oshiro to help him write the more tender parts. Mark brought such a wonderful, authentic perspective to this story about two LGBTQIA+ teens and their friends navigating their changing feelings and identities. Stories like this are so important, especially in this day and age.
From what I've seen of some online reactions, the response to this book ranges from absolutely loves to kinda lukewarm. I personally found this book very charming and impressive in how it approached some heavy themes in a way that is acceptable for the intended middle-reader audience. There were some silly moments and dialogue, but I thought it was sweet. I imagine that the majority of the more lukewarm responses come from fans who may have "aged out" of the middle-reader range and are finding that the writing style and humor aims a bit younger than they remember. It doesn't make their opinions wrong, but that's just how I interpret that response.
This story explores the theme of trauma quite extensively, but a very interesting part of trauma that often goes underwritten--the healing part.
I could go on for pages about this book, so in the end, I'll just say that even a day after finishing this book, I'm still thinking about it. Rick Riordan and Mark Oshiro did a wonderful job. This is another jewel in the crown that is the Percy Jackson series.
Graphic: Mental illness, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death, Eating disorder, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Body horror, Homophobia, and Outing
finnft4's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Grief and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Eating disorder and Violence
Minor: Outing