Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'

The Sun and the Star by Rick Riordan

59 reviews

eloise648's review against another edition

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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


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jayecard's review against another edition

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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.

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icedlemonade's review against another edition

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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


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maylinmunoz's review against another edition

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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.

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besohappily's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad fast-paced
  • 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


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atsuanna's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring 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

Oh my goodness if I got to read a book like this as a kid I would’ve been OVERJOYED. Hell as a teenager I’m still overjoyed! Is it a five star book? Probably not but it is TO ME OKAY? IM GAY AND SAPPY! 

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thewritetofight's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny 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? It's complicated

4.5

I’ve outgrown the Percy Jackson books; I’m not the main demographic anymore, but I still loved this book so much. Sure, I wish it was a little more darker and the only reason this isn’t a 5 star review is because I’m older now, but that’s okay!! I love Nico and Will’s relationship. My only main qualm with the book is how Nyx is portrayed. I’ve always thought of her as a neutral goddess, still being capable of great evil, but is fair in her acts. The relationship with her and her children was kind of annoying and childish, but again 13 year kids and younger will eat this shit up like cocaine. I also wish it was more mentally traumatizing because that is my cup of tea,,,,,

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maranda_maria's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful 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

3.0

This was probably my most anticipated book for this year. I’ve been a Percy Jackson fam since 5th grade (I am now 24), and Nico has always been one of my favorite characters. I had high hopes for this book because I feel like there is so much potential in both Will and Nico as individual characters and as a couple. There are parts of this book I absolutely adored, and parts that disappointed me. First, I loved the flash backs to Will and Nico’s early relationship milestones. I think the addition of Gorgyra was amazing, heartwarming, and also a bit heartbreaking at the same time. Moreover, I love how Will and Nico’s relationship is challenged, and that their insecurities are laid bare. It is clear that these insecurities could be the downfall of their relationship if not worked through, and that they both have trauma to unpack before they’ll be able to fully commit to each other. My main critique is that the plot feels rushed. There was so much build around Nico’s forgotten time in Tartarus, but Nyx as a character does not feel like a fully fleshed out villain or threat especially compared to the villains these characters have faced in previous books. Moreover, I was expecting the same terrifying depictions of Tartarus from House of Hades, but the deepest pit of the Underworld felt underwhelming in this book. Overall, this book was okay. It is not the best book within the Percy Jackson universe, but it’s not the worst (imo). My disappointment largely lies in the fact that I feel like so much more could have been done with these characters, especially Will Solace. I really wanted to get a deeper look into his past, especially get into the grief and trauma of losing his siblings in the Second Titan War. Maybe my expectations for this book were too high. All I know is I feel like there is still more story to tell with these two. 

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thegr1mreader's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense 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


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nerdysread's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced
  • 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

4.5

Okay. I loved this book. It’s clearly a character focused book and a story about healing. But there were a few things that bother me (2 exactly)
1. Didn’t Bianca choose reincarnation? So why is she in Elysium here?
2. And it was the biggest flaw of the book: THE HAZEL ERASURE. Nico talks a lot about Percy, Annabeth, Jason, sometimes Leo, but he mentions HIS SISTER like 2/3 times in the whole book. And he says that no one took care of him like will since his mom and Bianca died? What about Hazel (even Jason and Reyna). HAZEL WAS THE ONE THAT STOOD UP FOR HIM ON THE BOAT IN MOA
3. Okay a little third point, didn’t he considered Camp Jupiter as a home at some point?

BUT. It’s still a great book. 
1. I loved seeing Nico choosing to move on and deal with his trauma. I loved how he choose. I loved his relationship with Will and the cute names they used. 
2. It made me cry and tear up so bonus point 
3. This book is everything à Nico di Angelo fan, a queer person, a queer kid needs 
4. I loved that Nico got in touch with Piper at the end, I really want them to start a good friendship 
5. Another thing I love, is the message that darkness, sadness and other things like that are not necessarily bad. Will learned that during the story. There is no light without darkness. And he needed it because of his préjugés. And this is a strong message for anyone struggling with them
6. I love how it talks about trauma and overcoming them by letting them go and accepting them as they are. 
7. THEY DID IT. They address how wrong Cupid’s scene and the outing was

Anyway. It’s almost 2 A.M so now I’m going to sleep. Good night everyone

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