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A review by magpie4
The House of Hades by Rick Riordan
4.0
Death seems like the only way out of Tartarus for Annabeth and Percy, but they can't forget the mission. Someone has to stay behind to keep the Doors of Death closed if they can reach them at all. Meanwhile, the rest of the prophesied 7, along with Nico Di Angelo, continue their quest to close the Doors of Death from the mortal side. We get POVs from all seven of the chosen demigods, with the main focus on Percy and Annabeth's time in Tartarus.
In this book, we focus on the characters, not so much the plot. We see a lot of character growth from the 7, and most surprisedly from Nico. We are starting to see how this quest has changed everyone individually. There are not the same people they were at the start of the series. I know I say this in all my reviews for the Heroes of Olympus series, but Jason kind of sucks, which did not change in the House of Hades. He is still the same useless son of Jupiter. Jason is unconscious/incapacitated during most of the fights. Jason had a couple good moments, but for the most part, he is a failure. However, I respect him now a little more because he keeps Nico's secret. Speaking of Nico, I wish we got a POV chapter from him, but no. Although as I am writing this, I am currently reading the Blood of Olympus, and I know he gets a POV!
I found the pacing a little slow, but it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the book. Some of the side quests for the Argo II crew seemed filler to fill the chapters until we follow Annabeth and Percy's POV in Tartarus again. The House of Hades is also a lot darker than the rest of the series. We still get Rick Riordan's signature humor, but Percy and Annabeth's Tartarus adventure gets pretty bleak.
For the first time, the book doesn't end in a cliffhanger. I know. Shocking! Overall, I loved this book. The Seven warmed up to each other in this book. It was kind of awkward in The Mark of Athena, but now they work together like a well-oiled machine. And I'm so excited to see how it wraps up in the last book.
I was bracing myself for the emotional trauma of character death. Throughout the series, the gang was sure someone would die. Along the way, gods have foretold that sacrifices will be made to stop Gaea. In this book specifically, Piper thinks that either Jason or Leo will stop Gaea, but the other would die trying. I also thought Frank might die because his life is connected to the stick, which has almost burned out, and someone ( I believe Hecate) to them that Nico and Hazel wouldn't both make it to the Doors of Death. No one died, though, not that I wanted them to, but it just surprised because this quest is super dangerous, and no one has died. A little unrealistic, but I'm going to let it slide if someone dies in The Blood of Olympus.
****SPOILERS****
Nico takes Jason with him to find the scepter, so we had to follow Jason's POV during those chapters when Cupid forces Nico to tell Jason about his crush on Percy. Jason is kind of oblivious initially, but he soon catches onto what Nico is trying to say. He is totally accepting of it, of course, but I wish Jason wasn't the one who went. I would have liked the scene ten times more if Nico was with anyone else besides Jason. Also, Jason doesn't really do anything when fighting Cupid, typical. I respect Jason for keeping his secret, though. Jason tells Nico he totally understands, but he is a straight white guy.
I was sad to learn that Nico isn't going to be with the gang during the last book. Too bad it's the Prophecy of 7, not 8. Although I read the synopsis, so I know he gets a POV in The Blood of Olympus. I can't wait for that!
In this book, we focus on the characters, not so much the plot. We see a lot of character growth from the 7, and most surprisedly from Nico. We are starting to see how this quest has changed everyone individually. There are not the same people they were at the start of the series. I know I say this in all my reviews for the Heroes of Olympus series, but Jason kind of sucks, which did not change in the House of Hades. He is still the same useless son of Jupiter. Jason is unconscious/incapacitated during most of the fights. Jason had a couple good moments, but for the most part, he is a failure. However, I respect him now a little more because he keeps Nico's secret. Speaking of Nico, I wish we got a POV chapter from him, but no. Although as I am writing this, I am currently reading the Blood of Olympus, and I know he gets a POV!
I found the pacing a little slow, but it didn't hinder my enjoyment of the book. Some of the side quests for the Argo II crew seemed filler to fill the chapters until we follow Annabeth and Percy's POV in Tartarus again. The House of Hades is also a lot darker than the rest of the series. We still get Rick Riordan's signature humor, but Percy and Annabeth's Tartarus adventure gets pretty bleak.
For the first time, the book doesn't end in a cliffhanger. I know. Shocking! Overall, I loved this book. The Seven warmed up to each other in this book. It was kind of awkward in The Mark of Athena, but now they work together like a well-oiled machine. And I'm so excited to see how it wraps up in the last book.
I was bracing myself for the emotional trauma of character death. Throughout the series, the gang was sure someone would die. Along the way, gods have foretold that sacrifices will be made to stop Gaea. In this book specifically, Piper thinks that either Jason or Leo will stop Gaea, but the other would die trying. I also thought Frank might die because his life is connected to the stick, which has almost burned out, and someone ( I believe Hecate) to them that Nico and Hazel wouldn't both make it to the Doors of Death. No one died, though, not that I wanted them to, but it just surprised because this quest is super dangerous, and no one has died. A little unrealistic, but I'm going to let it slide if someone dies in The Blood of Olympus.
****SPOILERS****
Nico takes Jason with him to find the scepter, so we had to follow Jason's POV during those chapters when Cupid forces Nico to tell Jason about his crush on Percy. Jason is kind of oblivious initially, but he soon catches onto what Nico is trying to say. He is totally accepting of it, of course, but I wish Jason wasn't the one who went. I would have liked the scene ten times more if Nico was with anyone else besides Jason. Also, Jason doesn't really do anything when fighting Cupid, typical. I respect Jason for keeping his secret, though. Jason tells Nico he totally understands, but he is a straight white guy.
I was sad to learn that Nico isn't going to be with the gang during the last book. Too bad it's the Prophecy of 7, not 8. Although I read the synopsis, so I know he gets a POV in The Blood of Olympus. I can't wait for that!