Review - The House of Hades by Rick Riordan

The House of Hades ( The Heroes of Olympus #4 )
by Rick Riordan
Release date - October 8th 2013
Published by Hyperion Books
Hardcover, 594 pages
Source - Purchased
Add it to Goodreads

Description (from Goodreads)

At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy’s instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea’s forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?

They have no choice. If the demigods don’t succeed, Gaea’s armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.

My Review

 I feel emotionally exhausted after reading this intensely thrilling mythical adventure. I think I may be in a permanent state of awe. It's all running through my head right now about just how perfectly thought out the story was. It was magically written and the well rounded and complex characters in it were fantastic to get to know. I have been a die hard fan of Percy ever since I read the Lightning Thief and Rick Riordan has managed to create new, wonderful characters in the Heroes of Olympus series that are just as epic as Percy is.

Here is a little about each of the characters.

Percy (son of Poseiden) & Annabeth (daughter of Athena)

 Percy was great. I liked that his first thought was always to make sure that his girlfriend got safely through Tartarus . Even when it involved looking deep into himself and admitting that he hasn't always been as good as he should have been and made promises that he didn't keep.
 Annabeth stole the limelight for me with her clever ways and fierce determination to get Percy and herself safely to the Doors of Death.
 Percy and Annabeth's journey also included help from Bob the Titan. I absolutely loved him and his saber tooth tiger kitten Little Bob. They were just two of incredible side characters that pushed the book up the ratings scale.

Quote

“I will call him Small Bob,” said Bob. “He is a good monster.”

Frank (son of Mars)

 I adore Frank! I have since his first appearance in Son of Neptune. Frank feels like the least important member of their quest and he second guesses how important his skills are. Combined with all their troubles from the quest, he has been hearing voices ever since the Romans declared war on the Greeks. The gods have been suffering from a split personality disorder and no one feels the effects quite like Frank does. Mars and Aries were constantly screaming in his head telling him to kill someone on the opposing side, making it difficult to concentrate. Somehow he finally manages to find himself and begins to realize his true worth.

Nico (son of Hades)

 Even though he is not one of the prophesied seven he has a role to play. Nico's part includes an unexpected discovery about Nico's true feelings, which I did not see coming. I loved Nico's encounter with Eros and feel that it adds some depth to his character instead of him become a cookie cutter, gothic type edition in the book. I very much look forward to reading more about him.

Leo (son of Hephaestus)

 Another great demigod in the book is Leo. Being the son of Hephaestus he is the mechanical expert in his crew. He is constantly inventing more useful devices with his beloved Archimedes sphere. He always seems to get dumbstruck when he encounters a pretty face and i really hope he gets the chance to find his way back to the island of ? I think he is very funny and I really enjoyed his part in the book.

Quote

He understood how dangerous oaths could be. But Leo didn’t care. “I’m coming back for you, Calypso,” he said to the night wind. “I swear it on the River Styx.”

Hazel ( daughter of Pluto)

 Hazel is worried about the part she has to play in the quest. She needs to find away to tap into her magical background from both parents and learn how to control the mist. She is very strong willed and proud for the cause she fights for. I loved that we got to see a slight bit of Arion, Hazels horse. Even if he doesn't do much, I love the way that he makes Hazel feel when they're together.

Jason (son of Jupiter)

 Jason has never been my favourite of the bunch but I do still like him. He's unsure about which side of himself, Roman or Greek, he would rather embrace.

Quote

“Sorry we’re late,” Jason said. “Is this the guy who needs killing?”

Piper (daughter of Aphrodite)

 Piper only had a few chapters written in her pov but in that short time you discover just how strong her intentions are of becoming more than just a pretty voice.

 Other things I enjoyed about this novel is how the names of the more difficult to pronounce gods and goddesses were either spelled out phonetically or described with a word or description that sounded similar. I loved the Clever quips and the well placed humor, there was always something entertaining happening with each page I turned. I don't have one negative thing to say about this story.

 Unlike the last book in the series House of Hades did not end with a killer cliffhanger and I was glad. I don't know if I could have handled another one. I does however lead up to the last part of the quest at the festival of hope and then all seven of them must make a stand and face the fully awakened Gaia.

 I give this book a huge 5 out of 5 stars and bunker down for another year long wait before I can read about the future fate of my favourite demigods.

✯ ✯ ✯ ✯ ✯

Buy it here:

Amazon | Kobo


Places you can find the author:

Website | Twitter