The Blood of Olympus

ness33 - OH MY GODS. HOLD YOUR CHERRY COKE GUYS 'CAUSE UNCLE TROLLIN' RICK IS IN DA HOUSEEEE!!! Okay. PREDICTION TIME! (I KNOW YOU SECRETLY LOOK FORWARD TO THESE!!) *Prediction* (WARNING: PERACHEL HERE!! HAHAHAHA! TIS A SHIP MEANT TO BE SUNK!) Octavian meets Rachel, their eyes meet, they lean forward, inching closer together. Rachel unsheathes an unseen dagger and plunges it into Octavian's heart, ripping out his innards like he did to all the innocent stuffed animals. "How do you like that Octavian? Is this your type of medicine?" Rachel sneered. Octavian did not respond as his eyes glazed over and he slumped forward into her waiting arms. What Rachel didn't know was, with Octavian being the first demigod's blood spilt on the damp soil, Gaia awoke and reigned terror on the Seven's ship. They died battling until their last breath, Gaia let Leo, the scrawny elf-boy's ghost, to haunt Calypso, her Grand-Daughter. When Percy and Annabeth's bodies were recovered and sent to CHB, she cried over Percy's cold, cold body but glared at Annabeth's. She then buried Percy under the moonlight and near the thrashing waves. She buried Annabeth's nowhere near his as she planned when she died, Rachel would be buried as his Queen and he would have already been her King. Led by Rachel's jealousy, the demigods failed to defeat Gaia. Gaia overthrew the Gods and replaced them with her children. When Rachel did die, her bones were burnt and scattered on the mat below Gaia's feet, millions of miles away from the Percy that never loved her back. Annabeth willed her bones to rebury them next to Percy's and lace her finger bones around his so he and she could forever remain entwined.

With just 12 days to go until Gaea awakens fully on Aug. 1 and brings an end to the world as we know it, two groups of demigods struggle to stop her.Aboard the Argo II, Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Piper, Frank, Hazel and Leo race to Athens for the final showdown. Meanwhile, three formerly supporting characters struggle to haul the ancient and massive Athena Parthenos statue from Europe to Camp Half-Blood: son of Hades Nico di Angelo, daughter of Bellona Reyna Ramirez-Arellano (and former praetor at New Rome) and satyr Coach Hedge. Coach Hedge is there mostly for comic relief, but his anxiety for the welfare of his very pregnant wood-nymph wife at Camp Half-Blood, where rogue New Rome augur Octavian has massed his armies to attack on Aug. 1, is touchingly genuine. The story of the demigods headed to Athens focuses on Jason, Piper and Leo and offers what Riordan does best: comedic, action-packed encounters with deities most readers-and sometimes characters-have never heard of. Goddess of victory Nike is particularly funny as she rails against "namby-pamby ideas of friendship and everybody wins participation awards." The story's emotional heft mostly comes from Nico's and Reyna's arduous and heartfelt journeys to self-acceptance. Readers who haven't made a point of revisiting The House of Hades (2013) before starting this may find themselves wondering just why each group's mission is so important, but there's no questioning that the characters think they're vital. And ultimately, any prophecy-driven adventure is at bottom arbitrary anyway. The story's occasional ventures into romance are stilted and awkward, but fortunately they are brief. The satisfyingly cataclysmic showdowns yield to peaceful resolution at last; here's hoping it holds this time. (Fantasy. 10-16) COPYRIGHT(1) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.