Book Review: The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus, #5) by Rick Riordan

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BOOK review

Started on: 23.February.2015
Finished on: 4.March.2015

The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus, #5) by Rick Riordan

Title : The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus, #5)
Author : Rick Riordan

Publisher : Disney Hyperion
Pages :  502 pages
Year of Publication : 2014

Price : $18.25 (www.bookdepository.com/)

Rating: 5/5
*for those who haven't read the first/second/third/fourth book, this review may contain spoiler.
Review for The Lost Hero (The Heroes of Olympus, #1) here. 

Review for The Son of Neptune (The Heroes of Olympus, #2) here.

Review for The Mark of Athena (The Heroes of Olympus, #3) here.

Review for The House of Hades (The Heroes of Olympus, #4) here.

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"But the fate of the quest was at stake. The crew of the Argo II had a big decision to make. If they chose wrong, they would fail, and the entire world would be destroyed."

The giants have risen, and the seven demigods aboard the Argo II have to stop the earth mother, Gaea, from waking on the Feast of Spes. On the other hand, Reyna along with Nico and Coach Hedge are on their way to Camp Half-Blood to return the Athena Parthenos to its' rightful place; and restore peace between the Romans and Greeks. Both teams are facing their own obstacles, but they're determined to accomplish what they have to do to save both Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter.

"Even if I were certain, I could not say. I tell you this because you are my son. You know that some deaths cannot be prevented. Some deaths should not be prevented. When the time comes, you may need to act."

"Like that Cherokee hunter who changed into a serpent, all demigods had their share of bad spirits inside. Fatal flaws. Some crises brought them out. Some lines shouldn't be crossed."

While the seven demigods are following the leads given by the gods, they discovered things that are about to happen in the future. Nike, the goddess of victory, mentioned that one of them will die—and only the Physician's Cure can bring the dead back to life. However, it won't be easy an easy journey finding the ingredients. In the end, the blood of Olympus will be shed to wake Gaea from her long slumber; and death is inevitable.

"No. If he had to die, he would die a son of Jupiter, a child of the gods—the blood of Olympus. But he wasn't about to let himself get sacrificed—at least not without a fight."

image source: here. edited by me.

In my opinion, this book wraps up the series in the best way possible! There are so many things that happened in this book, it felt like a roller-coaster ride that takes me up and down in full speed. I'm really satisfied with how Rick Riordan conclude everything and gave more stories on the side characters as well. The book is narrated by Jason, Piper, Leo, Reyna, and Nico; which is understandable because the seven demigods and Reyna-Nico-Coach Hedge are off doing two different missions. The seven demigods prepared themselves for the final battle and tried to stop Gaea from waking, while Reyna's team will take the Athena Parthenos to Camp Half-Blood to stop the Greek and Romans from war.

Both of the missions are equally difficult and they face a lot of obstacles along the way, but somehow I'm really interested to see Reyna and Nico in action—because in the previous books they're just minor characters who're not mentioned very often. As for the seven demigods, I am constantly worried and anxious because the story kept hinting that one of them is going to die ㅠㅠ I have my faith in Rick Riordan that he will not kill any of the characters in this book, but still, I'm scared to see what's going to happen next. I have tons of favorite scenes in the book, but I won't really point them out one by one so I won't spoil too much in this review. But one of my most favorite scenes is when the gods joined in the war with the demigods :') The gods came in the most glorious way possible and it was definitely a nice surprise. The ending just warms my heart, and it's all perfect. I have nothing else to say about it. And next, I'd like to discuss more about the best part of this series—which is the characters in this book whom I love so so much ♥♥♥

"Look, it's three to one and your hands are tied."
"You're right," Reyna growled. "Get another six of you in here, and it might be a fair fight."

I'd like to introduce you to my newest favorite character from this series: Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano. Oh gosh, I love her character so much! In this book, she played a big role because she have to take Athena Parthenos back to Camp Half-Blood to make peace with the Greeks as a Roman. And throughout her mission with Nico and Coach Hedge, I finally see what a good person she is. She's extremely brave and strong—no doubt she was chosen as praetor. I love the way she sympathize with Nico; and the two shared their deep secret with each other. I kind of shipped the two for a while, but I know it won't happen.

"Reyna doubted she could change his feelings, but she wanted Nico to have support. All heroes deserved that. It was the whole point of the Twelfth Legion. You joined forces to fight for a higher cause. You weren't alone. You made friends and earned respect. Even when you mustered out, you had a place in the community. No demigod should have to suffer alone the way Nico did."

She forced herself to meet the giant's gaze. "I don't define myself by the boys who may or may not like me."

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There's this scene when Reyna was mocked by the enemy because she was rejected more than once by the boy she liked, and her response gained more respect from me. Her dialogues are always so on point and perfectly portrayed her strong and charismatic characteristics as the daughter of Bellona. I kind of teared up a little bit when Pegasus, the Lord of Horses, helped her because of her deep friendship with Scipio—Reyna's pegasi :')) I really think Reyna deserves all the praise she could get and I wish her character was exposed a bit earlier in the story. Love her character so much! She's so kick-ass and amazing :)

"He—he says he didn't come to us in person because of my message." Hedge turned to Reyna. "He did it because of you. He experiences the feelings of all winged horses. He followed your friendship with Scipio. Pegasus says he's never been more touched by a demigod's compassion for a winged horse. He gives you the title Horse Friend. This is a great honor."

"Bellona has answered my prayer. She doesn't fight my battles for me. She doesn't guarantee me easy victory. She grants me opportunities to prove myself. She gives me strong enemies and potential allies."

"Your journey has shaped you, made you both kind and great. Whatever happens when we return to the Parthenon, know that I do not hold you accountable. You have proven yourself a true hero."

Even though Jason Grace is still not my most favorite character, I'm really glad I got to know him a little bit more in this book. Because Jason is one of the narrator in this book, I got to know Jason's internal problems, one of them is always being second-best in Roman and Greek even though his Father is Zeus—the first among all gods. It shows how being the son of Zeus gave him a lot of pressure. Even Jason, the son of the greatest god, also has his own weakness. I love the moment when Jason finally met Zeus and also the scene when he worked together with Percy under the sea :))

"Despite his attempts to alter his destiny—joining the worst cohort, trying to change the camp traditions, taking the least glamorous missions, and befriending the least popular kids—he had been made praetor anyway. As a son of Jupiter, his future had been assured."

"The human part of me is all her. What if I make the wrong choices? What if I make a mistake I can't take back when we're fighting Gaea? I don't want to end up like my mom—reduced to a mania, chewing on my regrets forever."

"Leo had pinned her portrait next to the drawing of the Argo II to remind himself that sometimes visions do come true. As a little kid, he'd dreamed about a flying ship. Eventually he built it. Now he would build a way to get back to Calypso."

Leo Valdez saves the day again this time. And even though I'm constantly worried about him and his dangerous plans, I was just desperately hoping he could get back to Calypso—because I feel like that's what would make Leo happy the most. That's all I want for him, because he's a very good person who deserves the best. I really liked his scenes with Percy, because he kind of hated Percy for abandoning Calypso on the island. But hey, the two of them has a very similar taste in humor—which I totally love from them both. And despite his ridiculous behavior sometimes, Leo is definitely a hero ♥♥♥ A hot and fiery hero (literally).

"But for now, the best he could do was to follow his old rule: Keep moving. Don't get bogged down. Don't think about the bad stuff. Smile and joke even when you don't feel like it. Especially when you don't feel like it."

Kekrops sounded bitter, like he regretted his decision. "My people were the original Athenians—the gemini."
"Like your zodiac sign?" Percy asked, "I'm a Leo."
"No, stupid," Leo said. "I'm a Leo. You're a Percy."

Annabeth chided him for pouring on too much syrup.
"You're drowning them!" she complained.
"Hey, I'm a Poseidon kid," he said. "I can't drown. And neither can my pancakes."

How can I not mention Percy Jackson? I love him so much, and I still can't believe I have to say goodbye to him now that the series is finally over ㅠㅠ I wish Rick Riordan can write stories about Percy and Annabeth going to college and let it just be a young-adult romance story or whatever. I just need more of Percy's humor, please! Anyways, like I've expected, there's not a lot of Percy in this book—which is fine considering that he's not the only main character in this book. But yes, of course I'm still excited every time Percy Jackson is around to throw in some ridiculous remarks about pancakes or Adidas shoes to Nike (the victory goddess). I love you, Percy! You will stay in my heart for a very long time ♥

"What if we promoted, like, Adidas shoes?" Percy wondered. "Would that make Nike made enough to show up?"
Leo smiled nervously. Maybe he and Percy did share something else—a stupid sense of humor.

"In fact, he might unintentionally make things harder
I don't run when my friends need me, Percy had said.
And there is your flaw, Kym had warned, being unable to step away."

I really didn't expect Nico di Angelo to narrate in this book, and it's really nice to find out what's going on inside his mind (because he's always so mysterious in other people's eyes). Nico definitely went through a lot in this book, and things are finally looking much better for him. I love the moment when he met Hades—and they're actually so much alike in personality. Nico has proved that he's also a very strong demigod, and that he also cared for his friends even though he might seem cold or nonchalant. My favorite scene that made me laughed so hard was when Nico confessed to Percy !!! Oh gods, I was cracking up and still can't believe that happened. Anyways, I'm so happy for him because he finally found someone (hopefully not spoiling anything). Nico deserves to be happy too since he suffered a lot of heartache throughout the way :)))

"I will see you again," Hades promised. "I will prepare a room for you at the palace in case you do not survive. Perhaps your chambers would look good decorated with the skulls of monks."
"Now I can't tell if you're joking."
Hades's eyes glittered as his form began to fade. "Then perhaps we are alike in some important ways."

"Flames roared up from the statue's severed neck. They swirled around Piper, filling the room with a firestorm of emotions: hatred, bloodlust, and fear, but also love—because no one could face battle without caring for something: comrades, family, home."

"Some pain shouldn't be wished away so easily. It had to be dealt with, even embraced. Without the agony of the last few months, Piper never would have found her best friends, Hazel and Annabeth. She never would've discovered her own courage."

I know I didn't mention some of the other characters, but that doesn't mean I don't like them. I love Piper and Annabeth's teamwork, and of course Frank and Hazel too. The book is still fast-paced and probably even more action-packed than the previous books, and I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of it. This series definitely made me feel as if I was with them on their journey to save the world. And I am a little bit sad because now I have to say goodbye to these awesome demigods :') Thankfully, I still have some companion books left to read, so I'll pick those up when I miss Rick Riordan's writing :) In the end, I'd say this has become one of my most favorite series of all-time. In my opinion, it's actually better than the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, because there are a lot more emotions going on within the story. So if you're a fan of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, I definitely will recommend you to pick up The Heroes of Olympus series as well :D

  by.stefaniesugia♥ .