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A review by readingthestars
The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan
3.0
I owe this book an apology.
I first read this when it came out, when I was 15 - and I hated it. I had a three page list of reasons why I disliked it, and I kept that mindset for 7 years. In my mind, this book tarnished what had been, up until this point, a fun series that had allowed me to read more about the characters I loved. I did my first reread just now in 2022, at 22 years old, and I was dreading this finale because I remembered how disappointed I was in 2014. To my surprise...I don't hate it. I enjoyed it - a LOT more than I had in 2014.
So I'm left here wondering why I had such a grudge against this book back then. Some of my criticisms still hold up - the biggest being the underwhelming battle towards the end. There was a big build up to demigods dying as the prophecy demanded, and instead we got just a few pages. The end is wrapped up a little quickly, and I still maintain that The Last Olympian is one of the best series finale's EVER because it tied up everything so nicely and the Battle of Manhattan was so engaging. The Blood of Olympus isn't quite on that level, but it's a good series finale on its own.
To be honest, most of my other criticisms now have to do with the series as a whole. In general, this series feels more middle grade than the original, and I account that to the writing. It's not as serious or cohesive. Percy is dumbed down a little bit (there's no way he would yell "Greeks, um, fight stuff!" after his speech in Manhattan). For most of the series, I felt that Piper was getting the short end of the stick, but I enjoyed seeing her growth in this last book. I liked having Nico and Reyna's POVs, especially since Nico talked about events that happened in the original series. I especially liked how a big conflict in this series was essentially the same as the original - the gods forgetting their family. First they forgot their demigod children, and it almost led to their downfall. This time, they forgot their godly children and the lesser/minor gods, and it was just as disastrous.
I'm really glad I reread this book. Now that I see it from a different (and older) perspective, I can appreciate it for what it is and can look back on this series a bit more fondly than I have been. 3.5/5 stars.
I first read this when it came out, when I was 15 - and I hated it. I had a three page list of reasons why I disliked it, and I kept that mindset for 7 years. In my mind, this book tarnished what had been, up until this point, a fun series that had allowed me to read more about the characters I loved. I did my first reread just now in 2022, at 22 years old, and I was dreading this finale because I remembered how disappointed I was in 2014. To my surprise...I don't hate it. I enjoyed it - a LOT more than I had in 2014.
So I'm left here wondering why I had such a grudge against this book back then. Some of my criticisms still hold up - the biggest being the underwhelming battle towards the end. There was a big build up to demigods dying as the prophecy demanded, and instead we got just a few pages. The end is wrapped up a little quickly, and I still maintain that The Last Olympian is one of the best series finale's EVER because it tied up everything so nicely and the Battle of Manhattan was so engaging. The Blood of Olympus isn't quite on that level, but it's a good series finale on its own.
To be honest, most of my other criticisms now have to do with the series as a whole. In general, this series feels more middle grade than the original, and I account that to the writing. It's not as serious or cohesive. Percy is dumbed down a little bit (there's no way he would yell "Greeks, um, fight stuff!" after his speech in Manhattan). For most of the series, I felt that Piper was getting the short end of the stick, but I enjoyed seeing her growth in this last book. I liked having Nico and Reyna's POVs, especially since Nico talked about events that happened in the original series. I especially liked how a big conflict in this series was essentially the same as the original - the gods forgetting their family. First they forgot their demigod children, and it almost led to their downfall. This time, they forgot their godly children and the lesser/minor gods, and it was just as disastrous.
I'm really glad I reread this book. Now that I see it from a different (and older) perspective, I can appreciate it for what it is and can look back on this series a bit more fondly than I have been. 3.5/5 stars.