Review: The House of Hades (The Heroes of Olympus #4) by Rick Riordan

Title: The House of Hades

Series: The Heroes of Olympus #4

Previous books in this series: The Lost Hero (#1) | The Son of Neptune (#2) | The Mark of Athena (#3)

Author: Rick Riordan

Genre: Middle Grade, urban fantasy, Greek mythology, Roman mythology

Publication date: October 2013

Published by: Disney Hyperion

Source: Own hardcover

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Synopsis:

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 rating: ★★★★★
[WARNING: Major spoilers from the previous book, The Mark of Athena. Otherwise, it's spoiler free if you have not read HoH :)]

Holy Hades, this book was AMAZING! That is no surprise, of course, seeing as how much I love mythology and all of Rick Riordan's books ;) And after the crazy cliffhanger (quite literally, too) in The Mark of Athena, I was ecstatic to finally start on this book and dive into this world that I love so much! But OH MY GODS! I don't think I can review this book without fangirling all over the place! It was just so absolutely PERFECT!

The House of Hades starts off soon after the ending of the last book, with Percy and Annabeth falling down to Tartarus while the rest of the demigods make their way to the Doors of Death on the mortal side of the world. Of course, nothing is ever easy for our heroes. They will face many challenges while on their way to their destination, especially since Gaea is that much closer to fully awakening. Percy and Annabeth will face their own demons (quite literally, too) down in Tartarus as they make their way to the Doors of Death on that side. And while there is a nightmare in every corner of Tartarus, they will also find allies in the least expected places.

Not only are Jason, Piper, Hazel, Frank, Leo, and Nico on their way to save Percy and Annabeth, but they must also work together to close the Doors of Death, otherwise the whole world will be doomed... No pressure, right?

I like to consider myself a Greek mythology buff, but the thing I love about Rick Riordan's books is that he always surprises me with some new myth or deity that I've never heard about! I loved researching all these new things I learned from HoH! And he is just such a great story teller! Percy and Annabeth trudging through Tartarus ... it was SO creepy, yet clever. I mean, sure there are about million books that take place in the underworld, but nothing as amazing as this! I mean, hello! It's Tartarus! The descriptions were just so vivid and great!

I am so sad that this series is coming to an end because I just love all the characters and have become so fond of them, especially Leo! Team Leo! He is one of my most favorite characters ever! And Annabeth, I loved her! I can totally see why she is the daughter of Athena. She is so freaking smart and clever and she got them out of so many deadly situations just with her wits. It was seriously amazing. And Percy, of course, was awesome! He is a favorite by default ;) Nico... that boy surprised me. I mean, I really had no idea what was going on with that kid! I got all teary-eyed when we found out his Deep Dark Secret and I felt so bad for him :( Oh! Another of my favorite characters in this book was BOB! He is so awesome, even though Bob is a funny name for a god ;) Heh.

I don't know what else to say. I loved it! I was so happy there was no crazy cliffhanger in this book... I think it will make the wait for The Blood of Olympus a little bit more bearable. I am very excited to see how things will turn out for the demigods and Gaia, but I am also very extremely saddened to see this series end.

P.S. You can check out my Reading Progress here, where I posted some of my favorite quotes :)

Have you read this book? If so, what did you think about it? If not, what do you think? Does it sound like something you might want to read? Leave me a link to your review or comment below! :)