Book review: The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan (SPOILERS)

Hey guys! I just finished Rick Riordan's new book, Trials of Apollo. It's kind of like a continuation of his Heroes of Olympus series, but this time it is in the point of view of the god Apollo. Zeus blamed Apollo for Octavian going all phsyco in the war, and so to punish him he made Apollo mortal and set him out on a quest. He gets dumped into an alleyway of New York and is claimed by Meg, a daughter of Demeter. He then goes to find Percy to bring him and Meg to Camp Half-Blood so he can sort out what is going on and what Zeus wants him to do.

WARNING: SPOILERS

Overall rating: 

Thoughts: I loved this book. Before I get into the details, I want to address something. I know some people feel like Rick should let go of this world, and that he has dragged it out too far. I honestly don't care. Rick created a huge world with thousands of possibilities. I love the world of Demigods and Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. I won't ever get enough. As long as he isn't using the same characters for every single story (He isn't-I'll get to that later.) I don't mind, because I love this world and all the stories Rick has made from it.

Now that that is out of the way, let's get into the actual review. I gave this book four stars, which in no way means it isn't a fantastic book. It is. It just wasn't the most gripping story-which I understand since it was the first book. This book was mostly a set up book. It explained what was happening, caught you up on what had happened since Blood of Olympus, and (sort of) sets up the rest of the series.

First I'll talk about how I feel about everything that has happened since Blood of Olympus. So yeah, here are my thoughts:

OMG PERCY IS GOING TO HAVE A SISTER WHAT IS THIS CRAZINESS I NEVER THOUGHT THIS WOULD HAPPEN WHAT THE HECK THIS IS INSANE.

Not that I mind. It certainly was a bold move to take, because we all grew up with Percy as an only child, and now his mom is pregnant. Percy is grown up now, studying to pass his senior year and get into the Roman college with Annabeth. It was sad to read about him, all mature and grown. I was like 'Where is the funny witty Percy we read about?" But he is gone. But I feel like that's a good thing, sad as it is. People grow and mature, and it's only natural that that happens to book characters.

AND HOLY HERA WE GET TO SEE LEO AND CALYPSO!!!!!!

I swear, the last 10 pages where we got to see Leo and Calypso were probably my favorite pages of the entire book. Leo hasn't changed a bit, and I missed him soooooooooo much. His humor is just the best, and I didn't realize how much I missed it. And Caleo is just adorable and gahhhhhhhh.

Anyways. The plot was really interesting. Like I said, the story is narrated by Apollo. So the first 100 pages were kind of annoying with him being so self obssessed and everything. But eventually you got used to it, and it became really funny. Also, throughout the book you see Apollo's personality change A LOT. At the end I compared his personality from the beginning and at the end, and it was a huge change. So he went through major character development over the course of the book, which was really interesting to read about.

Meg is also a very interesting character. I can't say I enjoyed her very much-she annoyed me a lot. But I have a feeling she is going to grow on me. Or at least I hope she does. And Peaches. PEACHES IS ADORABLE. Omg, I love peaches.

So yeah, that is my pretty random review of  The Hidden Oracle! I hope you enjoyed it! If you have read it, tell me what you thought of it! I would love to discuss it with anyone :P

May Recommendations: Friendship Stories

Hey guys! So today I am doing my monthly recommendations for the month of May. Monthly Reccomendations is a goodreads group led by Kayla from Kayla Rayne and Trina from Between Chapters. My recommendations focus more on books where the friendships play a large role in the story. So, without further ado lets go onto the monthly recommendations!


1. Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

This book is all about friendship. It focus' on two characters-Jess and Leslie. I won't go too much into the summary, because I feel like this story is best to go into without much knowledge. The friendship in this story is written beautifully. Even though Jess and Leslie have grown up in two completely different backgrounds, they become super close friends and create Terabithia,  a made up kingdom in the woods. Jess learns to trust Leslie, and she becomes his first official 'friend'. It's hard to explain their friendship really, without rambling on about the same things over and over. It's one of those things you have to read to understand. But Jess and Leslie's friendship is just so strong, and beautiful. When I think of book friendships, this is one of the first I think of.


2. Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan 


Ah. The Percy Jackson series. There are tons of friendships in this series, but one of my favorites is the one between Percy and Grover. From the beginning, you are aware of their friendship and how strong it is. And it only gets stronger throughout the books. Grover and Percy would protect each other with their lives, and would do anything to help the other. Even though their friendship isn't the central idea in the series, it is woven into the story of every book. Percy and Grover are as tight as brothers, and I loved watching their friendship grow throughout the series.
3. The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare

Again, a series with a lot of minor friendships. But my favorite has to be the one between Clary and Simon, which is the friendship shown the most. I love this friendship so freaking much. At first I hated it because I felt like Simon kept getting in the way, but then I slowly warmed up to him and realized how strong his and Clary's friendship was. They had known each other for years, and even when Clary discovered she was a shadowhunter, Simon stuck with her. And when Simon was a doofus and got himself into some crazy predicament, Clary didn't hesitate to go out and save him, even if it meant breaking a thousand rules in the process. And Simon did the same for her. They cared about each other so so so much, and it was awesome to see that.
4. Mysterious Benedict Society trilogy by Trenton Lee Stewart

This series focus' on a friendship between four kids, all of which are orphans. They all meet each other because they had all succeeded in passing a test in the first book. Throughout the trilogy you get to see their friendship grow stronger and stronger as they learn more about each other, and are faced with bigger and bigger challenges. They learn to depend on each other, and overall become really really good friends. They become so close that they are almost like a family by the end. I loved reading about their friendship, because even though all the characters were unique and different they all got along. Not without fights, they do have their fights which only adds to the realistic nature of their friendship.

5. Harry Potter Series by J. K. Rowling 

This is a pretty obvious one. There are SO many friendships in this series, and I love them all. But the friendship between Harry, Ron, and Hermione is just so perfect. I couldn't go through this list without adding them. Their friendship is just so real. You get to see their friendship grow from when they are tiny 11 year olds to when they are adults. They stick together through EVERYTHING, and would (or should I say do) risk their lives for one another. They have their fights and disagreements, but eventually they get over them just like you do in real life. Gah, this friendship is just the ultimate bookish friendship.

7. The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

This book has such wonderful friendships in it. I love love love them! They all come about so naturally. They are all beautiful in their own unique ways. Each one plays a certain role in the book, contributing to the overall awesomeness of the book. All the friendships were so REAL, which I guess is why I loved them so much. Once again, this is one of the first books I think of when I think of friendship stories.


8. The Ability duology by M. M. Vaughn

Last but certainly not least is the Ability duology. This series also focuses on friendships, but not exclusively. Its about 6 children who at the age of twelve are brought to a secretive society where they learn to use mind control to help the government. But because they are in a secretive society, the six become good friends. They are all REALLY different, and in the first book not all 6 are the greatest of friends. But as you move into the second book, their friendship gets stronger and they begin to trust each other more and support each other more.


So yeah! Those are my recommended friendship stories. Have you guys read any of these? Oh! And I know I have been posting irregularly lately, but I think I have figured out my schedule. I am going to post on Sundays and Wednesdays, and maybe a random post sometime during the week. If you want an in-depth review on any of these books let me know in comments, and I will do it! Hope you guys are doing well <3

Top 5 Wednesday: Characters you are most like

Hey guys! So today I have my Top 5 Wednesday of the month. This is a Ggroup created by Lainey from Gingerreadslainey at Youtube. The topic for this week is Characters you are most like. This is a tough one for me-because I don't see a lot of characters similar to me. Mostly because I think of them as an actual person, and I don't compare myself with other people which means I don't compare myself with book characters. But there are a few that stand out, so here they are.

1. Cath from Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell  Cath is literally my book twin. Like literally our mom's have the same first name. I think we can all relate to Cath with her obsession with books and fanfiction. Me especially. I have been, and still am obsessed with fanfiction. I might not be as popular as Cath is, but I am still addicted. And that makes it hard to write originally (which I also love to do.) I feel like if I were in college, I would be exactly like Cath. A hermit with no clue what to do at all. But I love her for it. Plus my friend and I literally edit each other's writing projects like Cath and Wren. We have come to call it CathWrenning after we both read this book. But yeah. The similiarities never end.

2. Hermione from Harry Potter by J.K.Rowling

I'm not exactly Hermione, but we do share the same pashion for school. I remember reading about Hermione as a child and thinking, 'we are so alike! Hermione and I both love school! It isn't insane to be smart!' (keep in mind I was 7 at the time and my thoughts were very childish :P) But yeah, I don't share her bravery, nor her skills at making excellent quotes but we do share our love for knowledge and school.



3. Annabeth from Percy Jackson by Rick Riordan


Another common character (Sorry!). I don't know what exactly makes me feel similiar to Annabeth. But when I read about her as a 12 year old, it always reminds me of when I was 12. Maybe it's how she is bold but also shy. I'm not that into architecture, but we both do love to read and learn (are you starting to see a theme here? lol). Our personalities are mostly similiar, besides the fact that she is this super awesome fighter and has an infinite amount more bravery than I do.

4. Simon from Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare

Simon and I share geekiness. We both are the loners who are like 'I don't care about popular things. I'm just gonna do what I want and you can handle that however you want.' We both are loyal friends and socially awkward. Even though he is more of a video game nerd and I am a book nerd we are still hardcore nerds. And nerds are the same on all sides of the spectrum in my mind :P.

5.  Sandstorm from Warriors by Erin Hunter

Sandstorm and I go wayyyyyy back. Okay, maybe it's only 4 years. But she holds a special place in my heart. Sandstorm and I are both loyal to our friends, and obey and respect our elders. We both have a sharp tongue to those who annoy and irritate us. Plus, to half my friends I am known as Sandstorm. Because at this camp I go to, Camp Kesem, we all pick nicknames. And I chose Sandstorm. So yeah, we even share a name (kinda). Can't get much closer than that :P

May TBR

Hey guys! So May is upon us...... and that means so is the end of school! Or at least until August-but that's 3 months away. We don't need to think about it yet.

I know its already like a week into May, but I still wanted to share my TBR with you guys (even if that means being a week late!) Life has gotten insanely busy- and I have found myself babysitting my own siblings 15+ hours a week, which makes my brain go insane. But that is what books are for! So here are all the books I plan on reading this month:

1. The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

As lame as it sounds-this book is one of my most anticipated books of the year. I. Can't. Wait. Its basically a sequel to the sequel of the original Percy Jackson series. It's going to be part of a 5 book series called the Trials of Apollo. It's set a few months after the events in Blood of Olympus, when Apollo angers Zeus (Who doesn't? Zeus is a huge jerk who just likes to show off his power by making peoples lives miserable.) Zeus turns Apollo into a mortal, and so Apollo, being completely disoriented and lost, makes his way to camp half-blood for help to become a god again. Uncle Rick has already told us we will be seeing every character from the last series, AND I CAN'T WAIT OH MY GOSH. I pre-ordered a signed copy, which should be here any day now. I know as soon as I get it, I am going to open the package, plop on my bed, and read it in one sitting. I feel bad for the mailman-his ears might break  from me squealing so hard.

2. Lily and Dunkin by Donna Gephart

I meant to read this a month ago-but never got around to it. So here it is again on my May TBR. I swear I will read it this month. This book is about two kids, Lily and Dunkin. Lily is transgender-a girl inside a boys body, and Dunkin suffers from Bi-polar disorder. I am really looking forward to how this author is going to deal with these issues, but am also slightly worried it will be a horrible interpretation. They are such serious topics, and if dealt with in the wrong way, can make a really good story a really awful one.
3. Land of Forgotten Girls by Erin Entrada Kelly

I am really excited for this story-mostly because it features someone of my culture(kinda). This story focuses around two Filipino girls, whose mother died. Their father remarried and then moved to America and then left. So its kind of like a Cinderella retelling but not fully. I am one-eight Filipino (so exact, right? Can you tell I like math?), so I am super excited to see the cultural implements in this story. Plus the premise sounds really promising. So yeah, this is probably going to be my next read.
4. City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

I am not going to lie. I have already finished this book. But for the sake of this TBR, I am going to pretend I haven't, okay? Okay. *cough* TFIOS reference *cough* Okay, enough of my bookish references. This is the last book in the Mortal Instruments series. Which is terribly sad, exciting, and terrifying all at once. This is a whopping 700 pages, 300 more than any of the other books in the series. And if I learned anything from this series, it's that a LOT can happen in a tiny amount of pages. So the fact that this is the end, and is 700 freaking pages, and Cassandra Clare the master of plot twists, all of those facts makes this book terrifying. NO ONE CAN DIE, HEAR ME CASSANDRA CLARE? NO ONE DIES. Thank you.
5. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

It's really sad that I haven't read this book yet. I really really really really need to. I have even read 50 pages of it! But one day I was like "Ooo, look a butterfly1" and put it down, never to pick it up again. But here I am picking it back up! I'm really looking forward to it. Not sure how to really explain this book, so I'll just give you the Goodreads description:

"Little Women is the heartwarming story of the March family that has thrilled generations of readers. It is the story of four sisters--Jo, Meg, Amy and Beth-- and of the courage, humor and ingenuity they display to survive poverty and the absence of their father during the Civil War."
6. Complete Collection of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle

And lastly, the most ambitious book of them all which I probably won't get too, Sherlock Holmes. I don't know much about this, other than its about a detective and a lot of people like it. So yeah, those two things intrigue me, so I am reading it. LOL. I probably won't get to them all this month, unless I end up with a sever sickness that leaves me in my bed unable to do anything but read, so I will probably just get to a few. But that's still a few more than I would have read otherwise ;) But have any of you guy's read Sherlock Holmes? If so, do you reccomend it? What are your favorite of the stories?

Welp, that's it I guess. What books are you guys planning to read this month? What is the most ambitious one? Which one are you most looking forward too? Love ya guys, see you (I guess? How should I put that?) Sunday with my next blog post!