Blood of Olympus Part 1 - The Waiting
I don't know if you are aware, but Blood of Olympus, the fifth book in the Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan, is in bookstores as of tomorrow! I am so excited, but so nervous, but so excited!
Reyna will probably die. I don't want her to, because I admire Reyna. She's a strong, independent female character that has taken hits all her life and still kept standing. However, I just have this feeling. She won't go down without a fight though. If she does die, it will be protecting the Athena Parthenos, trying to restore peace between Greeks and Romans, or taking down Octavion once and for all. (Speaking of Octavion, he will die. Probably by being crushed by his own army on accident. He'll be honored as a hero, but whatever.)
Piper might die. Honestly, even if she does, I won't be too upset. Maybe it's the fact that I feel deep down like she's trying to replace Annabeth (not in Percy's life, but as the heroine that accompanies the hero. Piper is to Jason as Annabeth is to Percy, and I don't like it) or it could possibly be the fact that she is just... useless in my opinion. Her power is charm speaking, but that doesn't really do much. It's not fighting, which is great, but at the same time she can literally kill someone with her words if she wants to. I understand how powerful that is, but Piper doesn't use it. I also understand why, but it seems useless if you're not going to use the one real power you've been given. Also, if she does somehow get captured by Gaea's army, there's nothing she can do about it. If they have earwax, her power is useless and she's not a great fighter.
Jason also might die. I say might because he is a great fighter, he's got powers that are the bomb-dot-comb, and the only way he could get captured is if they sneak up on him while he's trying to protect Piper. Even then, it'd be hard to hold him down. So basically the only way I can see Jason dying is if he sacrifices himself for the rest of the 7. I don't want to think about that because that involves thinking about why they would need to sacrifice themselves. (I wouldn't mind much if Jason dies because he's most definitely a wannabe Percy, which is not cool because Percy is more awesome than he'll ever be. Why does Jason even try to have authority over Percy? I won't get into this because that's a whole different rant, but basically if the choice is between Jason and Percy, I will always choose Percy. Always.)
Hazel is too young to die... again. She's already died and been brought back, and then nearly escaped another trip to the Underworld. She's safe. Her fighting skills are wicked awesome on horseback, not to mention the whole Child of Pluto, cursed gems thing. Hazel's life is in her own hands, and so far they've proved capable.
To fill the remaining 7 hours before October 7th, and then the extra 13 hours after that until I can actually get the book, I'm going to share with you all my worries about the plot, my thoughts on the book cover, what I wish for the characters, and my anxiety about waiting!
Ever since The Lost Hero was released, I've always been anxious about the next book in the series. Blood of Olympus is no exception. If anything, I'm more anxious because it's the last book in the series and things were not looking bright when we left The 7 in House of Hades. I've heard rumors that one of the 7 will die, I've heard rumors that two of the 7 will die. I've heard rumors that everyone dies. It's nerve-wrecking.
Let's address the most obvious worry here. Death. Because I'm 99.9% sure that someone is going to die!
Percy and Annabeth aren't going to die. I'm sticking with that. IF they die, which they won't, it won't even matter to me, because I'll be so far in denial that they'll live on. So they're safe. I mean there's a billion other reasons why they won't die; Annabeth's awesome strategies that can get them out of any tough situations, Percy's mad fighting skills and god-like abilities, their combined powers which could easily lead to world domination, just to name a few.
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| Percabeth fan art by Viria on tumblr.com |
Nico isn't going to die. (I know he's not part of the 7, but he's an honorary member in my mind, so I'm counting him.) He's the son of the Lord of the Dead, if he dies... he would still live, if you catch my drift. Not even a denial thing, but if Nico dies, he won't be dead. He'll be a ghost, a spirit, yeah, but he'll probably live in Hades' palace and chill with his dad and Persephone, and demigods would be able to visit him. That or he'd try for rebirth and the Isles of the Blest.
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| Nico and Mrs. O'Leary fan art by Viria on tumblr.com |
Piper might die. Honestly, even if she does, I won't be too upset. Maybe it's the fact that I feel deep down like she's trying to replace Annabeth (not in Percy's life, but as the heroine that accompanies the hero. Piper is to Jason as Annabeth is to Percy, and I don't like it) or it could possibly be the fact that she is just... useless in my opinion. Her power is charm speaking, but that doesn't really do much. It's not fighting, which is great, but at the same time she can literally kill someone with her words if she wants to. I understand how powerful that is, but Piper doesn't use it. I also understand why, but it seems useless if you're not going to use the one real power you've been given. Also, if she does somehow get captured by Gaea's army, there's nothing she can do about it. If they have earwax, her power is useless and she's not a great fighter.
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| Piper McLean fan art by Burdge on tumblr.com |
*Update: I'm doing this in between homework, so time is now 6 hours until 12am Oct. 7th*
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| Jason fan art by Viria on tumblr.com |
Frank will readily die to protect Hazel or any of his new friends. I'm just not sure whether or not he will. He's clumsy, but has great aim with a bow and arrow. Being a child of Mars Ultor, he's got some sweet fighting skills. The biggest issue is that Frank's life is in danger every single second, because his life is tied to a stick the size of a candy bar. The stick burns down, Frank drops dead. That obviously brings up several issues with staying alive.
As for Leo... well I'm in total denial, but Leo's situation is complex. *SPOILERS AHEAD* In HoH, Leo made "an oath to keep with a final breath" (my assumption, I could be wrong about that line of the prophecy gosh I hope I am) which sounds pretty grim if you ask me. So this is where the denial comes in, because I firmly believe that Leo and Calypso will live together happily and have cute little Caleo babies. Leo finally gets the girl, because Leo is in love with the girl, and the girl in question also happens to be in love with Leo. Everything all works out for them, and it's all cute and cuddly and rainbows. LEO WILL NOT DIE!
*Update: 5 1/2 hours*
So now that I've addressed the grim subject of death, time to move onto happier, more hopeful things.
*After a long homework break, the countdown has reached 5 hours*
My predictions on everyone's lives after Blood of Olympus!
Frank and Hazel - If they don't die, I don't think they'll stay together long. Keep in mind, Hazel's about three years younger than Frank, while Frank is sixteen or seventeen I think. They have a cute relationship, but sometimes they seem more like an older brother/younger sister than a couple. They'll stay friends forever though, and always have each other's backs.
Frank will end up teaching archery somewhere, while Hazel will help instruct with horseback riding.
Jason and Piper - Assuming they don't die, Jason and Piper will stay a couple for a while, then Piper's mom will interfere and they'll break up. Maybe they have an on-again-off-again relationship.
Jason will end up being praetor of Camp Jupiter again, and Piper will probably be a movie star like her dad (much to her chagrin) or one of the most well-known female heroes of her time.
Nico - If he doesn't die, Nico will accept himself fully, and realize that others can accept him too. He'll see that he's not alone. I also firmly believe that Nico will be the oldest camper in the Hades cabin at Camp Half-Blood, and that all his little half-silbings will look up to him. Aww.
Annabeth and Percy - Percabeth will get engaged at the age of eighteen and spend several more years going between the two demigod camps. Annabeth will redesign any buildings ruined in the war, while Percy will spend hours in complete boredom just watching her, feeling relieved that they both survived because he can't live without his Wise Girl. Percy will also probably pick fights with any monster who crosses his path, and occasionally he visits Tyson and his dad. He goes to see Nico, visits his friends in the Underworld, and remembers every day those who were lost in the war against Gaea. Annabeth will support him and tease him and lose her patience with him, all while running an architecture firm in New York. They will have two weddings, one on Olympus, and it will be amazing. They'll live happily ever after, with some monsters along the way, but being demo-gods they can't really avoid that.
*4 hours 36 minutes*
Honestly though I'm so worried! Rick Riordan is a great author, but he's known to be a bit of a ... well he does what he likes and is severely unapologetic. He loves cliffhangers and writing chapters that make you bite your nails in anxiety. He seems to enjoy seeing all the fans trying to figure out entire books from just a few clues he might tweet, or say... put on a book cover?
*4 hours!*
So that's everything! Sorry about this extremely long post! I'll be reading and re-reading Blood of Olympus tomorrow, and then I'll post about it on the 13th or 14th! (I don't want to give away too many spoilers before anyone has a chance to read it.) See you later!
*For an accurate countdown, scroll all the way to the bottom of the blog! Don't worry, it's only about six posts or so.*
As for Leo... well I'm in total denial, but Leo's situation is complex. *SPOILERS AHEAD* In HoH, Leo made "an oath to keep with a final breath" (my assumption, I could be wrong about that line of the prophecy gosh I hope I am) which sounds pretty grim if you ask me. So this is where the denial comes in, because I firmly believe that Leo and Calypso will live together happily and have cute little Caleo babies. Leo finally gets the girl, because Leo is in love with the girl, and the girl in question also happens to be in love with Leo. Everything all works out for them, and it's all cute and cuddly and rainbows. LEO WILL NOT DIE!
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| Leo fan art by Viria at tumblr.com |
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| Calypso and Leo reunion fan art by Viria on tumblr.com |
So now that I've addressed the grim subject of death, time to move onto happier, more hopeful things.
*After a long homework break, the countdown has reached 5 hours*
My predictions on everyone's lives after Blood of Olympus!
Frank and Hazel - If they don't die, I don't think they'll stay together long. Keep in mind, Hazel's about three years younger than Frank, while Frank is sixteen or seventeen I think. They have a cute relationship, but sometimes they seem more like an older brother/younger sister than a couple. They'll stay friends forever though, and always have each other's backs.
Frank will end up teaching archery somewhere, while Hazel will help instruct with horseback riding.
Jason and Piper - Assuming they don't die, Jason and Piper will stay a couple for a while, then Piper's mom will interfere and they'll break up. Maybe they have an on-again-off-again relationship.
Jason will end up being praetor of Camp Jupiter again, and Piper will probably be a movie star like her dad (much to her chagrin) or one of the most well-known female heroes of her time.
Nico - If he doesn't die, Nico will accept himself fully, and realize that others can accept him too. He'll see that he's not alone. I also firmly believe that Nico will be the oldest camper in the Hades cabin at Camp Half-Blood, and that all his little half-silbings will look up to him. Aww.
Annabeth and Percy - Percabeth will get engaged at the age of eighteen and spend several more years going between the two demigod camps. Annabeth will redesign any buildings ruined in the war, while Percy will spend hours in complete boredom just watching her, feeling relieved that they both survived because he can't live without his Wise Girl. Percy will also probably pick fights with any monster who crosses his path, and occasionally he visits Tyson and his dad. He goes to see Nico, visits his friends in the Underworld, and remembers every day those who were lost in the war against Gaea. Annabeth will support him and tease him and lose her patience with him, all while running an architecture firm in New York. They will have two weddings, one on Olympus, and it will be amazing. They'll live happily ever after, with some monsters along the way, but being demo-gods they can't really avoid that.
*4 hours 36 minutes*
Honestly though I'm so worried! Rick Riordan is a great author, but he's known to be a bit of a ... well he does what he likes and is severely unapologetic. He loves cliffhangers and writing chapters that make you bite your nails in anxiety. He seems to enjoy seeing all the fans trying to figure out entire books from just a few clues he might tweet, or say... put on a book cover?
Hazel is riding Arion on top of what seems to be a broken down temple. Jason is jumping off said temple with his sword and some awesome lightning down to some giants. Giants! From safely atop the temple, Frank stands with his bow aimed towards the giants, but at least he's not leaping at them like some crazy person. (Jason, I'm talking to you!) There's also a crane in the background that seems to be holding something (my guesses are as good as yours). The cover doesn't tell us much besides hinting at Jason's inevitable death. (Because come on, jumping in the middle of three giants. Giants! Three of them! And they're all looking up at him, so this isn't some surprise attack. They know he's there and they are ready for him, and while he's got the lightning and the storm, they're giants.)
Now let's look at the UK cover!
At first glance, there are several things we can guess right away. First, the giant face that takes up most of the cover? Gaea. Those seven people standing on top? The 7 obviously. Now look closer.
Leo has a chainsaw, something is going on with Piper's sword, Jason has a spear again, Percy is right in the middle (as the words Percy Jackson's Final Battle Begins hover above him, but I'm ignoring that) I don't even know what Annabeth is holding, Frank's got his bow and quiver, and then Hazel has a sword. Aside from the weirdness with several of the weapons, this cover seems SO much more dramatic! "Final Battle", giant face in the ground, dramatic placement of the heroes, it's all so awesome!
So that's everything! Sorry about this extremely long post! I'll be reading and re-reading Blood of Olympus tomorrow, and then I'll post about it on the 13th or 14th! (I don't want to give away too many spoilers before anyone has a chance to read it.) See you later!
*For an accurate countdown, scroll all the way to the bottom of the blog! Don't worry, it's only about six posts or so.*
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