Hey Jared,
Since I’m waiting for The Hammer of Thor to come out in mere days, I figured I could finally get around to reading the first book in this new series. I was honestly a little hesitant because it broke with convention and had a non-demigod as the main character. Could the perspective of a divine being be both relatable and compelling? Yes. Yes, it can.
Title: The Hidden Oracle
Series: The Trials of Apollo; Book 1
Author: Rick Riordan
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Youth/Teen
ROTS Setting: EU, Modern, Magic, Mythology/Supernatural
Synopsis: Apollo messed up…..big time. As punishment, he was stripped from his all his goddy powers. What’s more, nefarious forces are at work. Can he survive his acne or will a monster put him out of his misery.
Recommendation: Another great addition to the Riordan multiverse. I would suggest reading Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus first as this series directly builds off them.
If you haven’t read Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus I suggest you leave because there may be spoilers ahead.
This book picks up about a month to 6 weeks after the events at the end of Heroes of Olympus and within a couple of weeks of Magnus Chase, although not directly connected to Magnus. Our divine reject, Apollo, has be kicked off Olympus and been made mortal.
Apollo as a character is actually kind of refreshing. There’s all the same teen angst and inappropriate wit but from a (relatively) more mature source. He might be the best POV for older readers because he’s several thousand years old but in a teenagers body. The contrast is interesting and original in the Riordan-verse.
This book’s plot was very good at setting up the latter books, which I’m confident in guessing there will be 4 more (5 total). No, I’m not going to tell you why, you’ll find out when you read the book! Back to the plot. It’s slow, but for a first book with a new concept it’s not too slow. The series plot might actually end up being one of my favorites. We’ve had titans and then giants…..it’s hard to find a bigger bad guy after that. Surprisingly, there is and it’s both more terrifying and still believable without breaking the Riordan multiverse.
The second book, The Dark Prophecy, is expected to be released May.2.2017, but with a date that far out it could easily change. I’m really looking forward to it now and a twice a year Riordan fix for the next 4+ years sounds like a solid addiction plan.
Robert
Reading Over The Shoulder 