Teamwork Makes the Prophecy Work (The Blood of Olympus – A Book Review)

The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus #5)

Author: Rick Riordan

Published: 2014

On Goodreads

My Rating:

Rated H for Heroism in the darkest and bleakest moments and unconditional love and friendship.

 

Nico had warned them.

Jason’s ghost is his mother.

Reyna fears the ghosts of her ancestors.

Leo fears that his plan won’t work.

Piper must learn to give herself over to fear.

The seven demigods of the prophecy to stop Gaea from rising come face to face with some of their worst fears and must find ways to confront and get past them in order to help Romans and Greek unite and to be able to defeat the goddess of the earth. Nico Di Angelo helps Reyna and Coach Hedge get to Camp Half-Blood with the statue, but the travel is wearing on him. If he shadow-travels too much he’ll become nothing more than a ghost. Annabeth and Piper face great fear and must lean into it if they hope to do their part in this prophecy. Battle is on the horizon and sacrifices will be made to save the world.

 

The Heroes of Olympus series is one of the series on my New Year’s resolution and this is book 5 of 5.

 

Goodreads

Goodreads

Goodreads

The Lost Hero review

The Son of Neptune review

The Mark of Athena review

The House of Hades review

First off, I’m sorry my lovely bookworms. It has been a little bit since I’ve put up a review. The holiday season is making work super crazy. I’m ridiculously glad Black Friday is over. Working that was exhausting. I’m still trying to catch up on sleep, but I have a review for you! WOO!

So, I totally got incredibly weepy throughout this book! Such a great ending and openings left at the end. Gah, the end! Beautiful and tragic, yet not! So many emotions! For those who have read this series, you get it! You traveled on all of these adventures with these demigods, watched them grow and develop and your heart drops just a bit at the end, knowing the journey is over. From a couple of cyclops to angry Romans to Hercules to Hecate and so much more. This was such an incredible book and a great ending, though not an ending, too.

I do have a bit of a bone to pick and it is spoiler-y. Piper captured a horn from the god of the Tiber and I found it to be sad because the other one had been stolen already. She manipulated him and his feeling to get it and it was pretty sucky. I do wish she would’ve returned it to him in some way. She was forced to trick him and I think it would’ve done so much good to return it to him. The parts surrounding Piper and the horn just broke my heart a tad.

Giphy

There was so much acceptance, realizations, and teamwork. In the end, while the seven demigods worked together to defeat Gaea, everyone united to fight an epic battle. I loved that it wasn’t ever just about one single person but about everybody because it affected everybody and each person had a part to play. Even the gods came swinging in and it’s always pretty cool when they can get past their high horses to help out the kids they don’t ever see.

 

Overall

A fantastic conclusion to the epic Percy Jackson universe, yet also opening to more stories to come. I definitely need to reread the Apollo trials now. LOL. They’re going to be so much more different than before.

 

Quotables:

“Fear can’t be reasoned with. Neither can hate. They’re like love. They’re almost identical emotions…” (Piper, p. 206)

“A Roman does not wait for death. She seeks it out, and meets it on her own terms.” (Reyna, p. 373)

 

More to come soon…                                                                                                

  -K.

 

P.S. Song today? The Afterman by Coheed and Cambria.

 

Find Me:

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Thoughts? Let’s chat in the comments below!

Midnight Tease

Hello, book delinquents!

Tis the season to be merry, cheery, and joyful! Also, —in my case—very cold. LOL. I do enjoy the Christmas season. With epic Christmas movies like Black Christmas, Gremlins, and
Krampus, and then epic Christmas decorating. I have to be honest, I’m not big on Christmas songs, though I do have a couple favorites. I love making Christmas treats though! It’s something mum and I do and I love spending time with her. I believe Rice Crispy treats are on the list this year along with fudge and gingerbread.

Aside from Christmas cheer, I do have quite a bit to read up on this month. I’m excited to be moving forward with my TBR. While there are a few that are on my list from the last two months, there are some new ones as well. So, not to keep you waiting, here we go, the last Midnight Tease of the year!

If you’re up this late then you’re a night owl like me. Since you’re up and probably munching on a midnight burrito (which sounds delicious) here’s what’s coming up this month!

 

Coming Soon…

 

OverDrive

The X-Files: Ground Zero

Author: Kevin J. Anderson

Okay, guys, I don’t know if I told you this, but I’m a MASSIVE X-Files fan. It goes on my list next to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Teen Wolf, The Walking Dead, and Planet Earth. From the theme song to the epic storytelling of the unexplained, it’s a home for me. I love believing in the things that science can’t explain because sometimes it’s like that. So, I’m quite excited to read this one.

 

Goodreads

The Host

Author: Stephanie Meyer

How many times have I put this on my TBR this year? LOL. I’m so determined to at least get started on it.

 

Jennifer Estep

Widow’s Web

Author: Jennifer Estep

This is a part of a mass-market series. There’s some paranormal juju dealing with assassins that have some powers related to the arachnid family. While I get creepy shudders about it, I’m also super intrigued.

 

Currently…

 

Goodreads

Song of Susannah (The Dark Tower #6)

Author: Stephen King

 

Goodreads

Goodreads

Zom-B: Baby & Gladiator

Author: Darren Shan

 

Up For Review…

 

The Blood of Olympus (The Heroes of Olympus #5)

Author: Rick Riordan

 

Amazon

Abandon

Author: Meg Cabot

 

More to come soon…

  -K.

 

Find Me:

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Goodreads

 

Thoughts? What’s your favorite Christmas movie. Mine is definitely Gremlins. Let’s chat in the comments below!

Scarlet Playlist – Dec. 2, 2019

Hello, awesome book nerds!

Happy Monday! Or, if it’s not then I hope this playlist makes it better. This is the Scarlet Playlist. Every Monday I post a music playlist. Why? Because I enjoy listening to music and I love reading and putting them together is so much fun. So I brought it to you so you can have your own weekly playlist to read to or dance to or anything else you’d like. I put it together for you.

1.  Song of Angus – Coast

2. Love Story – Taylor Swift

3. I’m Still Here – Jem and the Holograms

4. Collide – Howie Day

5. Headache – Grouper

6. Edge of the Ocean – Ivy

7. Wrong Impression – Natalia Imbruglia

8. Fly – Hilary Duff

9. Feel Good – Gryffin + Illenium ft. Daya

10. Can You Find Me? – The Summer Set

11. The Time of Our Lives – Tyrone Wells

12. See You Again – Carrie Underwood

More to come soon…

  -K.

 

Find Me:

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Thoughts? A favorite song. A recommendation? Let’s chat in the comments below!

Sundown Rundown – November 2019

Hey there, book-lovers.

It’s the end of November and that means it’s time to look back on what I’ve read this month. There have been some doozies for sure, and by that, I mean some big reads. So, I didn’t get as many done as I’d hoped, but I did get to some of the ones I really wanted to. A pro and a con!

Now that Thanksgiving has passed, Christmas is well on its way. Before we can get to December, here’s a chance to see what I’ve read this month and catch up on the reviews you might’ve missed.

 

Barnes and Noble

Wolves of Calla

Author: Stephen King

Roland and his ka face off against vile creatures known as the wolves to try and help a town from losing their children once again, but they have problems closer to home they must solve as well.

 

Goodreads

The Mark of Athena

Author: Rick Riordan

It’s not easy to try and make peace with an old enemy, like the Romans or Greeks, when you’re trying to stop the goddess of earth from arising and destroying the world.

 

Goodreads

Wicked Saints

Author: Emily A. Duncan

Dark, culty magic swirls around a girl believed to be the one that can end a brutal war.

 

Amazon

Stargazing at Noon

Author: Amanda Torroni

Lost in the universe of stars, space, and love and heartache.

 

The House of Hades

Author: Rick Riordan

Officially and truly friends, at last, demigods of both the Greek and Romans gods must work together to close the doors of the Underworld to keep monsters from leaving the dark depths.

 

Favorite Book: Stargazing at Noon was unbelievable gorgeous, picturesque, and stunning. Descriptive and breathtaking words. Just swept me away and I’m all right with that.

Least Favorite Book: Wolves of Calla was good, but it felt extremely drawn out. Sometimes a story takes patience, but I wasn’t feeling it this time. I still look forward to the next book in the series.

More to come soon…

  -K.

 

Find Me:

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Goodreads

 

Thoughts? What book did you enjoy reading the most in November? Let’s chat in the comment below!

Way Down We Go (The House of Hades – A Book Review)

The House of Hades (The Heroes of Olympus #4)

Author: Rick Riordan

Published: 2013

On Goodreads

My Rating:

Rated H for heart-wrenching moments of near-death, unexpected truths, and going to hell and back, literally.

 

Hazel stands at a crossroads.

Annabeth and Percy are overwhelmed.

After losing Percy and Annabeth, the remaining crew of the Argo II could go home to stop the war that’s brewing between Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter or go to the Doors of Death where the two demigods will be waiting on the other side to close the doors between the mortal world and the underworld. Whichever they choose, time isn’t a virtue. Gaea, mother earth and of giants, is close to awakening and destroying the world.

Meanwhile, Annabeth and Percy, in Tartarus, discover old enemies and a brand-new meaning of pain as they journey to the Doors of Death to close them. Some enemies turn into friends and there are some enemies they never expected to cross paths with.

 

The Heroes of Olympus series is one of the series on my New Year’s resolution and this is book 4 of 5.

Catch up on previous reviews of the series:

Goodreads

Goodreads

Goodreads

The Lost Hero review

The Son of Neptune review

The Mark of Athena review

 

This book was non-stop action and anxiousness and I loved it! Compelling adventure and so many heartfelt moments that made the story even more loveable. Dark times and temptations come for each character, leaving them faced with decisions that truly change everything. I was shocked that’s for sure.

WiffleGif

The character development is unbelievable and astounding! The return of familiar characters, like Nico De Angelo and Calypso, was also welcoming. Seeing them again also brought to the surface that a few things have come to bite Percy Jackson in the butt. I felt for these characters, but also praise Riordan for showing that even the most heroic and caring people can fall on the wayside and be subject to misgivings, even if it’s unintentional, and that’s really important. Nobody is perfect, but that doesn’t take away from the kind of person you are.

The subject of love is quite a biggie as well, during this book. There’s even a harrowing encounter with Cupid, and as with every god they’ve encountered it was dangerous and life-altering. (I’m actually loving all the different gods they encounter. It gives a lot of kudos to gods people don’t typically think about.) While Percy, Annabeth, and a few others find themselves locked in it, others struggle, like Leo and Nico. While one suffers from being the odd man out the other struggles with feeling betrayed by someone they thought they cared deeply about. The touching moments met the heartbreaking ones, really showing that navigating emotions isn’t easy no matter what age you are.

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The setting of the book splits in two, though the journeys lead to the same place. Percy and Annabeth brave Tartarus while Hazel, Frank, Piper, Jason, and Leo are topside, working to get to them. There’s such a stark difference with each POV of the book and each of the places the characters travel to and it’s so important. All of this keeps the book from feeling dry and drawn out. Utterly breathtaking waters and monsters, and completely enamoring places that’ll shake you up and leave your heart overwhelmed.

 

Overall

True love and loyalty is always a theme in the Percy Jackson series, but this book reminded me of how harrowing a hero can be and sometimes how unrewarding and rewarding it can feel. That promises aren’t easy to keep. That even when it’s hard, you must be strong in the face of adversity. I repeat myself by saying Riordan is phenomenal and that you should read his books, but if it hasn’t sunken in yet, maybe it will this time. LOL.

 

Quotables:

“The past is close to the surface in this place. In ancient times, two great Roman roads met here, News was exchanged. Markets were held. Friends met, and enemies fought. Entire armies had to choose a direction. Crossroads are always places of decisions.” (Hecate to Hazel, p. 22)

“Monsters are the zits on the skin of Tartarus…” (Annabeth, p. 161)

“The dead see what they believe they will see. So do the living. That is the secret.” (Pluto, p. 190)

“Love is on every side. And no one’s side. Don’t ask what Love can do for you.” (Cupid, p. 286)

 

More to come soon…                                                                                                

  -K.

 

P.S. Song today? Way Down We Go by Kaleo.

 

Find Me:

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Thoughts? Let’s chat in the comments below!

Scarlet Playlist – Nov. 25, 2019

Hello, my little book addicts!

Happy Monday! I hope your week is off to a great start, but if it’s not then I say screw Monday. Here’s this week’s reading playlist. I hope you enjoy and just know that this doesn’t just have to be a reading playlist. It can be an anything playlist. Use it for working out, getting housework done, or even to ignore people with. Whatever you want. This arrangement is for you. Enjoy!

1. I Know You – Skylar Grey

2. Faithfully – Journey

3. Fucking Perfect – P!NK

4. Wherever You Will Go – Charlene Soraia

5. It’s Who You Are – Aj Michalka

6. If Everyone Cared – Nickelback

7. My Side of the Story – Hodges

8. Hide Away – Daya

9. Use Somebody – Kings of Leon

10. Unbroken – OneRepublic

11. Eclipse (All Yours) – Metric

12. Whataya Want From Me – Adam Lambert

More to come soon…

  -K. 

 

Find Me:

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Thoughts? Have a favorite song? Let’s chat about it in the comments below!

 

It’s In the Stars, He Said, It’s in You (Stargazing at Noon – A Book Review)

Stargazing at Noon

Author: Amanda Torroni

Published: 2019

On Goodreads

Amazon

My Rating:

Rated D for being positively divine and devastatingly spellbinding, reaching through my heart, body, and soul.

 

Things I learned from the moon:

at times you feel like a sliver of yourself.

There is beauty in this too.

An expansion of Torroni’s original book of the same name, more poems have been added, covering all kinds of material, far and wide. Filled with gorgeous metaphor, weaving incredible images in your mind ranging from philosophers delving into the planets to navigating intimacy like one maps the stars.

 

Absolutely breathless. Soft giggles of wonderment. Deep sighs of daydreams and longing. This is my absolute favorite book of poetry. I’m pretty sure it’s going to rest by my head for the rest of time and the pages will get worn and bent from being turned and read so much.

Giphy

I’m so very in love with the moon. There’s never a moment I don’t admire her. To come across a book of poetry that utilizes the moon with heartache, love, loss, and nostalgia has swept me away completely. I’m pretty sure I left my body. I couldn’t put this book down and by the time I did it was nearly 5:30am. So. Worth it.

It’s a work of art. I don’t say that just because words and poetry are art, but because the cover with its rippling water that reminds me of the way summer sun reflects on the ocean or glimmers on a lake as the sun begins to set. Even inside the book, there are bursts of unbelievably beautiful, curving and wild font that brought so much more to the poem. Each section was marked by a phase of the moon, from its beginning to end.

Giphy

 

Overall

This was a moving book for me. There wasn’t a moment that I wasn’t enamored and mystified and completely lost in its words. Recommended? Hell yes.

 

Quotables:

I don’t feel like this is a quotable book, but here are a few poems that turned me into a puddle of sighs.

 

Pop Rocks & Soda Pop (p. 10)




We were electric that night
the power lines collapsed

& you laughed because
our cell phones died

& I, for the life of me,
could not find a flashlight.

There were plenty of candles,
not a single match, 
& 
only the palest moonlight

catching your skin
through open windows

as we listened to the winds howl
                        
                  the thunder clap
                        
                  the sky break
                        
                  the branches snap

& we explored the storms

that have long existed,

braved the blizzards within,

traded breaths & tangled limbs,

all of this until the winds calmed
                        
                  the thunder died
                        
                  the sky healed
                        
                  the branches sighed

& we collapsed like power lines

because we were electric that night.






Stargazing (p. 12)


I wasn’t admiring

the freckles on your skin;

I was stargazing.

& when I said I wanted

to make love to you,

I meant all of you.

& when you felt my fingers

tracing poetry

over parts of you that

were supposedly broken,

know that all I saw
were prisms, refracted light,

& everything I wanted

to make mine.






The Brightest Thing (p. 16)


I need you to know something—

that when you’re feeling defeated

beat up & down
on your luck

when you feel like you haven’t done

anything of enough

that the most important things in life

cannot be built with your hands.


& even on days you feel burnt out
                        
                   dim in the darkness
                        
                   lacking sheen


I need you to know—

you’re still the

brightest damn thing

I’ve ever seen.






Two Truths, One Lie (p. 82)



The kitchen table appears and an arm’s reach

between us. We play two truths and one lie.

   

   1. Some nights you stay awake counting stars. One for
      
      every regret. Two for every time you wished you were
      
      someone else.

   

   2. You don’t love me.

  
 
   3. A black wolf visits you while you dream.



You never dream.

More to come soon…                                                                                                

  -K.

 

P.S. Song today? Navigator by MOONZz & Restless Modern.

 

Find Me:

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Thoughts? Let’s chat in the comments below!