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The House of Hades, the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 8, 2013.
The House of Hades, the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 8, 2013.


Approximately nine days after the events of "The Mark of Athena", Hazel and the others are struggling to get past the Apennine Mountains because they are being stopped by ''numinas'', rock gods. In the distance, she sees Arion and he takes her into a storm where she meets Hecate, the goddess of magic and crossroads. Hazel is given 4 choices to choose from to continue on her journey. Hazel chooses to take Hecate's secret path to get across the Apennines. She also informs Hazel of her special gift, and tells her what to do when she crosses the Apennines.
Approximately nine days after the events of "The Mark of Athena", Hazel and the others are struggling to get past the Apennine Mountains because they are being stopped by ''numinas'', rock gods. She prays to her father, Pluto, for help, who sends Arion. Arion takes her into a storm where she meets Hecate, the goddess of magic and crossroads. Hazel is given 4 choices to choose from to continue on her journey. Hazel chooses to take Hecate's secret path to get across the Apennines. She also informs Hazel of her special gift, and tells her what to do when she crosses the Apennines.


Meanwhile, Percy and Annabeth are falling towards Tartarus. Shortly after arriving in Tartarus, Annabeth and Percy find the River of Fire, and drink from it, which makes them immune to the harsh Tartarus environment. Annabeth and Percy follow some ''empousa'' to the Doors of Death. Percy and Annabeth eventually get spotted and are almost killed until Bob (aka Iapetus) comes and helps vanquish them. Bob then leads them to The Shrine of Hermes. Annabeth successfully gets a message from Tartarus to Rachel back at Camp Half-Blood. Bob joins them on their journey to the heart of Tartarus, along the way they encounter many challenges.
Meanwhile, Percy and Annabeth are falling towards Tartarus. Shortly after arriving in Tartarus, Annabeth and Percy find the River of Fire, and drink from it, which makes them immune to the harsh Tartarus environment, albeit temporarily. Annabeth and Percy follow some ''empousa'', including Kelli (originally seen in Battle of the Labyrinth), to try and find the Doors of Death. Percy and Annabeth eventually get spotted and are almost killed until Bob (the name Percy changed Iapetus's name to in ''The Demigod Files: The Sword of Hades'' when he dragged Iapetus (a Titan) through the River Lethe) comes and helps vanquish them. Bob then leads them to The Shrine of Hermes. Annabeth successfully gets a message from Tartarus to Rachel back at Camp Half-Blood, whilst also discovering that Percy's sword can be used as a pen to write with, if he were to put the cap on the hilt, rather than the tip. Bob joins them on their journey to the heart of Tartarus, along the way they encounter many challenges.


Leo has a dream of being chased by someone in shadows. During a meeting, two dwarfs attack and steal from the ship. After getting their stuff back from the dwarfs, Leo acquires an ancient book and they return it to Triptolemus, an agricultural god, in Venice. Hecate teaches Hazel how to use the mist.At Venice, they encounter many katoblepones, creatures that exhale poison. Hazel is struck by the poison and loses consciousness. Triptolemus refuses to heal Hazel unless he gets another python for his chariot. Frank sets out to destroy all the katoblepones in Venice. Frank rounds up all the katoblepones and kills them. Ares/Mars no longer fight and Frank is rewarded. On there way to Greece, the Argo II is attacked by a giant turtle and Sciron. Using her gift, Hazel manipulates the mist and kills Sciron. Her father, Pluto, then appears and gives her more info about the House of Hades. Jason has a dream of Rachel and Grover passing on the message from Annabeth to Reyna. Reyna then decides to venture to the Ancient Lands, and get the Athena Parthenos to prevent war between the Greeks/Romans. Jason tells Leo they need to make a stop in Croatia. In Croatia, Jason and Nico meet up with Cupid to get Diocletian's Scepter. It is revealed that Nico isn't in love with Annabeth as everyone thought, but he was in love with Percy. Back on the ship, Leo is blown sky high and Piper is left alone to fight Khione, the others frozen. Piper kills Khione and manages to save the Argo II. Leo lands on the same island Percy landed on, in The Battle of the Labyrinth, where he meets Calypso. At first, they hate eachother, but start developing feelings as they spend time together. Leo wants to take Calypso with him but she's cursed to fall in love with the hero and then lose them. As Leo heads back to the real world, he swears on the River Styx to come back for her. Meanwhile Jason had to deal with the god of the south wind who he convinces to allow them to pass his realm, which is where Khoine and the Boreads blew them off course too. Jason harnesses the winds and take the Argo II back north to Greece where they meet up with Leo who is back from Calypso's island.
Leo has a dream of being chased by someone in shadows, who was found to be Clytius, when Leo described his dream in a meeting. During that meeting, two dwarfs attack and steal from the ship. Leo and Jason chase after the dwarfs and rescue their stuff, along with Odysseus's astrolabe and an ancient book and they return the book to Triptolemus, an agricultural god, in Venice. Hecate teaches Hazel how to use the mist. At Venice, they encounter many katoblepones, creatures that exhale poison. Hazel is struck by the poison and loses consciousness. Triptolemus refuses to heal Hazel unless he gets another python for his chariot. Frank sets out to destroy all the katoblepones in Venice. Frank rounds up all the katoblepones and kills them. Ares and Mars, who have been fighting inside Frank's head as soon as the Greek and Roman sides met, temporarily call a truce and reward Frank. On their way to Greece, the Argo II is attacked by a giant turtle and the bandit Sciron. Using her gift, Hazel manipulates the mist and kills Sciron. Her father, Pluto, then appears and gives her more information about the House of Hades. Jason has a dream of Rachel and Grover passing on the message from Annabeth to Reyna. Reyna then decides to venture to the Ancient Lands, and get the Athena Parthenos to prevent war between the Greeks and Romans. Jason tells Leo they need to make a stop in Croatia. In Croatia, Jason and Nico meet up with Cupid to get Diocletian's Scepter. It is revealed that Nico isn't in love with Annabeth as it had apparently been rumoured, but that he had had a crush on Percy. Jason agrees to keep it a secret. Back on the ship, Leo is blown into the sky and Piper is left alone to fight Khione, the goddes of snow, who had frozen the others. Piper kills Khione by using charmspeak to reactivate Festus and manages to save the Argo II. Leo lands on Ogygia, where he meets Calypso. Calypso reveals that, despite Percy making the gods swear to release her at the end of ''The Last Olympian.'' At first, they hate each other, but start developing feelings as they spend time together. Leo wants to take Calypso with him but she's cursed to fall in love with the hero and then lose them. As Leo heads back to the real world, he swears on the River Styx to come back for her, knowing that the prophecy contains the line: "an oath to keep with final breath". Meanwhile Jason had to meet with Auster, the Roman god of the south wind, who he convinces to allow them to pass his realm, providing venti (storm spirits) to help them until they find Leo, who can fix the ship. Jason harnesses the storm spirits and take the Argo II back north to Greece where they meet up with Leo.


Meanwhile, Annabeth and Percy meet Nyx (Night) in Tartarus and face the serious treat of being killed by her. After much effort, Annabeth devises a plan which manages to trick Nyx and her children into blinding each other with darkness, giving Annabeth and Percy time to flee. As they head into the Mansion of Night, Nyx's places, believing that it is the shortcut towards the Doors of Death, they meet up with Bob. Annabeth, Percy, Bob and Small Bob (Bob's new-found pet cat) then heads directly towards the Doors of Death. As the group trudges amidst the colossal number of monsters, Percy and Annabeth who are both camouflaged by the Death Mist encounters Hyperion and Krios who are guarding the Doors of Death. Just as they were about to cut the chains securing the Doors, Tartarus makes an unexpected appearance, destroying the Titans in an instance. Percy is traumatised and loses all will to fight, while Annabeth is void of ideas. The only exception is Bob who challenges Tatarus head on, along with Small Bob who grew from a kitten into a sabre-tooth tiger. Just when Bob was losing hold of the battle, Damasen charges into the battle with his drakon, declaring that he has decided to choose his own fate. With Damasen holding off Tartarus and Bob securing the Doors of Death, Percy and Annabeth barely and finally escape Tartarus.
Meanwhile, Annabeth and Percy meet Nyx (Night) in Tartarus and face the serious treat of being killed by her. After much effort, Annabeth devises a plan which manages to trick Nyx and her children into blinding each other with darkness, giving Annabeth and Percy time to flee. As they head into the Mansion of Night, Nyx's palace, believing that it is a shortcut towards the Doors of Death, they meet up with Bob. Annabeth, Percy, Bob and Small Bob (Bob's new-found pet cat, first seen in ''The Titans Curse'' at the Museum of Natural History) then head directly towards the Doors of Death. As the group trudges amidst the colossal number of monsters, Percy and Annabeth, who are both camouflaged by the Death Mist, encounter Hyperion and Krios, who are guarding the Doors of Death. Just as they were about to cut the chains securing the Doors, Tartarus makes an unexpected appearance, destroying the Titans in an instance, and removing the Death Mist from Percy and Annabeth. Percy is traumatised and loses all will to fight, while Annabeth is void of ideas. The only exception is Bob, who challenges Tatarus head on, along with Small Bob who grew from a kitten into a sabre-tooth tiger. Just when Bob was beginning to lose the battle, Damasen charges into the battle with his drakon, declaring that he has decided to choose his own fate. With Damasen holding off Tartarus and Bob securing the Doors of Death, Percy and Annabeth finally escape Tartarus.


In the mortal word, the crew soon notices that Leo has changed. Though he still retains much of his liveliness, the encounter with Calypso filled him a melancholy Piper and Hazel soon notices. With an ominous storm brewing ahead, the crew soon embarks the Argo II to head towards their final destination - Epirus. Nico and Hazel lead the way into the Necromanteion, where Nico believes is ridden with ''luminae''. After going down two levels, the crew find themselves ambushed by a swarm of monsters. Leo and Hazel are soon separated from the others. Nico, Piper, Jason and Frank begin to mount an attack on the monsters but are soon overwhelmed, as Nico's army of dead Roman warriors are left wondering aimlessly without proper commands. The turning point of the battle comes in the form of Frank commanding the warriors and leading the army himself to obliterate the enemy without fail.
In the mortal word, the crew soon notices that Leo has changed. Though he still retains much of his liveliness, the encounter with Calypso changed him. Piper and Hazel soon notice. With an ominous storm brewing ahead, the crew soon embarks the Argo II to head towards their final destination - Epirus. Nico and Hazel lead the way into the Necromanteion, which Nico believes is ridden with ''luminae''. After going down two levels, the crew find themselves ambushed by a swarm of monsters. Leo and Hazel are soon separated from the others. Nico, Piper, Jason and Frank begin to mount an attack on the monsters but are soon overwhelmed, as Nico's army of dead Roman warriors are left wondering aimlessly without proper commands. The turning point of the battle comes in the form of Frank, who Jason promoted to Praetor, commanding the warriors and leading the army himself to obliterate the enemy without fail.


On the other side of the cave, Leo and Hazel encounter Pasiphae and Clytius who are guarding the Doors of Death; enemies whom Hecate has predicted that Hazel and Leo would meet. Pasiphae warns that someone is required to push the 'UP' button on the Doors of Death, and that if Hazel and Leo fail to win this battle, Percy and Annabeth will be trapped for eternity. The battle begins with Hazel and Leo being trapped in the Pasiphae's labyrinth. Hazel soon figures out that she could utilise her Mist powers to disillusion Pasiphae into believing what she wanted to see most - that the heroes were tormented in her Labyrinth. With her powers, Hazel soon overcomes the Labyrinth and defeats Pasiphae by launching her into the trapdoor made purely by her Mist. Hecate then appears and aids Hazel in battling Clytius. She is soon defeated, but manages to open the doors for Percy and Annabeth. She also manages to cut the chains that bind the doors. Just when the allies are defeated, Frank, Piper, Jason and Nico appear and collectively defeat Clytius with the help of Hecate. Finally, just as the cave collapses, Nico then shadow-travels with the crew out of the cave.
On the other side of the cave, Leo and Hazel encounter Pasiphae and Clytius who are guarding the Doors of Death; enemies whom Hecate has predicted that Hazel and Leo would meet. Pasiphae warns that someone is required to push the 'UP' button on the Doors of Death, and that if Hazel and Leo fail to win this battle, Percy and Annabeth will be trapped for eternity. The battle begins with Hazel and Leo being trapped in the Pasiphae's labyrinth. Hazel soon figures out that she could utilise her Mist powers to disillusion Pasiphae into believing what she wanted to see most - that the heroes were tormented in her Labyrinth. With her powers, Hazel soon overcomes the Labyrinth and defeats Pasiphae by launching her into the trapdoor made purely by her Mist. Hecate then appears and aids Hazel in battling Clytius. She is soon defeated, but Leo manages to open the doors for Percy and Annabeth with a well-aimed screwdriver. Hazel also manages to cut the chains that bind the doors to the Necromanteion. Just when the allies are defeated, Frank, Piper, Jason and Nico appear and collectively defeat Clytius with the help of Hecate. Finally, just as the cave collapses, Nico, with the help of Hazel, shadow-travels the crew out of the cave.


In the mortal world, the crew is joined by Reyna, who has made it to the ship painstakingly, losing her pegasus in the process. While discussing their next course of action, the crew decides that the Athena Pathernon must be transported to Camp Half-Blood and they must head towards Athens to face the giants. With only 14 days left before the revival of Gaia in the Feast of Spes, the crew is unable to decide where to go. After much debate, Nico volunteers to shadow-travel with Reyna and Coach Hedge back to Camp Half-Blood, while the crew can head towards Greece. As the book heads towards its final conclusion, Percy and Annabeth stand together on the deck of Argo II pondering about their journey through Tartarus, with the discussion ending with the thought of a future together. The book then concludes with Percy studying the constellations in the night sky and muttering 'Bob says hello' to the stars in recollection of his friend, Bob, whose final wish was to say hello to the stars.
In the mortal world, the crew is joined by Reyna, who has made it to the ship painstakingly, losing her pegasus Scipio in the process. While discussing their next course of action, the crew decides that the Athena Parthenos must be transported to Camp Half-Blood, and they must head towards Athens to face the giants. With only 2 weeks left before the revival of Gaia at the Feast of Spes, the crew is unable to decide where to go. After much debate, Nico volunteers to shadow-travel with Reyna and Coach Hedge back to Camp Half-Blood, while the crew can head towards Greece. As the book heads towards its final conclusion, Percy and Annabeth stand together on the deck of Argo II pondering about their journey through Tartarus, with the discussion ending with the thought of a future together. The book then concludes with Percy studying the constellations in the night sky and muttering 'Bob says hello' to the stars in recollection of his friend, Bob, whose final wish was to say hello to the stars.


===''The Blood of Olympus''===
===''The Blood of Olympus''===

Revision as of 11:25, 31 October 2013

The Heroes of Olympus
File:Heroes-of-Olympus-logo.jpg
The logo for the The Heroes of Olympus series

The Lost Hero
The Son of Neptune
The Mark of Athena
The House of Hades
The Blood of Olympus
AuthorRick Riordan
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreFantasy, Young-adult fiction, Mystery, Greek and Roman mythology
PublisherDisney Hyperion
Published2010–2014
Media typePrint (hardback and paperback)
Audiobook
Preceded byPercy Jackson & the Olympians

The Heroes of Olympus is a collection of five novels by American author Rick Riordan, scheduled to be completed in October 2014.[1][2] Riordan is believed to have drawn inspiration from Padraic Colum's The Golden Fleece and The Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles which narrates the story of Jason and his Argonauts in their a search for the Golden Fleece.[3] The series chronicles the adventures of seven demigods in their race against time to prevent the awakening of the earth goddess, Gaia. The first novel, The Lost Hero, continues the story from where it was left off in The Last Olympian, which is the last novel in the preceding series, Percy Jackson & the Olympians. The Heroes Of Olympus is a series on the succeeding Gigantomachy of Greek mythology. A prophecy given in The Last Olympian outlines the events of The Heroes of Olympus. Demigods, living secretly in the modern era, are featured in both series as they fight against gods and Titans as they did in the past. The Heroes of Olympus introduces Roman demigods: children produced by the Roman gods, who are separated from their Greek counterparts. These two groups of demigods are enemies due to a stolen statue of Athena and have been forced apart for centuries, but must unite to stop the chief antagonist in the series, Gaia, from gaining control of the earth. Percy Jackson, the protagonist of the previous series, is again one of the main characters.

Background

The Heroes of Olympus is centered upon a prophecy which reveals the future of seven demigods who must unite to protect the earth from Gaia's reach.

Prophecy of Seven / New Great Prophecy

Known as the "New Great Prophecy" to the Greeks and the "Prophecy of Seven" to the Romans, this prophecy, introduced in The Last Olympian, guides the characters through the series. The prophecy reads as follows:

Seven half-bloods shall answer the call.
To storm or fire, the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.

The seven demigods the prophecy refers to are: Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon; Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena; Jason Grace, son of Jupiter; Piper McLean, daughter of Aphrodite; Leo Valdez, son of Hephaestus; Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto and Frank Zhang, son of Mars. Percy Jackson and Annabeth Chase were introduced in the first series, Percy Jackson & the Olympians.

The Books

The Lost Hero

The Lost Hero, the first book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 12, 2010.

Jason has no memory of his identity or how he came to be on the bus, although Leo claims to be his best friend and Piper claims to be his girlfriend. The group is taking a field trip to the Grand Canyon, where a horde of Venti attacks the three and their supervising teacher, Coach Gleeson Hedge, who reveals himself to be a Satyr and confronts the Venti. Jason is able to defeat the Venti's helpers, but the Venti capture Coach Hedge and flee. Two strangers arrive in a flying chariot: they are Annabeth and Butch, son of Iris. Annabeth is hostile towards Jason when they meet as she had a vision in which Hera gave her a clue concerning the whereabouts of her missing boyfriend, Percy Jackson, saying to find Percy she had to find the guy with one shoe (as Jason lost one in the fight), but Percy was not there once she arrived.

Jason, Piper, and Leo are taken to Camp Half Blood and are informed that they are demigods, children of the ancient Greek gods. Leo and Piper are then claimed by their godly parents, Hephaestus and Aphrodite, respectively. Jason is revealed as a son of Zeus after he summons his power to call lightning. He is also revealed to be the brother of Thalia, a main character from the Percy Jackson series. Jason remembers Thalia when he sees a picture of her in Zeus's cabin and learns that Hera/Juno has stolen his memories. Piper was jealous of Thalia at first until she realized that Thalia was Jason's biological sister. Annabeth takes Jason to see a son of Hypnos (god of sleep) to try to find some of his memories through sleep and the son of Hypnos explains to him the difference between the gods' Greek and Roman forms. Less than a day later, the three new demigods are sent on an urgent quest to rescue Hera who has been kidnapped by a giant. The three set off on the back of a giant robotic dragon, Festus (In Latin Festus means Happy) that Leo found and fixed. Along the way, Jason, Piper and Leo meet and confront Boreas, three Cyclopes, Medea, King Midas, King Lycaon and his pack of Werewolves, and Aeolus. They discover that Hera's kidnappers are Gaia's underlings and that she seeks to overthrow the Olympians.

They save Piper's father (Tristan McLean), whom Enceladus has held ransom, and Hera. They temporarily stall Gaia's plans, but the newly risen Porphyrion is able to escape. With part of his memory returned, Jason realizes that he is from the Roman counterpart to Camp Half-Blood, called Camp Jupiter, he remembers a girl named Reyna and that Hera switched his place with Percy Jackson, who is now at Camp Jupiter with no memory of his life at Camp Half-Blood.

The Son of Neptune

The Son of Neptune, the second book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 4, 2011.

The Son of Neptune opens with Percy Jackson being chased by two gorgons, Stheno and Euryale, who hate him for killing their sister Medusa. They reveal that they're working for Gaia. While making his escape, he runs into an old woman named June. The old woman reveals herself to be Juno (Hera) and gives him a choice: provide her with a favor or live safely under the sea and everybody and everything destroyed. As a favor, Percy carries her across the Little Tiber, which is a powerful river. In doing so, he loses his invincibility from the River Styx. When he reaches his destination he meets Hazel Levesque, a daughter of Pluto, and Frank Zhang, a son of Mars. Percy saves Frank from the Gorgons by drowning them. Percy is then taken into the camp after Juno introduces him to Camp Jupiter. Reyna seems to recognize him, but refuses to acknowledge him. She and her sister lost their home during Percy's attack(Percy Jackson and the Sea of Monsters) She sends Percy and Hazel to Octavian, the camp augur, to see whether or not he's fit to join the legion. Along the way, Lares, the camp's ancestral spirits, call him Greggus, or Greek, which makes Hazel act worried. When they reach Jupiter's temple, Octavian is cutting teddy bears open and reading the stuffing. Octavian threatens Hazel by telling her that if she doesn't vote for him, he'll reveal her secret. He declares good omens, and Hazel and Percy go to the temples, where they meet Nico Di Angelo, a main character from the Percy Jackson series. He knows Percy, but claims he does not recognize him. Meanwhile, Frank is organizing weaponry when a Lare appears and tells him he knows about his stick and his birth. Frank then runs off to find Hazel and Percy. He takes Percy to the bathes while Hazel and Nico talk. Hazel reveals that she's from the 40's and has a blackout. She realizes that she's late for the war games, so she and Nico rush to line up.

During war games, a Camp Jupiter activity, Percy impresses everyone with his battle skills and instincts, even though they are not Roman tactics and are more Greek-style. After the games, Octavian hurts a girl (Gwen)on purpose and she gets severely injured and dies, only to come back to life a few moments later. Mars, the god of war, then appears and informs the campers that "Death has been chained". He also claims Frank Zhang as his son. Mars insists that Percy and Frank must go on a quest to free Thanatos, the god of Death. He has been captured in Alaska and is no longer able to keep mortals dead. Frank requests that Hazel also come on the quest, and they set off towards Alaska. While travelling on their quest, Percy struggles to regain his memory. Time and time again, he recalls things but never where from. The only clear memory to him is a girl named Annabeth. Hazel reveals that she had died long ago, but that her half-brother Nico di Angelo, son of Hades, saved her from the Underworld. Frank informs the other two that he was given a piece of wood that is tied to his life; if the wood burns up completely, he will die. After many events and monsters, such as basilisks, giants, and an unexpected meeting with the Amazons.there they met Reyna's sister, who provided them help and gave Hazel a powerful horse named Arion, who only eats gold and is a son of Neptune. They finally get to Alaska, where they find Thanatos in chains. His chains can only be broken by the fire of life, which refers to the piece of wood tied to Frank's life. Percy defends Frank while he melts Thanatos' chains with his burning stick, losing more and more of his life. Hazel attacks Alcyoneus, the giant born to oppose Pluto. Thanatos is eventually freed and with the help of Hazel's horse, Arion, they drag the giant out of its land (Alaska) to Canada where it is able to be killed.

Percy regains his memory as they race back to Camp Jupiter. Knowing that the camp is under attack, Percy takes charge and leads the Romans into battle with the help of some of his old friends from Camp Half-Blood and the Amazons. The morale of the Romans is recharged after discovering that Percy recovered the camp's lost standard, which had been missing for years. Percy then challenges the giant, Polybotes, the giant born to oppose Neptune, to a duel and calls to Terminus, the Roman border god, to help him defeat the giant. He has been told that only when gods and demigods work together can the giants be defeated. Percy eventually defeats Polybotes by using the head of Terminus' statue as a weapon. The camp then names him a praetor, a leader of the Roman camp. The Greek demigods from Camp Half-Blood appear in the flying ship Argo II sailing towards the camp. The Romans argue over attacking the ship. As praetor, Percy orders them to hold their fire. If the Greeks attacked, he would be to blame, but he is not worried. Arms around Frank and Hazel, he approaches his "other family".

The Mark of Athena

The Mark of Athena, the third book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 2, 2012.

After sending Leo's video to Camp Jupiter, Argo II prepares to land on the Roman camp's border, but Terminus, the god of borders, stops them for no weapons are allowed inside. It is then decided to let the ship stay in the air while Annabeth, Leo, Piper, and Jason meet the Roman campers. Percy Jackson together with Hazel and Frank welcomes the Greek demigods and Coach Hedge. A reunion is held, and during the conversations, Ella, the harpy, speaks about a prophecy that refers to Annabeth's quest of the Mark of Athena. Piper uses her charmspeak in order to divert the topic. While Jason gives Piper a tour of the camp, Reyna talks to Annabeth alone.

During the conversation, the Argo II, which is controlled by Leo Valdez who was possessed by eidolons, fires at Camp Jupiter. The Romans defend their bases, and Annabeth, Piper, Jason, and Percy rush inside the Argo II to stop Leo from firing on the campaign. They start to leave the camp while Hazel and Frank delay the Roman campers. The Argo II becomes damaged, and Leo lands for repairs, encountering Echo and Narcissus. There they are told that they have to search for the Mark of Athena to bring the Romans and the Greeks together. They are also told to search for the mysterious Ricky Andersen, and that he will guide them to Elysium.

In their journey, they meet Phorcys and Keto. The seven quickly leave for Charleston. Annabeth, Piper, and Hazel go to Battery Park to find a mysterious ghost, which happens to be Aphrodite. Jason, Leo, and Frank go to a museum in Fort Sumter. Only the girls' story is told. Aphrodite tells them about their love lives and the other Olympians that are suffering from being confused about their Roman or Greek identity. After their talk, the angry Romans come, and war breaks out. Annabeth meets Reyna in Fort Sumter who was there to retrieve a map which will save her friends. Reyna begs Annabeth to come with her and die a painful death to save her camp, but Annabeth tells Reyna that she will only follow the mark.

The seven reach the ship and leave safely to go to Chiron's brothers, who live in the sea. During the ride, they get attacked by a shrimp monster. Leo, Frank, and Hazel go underwater and find icthyocentaurs, Chiron's brothers. They find the three's story interesting and speed their way to Rome. They meet Hercules near the pillars, or the entrance to Rome and Piper and Jason get the second horn of Achelous, the bull-headed river god. Even though it was Hercules who ordered them to cut it off, Piper decided that Hercules did not deserve the horn and keeps it for herself. She brings forth a pile of supplies, and Hercules falls. The seven cross the pillars and sail into Rome. Annabeth has to find the Athena Parthenos by following the Mark of Athena and battle its guardian Arachne. Percy, Jason, and Piper travel into an underground area and battle the twin giants, Otis and Ephialtes, the anti-Dionysus. Frank, Hazel, and Leo travel in search of Nico, and find Archimedes' scrolls on spheres. In the end, Annabeth outwits Arachne by tricking her into weaving her own trap. Percy and Jason battle the giants and with (very little, emphasize on very little) help from Dionysus's roman counterpart, Bacchus, they rescue Nico and Bacchus defeats Otis and Ephialtes with a pinecone in their eye.

Frank, Hazel, and Leo battle the Eidolons and rescue Archimedes' scrolls and one of his spheres. They all meet up where Annabeth secures the Athena Parthenos. However, Arachne pulls Annabeth into Tartarus by some spider silk as the statue is lifted onto their ship. Percy follows Annabeth by not releasing the line he was trying to pull her up with. After Percy and Annabeth fall into Tartarus, the remaining five prophecy demigods, Coach Hedge, and Nico are at a meeting. Nico says Percy told him to lead the demigods to the Doors of Death, while he and Annabeth would meet them at the end of Tartarus on the Doors' other side. Nico and Hazel both say they are fairly sure Percy and Annabeth are not dead yet. The book closes with Leo telling Festus the Dragon figurehead to set sails: they have friends to save.

The House of Hades

The House of Hades, the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series, was released on October 8, 2013.

Approximately nine days after the events of "The Mark of Athena", Hazel and the others are struggling to get past the Apennine Mountains because they are being stopped by numinas, rock gods. She prays to her father, Pluto, for help, who sends Arion. Arion takes her into a storm where she meets Hecate, the goddess of magic and crossroads. Hazel is given 4 choices to choose from to continue on her journey. Hazel chooses to take Hecate's secret path to get across the Apennines. She also informs Hazel of her special gift, and tells her what to do when she crosses the Apennines.

Meanwhile, Percy and Annabeth are falling towards Tartarus. Shortly after arriving in Tartarus, Annabeth and Percy find the River of Fire, and drink from it, which makes them immune to the harsh Tartarus environment, albeit temporarily. Annabeth and Percy follow some empousa, including Kelli (originally seen in Battle of the Labyrinth), to try and find the Doors of Death. Percy and Annabeth eventually get spotted and are almost killed until Bob (the name Percy changed Iapetus's name to in The Demigod Files: The Sword of Hades when he dragged Iapetus (a Titan) through the River Lethe) comes and helps vanquish them. Bob then leads them to The Shrine of Hermes. Annabeth successfully gets a message from Tartarus to Rachel back at Camp Half-Blood, whilst also discovering that Percy's sword can be used as a pen to write with, if he were to put the cap on the hilt, rather than the tip. Bob joins them on their journey to the heart of Tartarus, along the way they encounter many challenges.

Leo has a dream of being chased by someone in shadows, who was found to be Clytius, when Leo described his dream in a meeting. During that meeting, two dwarfs attack and steal from the ship. Leo and Jason chase after the dwarfs and rescue their stuff, along with Odysseus's astrolabe and an ancient book and they return the book to Triptolemus, an agricultural god, in Venice. Hecate teaches Hazel how to use the mist. At Venice, they encounter many katoblepones, creatures that exhale poison. Hazel is struck by the poison and loses consciousness. Triptolemus refuses to heal Hazel unless he gets another python for his chariot. Frank sets out to destroy all the katoblepones in Venice. Frank rounds up all the katoblepones and kills them. Ares and Mars, who have been fighting inside Frank's head as soon as the Greek and Roman sides met, temporarily call a truce and reward Frank. On their way to Greece, the Argo II is attacked by a giant turtle and the bandit Sciron. Using her gift, Hazel manipulates the mist and kills Sciron. Her father, Pluto, then appears and gives her more information about the House of Hades. Jason has a dream of Rachel and Grover passing on the message from Annabeth to Reyna. Reyna then decides to venture to the Ancient Lands, and get the Athena Parthenos to prevent war between the Greeks and Romans. Jason tells Leo they need to make a stop in Croatia. In Croatia, Jason and Nico meet up with Cupid to get Diocletian's Scepter. It is revealed that Nico isn't in love with Annabeth as it had apparently been rumoured, but that he had had a crush on Percy. Jason agrees to keep it a secret. Back on the ship, Leo is blown into the sky and Piper is left alone to fight Khione, the goddes of snow, who had frozen the others. Piper kills Khione by using charmspeak to reactivate Festus and manages to save the Argo II. Leo lands on Ogygia, where he meets Calypso. Calypso reveals that, despite Percy making the gods swear to release her at the end of The Last Olympian. At first, they hate each other, but start developing feelings as they spend time together. Leo wants to take Calypso with him but she's cursed to fall in love with the hero and then lose them. As Leo heads back to the real world, he swears on the River Styx to come back for her, knowing that the prophecy contains the line: "an oath to keep with final breath". Meanwhile Jason had to meet with Auster, the Roman god of the south wind, who he convinces to allow them to pass his realm, providing venti (storm spirits) to help them until they find Leo, who can fix the ship. Jason harnesses the storm spirits and take the Argo II back north to Greece where they meet up with Leo.

Meanwhile, Annabeth and Percy meet Nyx (Night) in Tartarus and face the serious treat of being killed by her. After much effort, Annabeth devises a plan which manages to trick Nyx and her children into blinding each other with darkness, giving Annabeth and Percy time to flee. As they head into the Mansion of Night, Nyx's palace, believing that it is a shortcut towards the Doors of Death, they meet up with Bob. Annabeth, Percy, Bob and Small Bob (Bob's new-found pet cat, first seen in The Titans Curse at the Museum of Natural History) then head directly towards the Doors of Death. As the group trudges amidst the colossal number of monsters, Percy and Annabeth, who are both camouflaged by the Death Mist, encounter Hyperion and Krios, who are guarding the Doors of Death. Just as they were about to cut the chains securing the Doors, Tartarus makes an unexpected appearance, destroying the Titans in an instance, and removing the Death Mist from Percy and Annabeth. Percy is traumatised and loses all will to fight, while Annabeth is void of ideas. The only exception is Bob, who challenges Tatarus head on, along with Small Bob who grew from a kitten into a sabre-tooth tiger. Just when Bob was beginning to lose the battle, Damasen charges into the battle with his drakon, declaring that he has decided to choose his own fate. With Damasen holding off Tartarus and Bob securing the Doors of Death, Percy and Annabeth finally escape Tartarus.

In the mortal word, the crew soon notices that Leo has changed. Though he still retains much of his liveliness, the encounter with Calypso changed him. Piper and Hazel soon notice. With an ominous storm brewing ahead, the crew soon embarks the Argo II to head towards their final destination - Epirus. Nico and Hazel lead the way into the Necromanteion, which Nico believes is ridden with luminae. After going down two levels, the crew find themselves ambushed by a swarm of monsters. Leo and Hazel are soon separated from the others. Nico, Piper, Jason and Frank begin to mount an attack on the monsters but are soon overwhelmed, as Nico's army of dead Roman warriors are left wondering aimlessly without proper commands. The turning point of the battle comes in the form of Frank, who Jason promoted to Praetor, commanding the warriors and leading the army himself to obliterate the enemy without fail.

On the other side of the cave, Leo and Hazel encounter Pasiphae and Clytius who are guarding the Doors of Death; enemies whom Hecate has predicted that Hazel and Leo would meet. Pasiphae warns that someone is required to push the 'UP' button on the Doors of Death, and that if Hazel and Leo fail to win this battle, Percy and Annabeth will be trapped for eternity. The battle begins with Hazel and Leo being trapped in the Pasiphae's labyrinth. Hazel soon figures out that she could utilise her Mist powers to disillusion Pasiphae into believing what she wanted to see most - that the heroes were tormented in her Labyrinth. With her powers, Hazel soon overcomes the Labyrinth and defeats Pasiphae by launching her into the trapdoor made purely by her Mist. Hecate then appears and aids Hazel in battling Clytius. She is soon defeated, but Leo manages to open the doors for Percy and Annabeth with a well-aimed screwdriver. Hazel also manages to cut the chains that bind the doors to the Necromanteion. Just when the allies are defeated, Frank, Piper, Jason and Nico appear and collectively defeat Clytius with the help of Hecate. Finally, just as the cave collapses, Nico, with the help of Hazel, shadow-travels the crew out of the cave.

In the mortal world, the crew is joined by Reyna, who has made it to the ship painstakingly, losing her pegasus Scipio in the process. While discussing their next course of action, the crew decides that the Athena Parthenos must be transported to Camp Half-Blood, and they must head towards Athens to face the giants. With only 2 weeks left before the revival of Gaia at the Feast of Spes, the crew is unable to decide where to go. After much debate, Nico volunteers to shadow-travel with Reyna and Coach Hedge back to Camp Half-Blood, while the crew can head towards Greece. As the book heads towards its final conclusion, Percy and Annabeth stand together on the deck of Argo II pondering about their journey through Tartarus, with the discussion ending with the thought of a future together. The book then concludes with Percy studying the constellations in the night sky and muttering 'Bob says hello' to the stars in recollection of his friend, Bob, whose final wish was to say hello to the stars.

The Blood of Olympus

The Blood of Olympus, the fifth and final book in the Heroes of Olympus series, is set to be released on October 7, 2014.[4]

The seven Greek and Roman demigods on quest—Percy, Annabeth, Jason, Frank, Hazel, Leo and Piper—must get to Athens to stop Gaea before the Feast of Spes, only two weeks away. All of Gaea's giant children have been freed from Tartarus and are back on earth: they plan to waken their mother by capturing and sacrificing two demigods on the day of the feast. The demigods must defeat these giants, who were bred to defeat the real gods, while the gods themselves are incapacitated as their Greek and Roman aspects battle for supremacy. Meanwhile, the powerful Athena Parthenos statue is being transported back to Camp Half-Blood by Nico, Reyna and Coach Hedge in the hopes of preventing the approaching Roman demigods of Camp Jupiter from invading the Greek camp and the Greeks and Romans from destroying each other. If the questing demigods do not succeed, Gaea will awaken and remake the world, killing everyone.[4]

Supplementary works

Released August 14, 2012, The Demigod Diaries is a collection of short stories. Similar to The Demigod Files, it contains some new stories with character interviews, illustrations, puzzles, and a quiz. The four stories include: Thalia's and Luke's adventures before the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series, Jason, Leo, and Piper's experiences at Camp Half-Blood between The Lost Hero and The Son of Neptune, Alabaster a demigod son of Hecate who fought on Kronos' side and his encounter with Lamia, and Percy and Annabeth's quest to retrieve Hermes' staff from the fire breathing giant Cacus.[5]

Main characters

Greeks

  • Percy Jackson: A powerful 16-year-old son of Poseidon (Roman form: Neptune) and is one of the Roman praetors. Percy was born on August 18. He has the power to control water and has perfect bearings at sea. He can breathe underwater and communicate with sea creatures and horses, including pegasi. He carries a sword called Riptide (Ancient Greek: Ανακλυσμός). He is the star of Camp Half Blood and was swapped with Jason Grace of Camp Jupiter by Hera (Roman form: Juno). He is a major part of the Second Great Prophecy.
  • Annabeth Chase: A 16 and later 17 year old daughter of Athena (Roman form: Minerva) and is highly intelligent, wise, and always ready with a plan. She is born on the twelfth of July. After the war against Kronos, the Olympians crowned her 'Head Architect of Olympus', as Percy had destroyed Olympus in the process of saving it. Annabeth is known to be part of the Second Great Prophecy, and to this effect leads the Argo II to Camp Jupiter.
    She is the girlfriend of Percy Jackson, son of Poseidon. Annabeth wants to bring peace by following the Mark of Athena and finding the stolen statue (Athena Parthenos), that is dedicated to her mother. She doesn't completely trust Jason Grace at first but come to common terms later she is best friends with his sister Thalia Grace. She is currently the smartest demigod alive, and was able to outwit Arachne in order to regain the Athena Parthenos.
  • Leo Valdez: A 15-year-old Greek demigod and son of Hephaestus. He possesses the power over fire, a unique ability among the children of Hephaestus. He created the Argo II using his skills with fire and machinery. He is part of the Second Great Prophecy and is a descendant of Sammy Valdez, Hazel's old boyfriend. He has a crush on Calypso. He has a special connection to Gaia, who first met him as a child and has been able to talk to him since. As a result of his first meeting with Gaia, Leo used his talent unintentionally, which Gaia then redirected to destroy his mother Esperanza's machine shop, killing Esperanza.
  • Piper McLean: A 15-year-old Greek demigod and a daughter of Aphrodite. She can charmspeak, meaning that she can convince/persuade most people to do what she says. She carries a knife called Katropris, which used to belong to Helen of Troy, which shows her visions of the future. She is a tomboy, but she is very beautiful and a knockout to boys. She is a part of the Second Great Prophecy. She is dating Jason Grace, son of Jupiter, though she fears he may be taken from her by Reyna, his close Roman friend.
  • Nico di Angelo: A 14-year-old Greek demigod, the only known son of Hades and the younger brother of the late Bianca di Angelo. Nico's Roman half-sister is Hazel Levesque, a daughter of Hades' Roman counterpart Pluto, and is from Camp Jupiter. He has the power of necromancy and is one of the most powerful demigods currently living. In The Titan's Curse, he develops a grudge against Percy, thinking he purposely killed Bianca, but in the House of Hades, he admits to Cupid and Jason that he had actually had a crush on Percy so that is the reasoning for his anger towards Percy. Nico also believes Percy was trying to kill him with some skeletons that had followed him. In The Battle of the Labyrinth he learns to trust and not to hold grudges (the fatal flaw of most children of Hades) on people. He is the only demigod prior to the Heroes of Olympus series to have attended both Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter, and was the first Greek to know about Camp Jupiter in The Son of Neptune. Nico briefly visits Camp Jupiter in the Son of Neptune, but pretends to not know Percy, and after his visit, attempts to locate and close the Doors of Death. In the process, he is pulled into Tartarus and nearly dies, which allows Gaia's forces to overwhelm him. He is briefly imprisoned in Epirus, before being transported to Rome by Ephialtes and Otis, who attempts to use him as bait for the other campers. They then rescue him, and he later promises Percy to lead the others to Epirus in Greece while Annabeth and Percy locate the entrance to the Doors of Death in Tartarus. In the House of Hades, he has romantic feelings for Percy Jackson.
  • Thalia Grace: At 15, Thalia is Jason's biological sister, but a daughter of Zeus rather than Jupiter. Thalia was almost killed when she was 12 after being revealed as a child of one of the 'Big Three' (Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades), and made a final stand against a group of hell hounds and the Three Furies on Half-Blood Hill to protect her companions, Annabeth Chase and Luke Castellan (who turned evil in The Lightning Thief). Zeus took pity upon his daughter and transformed her into a pine tree. After Luke poisoned the tree in The Sea of Monsters, Annabeth, Percy, and Clarisse La Rue found and used the Golden Fleece to save the dying pine. The magic worked too well, and Thalia was separated from the tree as a human, albeit slightly younger than her age would have been if she aged normally. She later joined the Hunters of Artemis, becoming immortal at the age of fifteen and therefore escaping the Great Prophecy.
  • Tyson: Tyson is actually a half-brother of Percy due to their father being Poseidon. In The Son of Neptune, Tyson along with Percy's hellhound, Mrs. O' Leary is revealed to be searching for Percy. It appears that Tyson is the most successful at tracking Percy down and is nearly at Camp Jupiter before Percy leaves for his quest. He continues to track Percy and his friends north, but is always too late to reach them. Shortly after the attack on the Zhang mansion, Percy contacts him via a dream, telling him to locate the harpy Ella and escort her back to Camp Jupiter. Tyson, Ella and Mrs. O' Leary meet Percy just outside of camp and it is implied that Tyson and Ella are in love with each other. Ella later chooses to follow Tyson rather than fly to safety, and Tyson aids the Romans in defeating the giant Polybotes' forces.

Romans

  • Jason Grace: A powerful 16-year-old Roman demigod and son of Jupiter. He was born on July 1 (The Kalends of July, sacred day to Juno). He can fly, control winds and lightning, and create storms. He is a natural leader and was praetor before Hera took his memory and sent him to Camp Half-Blood. He carries around a sword as a weapon (given to him by Juno) as his first weapon, Ilvis, was destroyed. He is part of the Prophecy of Seven. His sister is Thalia Grace, daughter of Zeus. He is dating Piper McLean and confirmed in the series that he has no feelings for Reyna although Piper is still dubious of it. He is a major character in the great prophecy.
  • Hazel Levesque: A 13 year old Roman demigod and a daughter of Pluto. She has a curse that allows her to control precious metals and gems, has perfect bearings underground and can open new passages/tunnels underground. She was born in 1928 and lived in New Orleans but moved to Alaska on her 13th birthday in December 1928 where she died with her mother, standing up to the earth goddess Gaia, in 1928. Nico di Angelo, her half brother, found her in the Underworld seventy years later while looking for his dead sister, Bianca. Nico, feeling that Hazel needed a second chance, brought her back to life. Hazel is a part of the Prophecy of Seven. She is dating Frank Zhang, though Leo Valdez looks eerily like a boy named Sammy (Leo's great-grandfather) who she used to like a lot in New Orleans during her first life; if she had not died she would have married him.
  • Frank Zhang: A 16-year-old Roman demigod with magical blood and a son of Mars. He is a descendant of Poseidon on his mother's side. He is descended from Periclymenus, son of Poseidon and Prince of Pylos. He is Canadian, but has a vast ancestry coming from China, Rome, and Greece. His family's hometown is Li-Jien, or Legion. His last name, Zhang, means 'master of bows.' He possesses the power to shapeshift. He is a part of the Prophecy of Seven. He is dating Hazel Levesque, daughter of Pluto. He is jealous of Leo because he believes Leo likes her and Hazel feelings for him because he's similar to Sammy. Frank's last hope for life relies on a piece of firewood, the Fire of Life, as it is called by Thanatos in The Son of Neptune, that holds him between life and death which he gave to Hazel Levesque to keep safe for him. This piece of wood is similar to Meleager's log.
  • Reyna Avila Ramírez Arellano: A 16-year old Roman demigod and daughter of the Roman goddess of war, Bellona. She is one of the Roman praetors of Camp Jupiter. It is stated by Percy Jackson that she is a fighter. Her sister is Hylla, Queen of the Amazons. Both Hylla and Reyna met Percy Jackson in The Sea of Monsters. At first they hated him for their encounter at Circe's island, but soon come to make amends. It is hinted that she had a crush on Jason Grace, her first partner in praetorship, and Percy Jackson, her previous partner in praetorship. She despises the camp's augur, Octavian. She has two metal dogs, Argentum and Aurum (Silver and Gold), both of which can tell when a person is lying.

References

  1. ^ Riordan, Rick (2010-06-20). "The Lost Hero cover unveiled!". Myth & Mystery. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
  2. ^ A. Sellers, John (2010-09-13). "Disney Announces Print Run, Plans for a 'Percy Jackson' Spinoff". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2011-01-11.
  3. ^ Colum, Padraic (2010 (originally published in 1928)). The Golden Fleece and the Heroes Who Lived Before Achilles. Illustrated by Willy Pogany; Introduction by Rick Riordan. Random House. ISBN 978-0-375-86709-5. Retrieved 2012-11-11. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)
  4. ^ a b "Blood of Olympus, The (The Heroes of Olympus)". amazon.com. Retrieved October 21, 2012.
  5. ^ ""The Heroes Of Olympus: The Demigod Diaries" To Be Released This August". LeakyNews. 2012-01-01. Retrieved 2012-11-11.

External links