#the fact that i was younger than percy when i read lightning thief and now am grovers age in the tv series is also crazy. anyways

[lovemoroporo]

warm ups w the trio

[anotheroceanid]

hi! okay this is insanely long but i had a lot of thoughts so bear with me pls.

i was scrolling through the jercy tag bc i'm starved and saw ur posts abt rhea/kronos & percy/jason and have to say i love them sm!! it's such an interesting concept and i've got a lot of cool thoughts abt them now thanks to you, buttt,, may i also offer metis/zeus & percy/jason parallels? it's a little stretch but hey idc it's fun

metis is the daughter of oceanus, percy is the son of poseidon (at both times, they're a child of the ruler of the seas) zeus is the son of kronos, jason is the son of zeus (at both times, they're a child of the ruler of the universe) metis & zeus met and fought a war to end kronos together...percy & jason unknowingly fought together during the titan war to end kronos and they do meet and work together during the giant war! and they make a great team, like in the twin giants fight

metis was a goddess of wisdom i'm pretty sure? and was zeus' advisor. i am a firm hater of the "percy is stupid" train because honestly it's percy who makes most of the battle strategies in pjo.

in fact here's some unwarranted examples: realizing what the lotus casino was, tricking crusty, figuring out the whole lightning thief debacle, giving clarisse the fleece, clearing chiron's name, figuring out he needs to take the sky, finding the nemean lion's weak spot, figuring out rachel is their guide for the labyrinth, all of his actions in the battle of manhattan tbh like he was crazy for doing all that at age 16!!, scaring chrysaor’s crew, making the combination of demigods to get nike, etc etc- i could go on and on!

so, i feel he can be related to metis in that he would be a pretty great advisor and obviously he'd be a fantastic leader. athena herself says the requests (read: demands) percy makes at the end of the second titan war are wise!

also think it could be interesting if poseidon delibrately chose to have percy look like metis. they'd probably look similar anyway but if poseidon wanted zeus to have some hesitation in killing percy, creating him to look like someone zeus greatly wronged in the style of kronos (aka eating someone) could do it?

anyway, moving onto jason! who, like zeus, is the youngest son and has a lunatic father that treats him like shit,, and at first zeus served kronos! just as jason did, but hey, if jason hadn't died when he did,, how long would he have continued to serve zeus?

rhea took zeus from kronos to be raised in crete by nymphs, like hera took jason from zeus to be raised in camp jupiter by wolves. and like rhea, hera is always on jason's side and honestly based on her toa reaction to his death, likely loved him like a son. and we know hera fucking hates zeus like rhea hated kronos.

jason is also strong as fuck, and ik rick knocked him out in every book because he didn't actually want his forced-percy-rival to actually showcase his powers but from what we know and seen he's like insane as well. PLUS he's been training since he was like 3 ik he's strong asf and zeus is sweating.

parallels😁!! uh let's hope jason doesn't eat percy though /j

i know zeus would've recognized these parallels and got insanely paranoid bc yk him. ik zeus was exhaling in relief when jason died, and there's a reason he was always trying to kill percy. he saw his sins in him! everytime he looks at percy he sees the woman he tricked and treated like shit and more-or-less killed. but he also knows metis was smart and very capable, n that's scary to him. everytime he looks at jason he sees his younger self, and that's a horrible thing to see if you're zeus lmao

of course jason is much better than zeus and percy is fairly different from metis, but it's the small parallels and zeus' paranoia that makes everything bigger.

the act we know metis most for is supplying the poison for kronos to regurgitate his kids,, and percy has a pretty close connection to poison now after his fight with akhlys :)

but yeah!! fun parallels :') sorry if this was a lot to read/hard to read

bonus: metis & zeus r cousins just like percy & jason /j

Now!!! Hear me out!!! I loooove the Metis X Percy parallels, I never talked about it here because some things I keep for the fics 🗣️🗣️🗣️ but I totally GET YOU!!!

The thing about Rhea is that they prob look a loooot alike, so people (mostly the big six and, maybe, Kronos) attribute her whole persona to Percy’s even tho many things make zero sense. Because they want him to impersonate their mother somehow to feel their void. Others might think of him more of a Perseis kinda of person, just for the destruction thing. But Metis? She was gone before most Olympians were alive, so it’s not like they have a truthful idea of what she was like, and those who remember might not have been as close to her as Zeus.

Metis was the Titaness of good counsel, planning, cunning and wisdom. Which makes us think that Athena would be a lot like her, but I personally think Athena is more a Zeus mini me. Metis being an ocean’s kid and a titaness made me believe she was a lot wilder and not exactly the usual embodiment of these concepts. Which would make her much more of a wild card, so Zeus got rid of her when the prophecy about their son showed up. So like, I can see Percy embodying Metis’ aspect of these domains (while Annabeth would be more Athena-like), and Zeus being like…

In terms of looks, she and Percy might’ve not looked the most similar, but hey, Metis would question Zeus’ authority in front of the whole council and would call out his shit whenever she felt like it.

Jason, however, is a much tamed version of his father. In a good sense. He’s not cruel, and when he’s forced to make a choice that he feels bad about it haunts him. He’s not overly confident and proud. Beyond all, he was taught loyalty to Rome and the gods from a young age, contrary to Zeus who was taught rebellion and how he was supposed to be this great saviour. For a while, this probably made Zeus more comfortable about him than he probably was about Thalia, for example, or even Percy.

But romans and Greeks learn about each other and now Jason and Percy meet and turns out Jason is SMITTEN with his cousin? Yeah, that’s a problem. Zeus would seethe, and Hera would be 100% smug about it.

Suddenly, there is something that Jason cares more than Rome or the gods. That is dangerous.

Also, something about Percy being somehow paralleled with TWO titan queens is just…

[creative-hanyou-girl]

My PJO Story: 10+ Years in the Making

It's so crazy to think that we are less than 2 days away from the Percy Jackson premiere. I've been waiting for this series for 2 years from the second I heard about it. If I'm being honest, it was only some months ago that I actually finished the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series for the 1st time before moving on to HOO. Yet, even before then, I've been reading The Lightning Thief book over and over again since I was 11 or 12.

When I was younger, it was the movies (ugh, I know) that convinced me to read the Percy Jackson books. I had already seen them around school in the library and around my peers, but I personally felt no urge to pick the books up myself. I was DEEP in my Warrior Cats obsession at that point and believed no other book series could top it for me. But then we watched the Peter Johnson movies in class, and I'll be honest, I ended up really liking them. I know, I know. They are awful adaptations and still not the greatest stand-alone movies either, but I enjoyed them at that age since I hadn't read the books and knew Jack-shit about real Greek mythology at the time. And even now, while I'm no longer blind to how bad those movies are, there are still a few visuals from the 1st movie that still stand out in my mind to this day, like Percy's water trident.

But the greatest thing the movies did for me, and the reason I have to give them the obligatory 1 ⭐star, is that they finally convinced me to pick up The Lightning Thief and give this series, that was all the rage amongst my friends and peers, a chance. My mom got me the entire boxset for Christmas that year, and I got to reading. And I fell in love! I was blown away by the humor and fun I had reading The Lightning Thief. And it felt amazing to see a main character have a disability and use it as their superpower. I don't have ADHD or dyslexia, but I did have a stroke as a baby which affected me physically AND mentally, so in some ways, I could still relate to what Percy and other characters in the book were going through, at least a little bit.

Once I finished TLT, I was eager to start on The Sea of Monsters, and I even started reading into that book, too. But in a bizarre twist, the 2nd book disappeared one day from my nightstand. I looked EVERYWHERE for it, but I never found my copy of the 2nd book. I was so upset and embarrassed that I lost it, and I was worried to tell my parents for fear they'd think I was irresponsible for losing a book, so I just....didn't. And because I was convinced that I could still find my personal copy of the Sea of Monsters, I refused to check out a copy from my school library. And so because of my embarrassment and stubbornness, I would not continue the rest of the PJO series for years to come.

But that didn't stop me from rereading The Lighting Thief periodically throughout my teenage years going into adulthood. I read it for enjoyment, to refresh myself on the story and what happens in it, and especially when we'd go on vacation to the beach since, you know, it's the perfect summer beach read. This is just my opinion, but while TLT did set up groundwork for SOM, it could also be read as a stand-alone book, too. And for years, that's how I treated The Lighting Thief. I always planned on buying a new copy of The Sea of Monsters as well, but stuff would happen and I just wouldn't get it for one reason or another. And to be honest, I think part of it was a sentimentality thing with me. I was so sentimental about The Lightning Thief since it was the only book from PJO that I read fully, that part of me was worried about the other books overshadowing it.

So for years, that's how it went. Until, in late 2021, I found out that Percy Jackson was being made into a TV show. And my mind was blown; I DID NOT expect a book series that was close to 15 years old and after 2 failed movies to get a TV show made after it. In fact, I thought it was a joke at first or that there were people trolling the series on the internet. But then when I looked more into it, and especially when I saw that the author, Rick Riordan himself, was heavily involved in the project, the reality of this news finally started to sink in.

And I was ecstatic!

But it also gave me the reminder that I had yet to read the rest of the series past The Lightning Thief, and I wanted to go into the TV show having read the books beforehand. And so, after literal years of not telling them, and because it was right around Christmas and my mom was practically begging me to tell her what I wanted that year (I usually don't want much for Christmas), I told her I wanted Percy Jackson: The Sea of Monsters for Christmas that year.

And I finally got it.

But because life happens, I wasn't able to actually start my planned binge reading of the Percy Jackson series until this past spring going into summer of this year, 2023. But once I had a free couple days to spare, I finally sat down and read the entire Percy Jackson and the Olympians series for the 1st time, starting with exactly the same old copy of The Lightning Thief I've had and loved since the age of 11 or 12.

And it was AMAZING!

This series truly is something else, and it's no wonder its maintained its popularity throughout the years. Its funny, sweet, action-packed, crazy, and just all around fun to read with lovable characters. It's one of my absolute favorite book series of all time and I'm so excited about the show dropping in less than 2 days now.

But it's the fact that we will be seeing the 1st book specifically, The Lighting Thief, come to life lovingly and faithfully first, that has me the most excited. For so long, this was the 1 book in the series that I read. It was the 1 book in the series that always stayed with me when I couldn't continue reading past it. It was the book that introduced me, and many others, to all these amazing characters and the world of Gods and Goddesses.

So while it is true that the later books in PJO are objectively better, it will always be The Lighting Thief specifically that will always have a special place in my heart. And I am thrilled that this first book of Percy Jackson (and hopefully the later books) is FINALLY getting the adaptation it deserves, and that I'll get to revisit the 1 book that has been with me since childhood in a new light!

Long Live Percy Jackson!

(Also yes, I made that bookmark)

[bywordofaphrodite]

Book Reviews 5&6: Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan & Alpha Force: Survival by Chris Ryan

This review’s theme is action and adventure ! audience age range: roughly 12 and up !

For this review I’m using the first book from two action/adventure series, featuring the only male authors I've selected of the ten books chosen for these posts. Both are action-packed books with ensemble casts featuring boys and girls, though the similarities mostly stop there.

As a lover of Greek mythology and fantasy in general, Rick Riordan’s sarcastic and upbeat hero of Percy provided a hilarious new way to look at the more serious myths concerning the gods and enemies of Mount Olympus (his slightly inaccurate retellings made acceptable because the series was made for a younger audience, not to mention it’s funny so who cares).

Alpha Force is firmly set in the real world, no magic to be seen, just hardened survival skills that seem more sitting to the SAS than a bunch of young teens- but with the author Chris Ryan being a member of the SAS himself, it’s exactly what you’d expect.

Nostalgic review

Rating: ★★★★★

Percy Jackson is one of those famous book series in a long list of teen/YA fiction that has gripped teens by the throat on its basic lore alone. During class my friends and I would go on Tumblr and Pinterest to pass time, and as readers we always ended up on That Side of Tumblr- yes, the side filled with cheesy edits of all the popular main characters of the time: Katniss Everdeen of the Hunger Games, Clary Fray of The Mortal Instruments, all the usual squad, and of course Percy Jackson himself. In a sea of lead female characters, Percy was a fun male lead to throw in the mix. It felt special too, that Riordan continued to write Percy’s story ageing him up as the books went on. We grew up with Percy too. I still keep collect the series even now; my brother’s gift to me for my 21st birthday was the Heroes of Olympus collection, though I haven’t read the older books in several years. I’ve always thought Riordan’s writing style not only improved over the years, but also adjusted well to writing for an older audience in the newer books, which was impressive. Additionally, Riordan listening to his fans and adding in more and more representation through great diverse characters definitely sweetens the memories attached to this series.

Alpha Force is just so good. And so underrated. It was between Alpha Force and Alex Rider for the second book in this review, but ultimately I decided enough people know Alex Rider (there’s a movie and a new series about him, go check the series out, it’s great!) and Chris Ryan’s hidden gem was something I wanted to discuss more. I went through an Extreme Survival Adventures book phase during early high school, devouring all kinds of action from deep-sea diving to climbing Mount Everest and every shipwrecked story on the shelves. I’ve always been a huge fan of the ensemble character groups where everyone has a distinct role that no one else can fill; I find it prevents boring main character syndrome where one singular person never needs any help and therefore has neither character development nor conflict. The Alpha Force series managed to deliver fantastic action sequences, smart yet surprisingly realistic characters and somewhat rarely in my experience- incredible female characters who actually had real personality and arcs that belonged to themselves and not the male characters. Honestly, this assignment has been a great excuse to make myself read these books again!

Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief Review

Post-read: ★★★★

Synopsis: when struggling student Percy Jackson’s pre-algebra teacher transforms into a monster on school grounds and tries to kill him, Percy runs home to be told the truth by his mother about who he is: a demigod, and upon his arrival at the safe haven for demigods- Camp Half-Blood- Percy discovers he is the son of Poseidon, with water powers to boot. With the help of a satyr named Grover and daughter of Athena, Annabeth, Percy sets course for the Underworld to prevent a war breaking out on Mount Olympus.

(I wanted to make this four and a half stars, but I am incompetent at adding in the half, so if you’d kindly just imagine it is there that would be great.)

Okay! Let’s get into it!

With the first chapter titled ‘I ACCIDENTALLY VAPORISE MY PRE-ALGEBRA TEACHER’, I think the tone for the story is established rather immediately. The first-person narrative allows the character of Percy to talk to readers directly, and it creates a very easy feeling of Percy recounting his feelings and adventures as if in a one-on-one conversation. I felt just as drawn in rereading as an adult as I did when I was in school. Percy doesn’t fit it in at any schools and has been kicked out of six when the first chapter begins. His ADHD and dyslexia make concentrating and studying hard, and he’s always restless. The only people he feels are on his side are his friend Grover and his Latin teacher, Mr Brunner, who seems to be the only teacher who doesn’t have it out for him.

As it turns out, neither Grover nor Mr Brunner are people! Grover is a satyr sent to watch over Percy until he reaches Camp Half-Blood, and Mr Brunner is the immortal centaur Chiron and the activities director at the camp, also watching over Percy. When the Fury Alecto- disguised as Percy’s pre-algebra teacher Mrs Dodds- tries to kill Percy on a school field trip, the satyr and centaur jump in to save him. Later at the camp, Percy continues to stay fast friends with the two and confides in them while they teach him everything about his new world. Percy meets many more kids at camp, all of whom struggled in the human world before finding their true capabilities upon discovering their status as demigods. Annabeth is one such kid, the daughter of Athena who is cold to Percy at first, out of loyalty to the history between Athena and Poseidon, but who ends up becoming fast friends with him, and later his girlfriend throughout the series.

Riordan’s writing is fresh, engaging and fun at every turn. His modern takes on the gods and their ancient stories and riddles makes for a terrific adventure, and the ‘quests’ undertaken by the demigods mimic the old mythology in a palatable way for young readers to digest easily and understand what exactly is going on. The best part about Percy Jackson for me isn’t the monsters and battles, but rather Riordan’s intentions when creating the series: he wanted to give his dyslexic son a hero he could relate to, and since the first set of books Rick Riordan has gone above and beyond expectations to create demigod heroes for kids spanning many different ethnicities, genders and disabilities. Of the many series popular among young people, I’m especially glad that this one full of so much representation is maintaining the hype it deserves.

Characters who aged well: Percy! At twelve years old in this first book of the series, and just the right combination of witty, kind, hot tempered, brave and cheeky to make a believable and lovable young protagonist; his diagnosis with ADHD and dyslexia not being portrayed as a weakness but rather a part of him makes Percy a special hero to neurodivergent readers. Annabeth, too, remains a great character, she’s intelligent, logical and ambitious in a positive manner, and never falls into the trap of being ‘not like other girls’.

Characters who aged badly: nobody! All the side characters are great, and even the villains are entertaining, especially alongside Percy’s ridiculous commentary. The gods are portrayed rather mockingly, which is a kindness really, compared to the awful acts they commit in the original myths.

Favourite scene/quote: ‘Deadlines just aren’t real to me unless I’m staring one in the face’ – I first read this book years ago and it’s still relevant. I can’t even be embarrassed to relate to it at this point.

My favourite scenes both centre on Medusa- or rather, her severed head. Furious with the gods- namely, Zeus, Athena and his father Poseidon- for sending himself, Annabeth and Grover on such a dangerous quest so quickly after his first day at camp, Percy stuffed Medusa’s head into a package and wrote the address of Mount Olympus on a delivery slip, ending with ‘best wishes, PERCY JACKSON’. To Grover’s distress at Percy’s being ‘impertinent’ to the gods yet again, Percy simply responded ‘I am impertinent’. 10/10 big mood.

The second refers to Sally explaining to Percy that she can take care of herself, and, leaving Medusa’s head in her fridge, Percy exits their apartment just as Sally’s abusive boyfriend walks in. The last thing Percy sees is his mother, ‘staring at Gabe, as if she were contemplating how he would look as a garden statue’. It’s a nice moment between mother and son, followed by Percy understanding the strength his mother has and how much she does for him.

Alpha Force: Survival Review

Post-read: ★★★★

Synopsis: Five teenagers end up stranded on a desert island after their sailing ship goes down at sea. Enthusiastic Alex, reluctant Amber and Hex and practical jokers Paulo and Li are all part of a ‘working eco-voyage’ that quickly falls apart, leaving them to survive on their skills alone against komodo dragons, sharks and modern day pirates somewhere on the Indonesian archipelago.

The story begins with Northumbrian boy Alex- the closest to a main character out of the five- scrubbing the deck of a ship called the Phoenix and lamenting the fact that he’s been lumped in with four people he would never have chosen to be in a watch with. Assigned to A-Watch by their mean supervisor Heather, Alex finds himself the unofficial watch leader… and the only person who really wants to be there. Also in A-Watch is Amber, the daughter of African-American software billionaires who recently died in an accident and left her the sole heiress to the fortune. Amber, still hurting from her parent’s death, is furious to be on board the eco-voyage organised by her Uncle John, who believes she needs to move on in a place outside her comfort zone. Amber spends a great chunk of time antagonising English hacker Hex, who was sent on the trip as a punishment by his school for ruthlessly hacking into the accounts of a teacher who bullied his younger brother. Rounding out the group are Paulo and Li, both of whom are very athletic and thrive in the outdoors, but also uninterested in doing any real work aboard the Phoenix. Paulo is a charming ranch hand from Argentina who loves food and flirting; Li is the Anglo-Chinese daughter of zoologists who enjoys testing out her martial arts on Paulo.

After an argument with their supervisor Heather, Amber decides A-Watch should steal food and relax in a small boat beside the ship to thwart her- a fine plan at first, which goes haywire after the rope frays and they awaken to find themselves in the middle of the Java Sea with no one knowing they’re missing. Tensions rise between the teenagers as they panic over food and safety as they work to survive. Hex just barely survives a Komodo dragon attack, and their hope for help in spotting a family aboard a yacht goes down the drain when it becomes clear they are hostages of modern-day pirates. Luckily, for the family- the Larousse family who were friends with Amber’s parents, no less- the members of A-Watch manage to put aside their differences and put together their skills to save the day.

By the end of the book, the group have outwitted the pirates, saved the Larousse family and successfully sent an SOS signal leading to their rescue. During their recovery in hospital, Amber learns the truth about her parents: behind their billionaire software company her parents worked as undercover agents around the world, fighting against corrupt governments, powerful cartels and other dangerous ventures. Amber’s Uncle John agrees to let the five carry on her parents work as a team, noting that five teenagers could easily slip into situations that adults can’t. Hex then announces he has a name for the five: Alpha Force, taking the first letter of all their names and representing the new beginning for Amber to move on from the Omega (ending) necklace she wears round her neck to remember her parents.

Characters who aged well: all of them!

Alex’s love of the outdoors is endearing, and he never underestimates anyone else’s skills despite being the most prepared for struggles in the outdoors; he is fairly introverted and thoughtful without being boring, I think he’s very sweet.

Amber’s presence as a billionaire black girl with great navigational skills was a fun subversion of the unfortunate stereotyped roles black characters are given; she has great character development without losing her sharp-witted personality and she’s very funny.

Hex plays off Amber’s banter with ease after their initial clashing, and I like that, though he loves his electronics, he never lets the team down by adapting to the outdoors.

Paulo is just adorable, a charming boy from a ranch who likes to flirt with the girls he likes but always respects their boundaries. His positivity is also very uplifting.

Li: ahh my cool favourite Li. Not just providing Asian representation, but also mixed representation, which I was very pleased about as a kid, and still am. Similarly to Amber, Li subverts a stereotype of her own- she’s knowledgeable about things without being a nerd, and gets to be the most playful character alongside Paulo. In my experiences with male authors, the girls rarely get to be the ‘funny’ character so I always enjoyed this!

Characters who aged badly: no one!

Favourite scene/quote: “‘Or was Heather right? Are you too good for us, Alex?’ said Li, slyly.”

This quote signifies when Alex properly commits to being a part of A-Watch, going along with Amber’s plan to ignore Heather’s disciplinary instructions in favour of ‘stealing’ food. It’s the first time the group work as a team, and his hesitation gives way to helping his new friends even though he never does anything against the rules. I also just enjoy Li’s sneakiness at any time, really. The following scene where the five relax under the stars eating food and getting to know each other before all hell breaks loose is nice to read, and all the action sequences are really great, especially Amber’s dive with the sharks while escaping pirates.

Overall verdict:

I wanted to give both of these books four and a half stars, so let’s pretend I figured out how to do that. The only reason they both don’t get five stars is because the following books in their respective series improve after the first ones- both in writing style and character development- and I’m allowing room for that.

Starting off with The Lightning Thief, the headlong dive into action from chapter one was so fun, and learning about the monsters and mythology in time with the main character is always a welcome addition. As someone who read the original myths before any Percy Jackson novels, hearing them retold from Percy’s humorous perspective is very amusing. Anyone familiar with Percy Jackson knows that the movies released a few years ago were kind of a major letdown compared to the books, so the fact that Disney+ has now taken the series on board and begun casting (worldwide!) is super exciting! In line with Rick Riordan’s mantra of inclusivity, anyone of any ethnicity or gender can apply for the roles, which I think really fits the concept of what Percy Jackson represents.

There were very few reviews for Alpha Force due to how underrated it is, and all I could find was a few comments on Goodreads. One person mentioned that they felt the beginning of Survival was slow. I personally don’t know what ‘slow’ refers to in this case, as I felt the introductions and set up all very natural and in a way, necessary before the serious action kicks in. However, I tend to enjoy a few quiet scenes focused on character development that might not be for everyone. I’m still pretty sad there’s literally nothing else about this series on any fandom pages or anything, but I suppose I’ll just have to resign myself to just me and my brother talking about it!

In the case of both books in this review, my memories of these series were not simply clouded by the rose-tinted lenses of nostalgia. I remain just as impressed and in love with the worlds and characters within the stories, and I hope other people enjoy them as much I continue to.

[mabelmidnight-takeover]

my opinion on a pjo adaptation

as in i saw a thread of questions about a pjo adaptation on twitter but since i dont have an account, i decided to put my thoughts and what i would rather for them to do here. again, my thoughts, my opinion. if you don't agree with what im saying, please politely explain your opinion or just ignore this

if disney adapts pjo into a movie series, i'd rather it to be animated

- either moana or a mix of tangled tv series and viria art style for the graphics (don't know how to explain this, the mix is clear in my mind tho)

- it'd be easier to make them same age and appearance as in the books

- however everything would be rushed since disney's animated movies can barely surpass two hours of duration

- and disney's a coward and would probably take the chance of social criticism out of the adaptation

- even if it was live action, this isn't my favorite option

if disney adapts pjo into a disney+ series, i'd rather it to be live action

- i wouldn't bother if they changed percy's age up to 14 (nothing higher than that) on lightning thief, making his age in the prophecy 18. it'd make me way more comfortable? i think. reading and watching them fighting at age 12 hits differently to me

- i also wouldn't bother if they changed their appearances, only with white characters tho. poc stay poc. my only requirement is a green eyed percy. i think my hatred for brunette annabeth was cause i hated how they wrote her in the movies instead of hating specifically the change in her hair color. this change of mind is mostly based on the fact i keep dreaming of olivia rodrigo as her and xolo mariduena as jason tho

- just cause i want a live action series does not mean i want a darker adaptation. keep the lightness the book had to attract pre teens and teens to the series. this is the most important factor for me

- an adaptation in today's scenarios for me would be amazing. even if they don't interact with the mortal world that much, hints to it would be great, mainly if their target public is growing kids

- this is becoming more like my dream adaptation than what i hope disney would do, but i want them to approach subjects as anxiety and ptsd better than the books never tried to in a light and simple way. i would love to have a tv series talking about this when i was younger. maybe bring part of the andi mack production idk just saying

- taika waititi as the director i mean- i can dream

- either short animated films or a short animated series telling the stories from the side books (dont know if this is the term). also some of the stories from the side books included in the live action series. it's cheaper to produce and i just wanted to include them too

- necessary changes to what actually happened in the books. i feel extremely uncomfortable reading the way annabeth treated rachel on TBOL. nini and gina's relationship on hsmtmts seems like too big of a step for them to back down and make annabeth say all that stuff. show that she's upset, more closed off when rachel tries to talk to her but skip all the annabeth treating rachel bad just cause they like the same dude. this is just one example. the books aren't perfect and rereading them makes me notice some things that could positively change. the adaptation is the chance to change

for now, that's it. clearly i prefer a live action disney+ series but I'll add more of my thoughts as they come to me. also i need to finish reading kane chronicles, toa and magnus chase to talk about them

[aeipathyreads]

A Review on The Lightning Thief

Set in a world where Greek Mythology gods and goddesses exist and have children of their own, The Lightning Thief tells a quirky, adventure-filled story about a trio – Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Grover Underwood – on a quest to find a valuable item that was stolen from Mount Olympus.

As a novel that, I think, is primarily for middle-grade boys, it’s forgivable that it feels more simply written, unlike other books of the same genre. Don’t get fooled, though, as it is a book you’ll want to finish the same day you started it, not because it’s something you can breeze through, but for the reason that you’ll always want to know what happens next!

Aside from that, there were many things I loved about it.

The hilarious chapter titles, the fact that it’s set in our modern world, how the Greek gods stay true to who they are even though they were in a completely different time and setting, and how the characters give off so much potential and personality. . There’s a lot of good than bad that I can think of for this book, you could say.

The Lightning Thief was a great start in the series for me, and I can’t wait to read more of Percy’s adventures.

MY RATINGS

1+ Did the story develop well? [ 7 / 10 ]

The story starts with the introduction of Percy and Grover. We gradually got to know about Percy’s life through his narrative, about his misfortunes with his stepfather (whose name I silently laugh at every time), and how he suffers from ADHD and dyslexia, and with little hints here and there, we soon learned that he wasn’t just the son of a god. He was the son of Poseidon!

Although it took a slightly longer time for the characters to realize Poseidon was Percy’s father, as obvious as it was, I couldn’t have been more hooked once they did realize it, as I figured it wouldn’t be long until we finally get to the quest.

The quest to find Zeus’ lightning bolt was not an easy one. They had to encounter monsters from the underworld. They fell in one of the traps meant for Ares and Aphrodite. The adventures never stopped coming, and even though the book stalled and slowed down at around the middle, reading about them made me want to finish the book all the way to the end.

As the story is brought to a close, we now know who was behind the stealing of the lightning bolt, some people with the names of the-guy-in-the-pit, Ares, and Luke. Not exaggerating or anything, but I kind of saw the 3rd one coming.

2+ Were the characters likeable and relatable? Easy to get attached to? [ 8 / 10 ]

The story mainly follows 3 people. Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase, and Grover Underwood.

Percy Jackson was the type of guy I’d crush on in middle school, with the sassy, tough personality of his. His motive throughout the whole journey was to rescue his mom, which is a new one, as the YA Fantasy books I read didn’t have moms. . or parents.

It was easy to love him, and how his disorders – ADHD and dyslexia – were described in a way that it was seen as a strength than a weakness made me love him even more. That’s such an important message to convey toward younger readers, and I’d like to see more of his potential in the next books in the series.

Annabeth and Grover were very cool characters. I love how they were portrayed, and I think they wouldn’t have made it to the end without Annabeth’s strategic personality and Grover’s emotional sensitivity toward things.

And may I just say, Grover is so much like me, with him being an environmentalist and having the need to speak out for animal’s rights!

3+ Was the setting and world(s) well-built? [ 10 / 10 ]

Though others may think of it as being similar to Harry Potter, I didn’t at all! And even though – speaking from others’ judgments – there was some resemblance to the HP series, that would just make me love it even more.

As someone who didn’t read the HP series yet, but watched all the movies, I couldn’t really point out just how many similarities there are. But, in my opinion, when we overlook those small details, it wouldn’t matter as much.

With Greek gods, the camp, the characters, there’s not much I can ask for from this book! It was all uniquely set-up. The world-building was straightforward, not too much information all at once, and as we go through the story, we gradually also learn about Greek mythology. How awesome is that!

4+ Did it give so many feels? Did you think about it all the time? [ 6 / 10 ]

Since this wasn’t typically for my age, I guess it didn’t excite me as much in the start. It was halfway through that I really got hooked, but even then, it wasn’t enough for me to stop and think and wonder about everything. I just read it as I would a good story, and didn’t get too emotionally attached to it.  

5+ Was it enjoyable enough to want to read again? [ 8 / 10 ]

Definitely! When the time comes where I forgot everything that happened, I’ll surely go back and reread their adventures.

Percy Jackson, you lived up to the hype.

FIND ME ON

ig/ aeipathyreads

wattpad/ aeipathy-reads

twitter/ aeipathyreads

goodreads/ aeipathyreads

[vreugd-madelon]

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series Review

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is a series by Rick Riordan. I read the first two when I was younger, and I now had the idea to reread and complete the series. Its a Middle Grade Fantasy Series consisting of 5 books, with a total page count of 1718. I listened to this Series on Storytel.

Percy Jackson is a New York City teen who has never known his father. When he is attack on a school fieldtrip by a mysterious creature his mother sends him to a summer camp, camp Half-Blood. There he finds out his father is one of the ancient Greek Gods, and his life is flipped upside down. Will he be able to manage? Will he become like a hero of legend?

Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief rated 3 stars. I have problems with the one first shown to me as I was searching for it on Storytel. As I've finished listening to it, and looking at it again I found out that it was the abridged version. Like WHY?! Why to they exist? I guess the most important plot points are still in there, but I'm not going to listen to it again, just keep that in mind, because that caused this low score. Because of this version, the arc of the characters are steeper, and more vague. My favorite scene is the Lotus Casino, and I'm just sad that it's roughly 10 minutes long. They instantly snapped out of their daze. I will continue on with this series, because I know that it gets better. Besides my frustration I still kinds liked it. A big difference between the movie and the books is how the Persephony's pearls are obtained. Liked the movie better to be honest.

Percy Jackson and The Sea of Monsters rated 4.5 stars. I really like the story, from the moment it starts it floors the gas and never lets up. It's filled with action, while also be able to deliver backstory to the world. The characters are really well established in the beginning and I especially like Clarice, daughter of Ares. She is really bitchy and gets under my skin, but the fact that she comes to the rescue and eventually completes her quest is really nice. Percy and Annabeth are so cute together, I love them and they bickering, but when it counts they can count on each other. It's really interesting to see such old characters, who have been around in tale for a long time, in a new, modern-day light. Many of the characters and tales I've not heard of or remember only vaguely, so this is really nice. It's hard for me to see Percy in the light of a 13 year old. The way he acts feels like a 16 year old, but some thought really shows he is a little younger. Also, this is the full version and not the abridged one, which is a plus as well.

Percy Jackson and The Titan's Curse rated 3 stars. One again this book starts off in the thick of things, with a rescue mission. It's quite jarring to be thrown into the deep end and you have to orientate yourself. Luckily for me, I do that every quickly. I write this part a while after reading it, and honestly I've forgotten most about it, and I was wondering why it was called The Titan's Curse, when it clicked; it's about Atlas. Yo, I'm a little (much) slow at times. I do like the characters and they grow a little more, we see them make decisions along the way that are kinda forseen.

Percy Jackson and The Battle of the Labyrinth rated 4 stars. I've read this book quite a while after the first three, and after reading in a while anyways. I must say it was nice to return to a world which I already kinda knew. I did really like this one, the labyrinth was really interesting to read about. Quintus was an amazing character and his twist I didn't see coming, because I was just enjoying the story but I could guess that more of the older readers could figure it out. I feel that there wasn't as much fighting as in the first three, and the character spend more time talking their way out of things. I actually quite like that aspect of it. In this book the characters get rounder as we see more about who they are, but especially who they care about. Rachel is quite interesting and I must say that she is my favorite of this whole story.

Percy Jackson and The Last Olympian rated 4.5 stars. We have a rather big time skip in the beginning. The last one ended when he turned 15, and in the beginning of this one Percy is a week away from turning 16 years old. I really like that this finale is really close to home for our characters. This also has a lot of deeper layers and nice finishes to character archs. I won't spoil any of them, but it's really worth reading the series just for the ending. The final battle against Cronos send several shivers down my spine, every time one of the new, big monster appears. The new one bigger than the last.

If you have any questions send me an ask here on tumblr or tweet me. If there are any books that you want to recommend, be sure to let me know!

[the-ink-bottle]

The Dangers of Urban Fantasy and the Test of Time

Lately I’ve been writing several posts about mythology, magic, and modern literature pertaining to these two topics. But what, exactly, determines mythology from modern literature? What makes mythology so long-lasting and well-loved over the course of centuries? I’ll start by referring to something my brother once told me...

When I was thirteen, I wanted to write a novel. I worked hard, showed it to anybody who even considered reading it, and asked for advice from the smartest people I knew. My brother being one of the smartest, I asked him to read the first few chapters. He said that it wasn’t bad, at least no worse than anything else a 13-year-old had written, “You need to stop making so many culture references,” he said. “Don’t talk about brand names, or specific technologies. Ten years from now, all of that will be obsolete. If you want something long-lasting, it has to be continuously relatable over time.”

...Or something along those lines.

Essentially, my brother was explaining the importance of literature and the test of time. Mythology was written in a period where there was very little complexity. Most myths take place in nature, something that remains mostly unchanged over millennia. Anybody can read a myth about a wood nymph and know exactly what a forest or river looks like. If you write a novel where your main character is using a Razor scooter...well a lot of people aren’t going to know what you’re talking about.

How does this relate to the texts I’ve discussed recently? Well in Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling does a pretty good job. She avoids mentioning technology, only refers to the pop culture that his made up for the purposes of the story, and features no current events from the “muggle” world to give a timestamp to the story. While most readers know that Harry is living in the 90s and 2000s, there are almost no allusions to the time period that would really give away that fact. Therefore, the novels are enjoyable to children in the 2010s as much as they were to children in the 1990s, and while probably remain enjoyable decades from now.

Percy Jackson, on the other hand, does not pass the time test. I’ll refer to a passage from the Lightning Thief:

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover are three children wandering through the woods. Grover is trying to play a magical song on his reed pipes in order to help find a path through the forest. It is said at one point that the only songs Grover knows how to play are a piece by Mozart (an understandable enough reference to pass the time test, as Mozart was influential enough for his impression to remain) and Hilary Duff’s “So Yesterday.” Now, as a 90s baby I know exactly was song Percy is talking about. I can hear it in my head. A younger cousin, on the other hand, who was born in 2009? She’ll likely have no idea what song that is, if she even knows who Hilary Duff is. That makes the story less relatable, more confusing, and therefore difficult to appreciate as time passes. Author Rick Riordan makes a string of similar references throughout the series, though considerably less so in his spin-off series “Heroes of Olympus.” This undeniable fact means that his series will lose popularity as it ages, even with its basis in mythology.

So while the Urban Fantasy gains popularity in today’s society, with young adults always seeking mystical escapism from real-life problems, the ever-present culture references that are common in Urban Fantasy leave lots of room for, well...literary death.

On that happy note, see me here next time for an analysis of Chinua Achebe, military PTSD, and white colonialism.

[madisonlyndsley-blog]

About Me

Hi! My name is Madison Lyndsley. I guess I will start with some “fun” facts about me. My middle name is only one letter long, K. That’s it. It’s not K-A-Y, just K. I have two dogs with big smushy heads that are just adorable. Gerdie is a 10 year old Boxer with alopecia (weird right? I think so too). Salvador (named after the artist Salvador Dalí) is a 4 year old, Old English Bulldog. He used to be a breeding dog before we adopted him and he has very odd coloring. He is a bronze colored (he looks more grey in some lights) fawn with honey brown accents along his face. My family has been stopped on the street by strangers wanting to take a picture of him or talk to us about his rare coloring. He also happens to be one of the dumbest dogs you will ever meet. He is the one in the corner of my profile picture.

So yeah I’m kind of obsessed with my dogs. But besides that I am a pretty passionate reader. When I was younger and not drowning in assignments I would tear through books like crazy. I could not get enough of the stories, characters, and far away lands with crazy conflicts. The book that helped me realize how much I loved reading was The Lightning Thief which is apart of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan. Everybody has at least heard of these books I am sure, but if you haven't, now you have and you should go read them! Books have always been a way of escape for me. Which may sound nerdy, but to me, there is almost nothing more satisfying than holding a book (new or old) in your hands and flipping through the pages and getting lost in an entire different world.

Here’s a video of Sal being dumb

[notesofarichlycolorednight]

Hi! Am I the only one who ever thought about what would've happened if Percy had been killed in the end of The Lightning Thief? I mean,we have other children of the Big Three. And the prophecy would've been fulfilled anyways, IMO.

i wouldn’t say you’re the only one, but i definitely have’t thought abt it

i tried to when i got this ask and my brain malfunctioned bc percy is my boy

like maybe it would’ve been an interesting thought experiment after i’d read tlt and before i read the rest of the series, but seeing as i came late the pjo party, i read the books in succession bc they were already all out

and by the end, i loved percy. and i still do. i love him so much, so to think abt him dying so early on is painful. not to mention that as we continue into this bad timeline (irl) and i go to fiction to escape this bad place, i don’t really like thinking abt my faves dying

either early on in the series, or as angsty™ fic

/tangent (sorry)

i do think that other children of the big three being the prophecy child would be really interesting though…

i think if percy was out of the picture (rip my boy, just in this thought experiment) and we ignore the roman demigod lol, i honestly think nico or bianca could become the prophecy demigod

like, a large part of thalia’s decision to join the hunters was the fact that she figured she didn’t have anything to grow old for (i.e. her brother, whom she thought was dead). also, i think something abt luke’s betrayal seriously hurt her, and that also pushed her to join the hunters

first she loses her brother and considers him dead, for the sake of her own sanity. then she finds a family in luke and after sacrificing herself for them, she comes back yrs later to find out that luke has now joined the side of the titans. considering she still has the emotional maturity of, what like a 14-15 yr old? so she’s gonna react in a way that’s not healthy, not rational, and probably that blows things out of proportion (which is’t a bad thing, that’s just how kids and teens be sometimes ya know)

“well, i’ve lost my brother, and now i’ve lost luke. annabeth has percy, so she’ll be fine. i think i’ll join the hunters.”

i hope that makes sense. like yeah these demigods have to go thru a shit-ton, but i think a crucially important thing to remember is that they are only mature for their age and when comparing that to, say, a 20, 30, 40 yr old, their maturity means peanuts

anyway, so thalia’s out. (i’m not going to go too much into detail abt the events that lead up to that decision, tho, since that kind of revolves around the fact that percy’s alive lol, and if i did, we could be here all day)

however, i do think that with percy out of the picture, hades would then take his children out of the lotus casino much sooner. i can’t exactly rationalize why hades wouldn’t immediately send them to camp (maybe bc he knows they might not be accepted), but it’s also a dangerous gamble to send them to some boarding school and hope that a satyr, compared to a monster like thorn, would find them. esp considering the fact that they’re two kids of hades

so i opt to think, weighing the risks and benefits, he takes them out of the casino and gets them to chb. i think, to try and avoid any discrimination they may face, only chiron knows they’re children of hades, and hades asks chiron to keep that a secret for as long as possible (rumors spread like wildfire)

since bianca doesn’t meet the hunters, she doesn’t join them (whoo!) and doesn’t die. [aside] i’d like to think she makes such good friends with the ppl at camp, and so does nico, that that burden of looking after her younger brother completely disappears. so if she ever does meet the hunters she doesn’t feel the pressure to get away from that responsibility (see what i mean abt maturity and not reacting rationally?) so rn she’s the prophecy kid, since she’s older than nico

okay lbr, she is the prophecy kid, i’m not gonna kill her in this au lmao, that’d just be cruel

idk where i was going with this, i’m sorry. mostly, i think it would be interesting to develop nico, bianca, annabeth, thalia, and grover’s relationships with each other.

also ppl getting over their shitty prejudice toward hades and his kids. like, i think since at first they aren’t introduced as hades kids, they’d have the potential to make a lot of friends. without a tragedy similar to what befell nico hanging over them, nico is still that excited, bright-eyed 10-yr-old and bianca, now free of responsibility, can be more carefree, a teen girl

so like, i think that annabeth, thalia, and grover would be really great friends with them. and i think they’d make a lot of friends at camp too

once bianca learns of the prophecy, i’m sure she had a phase of not accepting it. like she just got free from her responsibility as an older sister, and now she’s got the responsibility of the whole world on her shoulders

and like a teen do, she doesn’t want anything to do with it at all. classic hero’s journey, though, maybe smth happens and nico is seriously injured, and she decides that maybe she doesn’t want to accept it, but she’s the eldest, and so she will. for her brother and for hades.

like it’s pretty cliché, but it makes for a great story arc/character growth arc

sorry abt the vagueness of it all. thinking abt all the details makes my head spin, and i want to focus on my current fic. but this is really interesting, and i may flesh it out more when i have more time. despite the prospect of my boy dying T_T (maybe i can find a loophole)

thanks for sending this in! i’m sorry that it took me so long to get here. like i said before in a separat post, i’ve just got a lot of projects i’d like to finish before i go back to school, and i’m having trouble balancing/prioritizing them

i’ll try to get to the other two anons i have sitting in my box today. if i don’t, just know it’s bc of my prioritizing issues XP

thanks again for sending this in!

FEED ME SEYMOUR

[thejakeformerlyknownasprince]

Considering there's now a Power Rangers movie, do you think it is possible that someone will go out there and make a live-action (or fully animated idk) series/movie out of Animorphs? Would you think it wise? We have the know-how to animate morphing and aliens, and there are probably many people out there who started reading Animorphs 20 years ago who are now working in the animation or film industry so the adaptation probably wouldn't stray too far from the original.

You know, I’m not sure Animorphs ever will get its own show or movie again.  I love the current format of turning books or series into entire freaking TV shows (American Gods, Handmaid’s Tale, etc.) and it might be cool to get a second crack at an Animorphs show, but… But I’m conflicted. 

Reasons I’d love to see an Animorphs movie or show:

There would be a whole younger generation that we could bring into the fandom!  They could share in our hilarity and pain, which would be awesome.

It’s pretty much inevitable that the books would get re-released, which means we’d be able to stop relying on crappy PDFs any time we wanted to reread the series. 

Visual media = greater internet fandom. 

Seriously, though, TV shows > video games > movies > comics > novels when it comes to online fandoms, and I think a big part of that is the fact that Tumblr, Livejournal, and Reddit are so image-heavy. 

And I really WANT this series to be so mainstream there are fandom wars and remixes and hipster-effects.  It’s so frustrating right now when people ask what I’m writing and I usually end up telling the truth but telling it slant (ex: “There aren’t enough stories about stereotypically masculine young men working as administrative assistants, so I decided to…” or “Have you ever thought about how demonic possession would affect neurological processes?  Because I have.”)  And it would be so nice to be able to say “I’m writing about Animorphs,” and have other people go “Oh, that super-disturbing series with the oatmeal jokes?” 

There are some REALLY FREAKING COOL images in the series that it would be really freaking cool to see on a screen.  For instance: the huge hellish cavern where the yeerk pool is located, the iskoort and their backward knees, Cassie becoming a whale-osprey-human-andalite hybrid for a hot second in midair, Ax jumping backward over a swimming pool by accident, that freaking veleek, etcetera. 

Reasons the idea of an Animorphs movie or show fills me with trepidation:

Have you SEEN AniTV?  I didn’t think it was possible for writing that good to get turned into scripting that bad, and yet.

Whitewashing.  DragonBall-Z, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Ghost in the Shell, Death Note, and Cloud Atlas all took minority characters from the original works and cast white actors.  AniTV itself whitewashed Eva and Ax.  I’d rather have no screen adaptation at all than one with an all-white cast or one that tokenizes any or all of the characters.

It’d be super-easy for the grey-and-black morality of the books to get lost in translation, which could lead to deeply unfortunate consequences if the kids are shown killing controllers left and right with abandon.  (See: Seasons 5 - 10 of Supernatural and the number of completely innocent humans the “heroes” straight-up MURDER because they happen to be in the way.)

Hollywood is allergic to tragedy.

The movie adaptations of Blood and Chocolate, I Robot, Catching Fire, Ender’s Game, Hitchiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, A Series of Unfortunate Events, I Am Legend, The Golden Compass, Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief, Ella Enchanted, and Charlotte’s Web all took ambiguous or unhappy endings and made them fit the Hollywood mold, not only by having everything wrapped up with a nice bow (and no dead characters) at the end, but also by back-fitting genuinely original stories into tired and unoriginal tropes.

Animorphs would not be Animorphs if almost every book didn’t end with the characters not sure what they learned this week, outside of “war sucks, and then you die.” It definitely wouldn’t be Animorphs if the last two books weren’t all about how sometimes you have to make terrible sacrifices to stop evil.  I have a sneaking suspicion Hollywood would try to sweep all of that under the rug, especially if the screen adaptation was geared for the same audience as the books.

I’d be worried about the portrayal of the hosts.

As it is, AniTV already has some super fridge-horrifying moments that come from the writers’ failure to distinguish between yeerks and yeerk hosts.  Tom and Melissa make out and possibly sleep together while he’s definitely a controller and she might be as well, and the way that the series plays it for laughs suggests that no one did the math that 33 - 50% of the individuals in that relationship are physically incapable of giving consent.  The series also plays Chapman getting spattered with oatmeal and Iniss 226 going insane for laughs, even though the implications for poor ol’ Henrick are pretty horrifying. The books take the time to have the characters debate whether harming the hosts is worth it to harm the yeerks; the show genuinely doesn’t have the time to do that in its 25-minute run and so leaves those problematic questions out. 

Similarly, it is super-easy to slide into victim-blaming where the controllers are concerned.  The books can give us moments like Naomi saying “You were Visser One,” and Eva coming back with “I beg your fucking pardon?” (I paraphrase).  They can have the heartbreaking scenes with Jake imagining what Tom thinks or feels while some alien acts uses him to try to kill their dad.  Visual media can’t necessarily convey that information, and would necessarily have to cast actors as Visser One, Visser Three, etc. who almost never stop to play the parts of Eva or Alloran.  As Supernatural demonstrates (sorry to keep picking on this show), it’s really easy to forget there’s an innocent human who doesn’t get a choice about being used as a weapon or being caught in the crossfire.  It could be so freaking easy to make Tom or Eva or Chapman or Alloran themselves into villains by just forgetting that the host exists at all. 

Anyway, that’s all a very long-winded way of me saying that I DON’T KNOW IF I WANT A LIVE-ACTION ADAPTATION OR NOT.  Also that I care too much about the meatsuits, but anyone who follows this blog probably knew that by now. 

[brigdh]

A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue by Mackenzie Lee. A YA novel starring Monty, eldest son of an Earl in mid-1700s England, his childhood neighbor/best friend Percy, and his sister Felicity. The three of them are just about to begin a Grand Tour of Europe, their last summer of freedom and fun before Monty has to buckle down and behave like a noble heir, Percy starts law school, and Felicity is shipped off to a finishing school. Unfortunately none of them are particularly looking forward to their futures. Monty is very cheerfully bisexual, and has engaged in romps, gambling, drinking, and drugs to the point of being kicked out of Eton. Percy is mixed-race (the son of a plantation owner, though raised by his aunt and uncle, minor gentry) and though he's tolerated, his existence isn't always well-regarded in their circles. Felicity is pissed off about being doomed to learn embroidery and manners instead of going to medical school to become a doctor. Oh, and Monty is desperately in love with Percy, but is afraid to tell him and lose his friendship. This is just the beginning – as the book gets going, there are also revelations about epilepsy, child abuse, insane asylums, and more. It's not all serious, though. In fact, most of the book is light-hearted fun: there are encounters with highwaymen, battles with pirates, parties at Versailles, Carnevale in Venice, villas on Greek islands, operas, fortune tellers, hostage exchanges, escaping thieves, and basically every adventure one could imagine in 18th century Europe. There's even a plot about alchemists and an elixir of immortality which, to tell the truth, felt a bit out of place in the otherwise historically-based book. And, of course, there is lots and lots of pining as Monty and Percy engage in the most excellent sort of romantic-comedy suspense, yearning and avoiding telling the truth about their feelings. A++, that bit. My main complaint with the book is that Lee tries very earnestly to handle appropriately the issues of social justice she includes (racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia), but every one of the ensuing conversations feels very 2017-approved, with every term the correct vocabulary, every checkbox checked, every privilege painstakingly unpacked. Not that such views couldn't – didn't! – exist in the past, but the way Lee portrays them doesn't seem to relate to the characters or setting at all. They don't arise out of the environment of the book, but are dropped in wholesale from an outside perspective that wants to be sure we know the right way to think. And then there's the moment where one character tells another about how the Japanese mend broken pottery with gold seams, see, so that the broken places end up more beautiful than the whole, and it's meant to be a profound moment but it's just so embarrassingly like this person in the 1700s is reading off a tumblr post. But nonetheless it's a funny, sweet book, if not quite as good as I expected when I heard "Gay Roadtrip through 18th Century Europe". What it reminds me most of all is reading an AU from a fandom you don't know. Maybe the characterization and setting isn't always that great but you don't care because it's not your fandom. It has the tropes you love and you can't wait to see the couple get together at the end, so you stay up late reading it on your phone. A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue is that experience in original fiction. Seven Surrenders by Ada Palmer. The sequel to Too Like the Lightning which I absolutely LOVED. However I really should not have waited seven months to read this one, because I'd forgotten some of the characters and plots and this is a series jam-packed with multitudes of characters and plots, and you better have every miniscule bit of such details ready at your fingertips to have a chance of following the action. To briefly summarize the plot (a task that's probably impossible, but I'll try to hit the main points) in the 25th century the world has more or less become a Utopia. Nations have been abolished, religion banished to the private sphere, and gendered distinctions made it illegal; to all outward appearances, it is a world with no reason to go to war. Unfortunately it turns out that all of this has been made possible through carefully targeted assassinations, picking off key individuals to guide the world away from war, riots, major economic downturns, etc. Not many – about nine a year, on average, for the last two hundred years. This information sets off a flurry of activity as the characters take sides, variously trying to figure out the conspiracy behind it, hide the perpetrators, uncover proof, keep the public from finding out, and broadcast the secret to as many people as possible. When several world leaders turn out to be involved, chaos breaks out worldwide. It's not just drama, though; behind the action scenes is the frequently repeated question of if it was such a bad plan after all. Is it worth losing a few lives to prevent the millions of deaths that would happen in war? Seven Surrenders is all about the philosophical dilemma. In addition to the one above, we get multiple debates over the riddle, 'would you destroy this world to save a better one?', and 'If God has revealed proof of His existence, why did He chose you above every human who's ever prayed to believe? And, more importantly, why now?' There is speculation about the power of gender, of sexual attraction, of the effect of raising children as experiments, of the role of Providence in life, of what it would mean for two Gods to meet, of how one conducts a war when there are no living veterans to teach the next generation. But there's plenty of action too – the book includes revelations of secret parentage, long-lost loves, a revenge story worthy of the Count of Monte Cristo, bombs, murders, resurrections, suicide attempts, cute kids, so many disguises, sword fights, gun battles, horse chases, and more. Ultimately I didn't like it as much as Too Like the Lightning. It just didn't feel as deep or as grand, possibly because so much stuff was happening that none of it got enough exploration. One of the most best character arcs (Bridger's) happened mostly offstage, and many of the other characters were too busy reacting to the constantly changing political winds to have a real arc. I still recommend it, because it's just so different from everything else and I have to support an author who mashes up transportation science with Diderot's philosophy. But if you read it, definitely don't wait months between books. The Cater Street Hangman by Anne Perry. A murder mystery, the first in a series set in Victorian London. Charlotte is the middle daughter of a middle-class family, believed by all to be firmly unmarriageable but happy enough with her staid life. The book opens with the murder of a young well-off woman, then Charlotte's maid is also murdered, as are several others. There is no apparent connection between the victims except that they're all young woman, all live nearby, and all were strangled. Inspector Thomas Pitt is assigned the case, and he begins to spend a great deal of time talking to Charlotte – first just to interview her regarding the murders, but then for her own sake. But will Charlotte's family allow her to marry a... policeman??? There are several interesting things about the book. Set very specifically in 1881 (which is to say, before Jack the Ripper) the very idea of a serial killer – as opposed to a thief who murders for money – is new and shocking to most of the characters. So is the concept that such a criminal could appear "normal", that rather than being a dirty, lower-class raving lunatic, it could be a respected neighbor or even a member of their own family. These are such self-evident ideas to modern people (and most characters in mystery books) that seeing Charlotte and the others wrestle with them, discuss their ramifications, and feel guilty for suspecting their husbands and fathers was pretty fascinating. I also liked that the family was so solidly middle-class. Historical fiction has a habit of gravitating toward extremes: everyone is either upper aristocracy or enduring the most grueling poverty. A family of boring bank clerks actually made for a refreshing change. Unfortunately those are the only good things I have to say about the book. The middle 2/3rds of the story drags along interminably, as nothing happens except for characters having the same few discussions over and over again. Charlotte suspects her father! First she must have a conversation about it with her mother. Then her younger sister. Then her older sister. Then her mother and the older sister talk. Then the older sister talks about it to her husband. Then... Well, you get the idea. And it's not as though each new character was bringing a fresh perspective and insight to the issue! No, we just get the same few protests and agreements recycled over and over in slightly different wordings. It's such an awful slog that I nearly abandoned the book. However, I stuck it out to the end, only to be rewarded with the reveal of the killer (warning for spoilers, I guess): a lesbian who has been driven mad by repressing her sexuality! You know, I don't think I've ever actually encountered this awful cliche in the wild before. It would almost be exciting, if it wasn't so offensive. Though there's not a lot of time to be offended, because the reveal, motivation, attack on Charlotte, rescue, and arrest all happen in the last two pages (literally) so none of it is exactly dwelt on. It's probably all for the best that I disliked this book. It's the first in a 32-book series, and now I don't feel any desire to read the rest.

(DW link for easier commenting)(Also goddamn, I am so far behind on putting up my book reviews, you guys. So prepare for a lot of that.)

[goodgreycious]

How to Succeed in Fangirling Without Really Trying

[Insert nervous laughter here]

I guess we should start with the basics like introductions and the more important things you need to know about me. Hi, my name is Grey. I am a person of the adult-ish variety who is, more importantly, a fangirl. Very soon, I will be graduating from college with a degree in history. And yes, just history. And no, I do not want to be a teacher. (This is important to the overall narrative I’m trying to create here, but we’ll get to that later.) I am a Hufflepuff and I take almost as much pride in that fact as I do about my remarkable ability to eat and drive at the same time (my friends might say otherwise, but they’re lying to you). My idea of a “lit” night is when the light radiates from my Netflix account. I love a good book and a bottle of dry, red wine. Preferably together. If there is one other thing I know for sure about myself at the ripe age of “almost-22,” it’s that being a fangirl is all I really know how to do. Maybe through this blog, I can take people on a journey they can relate to. Maybe if I share my story, it can help someone else who is out there feeling the way I’m feeling. Maybe they’ll even start a blog. It’s what I did.

To kick off this shindig, there is a little bit more you need to know about me. Like where and how my story starts. From a young age I was encouraged to be the best I could be. Not the best out of everyone, but my parents knew what I was capable of and they wanted me to do well for me, not anyone else. However, I was an awkward kid. No matter what my parents say. Isn’t everyone? Throughout my K-12 education, I somehow managed to stick myself right in the middle of the herd. I guess the more appropriate description would be “average.” I played one sport in my four years of high school, so I was not jock material. I was in choir, but not a soloist. I was in the musical, but felt more comfortable being part of the stage crew. I spent most of my lunches in my school’s library. The average high school student will experience some form of bullying and I was no exception. Not to the extent that others were, but it was enough to scar me so that my goal for that part of my education was just to get through it with as few waves as possible. So, I adapted and figured out that being stuck in the middle of everything is what made me happy. I didn’t want to be the center of attention. That would’ve been my worst nightmare. I hated myself back then and I had already given people enough of a chance to hate me in my earlier years. It might not have been bad, but it was enough.

I, also, might not be able to remember all the details, but I can pinpoint the moment I knew I was a fangirl. I was in 6th grade and I held in my meaty little hands a copy of The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. I read the opening part of the first chapter entitled “I Accidentally Vaporize My Pre-Algebra Teacher” and it is, to this day, the closest thing I can equate to finding myself. Tiny little me, reading a book about a kid not much older than her who feels it in every fiber of his bones that he is different and can’t do a damn thing about it at that moment, it just felt like coming home. I inhaled the words on those pages. I injected them into my bloodstream once every month. No other book could ever compare as I reread it over and over and over again. It was Wonderland and I was Alice, falling, falling, falling down the rabbit hole and but with no intention of ever stopping the free fall. And as I grew older and wiser, and my tastes expanded, I started to realize that I had always been like that. Disney movies were (still are) the pinnacle of my movie tastes. I wouldn’t watch anything other than animated movies until I was well over the age of 12. My mom begged me to play outside as a kid when all I wanted to do was sit down and watch Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, or the Disney Channel. Percy Jackson and his journey finally put it all into perspective for me. And I’m still spiraling. I started to consume knowledge about Greek Mythology more than my studies. I read anything fantasy based that I could get my hands on. Harry Potter, Fablehaven, Peter and the Star Catchers, Oh. My. Gods., House of Night, the list is as endless as it is ongoing. As I grew, my tastes expanded. I got into anime, sci-fi, comics, crime, true crime, literally anything that took me away from the normal life I was leading. What I wanted more than anything in the world was to be there.

All of these things carried me through my high school career, but not in the way I was expecting. I loved my stories, my otherworlds, more than I ever loved the real world, but it beckoned. Not so much like a siren’s song, more like the annoying alarm clock in the morning that you just perpetually want to turn off, but somehow end up hitting SNOOZE so it keeps waking you up every few minutes. High school was a time where the answer to the question “So, what do you want to be when you grow up?” was finally starting to be the most important question you could answer. I’ll give you three guesses as to what girl never, ever had the answer to that question and the first two don’t count… Yup, t’was me. I’m pretty sure every time someone asked me that, my answered changed. The only thing I really knew, at least at that point, was there were two things I loved. History and what I’ve come to now realize is my all-encompassing, heart-stopping, soul-crushing love for the creative process. Everything in this world that is created has a story that I need to know. I fawn over fan art just as much as Picasso or Van Gogh. I think fanfiction and their authors can sometimes be written better than the original. I have music on at all times during the day. If I am not reading, I am watching something. If I am not watching, then I am trying to hone my own creative processes. Everything about being a fangirl appeals me like a drug. Where bullying knocked me down, I bathed myself in fantasy and used it as my armor. When the only thing I wanted to do was just get through, my fandoms taught me how I should live. Whenever I felt like I wasn’t loved or good enough or whatever enough, somehow, some way, fiction would wrap its arms around me, remind me that I was, and lift me up to carry me home.

Sounds like a wonderful thing to make a career out of, right? But if bullying had taught me anything, it was that I wasn't good enough. I was never going to be a content creator. It was always going to be my destiny to be a content consumer. I could never be J.K. Rowling, Chris Hardwick, Wil Wheaton, Felicia Day, Lin Manuel Miranda. If I could go back and tell my younger self anything, it wouldn’t be any of the clichés like ‘it gets better’ or ‘just stay strong.’ I’d tell that little punk to stick it to whoever told her that what was making her feel whole wasn’t worth making a life out of. I would tell my younger self to be brave enough to prove them all wrong. I was constantly told that I could not make a sustainable career out what I loved.  So, I did what I do best and adapted. History was the only other thing I really loved. It was the real stories, the non-fiction that inspires fiction. If I couldn’t create the stories, I would learn everyone else’s. That would surely solve that problem? It’d be a good enough substitute, right?

While I love history, it was like going from Ferrari to a Honda. The Honda will most definitely get you from Point A to Point B, but more so because you can’t afford a Ferrari in the first place. Which kind of brings me to where I am now and the whole reason I started this blog in the first place. Here’s me, about to graduate college with a degree in a field I love (even though it doesn’t sound like it) feeling like I’m doing nothing more than staring into a deep, vast, dark thing called The Void of Adulthood when the only thing I really want to do is take a nap. Or curl up with a good book or a new TV show. Forget the horror genre, adulthood, or the precipice of it, is the scariest shit I have ever encountered. And I am looking at this Void, wanting to take a ForeverNap™️,  neck deep in a big-girl-full-time job search, wearing a Captain America shirt, Prisoner of Azkaban clutched in one hand, sonic screwdriver in the other, screaming my throat raw about how I am just not ready.

But getting back to the present. I mentioned that my degree in history would somehow be important to the overall narrative I’m trying to weave here. This is why. It goes back to being too scared to do what I really wanted to do. While I love history, it just doesn’t compare to the other thing. But, I was also too scared by real life to ever do anything to change it. I was too scared to tell everyone: “DAMN THE CONSEQUENCES AND SHOVE IT UP YOUR COLLECTIVE ASSES, I’M GOING TO DO THIS.” I never wanted to shake it up, challenge the status quo, and now I’m kicking myself for it. History was a safety net I didn’t realize was there until it was too late. All this suddenly came into perspective because I found my dream job. Given the chance, it would be one that I would be really, really good at… but I can’t get it. I don’t have a degree in a relevant field, I don’t have the job experience. I’m not prepared. And it sucks royal hippogriff.

And that, dear readers who have stuck with me all the way to this point, is why I am here. I started this blog to finally break out of my shell. I am no longer content with being a consumer. I want to be a creator. I want to contribute to the discussions. I want to write things that matter and that people can relate to. I want to be fully qualified. If writing this blog and finally, finally being able to contribute something to the worlds that have loved me when I thought no one else did is the only way I can give back and get experience, then so be it. If it is the only way I can be apart of the things I love right now, then I’m going to do it. This is how I stick it to those people who told me I couldn’t. This is how I throw it back in the faces of people who tore me down. I hope that I can take people along this journey with me. I have some fun things planned. And if there are people out there who are listening to the voices of negativity in whatever forms they take, I hope I can help you realize that you are strong enough to face those demons and win. I hope that together we can find a way to forge our own paths. I don’t want anyone to ever feel like I felt. No one deserves to feel like that.

Hi again, I’m Grey. Welcome home. Here, you will always be encouraged. Here, I promise to help you in whatever way I can. Here, you are safe. And here, above all, you are seen and you are loved.

[graciepiefinale]

The minute I read the first line of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, I was hooked… Because who doesn’t want to be a demigod? Admittedly, I was introduced to Percy Jackson through the first film (starring Logan Lerman), and I fell in love there and then… Little did I know that the books would be so much more and pretty much take me into a world that I return to it almost as often as I return to Harry Potter.

As I said, I was late to party when it came to reading Percy Jackson, the entire series had been out for a while and a second movie was being made. Now fans of the books are not necessarily fans of the movies. The movies changed the storyline too much to be forgiven by the fans of the books, in fact, don’t even mention the movies to them unless you wish to be given a death stare worthy of Medusa. But I think, what has been agreed upon in the fandom, that Logan Lerman was an excellent choice to play Percy Jackson…. even if they aged the character up a bit. I actually found (through my obsessive scrolling through Pinterest) that someone had found images of Logan when he was younger and compiled them in order of the ages that Percy should have been in the films.

Whilst the movies don’t do the books justice, the fans have answered the call. Just look up the fan art. My personal favourite (and a lot of others’ favourite as well) is an artist called Viria (follow the link to see more of her work). She has often be dubbed the unofficial official artist for the fandom, because of how well she seems to capture the characters, I have even been reduced to tears because of how perfect her work is.

Art by Viria, Percy Jackson

Where the films seemingly failed, the fans took up the call and produced some amazing art work – be it scenes from the story or just interpretations of the characters. Here are some more examples  (it is incredibly difficult to choose from the amazing art so be sure to look some others up yourself):

If we take a step back and look at the actual story and characters that Rick Riordan has produced, it is pretty easy to see why the fans are so dedicated and protective of the series. Percy Jackson really exemplifies the message that the Disney film Hercules produced: “For a true hero isn’t measured by the size of his strength, but by the strength of his heart.”

Percy’s fatal flaw, as we are constantly told, is that he is too loyal to his friends (and family). It’s his fatal flaw that we, as readers and fans, make us fall in love with him time and time again. That and his sass when he is speaking to the gods. I honestly could go on and on about Percy, but there is more to this series than the main protagonist. Because what is Percy without Annabeth or Grover or Luke? Each character that Rick introduces us to, teaches us a lesson (something I find lacking in a lot of YA/children’s novels).

Grover: a satyr. Grover introduces the readers the importance of nature, and why we need to take care of it. His journey to find Pan, and his witnessing of Pan’s death was one of the most heart-wrenching moments in the series, but its message was clear: it is not up to a god to save the earth, it is up to each and every one of us.

Luke:  a fallen hero. Talk about a redeeming character. Luke was a reminder about how bitterness can turn into something ugly if you cannot learn to get passed it. Luke almost destroyed the world because he hated his father… But it was his family (Annabeth) who brought him back to the light… He proves that a hero isn’t someone who has done great deeds, it is some who learnt from his mistakes and tried to make things right.

I had to add this, because it’s true. Sea of Monsters was not loved by the fans at all, but this moment almost made up for it

Nico: the adopted baby brother of the fandom. Nico represents the difficult task of accepting yourself. Nico is a child who is seemingly in the era. He grew up learning that being gay was wrong, something to be ashamed of. He seems to hate Percy with everything he has, but in truth he loves him so much that it hurts. He thinks people will turn away from him because of who he is, so he doesn’t let himself get close to anyone. Which is why Will Solace is so amazing, he doesn’t let Nico feel sorry for himself, he doesn’t let him lock himself again… (I know I fangirled so hard in Blood of Olympus)

Annabeth: what can I say about her that you don’t already know? She is Percy’s other half. She keeps him from making an complete idiot of himself (most of the time, it’s a difficult job okay?) Her relationship with Percy is the most cherished thing in the series (aside from Percy himself). It grows from her disliking him (seemingly) to them falling in love. They work well as a team and complete each other. It made perfect sense that the daughter of Athena and the son of Poseidon would fall in love, because of the feud between Athena and Poseidon. Their relationship helped heal the divide between the two gods. Percy learned from her, he became better because of her.

When new characters (Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel and Frank) were introduced in Heroes of Olympus, it was difficult not to compare them to the original characters.

Jason: our new hero…. my first thought when I met Jason in The Lost Hero was he is no Percy. He is respectful, follows rules, is neat, polite and able to control his temper. But I loved him any way. He grew into himself, discovering that just because his dad was a Roman god (Jupiter) did not mean he had to conform the one set of rules. He brought together the two sides together. Maybe it was because we traveled and grew with Percy that we could never really love Jason as much. But in a way, he still under estimated the strength of the Greeks as this post from pipercyofficial.tumblr shows.

   Leo: the humorous best friend…. I loved Leo. But again, he was no Percy. It seemed to me that Rick divided what we loved about Percy into two characters. Leo was a perfect example of how people try to hide their pain through humor. Better to appear happy than allow people into your pain.

Frank and Hazel: I’m putting these two together because I don’t really have much to say about them. Hazel was brought back from the dead and used her second chance to save the world. Frank… the nicest child of Ares/Mars…. depicts how looks can be deceiving. He possible has more power than any of the other demigods, but is the sweetest and most caring out of all of them. He is riddled with insecurities that make him endearing, but he is also proof that sometimes you can only become who you are supposed to be by accepting who you are and proving your worth to yourself.

Piper: She was my least favourite out of the new characters. Every time it was her turn to narrate, I had to suppress a scoff… It wasn’t that she wasn’t brave or intelligent or powerful… It was that the only thing that appeared to matter to her was Jason… And I just could’t get passed that… Or maybe it was that one of the first things she said about Percy (after meeting him) was that he was unimpressive compared to Jason… I was like: “Excuse me girl… You’ve known him (Percy) for what 5 minutes and you are judging him because he doesn’t look impressive? And you called Drew shallow…”

And then there are the gods… I think this is Rick’s most important lesson… You can believe in whatever higher power you want but without you, they are nothing. Gods cannot interfere with the lives of mortals but they need the mortals to believe in them to remain powerful. It makes sense that the children of gods would feel abandoned if they had no contact with their parents or their parents won’t help them no matter how many times they might ask. It shows that BELIEF is a powerful thing. Believing in yourself, in others, in higher powers.

On the subject of the Greek gods, I have to say that Poseidon is my favourite. Out of the three “big”  gods of olympus, Zeus is actually the weakest. Hades controls the legions of the dead and Poseidon controls the oceans (it helped me realise how powerful the ocean actually is). Zeus controls the winds and lightning… But he struggles to admit when he is wrong and needs help. In the Battle of Manhattan (The Last Olympian), Poseidon was the deciding factor when it came to defeating Typhon and the demigods would have been defeated had it not been for Hades’s help.

One of my favourite things about the fandom is that the fans want Percy and Annabeth to be happen… When Rick threw them into Tartarus, the fandom exploded!!!! Like “you just separated them! Made Percy forget everything except Annabeth and then they finally are reunited and you do this????? Just leave them in peace!!!!!” But when Rick releases a new book (or series) the first question is: Is Percy in it? Is Annabeth in it? How can you write a book without them?

Percy Jackson is a series that is timeless. It is well-written, easy to read and for all ages (I’m looking at you, the people who classify it as a children’s book). Rick Riordan and his fans have a wonderful relationship (if you don’t believe me check out his twitter or just look at the dedications for House of Hades and Blood of Olympus).

Maybe if we are really good, we might live to see an accurate television of movie series of the books… (*fingers crossed*)

[Repost] Look, I didn’t want to be a Demigod….. The minute I read the first line of Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief, I was hooked...

[darkestwings]

November 2017 Reading Wrap-Up

Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins (Underland Chronicles, book 1) Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 3 - 4 Read Count:  3 Favorite Thing:  Ripred being a little shit. Least Favorite Thing:  Henry. Blah. Dickhead.

I woke up in the middle of the night with an urge to reread this series, and seeing as I have poor impulse control, I immediately arranged for my husband to go get them all for me from the library.

I know these books are Middle Grade so a few things are a bit silly, like a guy called Sandwich, but the story itself is quality and I recommend it to anyone who likes a fun fantasy adventure.

My Posts About Gregor the Overlander

Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane by Suzanne Collins (Underland Chronicles, book 2) Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 5 Read Count:  3 Favorite Thing:  Twitchtip. I miss her already. Least Favorite Thing:  Please read this in your most disgusted tone, while screwing up your face as if you smell something foul:  Shiners.

Gregor has a lot more self-restraint that I do when it comes to not yelling at people...

I have to admit though, reading this book is a bit more difficult once one knows what's going to happen in the next books!

My Posts About Gregor and the Prophecy of Bane

Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods by Suzanne Collins (Underland Chronicles, book 3) Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 6 Read Count:  3 Favorite Thing:  Gregor grooming Lapblood. Least Favorite Thing:  The descriptions of some of the grosser things like plague victims and Gregor's acid toes...

I read this whole book in like 2 hours! I surprised myself lol I didn't intend to read it that quickly, but since it's middle grade and the story is pretty engaging, I zipped right through it.

My Posts About Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods

Gregor and the Marks of Secret by Suzanne Collins (Underland Chronicles, book 4) Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 6 Read Count:  3 Favorite Thing:  Boots' fucking princess scepter lol Least Favorite Thing:  The Bane. He skeeves me out.

Oh man I had forgotten that this book is way sadder than the others! :(

My Posts About Gregor and the Marks of Secret

Gregor and the Code of Claw by Suzanne Collins (Underland Chronicles, book 5) Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 6 - 7 Read Count:  3 Favorite Thing:  Ripred and Lizzie. It's too sweet! Least Favorite Thing:  I hate one very specific thing about the ending, but only read about it if you don't care about spoilers. (Tumblr people will have to go to the WordPress post for the spoiler.)

I really love this series, I'm so glad it was recommended to me back in high school.

My Posts About Gregor and the Code of Claw

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen Rating:  ★★★★☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 8 - 14 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  The end when Jane wraps everything up. I like the way she does it. Least Favorite Thing:  The way literally no one ever listened to Fanny about her own feelings?????

I'm glad I reread it, I think I even liked it more than Sense & Sensibility now.

My Posts About Mansfield Park

The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 1) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 13 - 15 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  Puppyyyyy! Least Favorite Thing:  Come on, as if I was going to say anything other than Gabe? Please.

It's been a long time since I first read this book and I admit to not enjoying it as much this time around, but I think that's only because it's geared more for younger readers and sometimes I have trouble with the rhythm of Middle Grade books. I'm glad I'm going to finally get down to going through all of Rick's books though.

My Posts About The Lightning Thief

The Sea of Monsters by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 2) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 15 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  lol Tyson Least Favorite Thing:  Clarisse not knowing when to shut her damn mouth...

Oddly enough I remembered almost nothing from this one except for Tyson... So rereading it felt more like reading it for the first time. I have a feeling the rest of them will be like this too.

My Posts About The Sea of Monsters

The Titan's Curse by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 3) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 15 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  Bessiiiiiiie! Least Favorite Thing:  I actually find Nico incredibly annoying...

Would it kill anyone to stop being cryptic? Like wow. Just answer a question somebody!

My Posts About The Titan's Curse

The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 4) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 15 - 16 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  Poseidon showing up for Percy's birthday just to be a drama queen. "Blowfish?" lol Least Favorite Thing:  STILL NOBODY CAN JUST ANSWER A FUCKING QUESTION OR SHARE INFORMATION!

So far this is my favorite of the series. I'm wondering if they will just keep getting better or what.

My Posts About The Battle of the Labyrinth

The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, book 5) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 16 - 17 Read Count:  2 Favorite Thing:  Percy being like "acknowledge your fucking children assholes" at all the gods. Least Favorite Thing:  Guess what. It's still the fact that no one will answer a damn question. I'm so annoyed.

My Posts About The Last Olympian

The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan (Heroes of Olympus, book 1) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 17 - 18 Read Count:  1 Favorite Thing:  Leooo! Precious little fireball. Least Favorite Thing:  It took them way too long to figure certain things out... Like everyone who spoke to them alluded to 2 or 3 specific things and they didn't get it until the very end? Oookay.

My Posts About The Lost Hero

The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan (Heroes of Olympus, book 2) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 18 - 19 Read Count:  1 Favorite Thing:  Ella/Tyson lololololol Least Favorite Thing:  When Octavian talks I roll my eyes so hard I get a headache...

I'm not sure if this one was better than the first one (Lost Hero), but I was really glad to be back to Percy so I enjoyed it more.

My Posts About The Son of Neptune

The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan (Heroes of Olympus, book 3) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 19 - 20 Read Count:  1 Favorite Thing:  "If they'd let women warriors into their cult, the might have learned some common sense." Least Favorite Thing:  Literally only Leo talks about things, everyone else is like "I'll explain later" and "we can talk about it later" and "I hope it's not what I think it is" but they never talk about it!!

My Posts About The Mark of Athena

The House of Hades by Rick Riordan (Heroes of Olympus, book 4) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 20 - 21 Read Count:  1 Favorite Thing:  Bob + Small Bob (I'm not crying, you're crying.) Least Favorite Thing:  Gaea is so fucking annoying...

IS IT TOO MUCH TO ASK FOR LITTLE NICO TO GET A DAMN HUG????? My poor little spooky baby...

My Posts About The House of Hades

The Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan (Heroes of Olympus, book 5) Rating:  ★★★☆☆ Review:  No Reading Dates:  November 21 - 23 Read Count:  1 Favorite Thing:  Nico gets to be happy!!!!! Least Favorite Thing:  Zeus the douche...

I've got all the warm fuzzies from the ending of this book. Thanks, Rick.

My Posts About The Blood of Olympus

In Progress

November 2017 Wrap-Up | WordPress Book Blog