The Hidden Oracle - Trials of Apollo #1

         Apollo is back

         Rick's awesome as usual

         Now I am happy

                                                                - Yours Truly

    When I saw the following haiku in the first chapter of this book, I was smiling like an idiot as I knew I would love it:

     Hoodlums punch my face

I would smite them if I could

Mortality blows

            I am very old fashioned and don't like change. I loved Kane Chronicles and Percy Jackson equally but when both of them got over and I was introduced to a whole new pantheon of Gods, I got just a tad bit irritated. I loved the old characters with all my heart and now I was supposed to switch allegiances? So Magnus Chase was never as close to me as his cousin was. But Trials of Apollo is not a completely new series with a set of new characters. It has a few new characters in a very familiar setting and still shows that Rick Riordan does his research about Greek mythology quite meticulously. Also it covers all the known places. The first book is set in Camp Half Blood(oh how I missed that place!!), the second is set in Indianapolis but there are enough old characters to make you feel at home. 

                 But let me move on to the plot summary before gushing on about this awesome book. The war with the Giants has ended. The two camps have finally found peace. But Zeus needs a scapegoat to blame the war on as the stupid Gods remained silent throughout the war and all Hades would've broken loose if it wasn't for Hera and her mad gamble. Apollo is chosen and he is made mortal for the third time in his 4000 year existence. The struggle that he faces forms the entire series. The Oracle of Delphi has gone silent and so Apollo and his master Meg (daughter of Demeter which is kind of obvious from the beginning) have to free the five Oracles from the hands of a group so powerful that they might have been responsible for the last 10 books(Percy Jackson series and the Heroes of Olympus series).

                  The story is wonderfully written and the new arrogant, four thousand year old voice is a pleasant change from the teenage narration that we are used to in Rick Riordan's earlier books. Though Apollo is technically a teenager here, he has stories thousands of years old to tell. It's awesome to know the thought processes of a God and what his feelings are regarding quests and sending heroes in his place to sacrifice their lives. In other words, Apollo gets a taste of his own medicine. More importantly, Percy, Rachel and other who are supposed to be dead (but we know they aren't!) make a comeback in this book. 

                    Even thought the author's the same, one can easily distinguish between the voices of Percy and that of Apollo which is a great feat by itself. Another wonderful thing about Rick Riordan's books is the fact that he can write a serious para and then go back to sarcasm in a single sentence. There's a bit of romance, lots of sarcasm and stupidity, quite a bit of friendship and also betrayal. This book is just as interesting as the others and even though it is labelled as young-adult or fantasy, anybody from ages 10 to 100 can enjoy this book. I really can't find any more words to describe this masterpiece!

So without further ado, let's move on to the quotes: (By the way, with all those haiku choosing five quotes was not an easy task!)

In my four thousand six hundred and twelve years, I have done many things. I inflicted a plague on

the Greeks who besieged Troy. I blessed Babe Ruth with three home runs in game four of the 1926

World Series. I visited my wrath upon Britney Spears at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards.

But in all my immortal life, I never before crash-landed in a Dumpster.

“Oh, no, no, no.” I staggered around the sidewalk, hoping the flab would not follow me. “Where

are my eight-pack abs? I always have eight-pack abs. I never have love handles. Never in four

thousand years!”

I understood why Poseidon had been so smitten with her. Sally Jackson possessed just the right combination of compassion, strength, and beauty. She was one of those rare mortal women who could connect spiritually with a god as an equal—to be neither terrified of us nor greedy for what we can offer, but to provide us with true companionship. If I had still been an immortal, I might have flirted with her myself. But I was now a sixteen-year-old boy. My mortal form was working its way upon my state of mind. I saw Sally Jackson as a mom—a fact that both consternated and embarrassed me. I thought about how long it had been since I had

called my own mother. I should probably take her to lunch when I got back to Olympus.

“Nosoi?” Percy planted his feet in a fighting stance, “You know, I keep thinking, I have now killed every single thing in Greek mythology. But the list never seems to end.” “You haven’t killed me yet,” I noted. “Don’t tempt me.”

 Nearby, a second lion sat at the feet of a woman with tinted glasses and a silver-and-gold tiara in her braided hair. Her batik dress swirled with images of fern fronds. Her arms and hands were covered in henna tattoos. She looked different than she had in my dream, but I recognized her. “Rhea,” I croaked. She inclined her head. “Peace, Apollo. I don’t want to bum you out, but we need to talk.” 

(Btw, I love hippie Rhea! And pardon the lengthy quotes.)

The final rating is:

10/10 - Awesome (obviously)