The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan - Heroes of Olympus Book Three

*This review contains spoilers.*

So, The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan, third in the Heroes of Olympus series.

I absolutely loved this book. I really love the Percy Jackson stuff in general, as I love Greek mythology, and I think the books have the perfect balance of humor, action, romance and tragedy, i.e. the makings of a classic. Needless to say, I was ecstatically looking forward to getting this book, because I love all of Rick Riordan's stuff, and expected this to be no different.

 Even then I was surprised how much I loved this book.

Of course, I love Riordan's style, and the general premise of the Percy Jackson books, and you do, too, if you've searched for this post, i.e. if you're a fan of the series, this will not disappoint. Books where people lose their memories or are lost for some time usually irk me, and even though I love this series enough for that not to happen, I was very pleased that Jason, Piper, Leo, Hazel, Frank, Percy and Annabeth were all back together, knowing who they all are.

Another aspect of this book was the emotional growth of the characters. I feel like we saw a lot more of Percy and Jason in terms of how they feel about their leadership, which was a fascinating and enjoyable delve into their psyches. Also, and I've never really felt much of a connection to Annabeth, there was a little more depth to her, and I guess I saw her as less of an abstraction in this installment.

Okay, romance! Piper and Jason are wonderful...I think they have what I consider the ideal relationship archetypes for some reason, with him being a child of Zeus, and her of Aphrodite...it just feels like the way things should be...and they're all sweet and caring about each other and such. ...And Percy and Annabeth...I actually had a tear brought to my eye by this one. There was a point where Percy had just gotten Annabeth back, and he says that he always feels like he's walking on eggshells and that any second he might shatter his relationship...and that made my tear up, all vulnerable sounding and such. They were also more open then we've ever seen them, which I really enjoyed...and I've always nursed a bit of a thing for Percy...so, yeah.

In short, the book was absolutely excellent! The romance, the humor, the style, the mythology, the pacing, the plot, the everything was completely perfect! I even liked the ending...both joyous and tragic, in its way.

Complete Tangent: This book just brought me back to the good old days...I decided to read Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief in the stairwell of my middle school. I talked to some girl I thought I hated in chem my junior year because she had The Lost Hero...yes, it was probably started with 12 year old boys in mind, but I don't care. Warm and fuzzy feelings, I say! Not as many feels as Harry Potter, but just pleasantly familiar and good and such. I've started college, and I'm disappointed with the way it all turned out and I'm just kinda miserable about it...put Percy Jackson made me happy in a way I haven't been since I got here, and I thank him for that.

Back on track: Basically, best book ever and you should absolutely read it!

The Casual Vacancy by J.K. Rowling

*This review contains spoilers.*

It's JKR's first book for adults, I'm going to assume you know what it is about if you've looked this up and/or aren't living under a rock.

Before I give a judgment, I want to say that, of course, the style of this book was phenomenal, and just so engaging. I mean, it's JKR, aka the greatest storyteller ever, and the various narratives that made up this book were superbly woven together and completely engaging and I went through it rather quickly.

I also want to say that I think part of my childhood may have been shattered. On my other blog, I've enumerated many times the impacts which Harry Potter has had on my life, and how I have learned everything I ever needed to know from that series, even giving a speech on it in AP Lit, and that JKR is basically the gospel of my life.

And then I read this book. It frightened me, truly. Everyone in Pagford seems to being living lives of quiet desperation, and there is so much pettiness and meanness and incivility and I don't know what to think. I'm not even sure I can come up with a theme or message at this point, I'm so shell-shocked.

I don't know why the death and misery of this book is so much more hopeless than the death and misery in the Harry Potter series, but it just is....in Casual Vacancy there is no one side of goodness, not even one character that is truly good, or even sympathetic...

I miss children's literature...it was grand and sweeping and epic and had something worth fighting for in it.

Thanks for reading, I'll probably talk more about this book as I analyze it more.