Review: The Hidden Oracle [The Trials of Apollo, book 01]

Title:       The Hidden Oracle [The Trials of Apollo, book 01]
Author:   Rick Riordan
Rating:   ★★★★★

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Rick Riordan has done it again (and again and again). I don't know which god (Nordic/Roman/Greek/Egyptian?) is responsible for inspiring him – though I have a feeling they would all clamor for the credit – and I have no complaints. The Hidden Oracle got my heartbeat racing – and I didn't even read the synopsis before buying.

How do you punish an immortal?

By making him human.

After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and disorientated, he lands in New York City as a regular teenage boy. Now, without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favour.

But Apollo has many enemies - gods, monsters and mortals who would love to see the former Olympian permanently destroyed. Apollo needs help, and he can think of only one place to go . . . an enclave of modern demigods known as Camp Half-Blood.

As soon as I bought my copy, I hunkered down and read it straight for three hours. Reading The Hidden Oracle felt like one big fun adventure, especially since seeing the world through Apollo as a sixteen-year-old human was highly amusing. It's not that I needed full concentration to enjoy this, but because I wanted to lose myself in this world. How I missed Camp Half-Blood!

If you've been reading Riordan's Percy Jackson/Olympus series, then you know that Apollo is one of the most arrogant gods, although he has his nice moments. The book was peppered with praises of his godliness and awesomeness. I love how Riordan modernizes the portrayals of the Greek gods as seen in Homer's Illiad. If we had these books back when we were studying Illiad, I think a lot of the class would easily ace our quizzes on which god did what.

I loved seeing Apollo fall – literally and figuratively, several times. It was the humbling of a god who, through his carelessness, brought so much downfall to humans (and consequently, the gods) the past few years.

And Meg, whose last name was not mentioned, as a twelve-year-old kid blowing raspberries and being a great antithesis to his godly arrogance, was easily charming that the end of the book had me anxious on her behalf. She has the potential of being an awesome and precious character.

We are also treated to a few glimpses of Percy Jackson, which always thrills me, and Nico is also a secondary character. If you're a fan of Nico and his...revelation, you're in for a treat with The Hidden Oracle. We also get Leo Valdez back, and I am excited to see what other machines he's going to come up with in the next books in the series. We are also treated to scenes of Mother Rhea as a trippy hippy, and she is one of the characters I am most excited to know more about.

There is a surprising revelation in who the villain is – and I have a feeling this is the last book in the Olympus bracket (explaining would ruin the story!). Hopefully we'll get more glimpses of our beloved heroes from his other series as Apollo faces formidable villains in The Trials of Apollo series. I suppose the next book in the series, The Dark Prophecy, will be out next year – and that will definitely be on my auto-buy list.

Just like Riordan's other books, his writing transported me right in the thick of things and Chiron's red heels (read the book!). I would definitely recommend this to all fans of Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson, and young adult fantasy, mythology, and just generally great stories. Go get it.

Happy reading! :)