Birthday/Christmas Book Haul 2017

I thought I would put my holiday book haul here as well as on my YouTube channel. 

I'm so thankful that my family will spoil me like this. It helps me out-especially when I haven't bought a lot of books this year to save money and will probably continue to do so.

Here are the books I was gifted:

Hammer of Thor by Rick Riordan

Ship of the Dead by Rick Riordan

Dawn Study by Maria V. Snyder

Pipe Dreams by Sarina Bowen

Bountiful by Sarina Bowen

United by Melissa Landers

Take the Key and Lock Her Up by Ally Carter

Waistcoats and Weaponry by Gail Carriger

Manners and Mutiny by Gail Carriger

Starflight by Melissa Landers

Starfall by Melissa Landers

Storyteller by Jody Piccoult

Without Merit by Colleen Hoover

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon

Written in Red by Anne Bishop

What did you get this year?

Thanks for reading!

Holly 

Review: Blood of Olympus by Rick Riordan

Series: Heroes of Olympus Book #5

Format: Hardcover

Pages:  528

Rating: 4 Stars

How I Got It: Gift

So, I thought I already wrote this review. Come to find out I didn’t so I’ve forgotten a lot of things. Overall, I enjoyed this book and thought it was a decent conclusion. I do have some issues, but they aren’t new.

My biggest problem is that there are too many characters. There’s already seven main characters, but then Nico and Reyna are added to the mix. I liked them as characters, but by giving them more time other characters got pushed aside. I feel like Frank and Hazel especially never get to be true main characters with real development.

But I am satisfied with how the plot was resolved. Rick Riordan does a good job of constantly throwing stuff at me so I don’t know how to fix everything. And I thought the stakes were appropriately high. I know some people think the ending is a little unresolved, but I feel like that’s what makes it work.

This is kind of unrelated, but I feel like sharing. I’m not sure if I’ll ever read the Kane chronicles, but I do plan on reading the Norse gods books. My plan is to read them after at least a few have been published, because Rick Riordan is not afraid of the heart-breaking cliffhangers.

Thanks for reading!

Review: The House of Hades by Rick Riordan

Series: Heroes of Olympus Book #4

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 583

Rating: 4 Stars

How I Got It: Purchased

It took me almost a week to read this book. I know for some people that would be considered fast or normal, but for me that’s slow. I am still enjoying the characters and overall story, but this is probably my least favorite. It’s just hard to keep all of the characters and their individual stories straight. That’s the danger of having such a large cast.

Now, there was a crap-ton of Percy and Annabeth. They both had POV chapters and they were plentiful. I did enjoy reading about them and they are great characters. It was especially nice to see them so low, because it really shows their individual strengths and weaknesses. And they are a very solid couple. They have drama, but it’s more like them working together to fight outside drama. But I’m guessing they’ll be more of side characters in the last book since they were such a large part of this one.

Then, there’s Leo. And I’ll say it-he’s my favorite. He’s really grown throughout the series. And he has so much going on in this book. He’s becoming more than comic relief and I am eager to see how his character continues to grow in the last book.

Frank and good old Coach Hedge have also developed a lot. Their going through little personal struggles and I’m loving it. I’ve liked Frank in the past, but he’s slowly making his way up my favorite character list.

Then, there’s Jason and Piper. These characters just keep disappointing me as the series progresses. I find them the least interesting and, at this point, I don’t really get why they’re here. I don’t hate them, but I think they are the casualties of having so many “main” characters in a book.

I do want to see how this story resolves, but I’m not dying to pick up the last book. So, eventually I’ll read it and I’m sure I’ll tell you how I feel.

Thanks for reading!

Review: The Mark of Athena by Rick Riordan

Series: Heroes of Olympus Book #3

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 586

Rating: 4 Stars

How I Got It: Gift

Things are getting pretty serious and more mature. Although, some of the characters behaved in ways that bothered me.

I was so glad to read from Annabeth’s POV. I’ve liked her for years and have seen her grow up, but have never been in her head. She’s even more intelligent and awesome than I thought. It’s also great to see her weaknesses.

Speaking of Annabeth-let’s talk Percabeth. They are so freaking adorable and I love seeing them as a more mature couple. I love how supportive they are of each other.

Leo really stepped it up. I’m really liking him and am invested in his story. Although, I’m already over the weird is it or isn’t it a love triangle between Leo, Frank, and Hazel. I hope this doesn’t carry through the remaining books.

My biggest issue is Piper. I really liked her in the first book, but I don’t understand why she got a POV. Her chapters didn’t really propel the plot and seemed to be just there to show Jason without Jason being competition for Percy.

And I’m still loving Coach Hedge. He’s like a little hidden gem in these books and hopefully he keeps being like that.

Thanks for reading!

~Holly

Review: The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

Series: Heroes of Olympus Book #2

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 528

Rating: 4 Stars

How I Got It: Gift

I may have waited too long to write this review, but I’ll try. This book is a lot like the first one. It’s laying down the groundwork for the series with three different characters-Percy, Frank, and Hazel. And this one takes place in the Roman world instead of Greek.

Personally, I enjoyed to the Roman Camp and reading about how they function. It’s a different look at demigod life and continues to expand the world.

Percy is still Percy, but he’s getting more mature which makes sense and I like seeing it. Frank and Hazel were also fun characters. I wanted to get to know them and quickly became invested in them. And Rick Riordan is keeping up with the diversity. Hazel is African-American and Frank is Chinese-Canadian.

The plot was pretty traditional for a Rick Riordan book: A small group of characters go on a time-sensitive quest and face several monster struggles on the way. But like a good Power Rangers episode it’s not bad just because it’s formulaic. I will say the tone seemed to be a little darker and more serious then I’m used to. Again though, this isn’t a bad thing.

I am eager to read the next book and to finish the series. And I want to see all of these characters interacting with each other. However, I’m nervous that if seven characters come together the result will be in some of the characters becoming background and not getting as much development. I guess I’ll find out when I read them.

Thanks for reading!

~Holly

Review: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan

Series: Heroes of Olympus Book #1

Format: Hardcover

Pages: 553

Rating: 4 Stars

How I Got It: Gift

These have been staring at me from my shelf and I figured it was about time to read them. I think I might like this more than the Percy Jackson books. The world is expanding and I really like these characters.

I really like being able to go between different POVs. There’s more diversity in thought and perspective. Actually, there’s a decent amount of diversity in general. Piper is probably my favorite character and I most connected to her. Leo is my least favorite of the three because he gets a little mopey. But I do still like him a lot.

Like I already said, the plot is growing. I wish a little more was revealed, but I can respect that this is the first in a five book series, so mysteries are needed. And I am curious to see where it goes.

I have one spoilery thing.

Honestly, I don’t know if this counts as a spoiler, but better safe than sorry.

I really like that Hera is a good guy. Or as good as a god can be. She tends to get screwed in a lot of stories, so this is a nice departure and I hope it sticks around.

Now, I have an internal struggle. I want to keep reading, but I know the next book isn’t about these characters. I’m sure I’ll grow o love the new characters, but it makes me sad to leave these ones behind-even for just one book.

Thanks for reading!

~Holly