Review: The Hidden Oracle - Rick Riordan

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan
Series : The Trials of Apollo
My rating: {★★★★☆} 

MiddleGrade Fantasy Adventure
Published May 3rd 2016 by Disney-Hyperion

Source: Borrowed

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.

I've always enjoyed Riordan's books and this one did not disappoint me in any way. It was full of adventure, action, diversity, humour and also a depth of emotion that is rare to find in books such as these.

I loved seeing some old favourite characters, although not as many as I would have liked (though the next book promises more on that front) and I loved getting to know Apollo. Riordan has done a marvellous job of portraying a Greek God who has been cast down to Earth by his father, Zeus. I've only ever read Riordan's Percy Jackson universe books, but I love his unique twist on the mythology and the personality that he gives to each of his characters.

The plot felt fresh (yes, even after completing the previous two series!!) and left me wanting more, more, more! I actually loved Apollo and his character development through out the book - he was completely narcissistic and annoying and terribly flawed, but all these things just made his character that much more appealing.

Exercise is nothing more than a depressing reminder that one is not a god.

I loved Meg and the fact that she's such a tough little cookie as well as being a total kick-ass daughter of Demeter (the goddess of grains and fertility). It's not only the hunters of Artemis or daughters of Athena that get to be awesome here in this world.

Now here I was—a servant to Meg McCaffrey, the most ragamuffin daughter of Demeter ever to swing a sickle.

I mentioned diversity but I want to go into that a little more seeing as I read this book as a part of my #FantasticallyDiverse read-a-thon.

• Cultural Diversity

There are characters of all cultural backgrounds featured in this book (and most of Riordan's books: He's always been wonderfully diverse).

• Canon Gay Couple

Nico and Will are (still) in a relationship and this is featured nicely in this book

• Openly Bisexual Protagonist

Apollo openly recognises his bisexuality and mentions how this wasn't controversial at all and that 'we Gods are not hung up about such things'.

We gods are not hung up about such things. I myself have had…let’s see, thirty-three mortal girlfriends and eleven mortal boyfriends? I’ve lost count.

Overall I completely enjoyed this most recent installment of the PJ universe and Camp Half Blood. It was snarky, funny and touching and something I think everyone should have a chance to read.

"When one is a god, the world hangs on your every word. When one is sixteen…not so much."