as corny as some of the parts of this book are (i’m looking at you, cupid!), i think it is overwhelmingly emotional compared to the other books and i loved every second of it.

some of tartarus was repetitive (annabeth used the same antagonization tactic like 3 times), but it introduced some of my favorite monsters thus far— the arai. the way percy kept taking curse after curse to save annabeth was so gutwrenchingly heroic. i was sucked into the angst in the best possible way. not to mention the chapters where the two demigods were fighting to get into the doors of death— i cried!

overall i love the way this book developed frank, leo, and nico’s characters. i will admit i was hoping for more dimension from piper, especially from her charmspeak, but i’m hoping i’ll get that in BoO.

regardless of my criticisms, this might be one of my favorites of the series. i devoured this book, eager to get to the ending. it paid off. i can’t believe i hadnt read it sooner.