User blog comment:SayuriDarling/The House of Hades Official Discussion/@comment-4430596-20131010214045

So, here's my review of House of Hades (Spoiler Alert) I think this was my favorite Heroes of Olympus book so far. It wasn't as funny as the previous ones, but it was much darker and explored the characters more deeply, which I thought were both good changes from previous books. This book had a good plot, but I feel like, for some characters, character development was a bigger issue, so I'm gonna break it down by character:

Percy: this book was his. Some people will say that it was about all seven, but Percy, to me, seemed like the main focal point. From the Lightning Theif to the Mark of Athena, we saw Percy one way: the infallible symbol of goodness, with an incredible moral compass. HoH really made me see him in a different light. I never read the Demigod Files, so I never gave much thought to him lying to Iapetus and leaving him in Hades. However, in HoH it occurred to me for the first time how un-Percy like this was. Normally Percu would go out of his way to come check on Bob. But then I realized, maybe it isn't un-Percy like. I understand he can't go back to Ogygia, but he barely gave Calypso a second thought. He knew the gods don't keep their words but he still didn't check on it. Another big change in thinking came from their journey through Tartarus. We began to see that maybe the monsters aren't necessarily evil. Would you want to refo on Tartarus constantly? As we saw with Damasen, there are consequences for giants that aren't aggressive. Perhaps the same applies to monsters and they attack because they don't want to spend eternity in Tartarus. Even Percy admits that he's not sure if they're the good guys or not. Obviously, they're better than monsters, but it another interesting way of thinking. Annabeth: we saw a lot of her, but her character remained fairly static. She was still the same old Annabeth, smart and carrying about Percy. I was impressed by how much she supported Percy in Tartarus. I had thought she would lean on him more, but it was the other way around. Leo: still my favorite character. Up until arriving at Ogygia, he was the same old awesome Leo. After Ogygia, he saw a lot of character change. I like witty, jovial Leo, but I think it's good for him to develop a more serious tone. I believe he will do all in his power to return to Calypso. That's what makes him arguably a better hero than Percy and Odysseus. Jason: his relationship with njcl was interesting. I like how t changed from mutual distrust to one-sided distrust. He believes in Nico now. It was interesting how Hazel viewed Jason. She couldn't really get a read on him. I thinks this shows that Jason is pretty reserved. He's the least effusive of the seven. I liked his return to Lost Hero Jason in this one, not unconscious MoA Jason. Jason's big things was his descision to switch to Greek. I think at the end of the series he'll go to CHb and Percy and annabeth will go to CJ. Pipers revaluation about to storm or fire was interesting. I think if one of them dies, it's Leo. He's a abetted tragic figure. If he died before retrieving Calypso, then double whammy. I just don't think all seven will make I out alive. Piper: she onl had four chapters. She did one important thing. Yay! Frank: he might have hanged the most. He's now self confiden and more mature. I really like this about him. He's coming into his own as a leader. The scene where the dean soldiers would only respond to him was priceless. I'm looking for big things from him in BoO Hazel: she had so much buildup and her climax was kinda a dud. I thought he way she defeated Pasiphae made the sorceress look incredibly weak and pathetic. From what we saw of her, defeating her isn't hat impressive. Nico: well, he's gay. I read the spoiler before the book came out and I was certain it was false. It wasn't. This adds a whole new dimension to his character. We see why he's so bitter and closed off to the rest of the world. He's gay and the love of his life is straight. I believe him when he said that after the quest he was leaving. I think the end of BoO will be the last most people see of Nico. Iapetus and Damasen: the walking deus ex machina's were wonderful additions. I was captivated by Iapetus's struggle with his identity. Damasen was predictable, but likeable. I felt bad for him being stuck fighting the dragoon constantly. Not gonna a lie, I nearly cried when Peru said hello to he sun and stars. However, I think both of them will reform in BoO