The House of Hades (Book #4 of Heroes of Olympus Series) by Rick Riordan

Synopsis :

Hazel stands at a crossroads. 
She and the remaining crew of the Argo II could return home with the Athena Parthenos statue and try to stop Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter from going to war. Or they could continue their quest to find the House of Hades, where they might be able to open the Doors of Death, rescue their friends Percy and Annabeth from Tartarus, and prevent monsters from being reincarnated in the mortal world. Whichever road they decide to take, they have to hurry, because time is running out. Gaea, the bloodthirsty Earth Mother, has set the date of August 1 for her rise to power.

Annabeth and Percy are overwhelmed. 
How will the two of them make it through Tartarus? Starving, thirsty, and in pain, they are barely able to stumble on in the dark and poisonous landscape that holds new horrors at every turn. They have no way of locating the Doors of Death. Even if they did, a legion of Gaea's strongest monsters guards the Doors on the Tartarus side. Annabeth and Percy can't exactly launch a frontal assault.

Despite the terrible odds, Hazel, Annabeth, Percy, and the other demigods of the prophecy know that there is only one choice: to attempt the impossible. Not just for themselves, but for everyone they love. Even though love can be the riskiest choice of all.


This is what I say :

This is book number 4 in the Heroes of Olympus Series as written by Rick Riordan.  It's been over four years since I read book #1 to #3 of this series.  I wasn't able to get hold of book #4 and #5 but then I wasn't seriously on a look out for them as well

I wasn't able to even get hold of an online copy at that time.  It was out of curiosity that I tried to search for an online copy recently and to my surprise, I managed to find one almost immediately, and not just book #4 but book #5 too.

Surprisingly, it wasn't difficult to get connected with the characters even after an absence of so many years.  I still remember quite clearly what happened to Annabeth and Percy at the end of The Mark of Athena and I was very keen to continue with them their adventure in Tartarus.

Such, book number four, The House of Hades is all about Annabeth and Percy while in Tartarus and the rest of the crew on-board the Argo II trying to make their rendezvous with Annabeth and Percy at the Doors of Death and the adventures each of them go through in order to make this meeting possible.

Can I describe that reading this copy is like having a coffee with a good friend that I have not seen for quite a while?  It was a good read and perhaps even better as the heroes shared their journey, their fear and their acceptance of the challenges ahead. Most of all, it's nice to read about close friendship and comradeship among these youngsters. 

I have started on book #5 so can't wait to share with you on The Blood of Olympus.