His endearing relationship with Meg, his polar opposite, continues to develop on the sidelines of all the action. There's less focus on character development here than in the first book, The Hidden Oracle, mostly because Apollo has already accepted his fate as a tortured mortal. It's all big fun, but it does blur together after a while. By the end of the book you'll need the help of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory, just to recall when Apollo and friends fought the giant serpent, when they were set upon by pits of smaller venomous snakes or weird creatures with faces below their armpits, or by Germani soldiers, or by helmeted fighting ostriches. If you like fighting mythological creatures and impossible quests that lead to more impossible quests and more fighting mythological creatures, you will thoroughly dig this sequel. The multistep quest sounds hard enough, but to make matters worse, both the bloodthirsty megalomaniac Commodus and the oracle Trophonius have very old scores to settle with Apollo. They must be saved, and soon, and the throne of Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory, must be recovered or their friends will be forced to fight in the arena and their daughter will go mad. They explain that slowly Commodus had kidnapped everyone, including the griffins and Emmie and Jo's 7-year-old adopted daughter. When Apollo and friends enter, the many rooms are empty except for the ex-hunters Emmie and Jo.
With the help of former Artemis hunters, they escape to the Waystation, a sentient building that houses an assortment of demigods, griffins, and the formerly immortal. The streets are teaming with the minions of Emperor Commodus - very strong creatures called blemmyae with faces in their chests. In THE DARK PROPHECY, when Apollo, Leo, and Calypso land in Indianapolis atop their metal dragon Festus, they're greeted with an ambush. For animal-loving kids, expect one sad animal death and a commitment by characters to take care of the mistreated animals. For kids who dislike snakes, watch out for the giant serpent and the pit of poisonous vipers. The violence ratchets up a little from the last book thanks to arena fighting (with tortured animals - blame Commodus), some beheadings (three simply because Commodus was bored), and lots of skirmishes with mythological creatures who cause injuries to mortals. Like in the first book, there's a lot to learn about mythology and history, especially about the Roman Emperor Commodus' reign. And, for extra credit, reading the Apollo chapter in Percy Jackson's Greek Gods helps when our "suddenly mortal and very unhappy about it" narrator Apollo recounts key moments of his godly life. The storyline picks up after the war at the end of the Heroes of Olympus, and many old favorite characters make cameos or are mentioned (yay, Leo!). It helps to read them both before digging into the Trials of Apollo series.
TRIALS OF APOLLO THE DARK PROPHECY SERIES
Did you follow that? The Percy Jackson and the Olympians series came first, then the Heroes of Olympus. Parents need to know that The Dark Prophecy is the second book in a series that's a spin-off of a Percy Jackson spin-off series. Talk of girls running away from a drunken father.ĭid you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide. Flashback to one man choking another to death.ĭid you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.
People, including children, are kidnapped and held prisoner two men go on a hunger strike. The mention that an elephant's partner was killed as punishment. Animals attack: a giant serpent, a pit of poisonous snakes, a swarm of bees. Some injuries that require magical healing including a broken hand and foot, bloody wounds from swords, and madness. Many skirmishes where mythological creatures get skewered by poleaxes, hit with arrows, blinded, killed in explosions, and more and then turn to dust. Heads chopped off - three of them for boring the emperor, and one brother cuts off another brother's head after he becomes trapped and crushed, all so they can't be implicated in a crime (the ghost of the headless brother is a minor character). Arena fighting with exotic, tortured animals, cars, and an assortment of weapons causes injuries.
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