Rick Riordan

The god Apollo, cast down to earth and trapped in the form of a gawky teenage boy as punishment, must set off on the second of his harrowing (and hilarious) trials. He and his companions seek the ancient oracles - restoring them is the only way for Apollo to reclaim his place on Mount Olympus - but this is easier said than done. Somewhere in the American Midwest is a haunted cave that may hold answers for Apollo in his quest to become a god again . . . if it doesn't kill him or drive him insane first. Standing in Apollo's way is the second member of the evil Triumvirate - a Roman emperor whose love of bloodshed and spectacle makes even Nero look tame. To survive the encounter, Apollo will need the help of a now-mortal goddess, a bronze dragon, and some familiar demigod faces from Camp Half-Blood. With them by his side, can Apollo face down the greatest challenge of his four thousand years of existence?

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, Book 2)

Zeus has punished his son Apollo–god of the sun, music, archery, poetry, and more–by casting him down to earth in the form of a gawky, acne-covered sixteen-year-old mortal named Lester. The only way Apollo can reclaim his rightful place on Mount Olympus is by restoring several Oracles that have gone dark. What is affecting the Oracles, and how can Apollo/Lester do anything about them without his powers? After experiencing a series of dangerous–and frankly, humiliating–trials at Camp Half-Blood, Lester must now leave the relative safety of the demigod training ground and embark on a hair-raising journey across North America. Fortunately, what he lacks in godly graces he’s gaining in new friendships–with heroes who will be very familiar to fans of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus series. Come along for what promises to be a harrowing, hilarious, and haiku-filled ride.

GROVER FUCKING GROVER IS BACK I HABE NEBER BERN HAPPIER OMG I MISSED HIM

Pia 

I smiled. "Hello, Grover Underwood. I am Apollo. This is Meg. And you, my lucky friend, have been summoned to lead us through the Labyrinth."

"Be with you in a minute," I muttered. Then I passed out.

I’m dying omg pls let him never recover from this it’s hilarious 

"But if we go into that water, won't the snakes kill us?" "Probably!" I grinned. Let's find out!" I jumped into the lake.

Idk Apollo but I like this arrow he is funny

GOEST THOU DOWN THIS ROAD TO THE WEST. THOU SHALT SEEST A ROADSIDE STAND WHICH SELLETH FRESH EGGS. Yes?" THIS ROADSIDE STAND IS NOT IMPORTANT. KEEP DRIVING.

Oh Apollo….I thought we we’re getting a character development here

Yes, thank you! I wanted to yell. FINALLY someone has their priorities straight! I felt, for a moment, as if the world were back in its proper order.

What surprised me was the loud CRACK her fist made against Nanette's facethe sound of finger bones breaking. "Ow!" Calypso stumbled away, clutching her hand.

“I know you’re a goddess so let’s be honest”

ang 

"i hate lester papadopolus" i'm sorry but how does it feel to be wrong ? 🤷🏻‍♀️ (anyway i cried over commodus and apollo)

kelsey

apollo is growing so much as a person and im super proud of him. i loved emmie and jo. im gonna miss leo so much. but grover is back??? like we haven't seen him in so long.

Ellie M.

** spoiler alert **
           
So I finally decided to give my review for this book! First, I would likd to say that Uncle Rick truly never really disappoints with his exciting and action-packed story-telling and it was one of the reasons I’ve loved YA books since I was 15. I seem to really connect with his stories.

Storytelling - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Comedy - ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️


A few points I would like to make:
- It was surprisingly hard for me to make a connection with the story even though I have met almost everyone before, save for Jo & Emmie. Maybe it had to do with the fact that Apollo’s companion heroes were Leo and Calypso. I may get a lot of hate for this, but Leo was least favorite character in HOO, second to Jason. And I never really liked Calypso ever since TTC.
- It was hard for me believe Calypso HAD character devolopment here, it seems to me she was a bit rude to Leo who has done nothing but be nice to her. It made her annoying. 
- It seems to me Caleo is FORCED. I get that Leo came back for Calypso and all, and they’re having a hard time making that deeper connection, but their relationship was going nowhere. It was better Leo came back for Calypso as a friend, rather than this lover whatsoever. 
- Apollo and Meg’s banter is funnier than ever. They’re idiots who shareone ticking brain cell. Sorry not sorry, Lester! 
- Apollo, or so let’s say Lester’s haikus have gotten better! They’re funny as hell. 
- When The Hunters of Artemis made their cameo, I really had to scream saying “oh, look at this pack of lesbians.” 


This book was actually good, but it didn’t give what it was supposed to give.

river

this book was weirdly sad to me from beginning to end and i don't really know why

britt

nina 

Katelyn Payne 

This is everything you would expect from a Rick Riordan book. It's fast paced, lots of smart Alec comments, and plenty of battle. 

***Spoiler***

I was however underwhelmed by how commodus was defeated. He was literally chased out of a window and that was that. 

I did love the back story of why commodus wanted Apollo dead and the entire backstory of them together. 

Overall I would most likely read this book again

definitely enjoyed this one, as I have all of Rick Riordan’s books — it just fell a bit flatter than others. It didn’t grab me as tightly, and it just felt like it was missing something. I read a review that said it was missing something memorable or special, and I agree with that! 

Kelly Macquire

3.75 ✨✨

definitely enjoyed this one, as I have all of Rick Riordan’s books — it just fell a bit flatter than others. It didn’t grab me as tightly, and it just felt like it was missing something. I read a review that said it was missing something memorable or special, and I agree with that! 

Maria Shade

Last half of the book definitely picked up more

Grover at the end made me very happy I miss out og characters

Reading this series feels like reading a bonus chapter for the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus series. Also, a personal preference but I really don’t like when a book makes modern references (i.e. Snapchat and Bill Nye?????)

Somya Verma

Azaura A

A lot of weird things happen, that's it.
xD

Anna

Bon je suis déçue…
D’habitude quand je lis les saga de Rick Riordan j’aime de plus en plus au fil des tomes. Mais là j’avais à peine aimé le tome 1 et c’est la même chose pour le tome 2. 
J’étais vraiment contente après avoir fini les « héros de l’olympe » de me dire que je pouvais prolonger mon expérience dans l’univers Percy Jackson…mais là je suis trop déçue. Je ne m’attache à aucun personnage, juste Apollon. 

Bref j’espère que ce tome 3 sera mieux, vu qu’on va retrouver des personnages principaux de « Percy Jackson » et des « Héros de l’olympe » (du genre Groover, Jason, Piper,…)

Julia Lotz

Apollo muss sich ja neuerdings als pickliger Junge Lester auf der Erde durchschlagen. Aber nun weiß er, was er tun muss, um seine Unsterblichkeit zurückzuerlangen: Er muss die alten Orakel, sein eigentliches Wirkungsfeld, wieder zum Leben erwecken. Mit dem Bronzedrachen Festus fliegt er quer durch die USA, um nach einem Höhlenorakel zu suchen. Doch seine Gegenspieler, der alte römische Kaiser Nero und seine zwei Mitstreiter, wollen ihn daran hindern und laufen zu ganz neuer Fiesheit auf … (Quelle: Carlsen) [/su_spoiler]

Ich bin ein unglaublich großer Rick Riordan-Fan und obwohl ich seine Reihen alle sehr liebe, insbesondere ja Percy, mit dem alles angefangen hat, schlägt mein Herz bei Apollo jedoch besonders schnell. Das ist auch nicht verwunderlich. Auch Autoren, die schon immer gut waren, entwickeln sich weiter und werden besser und das zeigt Rick Riordan definitiv. Ganz abgesehen davon, dass er aber noch tausend mal besser und irgendwie auch lustiger schreibt, als zu Beginn schon, liebe ich aber auch Apollo und seine ganzen Mitmenschen so unglaublich. Hauptsächlich aber Apollo! Definitiv. Mein Camphaus ist Apollo und er sogesehen mein göttlicher Dad und es ist einfach nur episch ihn bzw. seine nicht besonders ansprechende menschliche Hülle auf Abenteuer zu begleiten.

Auch in diesem Buch habe ich wieder viel gelacht. Apollo hat Humor und Rick Riordan sowieso und damit trifft er meinen haargenau. Außerdem ist mein absolutes Highlight im Buch, das wir immer wieder auf Charaktere aus Percy Jackson und den Helden des Olymp treffen und somit eine tolle Verbindung zwischen den einzelnen Reihen hergestellt wird. Mein Highlight war bisher ja Percys kurzer Auftritt im ersten Teil. In Band 2 wurde jetzt jedoch ein besonderer Gast für Band 3 angekündigt. Welcher das ist, verrate ich euch jetzt noch nicht, um allen, die bisher noch nicht zum Buch greifen konnten, die Spannung nicht zu verderben. Lasst es euch aber gesagt sein: Ich bin mehr als gespannt.

Apollo macht sich auch in diesem Band weiter auf die Suche nach den Orakeln, was ihm natürlich auch dieses Mal wieder Stress mit den Römern einbringt. Auch hier hat sich Rick Riordan mit seinem Setting und der Entwicklung der Geschichte wieder einmal selbst übertroffen. Ich bin schon unglaublich gespannt, wie es weitergeht. Auf der anderen Seite hatte Die dunkle Prophezeiung aber auch einen kleinen Hänger, den ich als so typisch für zweite Bände einer Reihe empfinde: Es gab zwar die eine oder andere Enthüllung, wirklich weiter ging es mit der Geschichte jedoch nicht und so erschien mir das Buch ab und an mal etwas träge und wollte nicht wirklich vorangehen.

Auch wenn Band 2 etwas schwächer war, als sein Vorgänger konnte mich Rick Riordan mit Apollo, seinem Humor und dem Storyverlauf beeindrucken. Sosehr ich alle Bücher des Autors liebe: Apollo hat sich innerhalb kürzester Zeit zu meiner Lieblingsreihe entwickelt. Nun freue ich mich wahnsinnig auf Band 3 und hoffe, dass das so bleibt.

jess

LOOK, I'M EXCITED AND REALLY BAD AT PUTTING SPOILER TAGS WHEN I'M EXCITED, READ AT YOUR OWN RISK.

You know, it really amazes me how Rick Riordan can somehow keep his formula going while at the same time turning his own favourite topics around. Because Trials of Apollo is different in its quests than Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Heroes of Olympus, and it's really nice to see. I feel like it revolves around home and family more than others - all the characters we know and love are like, actually safe for once (unless they take a jaunt out to help Apollo). Apollo, meanwhile, seems to always be protecting demigod safe spaces - last time it was Camp Half-Blood, and this time, it's the Waystation. (view spoiler)[Next time: New Rome. (hide spoiler)]

The Waystation is new, but it's a smaller, more domestic version of Camp Half-Blood, run by an elderly ex-Hunters couple, Josephine and Emmie. I really liked them, because they were so soft yet badass, and finally we have f/f in the Riordanverse and it's so ... peaceful? I just love the idea of this elderly couple taking care of half-bloods throughout the years and making the decision to grow old together. This decision comes up a few times, juxtaposed against Artemis's dislike of romance and Apollo's quick flirtations, and I think it's a really cool contrast - and Apollo learns his lesson in the end. While I am sort of sad this destroyed my headcanons, I appreciate Rick's decision to not allow romantic love of any kind in the Hunters, because I think otherwise it would come off as f/f romance being lesser than m/f romance. There's no loopholes; romance is romance and Artemis will not allow it. (Is she confirmed aroace now? Because if so, sweet.)

As the series goes on, Rick is using less well-known parts of Greek/Roman mythology and history, and it's really cool, because I looked up a bunch of stuff while reading this and I'm amazed at how huge mythology is. He keeps digging up more and more minor gods and monsters and they're just as threatening as the famous ones from Percy's time and it's really cool to see. 

Of course, the emperor of the day: (view spoiler)[Commodus (hide spoiler)]. We got so much backstory and it was cool how (view spoiler)[Apollo had a thing with Commodus, because it made a lot of the confrontations between them more powerful. And, you know, from a quick Google search, Commodus may have been bisexual, so it's rooted in history too, which is neat. Oh, and it said on Wikipedia Commodus got assassinated? In Riordanverse, APOLLO IS THE ONE WHO KILLED HIM. What a fucking plot twist. I was floored. (hide spoiler)] I'm really excited for the third emperor: Caligula, please? Or Tiberius. I haven't brushed up on Roman emperors lately, but I feel like those are the most likely. 

Also: Plague arrow. Holy shit. It's hilarious and I'm all for Riordan's talking weapons. Last book I was in tears at it, and this book: HITTEST ME WITH THY BEST SHOT. I fucking died. I'm typing this from the grave. Speaking of humour, Apollo's hilarious. He's still self-centered and narcissistic but it's endearing rather than annoying. The other characters contribute some of the trademark sarcasm, while Apollo failing at pretty much everything he does is some good slapstick humour. (view spoiler)[(Apollo as 16-year-old Lester, trying to flirt with a grad student, falling against the wall, and then realizing the grad student has a girlfriend and Apollo literally running away had me chuckling.) (hide spoiler)]

The whole book is nice and silly and a ride but it has its dark moments too - it gets gory at times, with beheadings and stranglings and sand stained red with blood, but it's all masked by jokes and pop culture references from Apollo. I think the one big criticism I have is that Rick is starting to go a bit too overboard on them. Like, right now, we all remember the water bottle flipping thing and look back on it with a laugh, but in a few years no one's going to remember. Same with a lot of other references: Pokemon Go, for instance. There's also a lot of older ones that the kiddos probably wouldn't get. 

I really liked all the side characters. Leo and Calypso weren't the perfect couple and I liked the conflict between them and how Calypso has gone from the girl who saved Percy to a fully realized character. (view spoiler)[I liked that she was conflicted about her time on Ogygia - that it was a home and a safe place but also a desolate prison for her, and how Leo's "rescue" was also taking her away from that stability she'd known for three millenia. (hide spoiler)] Former immortals bickering was so good too and their dynamic was really funny. Leo is also ... significantly less annoying, I think partially because Rick finally acknowledged that Leo can be kind of insensitive and that it's caused problems with people. He's redeemed himself for me. 

Other side characters, like Jamie, were really good. (view spoiler)[I liked how casually the existence of pantheons that even Apollo doesn't know about are discussed: that's a demigod from ... uh, the Yoruba pantheon? He does't know about it, but they exist, and it's accepted so easily. There are other gods that share duties and even the gods don't know about all the gods. The readers probably wouldn't have known about it as well, and I appreciate that Rick introduces a new and unknown pantheon briefly. It's getting kinda scary though. There are SO MANY now, and from what I can surmise it's basically: every pantheon exists. (hide spoiler)] 

And as for the ending? (view spoiler)[GROVER!!!! GROVER UNDERWOOD!!!! HE'S BACK!! Now I'm excited for the next one. My boy Grover is back. What a cliffhanger. Goddammit, Riordan. (hide spoiler)]

Sandra Tammaru

Leo makes every book more funny, which make sthis book a crackhead! I loved the energy of this book and it was a enjoyable way to spend my time during my commute. I love Riordan's style and the way he uses the source material! Rereadimg these books has been a wonderful idea, happy to continue!

Meghan M

I really enjoyed this sequel to the first book, it really went with what I was hoping it would do. I enjoy the fact that Riordan brought back some characters, who will go unnamed, and how he set it up for the next book as well. This was a very good book in the series and Riordan continues to write amazing books.

dana

Eszter Baranyi

Just as good as the first one. The vibe is so much more nostalgic, and I already miss some characters and their chemistry. Such a well written book.

Stefanie Sugia

"We only fail when we stop trying."
Finally finished the second book in this series! The Dark Prophecy is definitely more exciting than the first one since Apollo have to face enemies who are more dangerous and vicious. It's especially interesting for me because I love going on an adventure with Leo Valdez again after so long—because he's my favorite character from The Heroes of Olympus series. It's also very fascinating to see the dynamic between Apollo and Calypso because they seem to hate each other at first 🤣 Thankfully, their relationship gradually got better along the way. The Trials of Apollo involves a lot of characters that appears in Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Heroes of Olympus series. As I said in my previous review, I didn't remember every little detail meticulously, so it was quite unfortunate. I think I will be able to enjoy this series to the fullest if I remembered them all.

Hopefully I'm not spoiling the story too much when I say that apparently Leo and Calypso won't be tagging along with Apollo the rest of the adventure. But I'm glad to see Meg McCaffrey rejoining the club! Meg has proved herself to be a very strong and skilled demigod when she helped Apollo in completing his quests. For now, we know that Meg will continue to be Apollo's companion in the third book as the dark prophecy said. And this time around, Apollo actually made quite a lot of contributions in defeating the enemies as well. Turns out, he gets a sudden surge of energy whenever he feels the urgency to help the people he cared about—which is a little bit outside of his character that constantly thinks about himself (and Apollo admits this fact as well 🤣), but it's still pretty sweet nonetheless.
  "Everything living deserves a chance to grow."
One of the parts that I remember the most from this book is the tragic story of Apollo's son, Trophonius, and his brother, Agamethus. It was a very dark tale that causes Trophonius to turn into the Dark Oracle. It always fascinates me how Rick Riordan was able to use these kinds of mythology as part of the story that he writes. There's also the story of Hemithea, who gained immortality when she jumped off a cliff and prayed to Apollo. The author emphasized on the theme of LGBT again through Hemithea's character who gave up her immortality to be together with Josephine, who used to be part of Hunters of Artemis. In this book, we're also introduced to Britomartis—a Greek goddess that Apollo used to hit on 🤣. She's a rather interesting goddess because she likes to pull dangerous pranks on other people that involves explosives; only Leo was able to spot those pranks early on. Truly, reading Rick Riordan's books is one of the most enjoyable way to learn mythology 🤓.

Another 'character' that I want to highlight is the Arrow of Dodona. I find every scene when the Arrow of Dodona makes an appearance is a hilarious one because it answers Apollo's questions in Elizabethan accent. The story itself has progressed significantly. We finally met the second emperor of the Triumvirate Holdings and obtain the dark prophecy for Apollo's next quest. I'm glad to see Apollo's character developing through the series of events that he experienced together with his friends. He became (slightly) more compassionate about others instead of only thinking about his own well being. Looking forward to see how his character is going to end up by the end of this series 😊."I remember something Marcus Aurelius used to tell his son, a quote that later became famous in his Meditations book: Think of yourself as dead. You have lived your life. Now, take what's left and live it properly. What doesn't transmit light creates its own darkness."I am currently reading another book, but after that I'll immediately start reading the third book in this series, . According to the dark prophecy, we'll reunite with a lot of old friends from the previous series—which is really exciting! As usual, Rick Riordan's writing is entertaining and easy to read; I enjoyed the humor and had a few good laughs while reading it. I can't wait to see what crazy adventure awaits Apollo and Meg in the next book!🥳

Read my full review here:
http://www.thebookielooker.com/2021/0...

Kaley Catron

ONE WORD. GROVERRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! 💕💕🤗🤗

Ella Zegarra

Debo confesar que no soy gran fanática de la serie de Apollo, me gusta, pero me emociona más la posibilidad de leer a los "invitados especiales" #ifyouknowwhatimean. Y los dos últimos capítulos de The Dark Prophecy me hizo soltar un chillido que ha reafirmado mi reputación de "persona extraña para tener alrededor"

Sigue sin enloquecerme esta serie, junto con los Kane siento que es el trabajo más "flojo" (por decirlo de alguna manera) de Rick, aún así las POSIBILIDADES me emocionan un montón. Ya quiero el siguiente!

PD: toda esa cosa que menciona y menciona otros dioses y otras culturas, más vale que no sea puro ruido para luego decepcionar a mi pobre alma fangirl. Rick sígueme educando e.e

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Maria

рик риордан что ты делаешь прекрати

не знаю, буду ли читать следующую. там явно обещают персонажей героев олимпа - моей любимой серии риордана - но не уверена, хватит ли их, чтобы протащить себя через книгу

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, Book 2)

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