“When our dragon declared war on Indiana, I knew it was going to be a bad day.”

From Rick Riordan’s The Trials of Apollo: The Dark Prophecy.

Apollo (Greek god of poetry, music, healing, prophecy, and the sun) is still powerlessly stuck in the overweight human body of Lester Papadopoulos and bound to obey the young, fashion-blind, Meg McCaffery until Zeus feels he has learned his lesson.  However, things only seem to be going wrong for Apollo as he has to face the terrifying prophecy, restore his many neglected oracles, return to his godly position, and find a way to free Meg from her evil stepfather, Nero.  Apollo partners with demigod Leo, his previously-eternally-captive girlfriend, Calypso, and Leo’s mechanical dragon, Festus, to carry out his mission.  Apollo and his companions are able to find shelter at a Waystation and help from two former hunters that have rejected immortality to be together, however, the two women ask Apollo for help in rescuing their young daughter, Georgina, who went missing after seeking the Oracle of Trophonius to stop Emperor Commodus from destroying their way of life.  While fighting bad guy Lityerses, Apollo is thrilled and confused to see Meg arrive and join the fight, but her unwillingness to talk about her time with Nero worries Apollo.  Apollo and Meg then head to see the Oracle of Trophonius for themselves, despite a dangerous prophecy, but the results leave Apollo without his sanity until Meg can find some way to save his mind so the pair can return to their friends and join the fight to protect the Waystation before it’s too late.

This Greek/Roman series further dives in the world created in the Percy Jackson series.  The second book in the series has solid pacing which allows readers to be drawn into a page-turning adventure that has enough details and imagery to support the constantly-developing story.  The Dark Prophecy is another interesting story in an captivating series of ancient mythology that showcases Riordan’s well-loved humor, wit, and creativity.