Book Review: The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

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BOOK review

Started on: 2 January 2021
Finished on: 15 January 2021

 

The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2) by Rick Riordan

 

Title: The Dark Prophecy (The Trials of Apollo, #2)

Author: Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Pages: 414 pages / 432 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2017
Price: Rp 191,000 (https://www.periplus.com/)

Rating: 5/5

*for those who haven't read the first book, this review may contain spoiler. 

Review for The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo, #1) by Rick Riordan here.
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"We only fail when we stop trying."

After a series of life-threatening events at Camp Half-Blood, Apollo (a.k.a Lester Papadopoulos) must embark on a journey across North America to accomplish his next quest. He's accompanied by Leo Valdez and Calypso this time around to face the next emperor who's part of the Triumvirate. As he faced various enemies along the way, Apollo is also forced to confront his past mistakes to finally obtain the dark prophecy regarding his future.

"It's not how long you live that matters. It's what you live for."

Book Review: The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo, #1) by Rick Riordan

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BOOK review

Started on: 18 December 2020
Finished on: 1 January 2021

 

The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo, #1) by Rick Riordan

 

Title: The Hidden Oracle (The Trials of Apollo, #1)

Author: Rick Riordan
Publisher: Disney Hyperion

Pages: 375 pages / 384 pages (e-book)
Year of Publication: 2016
Price: Rp 142,000 (https://www.periplus.com/)

Rating: 5/5 
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"What those trials will be, I do not yet know. But I will suffer through them and prove I am worthy, Zeus will forgive me and allow me to become a god again."

After angering his father, Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus and become human. He lands in New York city as a teenage boy named  Lester Papadopoulos with flabs and acne. Without his godly powers, the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favour. He seeks help from demigods at Camp Half-Blood, where he discovers that demigods have gone missing mysteriously. And so begins Apollo's first trial in his mortal form.

"How could I get used to being merely good? Why would I strain myself to get better when before I had been divine?"

★ To All the Books I Read in 2020 (Short Reviews) ★

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🎉 HAPPY NEW YEAR 2021, EVERYONE! 🎉

 

It's the new year and I only wrote 4 book reviews out of 20 books that I read last year 😅. I know, it's sad, but don't judge me. It has been a very strange year for everyone but 2020 is still a year that I am grateful for because a lot of good things happened. One of them is: I finally got married! 💍 Isn't that crazy? I've had this blog since 2011 when I was still a college student and all I think about is assignments. Now, all I think about is washing the dishes and doing the laundry LOL 🤣. 2020 was also a year when my best friends got engaged and got married too, so there's a lot of things to be celebrated. As it is every other year, of course there are not-so-good things that happened as well. But I decide to focus on the good things in life and be grateful for every blessing that comes my way 😊.

Back in 2017, I made a similar post which you can read here; basically this post will sum up all the books that I read in 2020 and a short impression on several books that I didn't get to review this year. Even though I didn't read a lot of books this year, I'm glad I managed to complete my Goodreads Reading Challenge to read 20 books 🤓.

 

Book Review: Where is God in a Coronavirus World? by John C. Lennox

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BOOK review

Started on: 15 December 2020
Finished on: 17 December 2020

 

Where is God in a Coronavirus World? by John C. Lennox

Title: Where is God in a Coronavirus World?

Author: John C. Lennox
Publisher: The Good Book Company

Pages: 64 pages
Year of Publication: 2020
Price: Rp 111,439 (https://www.bookdepository.com/)

Rating: 4/5 
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"Your worldview will make a difference to how you react to disasters like the coronavirus pandemic, and to earthquakes or tsunamis."

We are living through a unique period when many of our old uncertainties have gone, whatever our view of the world and whatever our beliefs may be. The coronavirus pandemic and its effects are perplexing and unsettling for all of us. In this short yet profound book, professor John C. Lennox  examines the coronavirus in light of various belief systems and shows how the Christian worldview not only helps us to make sense of it, but also offers us a sure and certain hope to cling to.

 

Book Review: The Ickabog by J.K. Rowling

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BOOK review

Started on: 9 December 2020
Finished on: 14 December 2020

The Ickabog by J.K. Rowling

Title: The Ickabog

Author: J.K. Rowling
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

Pages: 282 pages / 304 pages (e-book)

Year of Publication: 2020
Price: Rp 299,039 (https://www.bookdepository.com/)

Rating: 5/5

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Once upon a time there's a tiny kingdom called Cornucopia, famous for its food and delicacies. From delicious cream cheeses of Kurdsburg to the pastries of Chouxville, each was so delicious that people wept with joy as they ate them. But even in this happy and rich kingdom, a monster lurks in the shadow. Legend tells of a fearsome creature living far to the north in the Marshlands, called the Ickabog. Some people believe that the Ickabog captures sheeps and children, but some people say it's just a myth. When this myth started casting a shadow over the kingdom, two children embark on an adventure to reveal the mystery behind the Ickabog, bringing hope and happiness to Cornucopia once more.

"They lived in the happiest kingdom in the world. What harm could the Ickabog do?"

Book Review: 40 Days of Faith by Paul David Tripp

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BOOK review
Started on: 4 December 2020
Finished on: 8 December 2020

40 Days of Faith by Paul David Tripp

Title: 40 Days of Faith

Author: Paul David Tripp
Publisher: Crossway Books

Pages: 96 pages
Year of Publication: 2020
Price: Rp 157,153 (https://www.bookdepository.com/)

Rating: 4/5
*This e-book was received as a review copy from Crossway
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"Faith is much more than a one-time decision; it is a lifestyle lived with the presence, promises, and call of God always in view."

This new book by Paul David Tripp contains a series of short devotionals for 40 days that will encourage readers to live a life of faith. Each devotionals are short enough to read in about 5 minutes or less but will certainly propel us to treasure the life-changing truths of God's Word more fully. Through this book, the writer urges readers not to rely on their own wisdom, experience, and strength—but to ask God to transform them into people who live by faith with a radical, God-centered perspective.

"The best theology will not remove mystery from your life, so rest is found in trusting the one who rules, is all, and knows no mystery."