The House of Hades

The Heroes of Olympus, Book 4

By: Rick Riordan

Narrated by: Nick Chamian

Length: 17 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

At the conclusion of The Mark of Athena, Annabeth and Percy tumble into a pit leading straight to the Underworld. The other five demigods have to put aside their grief and follow Percy's instructions to find the mortal side of the Doors of Death. If they can fight their way through the Gaea's forces, and Percy and Annabeth can survive the House of Hades, then the Seven will be able to seal the Doors from both sides and prevent the giants from raising Gaea. But, Leo wonders, if the Doors are sealed, how will Percy and Annabeth be able to escape?

They have no choice. If the demigods don't succeed, Gaea's armies will never die. They have no time. In about a month, the Romans will march on Camp Half-Blood. The stakes are higher than ever in this adventure that dives into the depths of Tartarus.

©2013 Rick Riordan (P)2013 Listening Library

Terrible Narration

Would you be willing to try another one of Nick Chamian’s performances?

i preordered this book awhile go, and was looking forward to listening as soon as it came available. Unfortunately I noticed immediately that this narration was going to be horrible 5 minutes into it. I checked on here to see what everyone was saying to confirm my suspicions. But i have trying to get passed it and try and just enjoy the story but this a struggle. He basically does the same voice for each character with only a slight difference. I recently listened to the last two books to prepare myself for this new one and i have to fight myself to keep going. I am at chapter 11 and i keep hoping for an improvement that is not coming. He has a very nasal voice. I really hope whomever is in charge of turning Rick's books into audio sees all these complaints and immediately sets out to re record this book with the previous narrator.

Any additional comments?

To anyone who hasn't purchased this audio book i suggest they do not and just read it themselves

This narrator sucks!!!!

Would you consider the audio edition of The House of Hades to be better than the print version?

Why would you want to ruin such a good book with such a horrible narrator? Us fans get accustom to the characters through the narrators voices... It's just not the same :-( so sad!

Great Solid follow-up to Mark of Athena

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. I have recommended this series many times. It is fun for many ages of people who enjoy fantasy adventures. My whole family is reading it. It has a much better satisfying ending than the last one, but there will be one more book. My main reasons for recommendation would be humor, adventure, imagination, character development. Riordan is a really great author. I am so glad he started writing these books. this book does give you something you may need to talk to younger children about.

What did you like best about this story?

I really like the character development in Frank and Hazel. They grow a lot. Piper and Jason both discover things about themselves or their powers. Reyna and many other characters, especially villains come back to make a reappearance. Leo even gets to have a bit of a romance. Loved it. Percy and Annabeth have a tough time just hanging onto life to do too much more than they did in the last book.

What does Nick Chamian bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He does a great job with this series. I especially like his cheeky voice for Leo and his solemn funeral voice for Nico. He does the women's voices well too. Coach Hedge is a crackup!

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I especially was moved by Percy and Annabeth's escape through the doors of Death. Also Frank and Hazel in the House of Hades. Great ending.

Any additional comments?

I maybe didn't like it as well as some of Riordan's Heroes of Olympus books, because it was so dark, but it was still good. I'm really looking forward to the last book in the series. Three of my family members have read it now and my two youngest (9 and 12 years old) are still in process. I've got one that refuses to read it because the last book was too much of a cliff-hanger. He wants to wait to read it when the next book comes out to complete the series. Great book for the families. Does have one issue that you may need to discuss with your children, but nothing that shouldn't be discussed anyway. Still clean overall.

worst narration ever

why did he make Annabeth so whiney? worst voice choice ever. made it hard to get through because of this. does he have a problem w making female characters that are literally warriors sound strong? are his voices so limited that the only option to differentiate gender is to make women whiney? gross. thats all I have to say.

Good Story, Terrible Narrator

What didn’t you like about Nick Chamian’s performance?

The reading was slow and the voices were terrible. The performance for the first three books was great and the voices were distinctive. In this book they all sound very similar. My kids seem not to notice but as an adult who was enjoying this series as car entertainment, it has become excruciating to listen to. I want to know how the story ends but I'm not sure I can sit through book 5 with this narrator.

Great Story, BAD Narration

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Cannot recommend the books by Riordan enough. BUT - this new narrator is really bad. I hate to be so negative, but it is an awful performance. He sounds mildly annoyed ALL the time. Reminded me of a "valley girl"

What did you like best about this story?

Fantastic continuation of the series. Has all the excitement and wonderful characters you expect from Riordan.

Would you be willing to try another one of Nick Chamian’s performances?

No

Down with the narrator!

What did you love best about The House of Hades?

Loved the character development, especially about Nico and Frank. Had a hard time in the beginning to stay focused but that was because of the narrator.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Frank and Nico!

How did the narrator detract from the book?

OMG, this narrator had NO character ability. All characters sounded like a fraternity bro

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Not really, it seemed like a bridge book.

Any additional comments?

Bring back on of the other narraotors! This one is TERRIBLE!

I miss the old reader

the new guy reading these books his voice is so drawn out it drives me batty. every time there is a vowel at the end of a word he pronounces the word for a beat and a half too long " The skyyyyy turned graaeeeeyyy"

great story. terrible narrator.

the story was wonderful. the narrarator was what made it hard to listen to...

The House of Hades

This book like awesome. It's totally cool and has a lot of almost getting like Painfully killed.