The Tower of Nero facts for kids
U.S. cover of first edition.
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| Author | Rick Riordan |
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| Cover artist | John Rocco |
| Country | United States |
| Series | The Trials of Apollo (book 5) |
| Genre | Fantasy, Greek and Roman mythology, Young adult |
| Publisher | Disney Hyperion |
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Publication date
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October 6, 2020 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover and paperback), audiobook, e-book |
| Pages | 416 (hardcover) |
| ISBN | 978-1-4847-4645-5 |
| Preceded by | The Tyrant's Tomb |
| Followed by | The Sun and the Star |
The Tower of Nero is an American fantasy novel. It is based on ancient Greek and Roman mythology. The famous American author Rick Riordan wrote it.
This book was first released on October 6, 2020. It is the fifth and final book in The Trials of Apollo series. This series is a spin-off from the popular Percy Jackson & the Olympians books.
In the story, the god Apollo is stuck in human form as Lester Papadopoulos. He and his demigod friend Meg must free the last oracle. They face their biggest enemies: Meg's stepfather Nero and Apollo's old enemy Python. The book starts with a group called the Triumvirate Holdings. This group is led by Nero and plans to cause a lot of trouble. They want to release the dangerous ancient snake, Python.
The story is told from Apollo's point of view.
The Story of The Tower of Nero
Apollo arrives exhausted and has a dream. He sees someone telling Nero about an escape. Nero then gives Meg and Apollo two days to give up. If they don't, Manhattan will burn.
The next day, Apollo, Meg, Apollo's son Will Solace, and Will's boyfriend Nico di Angelo meet Rachel Elizabeth Dare. Rachel is an oracle, a person who can see the future. She warns them about strange cattle outside. They plan to ruin Nero's Greek fire vats. They will get help from the troglodytes, who are good at digging. Rachel then speaks a part of a prophecy, but Python has changed it. The cattle, called Tauri Silvestres, attack. The group escapes with Nico's shadow travel. Will also shows he can glow in the dark.
Apollo helps a character named Lu. He learns that a creature called a leontocephaline guards special items called fasces. These items give power. To get the fasces, someone must give up their immortality. Lu decides to give up her immortality for the fasces. Apollo goes to save Meg.
Upstairs, Apollo finds a big battle happening. Demigods from Camp Half-Blood have arrived to help. Apollo's children, Kayla and Austin, help him find Meg. Lester accidentally enters a room with buttons to burn Manhattan. He presses a button, but nothing happens. The vats were already disabled!
Apollo finds a laptop. Nero calls him on it. Nero says he has a backup plan: to release a very poisonous gas. This gas would kill everyone in the building. He tells Apollo to come to the throne room in fifteen minutes. Apollo warns the troglodytes about the gas trap. They rush to disable it.
Nero finally finds the right remote and presses a button. But then, Will, Rachel, and Lu appear. They are with the troglodyte leader and have the emperor's fasces. Nero is shocked. The troglodytes also stopped the gas trap. Nero admits he is not as powerful as he seems. He is just a pawn for Python. If Nero dies, Python would become almost impossible to defeat.
Nero is given a choice: fight and die, or live in prison. He chooses to fight. He struggles with Apollo over the fasces. Apollo wants to break them. Lester uses his godly powers to take away Nero's god-like abilities. He breaks the fasces, which kills Nero.
The Camp Half-Blood forces stay at the Tower. They help the Imperial children who were abused by Nero. But Apollo must go defeat Python. He uses the Labyrinth to reach Delphi quickly.
Apollo faces Python one last time. The giant snake quickly overpowers him. Python says a prophecy that Apollo will fall. Apollo loses his bow. The Arrow of Dodona sacrifices itself to defeat Python. It finishes Python's prophecy, saying Apollo will fall but must rise again. Apollo blinds Python by hitting his eyes with the arrow and his elbow. He drags Python into Tartarus with him. This fulfills Python's prophecy in a surprising way.
They almost fall into Chaos, but a ledge saves them. Python attacks Apollo again. Apollo throws Python off the ledge into Chaos. This destroys Python forever and frees the oracles. Apollo is left hanging on the edge. The goddess of the Styx appears. She has been watching him since he broke an oath on the Styx. She congratulates him for learning to always keep a promise. Apollo becomes a god again. Two weeks later, he returns to Mount Olympus. He is welcomed back as an Olympian.
Apollo splits himself into many forms to visit his friends. He visits Camp Half-Blood. Nico and Will tell him that Nico hears a voice from Tartarus. Nico thinks it's his old friend Iapetus the Titan, also known as Bob. Bob seemed to die helping Percy and Annabeth escape Tartarus in The House of Hades. Nico and Will plan to go to Tartarus with the troglodytes to find Bob. Rachel gives them a prophecy about this journey.
Apollo visits Camp Jupiter. Frank and Hazel are leaders there. Hazel can now use her summoned jewels freely. Percy and Annabeth are studying at a university there. Percy studies marine biology and Annabeth studies architecture. Apollo visits the Indianapolis Union Station. Georgina is learning to make weapons with Jo. Reyna is there with the Hunters of Artemis. They are hunting the Teumessian Fox. Leo is also there because Calypso is at high school and a summer camp counselor. Apollo visits Piper in Oklahoma. She has a new life with her father and her girlfriend Shel. Apollo also visits Meg. She lives in Palm Springs with Lu. She teaches the Imperial children gardening. The Meliae are their security guards.
About The Book
The Tower of Nero was first published by Disney-Hyperion. It came out as a hardcover book in the United States on October 6, 2020. John Rocco created the cover art. Ebook and audiobook versions were also released that day. The actor Robbie Daymond reads the audiobook. Listening Library published it.
On February 14, 2020, Hypable.com shared the first two chapters of the book. They also showed the cover and a small part of the story.
Many non-English versions of the book used John Rocco's cover art. However, some had unique covers by other artists.
The Barnes & Noble edition of The Tower of Nero came with a poster. It was called "Apollo's Monster Menagerie." It showed all the monsters from the book.
This book is suggested for readers aged 10 to 14.
What Happens Next?
The Tower of Nero is the last book in the Camp Half-Blood Chronicles. Rick Riordan does not plan to write another five-book series. But there will be new spin-off books. These include The Sun and the Star, The Chalice of the Gods, and Wrath of the Triple Goddess.
