First and foremost, if you have not completed pagbaba the trono of Fire, do not continue reading. There will be spoilers.

OK, this is my first artikulo so . . . madala with me. The sole purpose of this artikulo is to give those of us who've completed the trono of apoy a place to share our thoughts on the book beyond a comment written in all capital letters, along the lines of "I FREAKING LOVED THE BOOK, ANUBIS IS SOOO HOT!!!!!!" (which are welcome, as I appreciate enthusiasm).

So I'll start us off.

Thoughts:
I thought the trono of apoy was good, but I found the Red Pyramid to be better. Why? I don't know. I feel like maybe there was a different feel to the books, but I can't place what it is.
The only thing with the book that I didn't really like was the character change in Desjardins. He was the big bad guy (sort of) in the Red Pyramid, the guy who wanted to execute the Kanes, and then he became a distraught and rapidly-aging "tortured soul", who saves us all in the end. How did that happen? Is being Chief Lector that draining?
I was very interested sa pamamagitan ng Sadie's boy dilemma. I'm really at odds with myself about the situation. The annoyed part of me is thinking about how this pag-ibig tatsulok resembles Twilight (immortal, pale cute one, and kind one, who also is somewhat good looking*), and how Sadie is barely 13, and thus not old enough for the romance business. The happy, bubbly side (the one that had a 5 minuto screaming fit after Anubis kissed Sadie) is thrilled sa pamamagitan ng the dynamics, especially because the choice, unlike with Twilight, is not obvious. The happy side is winning the battle, and I'm for Anubis all the way. Walt's going to die anyway, and when Sadie dies, it won't be a problem because Anubis already spends a majority of his time with dead people.
Now the Zia (or Zebra, rather) thing is as I expected it. I find that her not remembering Carter is a good thing, because when they fall for each other, it'll be genuine.

Theories:
First of all, I'm certain Vlad the Inhaler is historical wordplay. Vlad the Impaler was a Transylvanian ruler who watched as he had his victims impaled. They were put on tuktok of long, pointy rods, and with the help of gravity, were slowly and painfully killed. I think I heard a story in which he entertained himself with their deaths over a nice meal. Fun guy, right? Did I mention he inspired the character Dracula? Besides, he and Menshikov's ancestor both seem to have a cruel sense of humor.
Second, Zia apparently has an important fate. I have three theories for this. 1) Zia will die, and Carter will kill Apophis in devastated anger. 2) Zia will be the one to take out Apophis, or one of his powerful demons. 3) Zia will host a powerful and important god.
I think the gods Mut, Neith, Hathor, Shu, and Ma'at may be in the series. Neith because she's a warrior goddess similar to Athena, Hathor because she took care of Horus after a battle with Set, and Ma'at because a) They're fighting a battle against chaos and she's the goddess of truth and order and justice and b) she is revered as a major force in the books, so it would be climatic for the Kanes to meet her. Mut and Shu are just important enough to be known, so nothing special there.

Hopes for book 3:
I leave this entirely to you guys.


*Please note that I don't find them attractive myself, that's just what the characters think.