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cbellwarzel's review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
tstreet's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
books_over_everything's review against another edition
5.0
Initial Thoughts
I actually grabbed a copy of this book from Amazon's first reads program but was subsequently provided with a NetGalley widget courtesy of the publisher. Anyway, the fact that it was my first reads choice should show how excited I was to read this book. I've read all of Emily R. King's books so far.
Some Things I Liked
Mythology in a new light. I loved that this had so many familiar themes and names from the "mythology we learned in school" but they were utilized in such a unique and modern way.
Modern lens. I also loved the way modern thinking and progressive ideas were woven into the story. Althea was a strong MC who never stopped fighting for herself or her sisters and I loved her for that. Greek Mythology is often filled with themes of patriarchy and I really enjoyed seeing those themes put aside for this story.
Plot twists. I also applaud Emily's ability to keep me on the edge of my seat with those twists.
Zeus as a brother and not a love interest. We all know that Zeus and Hera were married and ruled Mount Olympus but I was so glad to see that Zeus was entirely relegated to "little brother" in this story as opposed to a viable love interest for Althea.
Series Value
I can't wait to read the next book in this series. I also feel like I can easily see myself rereading this book before reading book 2 (not out of necessity, but rather because I enjoyed the story that much.)
Final Thoughts
I really loved this book. I think it's my favorite Emily R. King book to date.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended for Further Reading
Go the Distance by Jen Calonita
Lore by Alexandra Bracken
I actually grabbed a copy of this book from Amazon's first reads program but was subsequently provided with a NetGalley widget courtesy of the publisher. Anyway, the fact that it was my first reads choice should show how excited I was to read this book. I've read all of Emily R. King's books so far.
Some Things I Liked
Mythology in a new light. I loved that this had so many familiar themes and names from the "mythology we learned in school" but they were utilized in such a unique and modern way.
Modern lens. I also loved the way modern thinking and progressive ideas were woven into the story. Althea was a strong MC who never stopped fighting for herself or her sisters and I loved her for that. Greek Mythology is often filled with themes of patriarchy and I really enjoyed seeing those themes put aside for this story.
Plot twists. I also applaud Emily's ability to keep me on the edge of my seat with those twists.
Zeus as a brother and not a love interest. We all know that Zeus and Hera were married and ruled Mount Olympus but I was so glad to see that Zeus was entirely relegated to "little brother" in this story as opposed to a viable love interest for Althea.
Series Value
I can't wait to read the next book in this series. I also feel like I can easily see myself rereading this book before reading book 2 (not out of necessity, but rather because I enjoyed the story that much.)
Final Thoughts
I really loved this book. I think it's my favorite Emily R. King book to date.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Recommended for Further Reading
Go the Distance by Jen Calonita
Lore by Alexandra Bracken
tasseographic's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
simranpradhan's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
3 stars ⭐ This is one of your typical YA Fantasy books, so don't go in with a lot of expectations. It has the usual tropes- orphan, enemies(kinda) to lovers, a determination to fight misogyny, yada yada. Assuming the demographic it's targeted for is like 13-16, it's good enough.
Pros: the plot is diverse, there is one or the other thing to have you intrigued. It's fast paced and plot driven, which is exactly what I needed to get ahead of my reading goal this year. It's definitely enjoyable enough.
Cons: It's a Greek mythology... Retelling? Or based on Greek mythology? It's just not as concrete as you would like. The dots don't connect at times with the original mythology, but you can dismiss that for creative/author liberty. I could see the plot twist, it's pretty obvious but still well executed I guess. There are geographical + timeline errors if compared with the original mythology. The feminism is.. pretentious? Just overly done. Then again, you could argue that for a character whose entire existence & worth is reduced to their gender to such drastic levels is bound to act that way. It's definitely not inspiring or doesn't give any earthshaking insights, but it's fine if not annoying at times. Their is also a general lack of representation, and the writing while not terrible is in the style is like Barney telling his tale of the sexless innkeeper
Honestly, it's good book if you just wanna have an easy and enjoyable read. I actually appreciate the quick pace of the plot, the author knows that's the only thing that will work in its favor and executes that well, and it was exactly what I needed at this time. But strictly professional, this probably is like a two stars ⭐
Pros: the plot is diverse, there is one or the other thing to have you intrigued. It's fast paced and plot driven, which is exactly what I needed to get ahead of my reading goal this year. It's definitely enjoyable enough.
Cons: It's a Greek mythology... Retelling? Or based on Greek mythology? It's just not as concrete as you would like. The dots don't connect at times with the original mythology, but you can dismiss that for creative/author liberty. I could see the plot twist, it's pretty obvious but still well executed I guess. There are geographical + timeline errors if compared with the original mythology. The feminism is.. pretentious? Just overly done. Then again, you could argue that for a character whose entire existence & worth is reduced to their gender to such drastic levels is bound to act that way. It's definitely not inspiring or doesn't give any earthshaking insights, but it's fine if not annoying at times. Their is also a general lack of representation, and the writing while not terrible is in the style is like Barney telling his tale of the sexless innkeeper
Honestly, it's good book if you just wanna have an easy and enjoyable read. I actually appreciate the quick pace of the plot, the author knows that's the only thing that will work in its favor and executes that well, and it was exactly what I needed at this time. But strictly professional, this probably is like a two stars ⭐
allyem_reads's review
4.0
7 on CAWPILE
This was a fascinating story, truly. I went into it thinking it was something entirely different though, so I was definitely surprised, especially at the last 50 pages, where it took a completely different turn than what I was expecting. I'm excited to see how the sequel turns out.
This was a fascinating story, truly. I went into it thinking it was something entirely different though, so I was definitely surprised, especially at the last 50 pages, where it took a completely different turn than what I was expecting. I'm excited to see how the sequel turns out.
bookish_blanche's review
4.0
An quick and fun Greek mythology retelling
-I got an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review with Netgalley-
Cronus, the God of Gods rules over Althea's world. Because of his tyranny, women are fated to serve men. But Althea has only one goal: protect her two sisters at all costs. When a prophecy leads her to the island of Crete to find Cronus' lost son, she will do everything in her power to convince him to overthrow his father and break the kingdom free.
I love a good mythology retelling and I wasn't disappointed by this one. Althea is a very strong-minded and brave main character and even if I don't always understand the choices she makes, I liked following her story. However, I was a little confused about some of her thoughts and decisions. This book has kind of a slow beginning but the rest is fast-paced, you just have to get through the first few chapters. It was short and read it in little more than 24 hours. I found the writing pleasant but not enthralling or particularly beautiful, and to be honest, there were some scenes where I didn't totally understand what was going on. It didn't prevent me from liking the story and following the plot, but it was a little unsettling at times. Apart from that, I really enjoyed the plot-twists and ending and I'm definitely enthralled to read the next one and see what will become of the three sisters.
I recommend for fans of quick fantasy and mythology retellings.
"You are Althea Lambros. You don't have to do anything a man tells you to do."
-I got an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review with Netgalley-
Cronus, the God of Gods rules over Althea's world. Because of his tyranny, women are fated to serve men. But Althea has only one goal: protect her two sisters at all costs. When a prophecy leads her to the island of Crete to find Cronus' lost son, she will do everything in her power to convince him to overthrow his father and break the kingdom free.
I love a good mythology retelling and I wasn't disappointed by this one. Althea is a very strong-minded and brave main character and even if I don't always understand the choices she makes, I liked following her story. However, I was a little confused about some of her thoughts and decisions. This book has kind of a slow beginning but the rest is fast-paced, you just have to get through the first few chapters. It was short and read it in little more than 24 hours. I found the writing pleasant but not enthralling or particularly beautiful, and to be honest, there were some scenes where I didn't totally understand what was going on. It didn't prevent me from liking the story and following the plot, but it was a little unsettling at times. Apart from that, I really enjoyed the plot-twists and ending and I'm definitely enthralled to read the next one and see what will become of the three sisters.
I recommend for fans of quick fantasy and mythology retellings.
"You are Althea Lambros. You don't have to do anything a man tells you to do."
writer09's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
wolfmantula's review
3.5
At this point I think it’s pretty clear that I have a huge fascination and love for Greek mythology with the many retellings I’ve read so far. This reminds me a little of Circe by Madeline Miller, which I absolutely loved. Similar to Miller, King also plays with the story by giving some of the women in Greek mythos a bigger voice and a larger part of the story that they are typically left out of. What I like about this retelling, is that it is the story of how Cronus was overthrown and how Zeus came to power, which was a new one for me.
King did a good job of making the characters easy to like or hate. Althea, the main character, I thought was done very well and given a lot of development as well as depth and emotion to connect with her during her journey with all the adversity she had to deal with. There were a bunch of side-characters that were also given good treatment of depth to add more information to the characters of Cleora, Bronte, Theo, Zeus and many others.
“Dethroning Cronus is only one way the world needs to change. We also need to teach girls who they are, and offer them new options for who they can become.”
This was somewhat short and a bit more YA than I expected, but I felt like King did a good job of working in some feministic qualities to a Greek story that typically makes women out to not be much of a factor outside of a love interest. It’s an adventurous story of courage that weaved a bit of action, emotion and a smidge of romance, as does all Greek stories. It also gives an alternate type of story as to how the Titan, Cronus, devours his children which I thought was a pretty ingenious idea.
With that said, I did feel like the story-telling wasn’t very compelling or immersive and tad predictable. I also felt like the dialogue was a little on the weaker side of things, but these things may be part of the YA factor. I still enjoyed enough that I may continue to book 2 at some point in the future.