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val_theburrowofstories's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Sexual assault, Blood, Sexual harassment, Sexism, Violence, Death, and Child death
Moderate: Cancer, Adult/minor relationship, and Grief
Minor: Genocide
buer's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Lore follows its titular character Melora as she is dragged back into a borderline magical world that she has spent her young adult life trying to escape. The story mostly follows her and a small group of friends as they try to figure out why people in that world are looking for Melora and eventually doing everything they can to save New York City from a threatening force. The story includes flashbacks to formative moments in her childhood when she was still involved in this world and training to be a god hunter.
There are several surprises and twists woven into the story and the modernization of and constant references to Greek Mythology is fun. Bracken artfully brings various ancient myths up in a way that always gives the reader a chance to figure out if they know the story before she gives the sparks notes version for anyone who can't quite remember the details. Characters are all strong-willed people who have values that they adhere to rigidly, which means that there isn't much in the way of character-building, but the plot moves quickly under the choices made by our leading characters.
I did find my interest in the story flagging toward the end of of the book. This could just be a result of me trying to finish the entire thing too quickly and it was just too much all at once, but the story leaps from one brutal killing or assault or attack to another and that gets exhausting.Being who I am, I don't love that all of the main characters are shipped, but I wasn't surprised that Bracken made those choices. I think I was also hoping for a book that was more empowering - I don't find stories that are constantly fighting misogynistic structures and people to be that empowering because they lean so hard on the existence of misogyny on the first place.
I listened to the audio book, which I'm not sure if I would recommend. I liked the narrator, but I had trouble keeping track of all the different houses and weapons and whatnot.
There are several surprises and twists woven into the story and the modernization of and constant references to Greek Mythology is fun. Bracken artfully brings various ancient myths up in a way that always gives the reader a chance to figure out if they know the story before she gives the sparks notes version for anyone who can't quite remember the details. Characters are all strong-willed people who have values that they adhere to rigidly, which means that there isn't much in the way of character-building, but the plot moves quickly under the choices made by our leading characters.
I did find my interest in the story flagging toward the end of of the book. This could just be a result of me trying to finish the entire thing too quickly and it was just too much all at once, but the story leaps from one brutal killing or assault or attack to another and that gets exhausting.
I listened to the audio book, which I'm not sure if I would recommend. I liked the narrator, but I had trouble keeping track of all the different houses and weapons and whatnot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, War, Sexism, and Violence
Moderate: Suicide
Minor: Terminal illness
itsaas_r's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Child death, and Death
Minor: Sexual assault
camillasharp's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Sexual assault
lurille's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I loved almost everything about this book. It was such an easy read and the adventure was only a week long. The pace was to my utmost taste as well. Some holes were answered just as quick as I question if there will ever be an answer for them, while some were not i.e., I still am quite unsure why and how the Agon really started for it feels like the book greatly lacked an explanation for it—I wanted to know more, I wanted a more in-depth knowledge about the root cause of the Agon, as well as information about the gods and goddesses present in the story.
There were so much opportunities to create a deeper world on each characters—particularly Castor. I loved him ever since I first met his character, therefore, my expectations were high on the explanation of how he became agod when he was once a sick boy who's on the verge of dying and then all things happened, he suddenly became the false Apollo . I waited for a long time to know the explanation behind what really happened, yet I was only given a fraction of what I had expected.
Nevertheless, I loved how diverse the characters were, especially having an LGBTQIA+ couple. I also had few gasps as I read the plot twist and honestly, nothing could have made me ready from it.
Overall, it was good primarily because it's my cup of tea—gods and goddesses, female heroine, gays and all. I'm in for these tags haha.
There were so much opportunities to create a deeper world on each characters—particularly Castor. I loved him ever since I first met his character, therefore, my expectations were high on the explanation of how he became a
Nevertheless, I loved how diverse the characters were, especially having an LGBTQIA+ couple. I also had few gasps as I read the plot twist and honestly, nothing could have made me ready from it.
Overall, it was good primarily because it's my cup of tea—gods and goddesses, female heroine, gays and all. I'm in for these tags haha.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death of parent, Gore, Torture, Blood, Child death, and Death
Moderate: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Pedophilia, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Gaslighting, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, and Emotional abuse
darquedreamer's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This one was captivating enough to keep me reading until the end, but it definitely had its problems. I feel like it lacked more back story and explanation for the agon and the history of the gods and why the hunters were hunting them. I wanted more about hunters killing the gods and ascending with their power and more explanation about the bloodlines. There were several moments of confusion to be had during the story.
For the most part, I enjoyed the characters, but there were also a lot of moments of "ugh, really?" Lore seemed strong and capable through most of the story, but also had her fair share of unlikable attributes. And, there was just no chemistry between the "romantiship" (yes, I'm making it a word) characters. The feelings felt forced, like, "oh, this is a fantasy ya, we need a little romance."
I also wish there had been more to the plot and the hunt itself. This story could have been a duology so we could have gotten the back story we needed, along with the plot we were promised. Though, I enjoyed the gore and the shocking moments, I felt like there wasn't enough story flow, and there were too many predictable and eye rolling moments.
The ending was pretty lack luster as well. It felt like someone said, "oh no, if we don't wrap this up now, we'll need another book," and then decided to be done with it. We had almost 500 pages in this thing, and had like one chapter for "resolution" which left a few issues unresolved and unexplained.
I just wanted, and expected, more. In the moment, Lore kept my interest, but now that I finished it, I feel disappointed. The excitement and hype while reading was fleeting and I'm left with missing what drew me in.
For the most part, I enjoyed the characters, but there were also a lot of moments of "ugh, really?" Lore seemed strong and capable through most of the story, but also had her fair share of unlikable attributes. And, there was just no chemistry between the "romantiship" (yes, I'm making it a word) characters. The feelings felt forced, like, "oh, this is a fantasy ya, we need a little romance."
I also wish there had been more to the plot and the hunt itself. This story could have been a duology so we could have gotten the back story we needed, along with the plot we were promised. Though, I enjoyed the gore and the shocking moments, I felt like there wasn't enough story flow, and there were too many predictable and eye rolling moments.
The ending was pretty lack luster as well. It felt like someone said, "oh no, if we don't wrap this up now, we'll need another book," and then decided to be done with it. We had almost 500 pages in this thing, and had like one chapter for "resolution" which left a few issues unresolved and unexplained.
I just wanted, and expected, more. In the moment, Lore kept my interest, but now that I finished it, I feel disappointed. The excitement and hype while reading was fleeting and I'm left with missing what drew me in.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death of parent, Gore, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Grief and Blood
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Sexual assault, Misogyny, and Cancer
lqvekanej's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Sexual assault, Grief, Violence, Ableism, and Death of parent
ivegotyourpaperback's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
This was a fun ‘what if’-scenario of a book posing questions like:
- what if Zeus was was once betrayed by the gods? (only some of them, not the whole pantheon)
- What if in retaliation he made them mortal for a week every 7 years to be hunted?
- What if the decedents of epic hero’s were the hunters?
- What if he never got bored of seeing the gods being hunted and this went on for thousands(?) of years?
- What if the Gods and Goddesses never thought to exterminate the hunters in the 7 years between each Agon when they have their power again?
- What if it’s taken this long for a hunter to finally go “bugger this, I’m done. Peace out, bitches ✌️”?
- What if the Agon is always held in a different city, but it’s not clear how said city is chosen?
There is quite a large cast of characters in the book and I was very grateful to the author for including both a guide of the different Hunter lines and a full character list.
I liked the discussion about Medusa, her transformation, and the way she’s viewed in history as either a monster or a victim. Most importantly I liked that Lore called Athena out on her BS re the role she played in that myth.
While the story was enjoyable enough there were a number of things that I felt weren’t explained/ didn’t make sense. I found it best set these aside and not think too much about them while reading.
At the end though, I was super bummed that Zeus never showed up, which seems out of character for the King of the Gods. The Gods are known for their interference in the lives of humans. It seems odd that he or the other gods from the pantheon (those who aren’t members of the Agon) wouldn’t treat this like their favourite sporting match and choose sides to root for (a La the Trojan War).
I don’t think the romance was necessary. It didn’t really add anything to the story. Castor and Lore could have just been best friends and the plot still would have worked.
As the story is set in New York City you’ll probably get a lot more enjoyment out of it if you’re from NYC (or are familiar with the city). At times the story felt like part love letter to this iconic location.
This was a great example of a book with a fabulous premise, but just a ‘meh’ execution.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Gore
Minor: Sexual assault, Cancer, and Rape
Implication of groomingjacq_benoit's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Blood, Sexual assault, Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, and Death
Moderate: Sexism, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Terminal illness
grace_reads13's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Child abuse, War, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, and Sexual assault