Scan barcode
bdzimmerman15's review
5.0
Thank you to BookSirens for the ARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
When I saw the description of this book, I was immediately intrigued. The thought of Aphrodite coming down to prove to a mortal that love is real? What a concept. I couldn’t be more interested in seeing how that works out. I mean hello.. the Trojan War was basically Aphrodite’s fault. How on earth is she going to force a mortal to fall in love naturally? Well, this book sure did tell me.
I really enjoyed this. This was so fun! The plot was interesting, spaced out well and the characters really drove the plot. The relationship between Brynn and Nina reminded me of my relationship with my best friend. I absolutely LOVED that they called each other their soulmate. It was so sweet and I love close knit friends in books. Truly. The dynamic between Brynn, Nina and Val/Aphrodite was incredible. I loved watching their personalities evolve and change based upon their relationships with Reeve, Adam and Gabe. The character arcs were genuine and true to the characters. I enjoyed watching them grow and watch their relationships change.
The romance in this book was so sweet. I loved it. I don’t want to spoil it, but I really thought how they came together was so cute. It made my heart flutter. This was really well done and I really enjoyed it!
4.5/5
When I saw the description of this book, I was immediately intrigued. The thought of Aphrodite coming down to prove to a mortal that love is real? What a concept. I couldn’t be more interested in seeing how that works out. I mean hello.. the Trojan War was basically Aphrodite’s fault. How on earth is she going to force a mortal to fall in love naturally? Well, this book sure did tell me.
I really enjoyed this. This was so fun! The plot was interesting, spaced out well and the characters really drove the plot. The relationship between Brynn and Nina reminded me of my relationship with my best friend. I absolutely LOVED that they called each other their soulmate. It was so sweet and I love close knit friends in books. Truly. The dynamic between Brynn, Nina and Val/Aphrodite was incredible. I loved watching their personalities evolve and change based upon their relationships with Reeve, Adam and Gabe. The character arcs were genuine and true to the characters. I enjoyed watching them grow and watch their relationships change.
The romance in this book was so sweet. I loved it. I don’t want to spoil it, but I really thought how they came together was so cute. It made my heart flutter. This was really well done and I really enjoyed it!
4.5/5
look_whos_reading's review
3.0
I received this ARC from Netgalley. Here are my thoughts:
The premise of this book is fascinating - a teenage romance with a Greek mythological twist. Honestly, like many of the other reviewers, this is the hook that draws in a reader. However, the plot is good but not great. There is the usual heroine who is stereotyped as a nerd and wearing black always defines her character not just to her peers, but surprisingly also to her parents (who, in my opinion, should know their child on a deeper level but fail sadly at it).
The writing is good, well-paced and easy. But the plot sadly just didn't live up to my expectations as much, landing it overall an okay rating. I'd recommend you to read this if you like teenage romances but don't expect to be wowed either by plot or characters.
The premise of this book is fascinating - a teenage romance with a Greek mythological twist. Honestly, like many of the other reviewers, this is the hook that draws in a reader. However, the plot is good but not great. There is the usual heroine who is stereotyped as a nerd and wearing black always defines her character not just to her peers, but surprisingly also to her parents (who, in my opinion, should know their child on a deeper level but fail sadly at it).
The writing is good, well-paced and easy. But the plot sadly just didn't live up to my expectations as much, landing it overall an okay rating. I'd recommend you to read this if you like teenage romances but don't expect to be wowed either by plot or characters.
daniireads's review
3.0
I’m a HUGE sucker for any Greek mythology with a twist books, so when I saw Never Say Never I jumped on the opportunity to read it. Unfortunately, it just didn’t hook me in like I was hoping it would. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the premise of the book but the execution seemed a bit wonky and just a little too much. Maybe it’s an age thing, since the book is YA, but the books and it's characters was a bit over dramatic at times.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but just not for me.
Overall, it was an enjoyable read, but just not for me.
courtsbooknook's review
4.0
I LOVED this book. Brynn was such an incredibly relatable character and what she was going through really resonated with me. The divorce and problems with her parents and family life were very similar to my own life and I felt really seen here. It was also incredibly emotional to see exactly what I'm thinking and feeling about my own situation right there on the page. Val was a bit unlikeable at times and I wanted to punch her just like Brynn did, but I think that was the point. I enjoyed the cast of characters and I really think everyone had great growth and development by the end of the book. A lot of the story was so funny too. Brynn was snarky and sassy, but also super likeable and I loved the contrast that Adam provided to her. Her friendship with Nina definitely meant a lot to me as well. the pop culture references were also incredible and I think Justine balanced the angst teenager vibe with a mature adult really well.
val_between_pages's review
3.0
Thanks to NetGalley and Sword and Silk Books for providing me with an e-ARC for an exchange of an honest review.
I have mixed feelings about this one.
Let's start with the positives.
I would have loved to read this book when I was a teenager. It has mythology, it has a hurt teenager who doesn't believe in love, it's a fantasy and it's easy to read. I most definitely found some elements of myself - mostly my younger self - in the main character, Brynn.
"True love is a relationship unicorn. You either find it, or you spend your entire life searching for it", this has been my view of love my entire life.
And... All this talk about mythology, made me want to read Stephen Fry's 'Mythos' again - which I think I will!
Now, for the parts I didn't like.
At times is a bit too dramatic. I know Greek mythology is supposed to be dramatic, but I found it overly so. Like the arrival of Val's real father - I won't spoil it -... was not keen on that part.
Quite a few times, Nina's asthma took over the story, I think there was way too much of it.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I wouldn't read it again, it is one of those books I would read on holiday but nothing more.
I have mixed feelings about this one.
Let's start with the positives.
I would have loved to read this book when I was a teenager. It has mythology, it has a hurt teenager who doesn't believe in love, it's a fantasy and it's easy to read. I most definitely found some elements of myself - mostly my younger self - in the main character, Brynn.
"True love is a relationship unicorn. You either find it, or you spend your entire life searching for it", this has been my view of love my entire life.
And... All this talk about mythology, made me want to read Stephen Fry's 'Mythos' again - which I think I will!
Now, for the parts I didn't like.
At times is a bit too dramatic. I know Greek mythology is supposed to be dramatic, but I found it overly so. Like the arrival of Val's real father - I won't spoil it -... was not keen on that part.
Quite a few times, Nina's asthma took over the story, I think there was way too much of it.
Overall, I enjoyed it. I wouldn't read it again, it is one of those books I would read on holiday but nothing more.
girlmeetsbooks_'s review
3.0
I thought this was a really cute YA novel. I wish that Val had more of a stable presence as Aphrodite, she seemed a little immature considering she's technically ancient. I think what I liked most about this novel was Brynn's growth. You definitely understand why she wanted nothing to do with love, so I'm glad that over the course of the novel we watched her layers peel back, and ultimately she found peace and love with everyone in the end.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
pandaofhugs's review
3.0
This book was an interesting premise, but the twist partway through the book felt a little sudden, I know twists are supposed to be a bit eye opening but it just felt a little disjointed and kind of out of left field. Regardless it was still a pretty good book. At times the characters made me really want to shake them as they had some very frustrating moments, but there were also some sweet moments between the two friends who are more like siblings.
The author definitely has some interesting ideas so I look forward to seeing what she writes later.
The author definitely has some interesting ideas so I look forward to seeing what she writes later.
theshakespeareana's review
4.0
I loved this book so much!
The writing was so sweet and melodic and brought me back so many good memories of when I was a kid and used to believe my friends were greek goddesses!
The writing was so sweet and melodic and brought me back so many good memories of when I was a kid and used to believe my friends were greek goddesses!
proudtobeabookaholic's review
3.0
Brynn Stark has decided to never fall in love. After watching her parents marriage and her best friend Nina's "on again, off again" relationship with Reeve, Brynn is certain of one thing: love hurts. However, Nina's foster sister Val is adamant in her efforts to get Brynn to go on dates she's setting up. When Brynn's reluctant, Val reveals her true identity: Aphrodite, the goddess of love! At the same time Brynn is starting to develop feelings for Adam, Val's boyfriend...
The reason I wanted to read this book was that it had some mythological elements; Aphrodite in a contemporary YA! Unfortunately I don't think the author manages to fully incorporate the concept. I don't take Aphrodite seriously, since I feel she doesn't really fit in. Val/Aphrodite is also very annoying for the most part, and I wouldn't stand her company many minutes at a time! The other characters are rather stereotypical, but I like them anyway.
The book also felt a bit too long for me, it could easily have been shortened at least 50-70 pages (my copy was 277 pages). Other than that I've quite enjoyed hanging with Brynn, Nina, Adam and Gabe for a while. If Manzano had used the greek mythology more it would have suited me better. Now I would recommend it to those who like contemporary YA with a mythological twist!
* I received an ARC through BookSirens and I'm giving my honest review. *
The reason I wanted to read this book was that it had some mythological elements; Aphrodite in a contemporary YA! Unfortunately I don't think the author manages to fully incorporate the concept. I don't take Aphrodite seriously, since I feel she doesn't really fit in. Val/Aphrodite is also very annoying for the most part, and I wouldn't stand her company many minutes at a time! The other characters are rather stereotypical, but I like them anyway.
The book also felt a bit too long for me, it could easily have been shortened at least 50-70 pages (my copy was 277 pages). Other than that I've quite enjoyed hanging with Brynn, Nina, Adam and Gabe for a while. If Manzano had used the greek mythology more it would have suited me better. Now I would recommend it to those who like contemporary YA with a mythological twist!
* I received an ARC through BookSirens and I'm giving my honest review. *
naomi_andino's review
4.0
Brynn Stark doesn’t want to know anything about love after finding her mom cheating on her dad….but it turns out that one of her best friends is Aphrodite undercover who will stop at nothing to find the perfect match for Brynn. As the story progresses, Brynn finds herself falling for Adam - Aphrodite’s boyfriend.
I’m a hug fan of greek mythology and modern day retellings of them so I just knew I was going to like this book.
I was originally going to give it three stars given that at times some of the characters were unbearable. Of course, in Aphrodite’s case, this is an amazing portrayal but with the other characters, especially the adults it really pissed me off. But that’s just how real life people actually are, so I believe that by creating a love/hate relationship between us and the characters, Manzano did an amazing job.
I also loved how Manzano showed that different religions can coexist within the same universe. Overall, this was a cute, entertaining and easy read!
Thank you to NetGalley and BookSirens for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review!
I’m a hug fan of greek mythology and modern day retellings of them so I just knew I was going to like this book.
I was originally going to give it three stars given that at times some of the characters were unbearable. Of course, in Aphrodite’s case, this is an amazing portrayal but with the other characters, especially the adults it really pissed me off. But that’s just how real life people actually are, so I believe that by creating a love/hate relationship between us and the characters, Manzano did an amazing job.
I also loved how Manzano showed that different religions can coexist within the same universe. Overall, this was a cute, entertaining and easy read!
Thank you to NetGalley and BookSirens for providing me with an eArc of this book in exchange for an honest review!