A review by annamariahz
Wicked Beauty by Katee Robert

dark medium-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

2.0

In this retelling of Greek mythology, the gods aren't mystical people, but instead are titles that carry incredible power. Anyone who gains one of these titles gains enormous power, responsibility, and respect. With the death of the last Ares, there is now an opening and a chance to win the title of Ares through a series of competitions. Zeus raises the stakes by announcing that whoever wins the title of Ares will also marry his sister Helen. Helen is not thrilled by this surprise announcement and decides that she will win the title of Ares herself and gain the power and respect she deserves. But she is not the only one competing for the title. Achilles and Patroclus are also competing, and the three of them find their attraction for each other distracting from the competition. I really enjoyed the first two Dark Olympus books and was so excited to read this one, but it fell flat. Katee Robert does an excellent job of writing characters, but she wrote Achilles as Achilles, and I really don't like him. Even in the myths, Achilles is a lot to deal with, and she put him in almost every single scene. I adored Helen and Patroclus, but it was hard to get over how awful Achilles behaved. Also, this book read as if it was told through a male gaze, with Helen losing some of her independence and character traits along the way. It also reads aggressively straight for how prominent the LGBTQ+ representation is in the story. Overall, it was not the best, and I didn't really enjoy the read. This book was a little much, and I'm sad I didn't love it as much as the first two books in the series. 
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