Today, I just finished The Goddess Legacy by Aimee Carter and let me tell you, it was exactly what I needed. I was really in the mood for something comfortable and familiar and I was contimplating going back and re-reading an old favorite, Clockwork Prince perhaps? But then, I received The Goddess Legacy and I dove right in. If you didn't already know, I'm a huge fan of The Goddess Test series, and while this was a little bit of a different format than the other books in the series. Because of this, I'm going to review each of the five stories as seperate short stories. I think this is the only way to be fair about the book because each story is told from a different view point and they all are very different.
The first story is from Hera/Calliope's point of view.This one is more of a take on actual mythology. It starts just after the Olympian gods defeated the Titans, their father Cronus included. Zeus has made Hera an offer to be his queen, but she is far to in love with Hades to accept. She eventually wears down and accepts Zeus which leads her down a path of unhappiness, betrayal and deceit. I really liked this particular story because Carter really took some creative liberties with Greek myth. She made the trials and tribulations of the gods modern and much more relate-able. This story also gave you a little more background as to why Calliope/Hera is the way she is towards Hades and Kate.
Next, we have a story from Aphrodite/Ava's point of view. This is the story of Aphrodite's love affair with Ares and how her relationship with Hephaestus got started. Burdened by a betrothal that she did not agree with, Aphrodite takes fate in her own hands and runs away with Ares to live the happy life that she's always dreamed of. But this life of bliss with Ares is not what it would seem and she soon finds herself in love with another. I liked the tone of this story the most. From the first few lines of this story, I was sucked into Aphrodite's whimsical story and it brought light to her relationship with Hephaestus, one that most people have trouble understanding.
Hermes/Jame's story was probably my favorite of the five. This story takes the messenger god to the mortal realm on a quest to find out why some of the Olympian gods are fading. He comes to Earth in a time of great war and poverty and acmes in contact with a group of children, living off the land in a forest. He makes his way into this group of rough and tumble orphans and soon finds what it's like to truly love and lose. I've always had a soft spot for Hermes in the other Goddess Test stories and this one made my heart melt. While a little tragic, we get to see Hermes grow up and feel a real loss in his life.
And we come to Persephone's story. This is the story of her betrothal and marriage to Hades. In this story we learn more of Hades's heart break and Persephone's as well. While I won't give too much away in this story as it would spoil some parts of Goddess Interrupted, but I will say that this brings insight to not only Hades relationship with Persephone, but also his attitudes and behavior towards Kate as well.This story made me not like Persephone (even more) and made my heart warm even more for Hades.
Last but definitely not least, we come to Hades/Henry's story. Now I was hoping to get a little bit more on the whole Kate Hades situation, but this was a short, but sweet story of how Hades lost all of the girls and came to have great hope for Kate as his future queen. While I wasn't blown away by this part of the story, it made me smile and all the more excited about the next book to come out.
This review is a little on the long side, but I felt like I really needed to explain each story as it's more of a compilation, rather than one cohesive story. Each short tale jumps from place to place and they are all set in different times through out the world's creation. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this story from Carter. I loved the way she made the mythology more believable and I couldn't put this book down. If you're a fan of Aimee Carter or just Greek mythology in general, this is a great read for you.
Remember, Goddess Legacy comes out July 31st!
Happy Reading!
8 out of 10
I sort of had to skim this review because I haven't read books 1 and 2 even though I've wanted to. I'm glad you enjoyed 2.5. It sounds like a great in-between novella.
ReplyDeleteIt really was a great novella. Sometimes I feel like the books some authors put out as "in between-ers" don't add up to much and they aren't enjoyable. This one is just as long as the other books and really great. If you haven't had a chance to pick up The Goddess Test, you definitely should.
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