My Review of "The Goddesses" by Swan Huntley

First of all I would like to thank Doubleday Books and NetGalley for the Advanced Reading Copy of "The Goddesses" By Swan Huntley for my honest review. I would rate this story as 3.5 stars. 

The genres for this novel are Psychological Thriller, Women's Fiction and Adult Fiction. The timeline of this story is set in the present. I do like the way the author describes the scenic areas in Hawaii, where most of the story takes place.

The author describes the characters as complicated, complex and flawed. Nancy and her family move to Hawaii to get away from the disturbing fact that her husband had cheated on her, and her twin adolescent boys had been acting out. Her husband is able to get a job transfer to Costco in Hawaii making this move possible. Nancy meets a Yoga instructor, Ana, and the two become best friends. They have some unusual adventures, and a mysterious and perplexing friendship. Nancy's friendship with Ana, and her relationship with her family appear to be quite dysfunctional.  At times there is a feeling of danger, or going too "far".

There are times where it seems that the characters are "acting" or trying to be what they are not. I appreciate that the author has written an unusual story. I would recommend this book for those readers that like a light Psychological thriller. Happy Reading!

I felt like this story drug on too long. The writing style and characters are good.

Kind of a watered down version of Single White Female with the meat of the story happening towards the end. The book does touch on popular themes of friendship, loyalty, good/evil, and how well you can really know another person. Not my favorite, but it kept me reading!

This was a very interesting book, with a good plot line. The characters were well developed, and the setting was very well described. I could easily picture it. I would definitely read more from this author.

DNF @ 15%

When I receive advanced copies of books, I normally try extremely hard to finish it and give the book the benefit of the doubt even if it is losing me. However, in this case, I just could not go on anymore.
I had a difficult time relating to Nancy, Chuck, Jed, Cam... pretty much anyone in this novel. I couldn't find it in myself to feel bad for Nancy or even care about what was going on.
As for the writing style, I do not think it is for me. The sentences were extremely short and choppy. There were times when the sentences could have been combined with an oxford comma but weren't.
I just lost interest extremely quickly in this story and I'm disappointed by that. Despite my initial interest, the book just couldn't hold it for an extended period of time.

3.5 Stars.

The island of Hawaii is the perfect place to restart a new life. Across the Pacific, Nancy can wash away the past of her husband's infidelity and her subsequent insecurities. With a fresh start in Kona, Nancy decides to focus on her health and appearance. With her children in school and a working husband, Nancy has some free time and takes up yoga. Ana, the yoga teacher, becomes a fast friend and helps Nan finds her true self. But did she find more than she bargained? The more time she spends with Ana, the less time Nan spends with her family. Nan and Ana quickly develop a destructive relationship entangled in lies and secrets.

The story in set in the lush and tropical setting of Kona and Swan Huntly takes us on vacation. This part of the narrative I enjoyed. However, I could not connect with the main character Nan. In the first few pages, Nancy's raw emotion is displayed in a stream of consciousness. The account was repetitive and difficult to read. Once I got through the rambling, the story started to capture my interest. Nancy, highly critical of herself, seeks not only to loose the forever "five pounds" but shake up her everyday routine. I think that some people can relate to Nancy's vulnerability at one point or another in their lives. Who has not thought about losing a few pounds or wanting to change the way their lives look? The friendship with Ana vividly exposes the layers of Nancy making her somewhat likable. But as Nan gains a superiority type confidence we start to see that it is the same insecure Nancy from San Diego. This unappealing trait is shown from the outset and is amplified with Nancy's constant undermining of her husband and friends. These flaws prevented me from truly engaging with the character. Nan is just generally unappealing.

I do have another bonified criticism of the novel which made me take the rating down to three stars. Initially, I was drawn to this story for its comparison of "Single White Female." The plot had some intensity, but I was less convinced as Ana emerged as disingenuous and an annoyance throughout the pages. Ana was unlikable and two-dimensional.

The Goddesses is not a complicated story but it was entertaining. After all, I do watch the Real Housewives with great pleasure and with the same criticism. I would recommend this book with the above caveat.

Thank you Netgalley and Doubleday Books for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Got halfway through and finally had to give up - at this point my patience has stopped waiting for SOMETHING to happen. Many potential plots going on but nothing happening at this point.

Enough with the bad reviews! This is a brilliant book, and has a lot to offer, especially on a deeper level. That seems to be a strength of author Swan Huntley, the ability to write from inside someone's mind, their soul even.

Nancy is a woman who's had her heart broken, and, not to sound cliche, is having a mid-life crisis of sorts. She feels unwanted, unneeded, and wonders if she even likes herself at all. When her family moves to Hawaii for a change of scenery, she vows to make changes in herself. She's a vulnerable character, and we see into her and get a peek at her innermost thoughts, feelings. Feelings many of us have had ourselves. On her route of self-discovery, she meets two women who are potential new friends: one a bit boring and one more exotic and exciting. She embarks into a close relationship with one which seems amazing initially, but how long will that last? Is Ana everything she claims to be? Are we able to see when things become toxic in our own lives? As the reader, you want to at times shake certain characters and make them see what you see. But as in life, people learn best when they experience it themselves. How often do we as people not see the value in what is in front of us? In what we have already? Forever looking for something better, something More. This is an insightful, different read, and I invite you to read it with the open mind and heart it deserves. I hate that many readers didn't receive what this book has to offer. Highly recommended!

**Huge thanks to Doubleday and NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest, unbiased review!**

Nancy and her family move to Hawaii to make a fresh start after her husband cheats and her sons have legal trouble. She meets Ana on the beach teaching yoga and embraces the lifestyle. At first things seem to be going well and Ana and Nancy work to have good karma by helping others. But somehow things take a dark turn and the ‘helping’ karma turns negative. In wanting to change is Nancy desperate enough to ignore what is really going on? And is Ana what she seems?

The Goddesses caught my eye with the title itself. I needed to read it and I'm glad that I did. The characters in this book were mesmerizing, From the get go, I was swept away in this novel. It had many different twists and turns in the book, and I I found myself wanting to shake Nancy and warn her about everything going on, the things she overlooked because she was so blinded by loneliness and the longing she had to start fresh in life. I think every reader was alerted to the red flags in her choices and friendships. It made my head hurt and made me so anxious for her. The book was so well written, and instantly made you climb in to stop the chaos of a whirlwind friendship. The book was great all around. It carried you through it and you felt every emotion while reading it.

Wow! I really enjoyed this psychological thriller about Nan and her family who move to Hawaii from San Diego for a fresh start when her husband Chuck is offered a job transfer. Nan makes fast friends with Ana, her yoga instructor, which quickly turns into a sisterhood and then into something more dark. I was on the edge of my seat as the friendship got deeper and then spun out of control. Thank you Netgalley for this ARC in exchanged for an unbiased review.

I liked this book but something about it was a little unsettling to me. While the main character is becoming empowered and trying to change her life for the better, there are things going on that could hinder her progress. I kept feeling like I was waiting for the shoe to drop. This book dealt with a few relationship issues with her husband, children and friend that Huntley handled well. Not everything happens the way you are expecting, which is good for a book but also made me feel a little sad for someone trying so hard to be a good and better person. I like the author Swan Huntley and her words made me want to move to Hawaii, or at least visit.

Nancy and her family move to Kona to get past her husband's affair and start anew. She meets Ana, a free spirited yoga teacher and they become fast friends, spending all of their time together. Their story makes for a wonderful, feel good novel...or does it? Enjoyed this novel and all its twists and turns!

What I'm sure of in this book is that it was written well and I easily finished it in a few sittings. I'm also sure that you could feel the tension building in the book and that the plot while it has been written about before had great potential and you could feel the vulnerability of the main character who just wanted to step away from her mundane life into something quite different. And how naive she was in trying to change. However this book was described as a stunning psychological novel. That's where I was left feeling a little disappointed. While there were some crazy moments it was defiantly not a stunner. It was smart and Interesting but not really crazy which I do like. In that being said it was still a worthwhile read with lots of believable moments and a few clever twists. I could really relate to the family dramas and life changes and I felt the characters were real and engaging.

I enjoyed the story but as a resident of Hawaii find it hard to believe this family of four had no economic issues living on a Costco manager's salary! I know the story was about the relationships but I felt things were a little 'too easy' for the characters in terms of free time and access to yoga classes, activities, etc. Fiction!

I finished this book and all I could think was WTH did I just read? Then I pondered what I was going to say in this review. I waited a day to let it sink in and to figure out what I wanted to say.

I never read Ms. Huntley's first novel so I can't compare the two as some reviewers are doing. This is the first I've read by her and I'm just shaking my head. How in the world did "Nan" as she came to call herself not see what a huge, stinking mess her life was turning into? Hawaii was supposed to be the big reset button in this family's life, in Nan's marriage and in the very unwise choices her sons had been making. Instead everything ran off the rails and evidently Nan was oblivious.

How anyone can suddenly spend the night at a friend's home that has only been a friend a short time, leaving her teenagers that have been known to burn things and break the law and her husband who has again succumbed to his nemesis alcohol, is beyond me.

There was such a heavy hand with the foreshadowing in this novel that I almost quit reading several times. Anyone could see where it was going, but I kept thinking there had to be some redeeming feature ahead of me. I mean, the book made it to publication, right?

The utter lack of consequences really irritated me. All the things that were done in this book that were illegal and there just were no consequences at all. I know you have to get an ending in place, but did you have to ignore all that went before or just turn it into a minor thing?

I'm sorry, really sorry, to have to leave a review like this, but people should know what they're getting into before they purchase this book. I appreciate the fact that Netgalley, the publishers and the author made the early reader copy available. I just wish I had liked it.

I received a copy of "The Goddesses" from NetGalley for an honest review. I wish to thank NetGalley, Random House LLC, and Swan Huntley for the opportunity to read this book.

This book was just average to me. It was a very easy read and would be a perfect book for by the pool on a summer day. The story was just okay with nothing spectacular to it.

I would recommend, but not highly.

Look. You can't promise me "Single White Female" and give me....this.

The Goddesses is the very tepid story about escape and obsession. However, Nancy, our lead character, is kind of dim and was too blind to see what was going to happen with Ana. The lush setting of Hawaii provided a nice backdrop, but in the end, this story fell flat.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for this review.

Y A W N! Think nearly break your jaw joints! And what a shame! The description made it sound like fun women finding their inner goddesses. I think their inner goddesses fled mid-book. I thought with this 'new start' taking place in Hawaii it would at least give scenery and traditions and history a good read.

Alas. No. There were nods but not enough to make up for the lack of character development or plot with any interesting thing happening.

I started to love the yoga instructor, but she wasn't allowed her own reigns. She seemed to have something going but how she would choose that boring housewife to hang with was beyond me. Neither women grew, at all. And the ending was so disappointing. It felt like the author didn't want the story to be told the way it wanted so she forced the story into strange convolutions.

The only thing I like about this book is its title and description. Too bad it didn't live up to either.