Protogenesis has it's foundation in Greek mythology with god's, goddesses, and such. Helene is thrust into the great city of Olympus past and present, deals with people trying to kill her, lies, and secrets. And of couple she's torn between two guys, the proverbial good guy bad guy romance.

Helene Crawford has been told that her mother died in a fire at work.  Helene can't believe it.  Her mother's lawyer appears to tell her that she is to go Greece to live with her godfather that she didn't know about.  When she arrives at her godfather's place, she discovers what a mess he lives in.  He does suggest that her mother is still alive but doesn't know where she is.  She goes to school where she discovers feelings for the guy named Ever but she also has feelings for a guy next door to her Godfather's home.  It confuses her.  

So much action, mystery and more are in this novel.    There are twists and turns that surprised me an kept my interest in the novel never faded.  It's a great read.  Don't miss it!

Kept me on the edge of seat. Full of adventure and great writing! Loved it!

Left at 20%. Tried hard and it did not worked. Many thanks to Black Rose Writing and Netgalley

I couldn't get into this book but I just couldn't. The book description seems so interesting too. I might give this book another try in the future.

If you enjoyed the Percy Jackson books, this would be a good book for  you. Police officers come to Helene's house to tell her that her mother has died in a fire, and a lawyer shows up and says she is to go to Greece to stay with a godfather she never knew she had.  Then gun fire erupts.  As Helene travels to Greece and starts school with cute boys at every corner, she must try to solve the mystery of why her mother was killed and why some one is after her.  Throw in some mysterious Greek Gods and quantum wormholes and you have an exciting adventure.  Good book for a mythological mad reader who wants some romance.

17 year old Helene Crawford is a California girl struggling to fit in with her peers, she lives with her mother and their hoard of cats.  After a day at school like any other, Helen comes home to chaos, her mother is missing presumed dead and in the space of just a few hours, she goes from school girl to running for her life - the only person Helene can go to is a Godfather she has never met or even heard of before.......who lives in Greece.  When Helene arrives she is swept up into a world of myths and legends whilst trying to find out what really happened to her mother and balancing that with rebuilding her life in a new Country.

There is a ton to love about Protogenesis and for the most part I didn't want to put it down. It's a fantastic adventure full of mysteries to be solved, hidden rooms, strange portals, Gods and Monsters.  There is a seamless science fiction element woven into the mythology which I really enjoyed. Helene is a difficult character to pin down though, at times I really enjoyed her snark and her willingness to boldly jump into all sorts of situations to help her in her quest. But she is also incredibly ditsy and I often struggled to reconcile the fact that she was so easily distracted from her task of finding her mother.  Granted, her search is hampered by her Godfathers insistence that she attend school but her all encompassing distraction by the "Greek boys and their eyes" gets a little tiresome and is one of my biggest pet peeves - what I did enjoy however is that the author herself has a little tongue in cheek dig at this, which was refreshing.  I enjoyed the school element however, it really drove the plot forward and I liked seeing Helene being able to open herself up in way she never could in her old school, it brought balance to her life and I found this more believable than a 17 year old being allowed to run amok in a strange country on her own.

I sometimes found it difficult to put an appropriate age bracket on this book and I'm mindful that I am not the target audience, in light of that I found it easy to forgive a lot of the angst and bratty elements but there was one paragraph that was filled with really bad language which was really out of tone and felt a bit forced.  

The start was shaky but once we got to Greece this book really comes into it's own, it gives you a nice little reminder of Greek mythology and I found the world building nicely paced with just enough information to really have you wanting more for the next book in the series.  Keep an eye out for Bestat, she is a bit of a scene stealer!  This is a really light and easy read which quickly pulls you in and despite the bits which weren't really for me (it's quite tropetastic in places) I found it actually quite a joy to read and it's a series that i will want to stick with!

I think this would be a good read for the intended YA audience. Being a little bit out of that age group, I'm not sure if some of my opinions on the writing are due to my age. The main character is introduced mostly through her own thoughts and memories. This felt a little clunky because it didn't always make sense for her to think through some of these ideas without a catalyst and ended up feeling a little like an info dump. Our heroine feels a little immature for her age, so that was also somewhat disappointing. Outside of those factors, I feel the book would be an excellent read for any teen that enjoys fantasy, sci fi, or a good adventure story. Note: I received an eARC of this book for my honest review.

This book is about a teenage girl by the name Helene Crawford. One day her mother disappeares and now she must figure out what has happened to her. 

I liked this book and how it’s written. It’s keep you interested and keep you wondering what is going to happen next.

Beautifully written, Protogenesis envelopes the reader into the mind of Helene, as it follows her adventures, mystery and love.  As a strong young lady, Helene bravely search for her mother as she ventures to new lands.  For the young adult American reader, this book immerses you in the alluring Greek culture, mythology, and passion to a degree mostly have never experienced.  Once I picked this book up, I couldn't put it down!

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

1 ⭐️

I had big hopes for this novel. The synopsis made me think of Percy Jackson and the organized crime aspect reminded me of the Arkadien trilogy by Kai Meyer. It could have been amazing, if it didn't focus on unnecessary details every page.

There are many aspects to this overuse of details. There is the US-centric POV that the main character can simply not let go of. We get it, she's American (oops, sorry, <i>Californian</i>!) and has never set foot outside the continental US, we don't need to be reminded of it every other page. Within her first day in Greece, she manages to insult the inhabitants ("many local people seem to easily speak English so well" in an airport in Athens, having a hard time pronouncing the other characters' names but being angry when they can't get her own name right), make it all about the US ("the temperature, but it's in Celsius", which is what the entire world uses, apart from her country) and use the not-that-kind-of-girl trope ("not 'that girl' who fawns over guys").

As for that trope, she uses it constantly to explain everything about her that is different. Seriously, I thought we were over this kind of trope? I thought, in 2018, that we had established that bringing down other girls to pull yourself up is anti-feminist. In that same vein, she goes on about how hard it is to take the metro to get to school, how her clothes must have been purchased at Wal-Mart by Hal before she left, "this is not how any girl in her right mind would dress for the first day at a new school", and "who writes in chalk on a blackboard anymore". This book reeks of straight (I'll get to it in a second) white middle-class privilege. And of course, all of this is happening as she is supposed to search for her mother who might or might not be dead. This girl cannot keep her mind on the same subject for more than two seconds. She is like a crow with shiny objects.

Onto the "straight" thing now. I can enjoy a good romance and it's almost inevitable that you will see romance in a novel. But this main character hits on EVERY GUY she meets. The author describes every Greek guy her character meets as a godlike being whom Helen drools on. Also, can Ever NOT be perfect? No person in the history of the world has been a top player in every sport, has played both basketball and volleyball AT THE SAME TIME as the best player, looks like a god, is rich but nice and approachable, etc. You can turn it down a bit and still have an interesting character that your MC could fall for. And, by the way, it would have been a much better story if she didn't fall for both him and Nick within their first 10min of encounter.

I know I went on a rant here, but this book bothered me too much to finish it. I don't usually bother with privilege talk, but the amount of cis/straight white middle-class privilege reeking from this story is so hurtful. I would have understood it from a teenage author 5 or 10 years ago. But not today, not anymore.

This is my come back to YA books. I used to read them a lot.
I was not disappointed by this story, even with a lot of cliches from the genre. This story in few places seems a little too "distracted" by not important side-story things. Aside from that this was a greatly written and enjoyable story.
RECOMMENDED!!

The two biggest issues for me in this book were the love interests and the main character. I didn't like either love interest and I couldn't understand why Helene liked them either. They really never did anything that should've had her head over heels like she was. And Helene was just too whiny and stupid for me, they tell you not to trust anybody and the first thing you do is trust everybody and blurt out things you should keep to yourself.

I really wanted to enjoy this one – as a classicist I always love seeing how authors use the classical past to make a new story. The premise of a sci-fi mix to the old myths? It sounded awesome. However, I’m sad to say this story fell a little short for me. I felt that the idea was great, but often not executed to the potential it has. Although I did not enjoy the book overall, there were redeeming factors in the exploration of myths and in quotes found throughout the text. 

For the full review please visit my blog post.

This book was an interesting read. I have lots of mixed feelings.On one hand I love the story, there is something about gods and goddesses that really appealed to me. I love Greek mythology so I enjoyed that aspect.
On the other hand the story was not well written. I struggled to connect with the characters. First, the romances were hard to feel connected too. I don't know why exactly but I didn't find either believable. Though I don't think that had anything to do with the characters themselves, it was more so that the overall story structure was not good and that affected the characters.
I think the author has a great story here, it just needs more editing, reviewing, and polishing. It almost feels like a first draft when all the ideas are out on paper but there's not enough material that helps to give context.
I recommend people give the book a try. It really is a great story idea, I just wish the story was better developed. I struggled to get sucked in and immersed in the world.
I will say the main character was strong, and I liked that. He rescued herself and held her own. The relationship with her mom was fantastic. I loved the cat, wish that character was more integrated as it felt sort of like a random extra.

Overall, this author has a great idea here. This could be a great series! It needs more work, polishes, edits. It's not quite at the stage where its so well written that I am just immersed into the story and cant put it down.

I found Protogenesis to be a positive surprise. At first glance I thought, “here goes another young adult fiction book”, however once you get into the story of Helene you get hooked. I particularly found it quite refreshing to experience modern day Athens through the eyes of a seemingly romantic, almost naïve teenage girl from the States who goes through life using audacious courage as her best weapon. The fictional layer of the story brings together many of my favorite elements which I’ve read from other authors (e.g. the skillful use of parallel realities seen in the writing of R.Feist, or a romantic intensity which fuels the plot, seen in S.Meyer’s work). My favorite attribute of this story however is how the reader is slowly drawn into the psyche of a vulnerable teenage girl who discovers her own strength through the power of friendship, love and the mystique, makes you curious to see how the story will evolve.

I have followed @alysiahelming_novelist for a while on IG, and was recently honored to be offered the chance to review her novel Protogenesis. After following Helming's travels to Greece for research and meetings about this novel, I expected great things going into this book. I was not disappointed.
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Helena is a 17-year-old girl whose mother was killed in an explosion at her workplace. Or was she? Helena's search for answers leads her to Athens, Greece, where she becomes involved with a godfather she didn't know existed, a Greek underworld crime ring called the Syndicate, and two young men, both vying for her affections. Not to mention certain Greek gods who may be more than what the mythology books led her to believe.
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Young adult is not my genre of choice, but Helming had created so much more than a coming-of-age teen angst story. Take a thriller novel, throw in a little romance, add a pinch of Egyptian and Greek mythologies, and blend well. Alysia Helming has successfully brought the reader into the Greek culture with an original and intriguing tale of the Greek gods, who may still be involved with humanity thousands of years after their tales were told.
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This is the first in a planned series of seven novels. Be prepared: once you read this book, you will be chomping at the bit for the next one, and the one after that. .
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My Rating: 4.5/5 stars

What a fun book! A friend recommended Protogenesis to me, and I'm so glad she did. Its hard for me to find stories that I really love and relate to. Before the first chapter was over, I knew that Protogenesis was the book for me! The characters are so awesome--its great to see them learn and grow throughout the story. Not only does Alysia establish good characters from the beginning, she also provides many fascinating details about Greece. Even as someone who is Greek and has been to Greece several times, I learned a lot. And I can't forget to talk about the song "Forever and Tonight". It is unlike any other love song I've heard--slow, sensual, and sincere. I think everyone should read this book, regardless of what genres you're usually drawn to!

I absolutely loved this book!!!!!!! Alysia has created in intricate storyline with complex characters and a suspenseful plot. I couldn't put the book down. I read the whole thing in 3 days. I would have read it faster if I could have. Protogenesis is unlike any other bok I've read. It combines Greek culture with mystery and a hint of romance. I'm Greek, and I learned so much about mythology from it. Everyone should get themselves a copy of this! Alysia will get you to love mythology, just as she did with me. And I can't forget to mention the characters!!!! Helene, the protagonist, was a joy to learn from and watch grow stronger as the story developed. Ever, another main character, is basically the guy of any girl's dreams, myself included. But he's not just pretty, he's complicated too, which I really appreciated. Speaking of Ever, the song at the back of the book by Kostas Martakis is so hauntingly beautiful. Kostas is who Ever is based on. Kostas' extreme talent shines through in the song. The lyrics are so deep and they really hit me, especially when I found them in the story. Please please buy this book and read it! You won't be disappointed! Between the story and the music, its a masterpiece! I'm on my second read through right now. I can't wait until the next book in the series comes out next year.

This book was a request from Netgalley.
The synopsis for this one sounded really interesting, which is why I wanted to read it. The cover is also beautiful. The book is sort of "Percy Jackson-ish" and I really wanted to like it.
I think this book has great potential. It's just that the chapters were a bit long winded in my opinion. To much Bach story, to much time spent on getting to know Vani. I just got very bored and had to push myself to read on which takes the enjoyment away.
On the the plus side, I like Helene and Ever. The authors world building skills were good.
I really wanted to like this one, it just fell short for me.