This one has been on my TBR (and physical shelf) for far too long! Lore by Alexandra Bracken is an urban fantasy inspired by Greek mythology. Every seven years, the Agon begins, and this cycle is about to start. The Agon is punishment for a rebellion led by Athena that lasts for one week. During that week, nine of the Greek gods become mortal and walk the earth, hunted by descendants of Greek legends. If one of them kills a god, they become that god and will be hunted in the next cycle. And so it continues every seven years.

Lore Perseous left the Agon and her life behind after a tragedy befell her family, leaving her as the only survivor. She’s tough, can fight, and knows how precious life is. She’s carved out a new life for herself and wants nothing to do with the old one. This will be the first Agon since she left. She has no intentions on hunting or participating…until a ghost from her past stumbles in.

Castor was Lore’s childhood friend, her partner that she trained with. When she saw him last, he was dying of a rare form of cancer. Now he’s healthy and a new god. Lore is left with little choice but to trust her old friend and protect him if she can from those that seek his divinity. Cas is an enigma to her. He never wanted power, so why did he kill a god to become one and, perhaps the better question, how did he do it?

This plot moves at a breakneck speed. I love all the characters, their nuances and flaws, and how they interact with one another. Athena plays a large role in the book, seeking help from Lore at the beginning. The action scenes are phenomenal and bring you right into the thick of the fighting. I loved seeing how the author interwove her story with the myths we know about the Greek gods and the urban setting. Miles is perhaps my favorite addition to the story. He is Lore’s best friend and roommate. He also happens to know nothing about the Agon or its history. He’s a breath of fresh air and an excuse for some interesting info dumping.

Overall, I really enjoyed Lore. The action, the mythology, the romance….all of it. It was a fun read from start to finish. Lore is easy to root for. You want her to win and reach her goals. If you are a fan of urban fantasy, I highly recommend it.

Audiobook Note: While I have a hardback copy of this book (also an ebook 😅), I opted to listen, and I’m so glad I did. This was the first time I’ve listened to Wolff, and I’ll be looking for more from her. She was fantastic. I never struggled to figure out who was talking during dialogue. Her subtle inflections fully immersed me in Lore’s world, and I did not want it to end.

I had high hopes for this book. I liked the overall world building and mythological elements to this story, and Bracken’s writing and prose are beautiful as always, but I felt a little as though the plot was a little too slow for a stand alone and that there were characters that seemed a little two dimensional and I couldn’t bring myself to care as much about them.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken is a wild ride of Greek mythology meets Hunger Games vibes! The action is nonstop, the world is brutal, and Lore herself is such a fierce, complicated character. It’s perfect for anyone who loves mythology, revenge plots, and high-stakes battles. You won’t want to put it down!

I really enjoyed this one! I loved the take on Greek mythology, the Greek gods all set in modern NYC and loved Miles, Caster, the whole crew. I feel like it was pretty much nonstop action and I always wanted to keep reading to find out what happens. However, the ending did leave me a bit wanting? Not sure...as I don't really know what I wanted to happen exactly. It was fine, the ending was fine. But I didn't LOVE it. That being said, highly recommend this standalone especially if you are a fan of Greek mythology! It's a fun ride for sure.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken is a fast-paced and action-packed urban fantasy that takes readers on a thrilling journey through Greek mythology. The story follows Lore, a young woman who is pulled back into a deadly game of gods and mortals when her family is killed. Every seven years, the gods are forced to walk the Earth as mortals, and it’s up to hunters like Lore to kill them and take their powers. As Lore gets caught up in the game once again, she must face not only dangerous enemies but also painful truths about her past.

The world-building is great. Lore is a strong, determined protagonist, and her struggle with vengeance, guilt, and loyalty adds depth to the story. The book has plenty of twists and turns, with high stakes and plenty of action to keep readers on edge

This is well written and organized book. The quality is much appreciated as there is something for every reader. The character choices and style of the author is felt. This is a book I definitely recommend to anyone looking for a good read. Anything by Alex Bracken is a plus.

Loved the idea and what it was about but DNF'd this book at about 30% read, just wasn't for me unfortunately.

Super fun and great read! I enjoyed the fun YA tropes and learning about greek mythology along the way

I think readers will be surprised by how brutal this story is. Although, I think it would have been split into POVs. Even so, still delivers a complex plot with developing personal relationships among the characters. Nine Greek gods rebelled and in the rebellion, Agon was created. Every seven years, they are stripped of their powers and immortality and thrown to fight against humans eagerly waiting to take on their roles. In the Greek gods deaths, the human (s) gain their powers and immortality. Lora, who is supposedly from a wiped-out line of the Perseides is drawn back into the hunt. Teaming with Athena, they search for an end to the Agon.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken is a thrilling and action-packed tale that will captivate fans of Greek mythology and young adult fantasy, particularly those who enjoy stories about friendship, adventure, and the struggle for power, as it masterfully weaves together a richly detailed world of gods and mortals, ancient rivalries, and modern-day battles.

“Lore” was an adventurous journey into a world of mythology that I had not yet experienced. I’ve read a lot of books on Greek mythology, so the idea of what this story could be had me totally hyped to read it!

While I enjoyed the overall story, my only complaint is with the development of the story villains. We can all agree that Zeus is a total jerk and will never have a redeemable characteristic— Iike ever. lol. So, the way he was portrayed in “Lore” did bug me just a little. However, this was a fun read and I would recommend it to my friends and fellow readers.

Thank you, NetGalley, for a chance to read this in exchange for an honest review.

So I love Alexandra Bracken's writing in her other books but this one mixed with the slight confusion that is greek mythology in general just left me a little confused. I found this one hard to follow and I couldn't really connect with most of the characters. I did enjoy the plot for the most part and had an okay time reading it but it never really clicked for me.

I loved More. Alexandra Bracken never fails to amaze me. She is a masterful storyteller and you can tell how much effort and work she puts into her stories..amazing amazing story. I loved it.

I did not finish this book but I enjoyed what I read. It was a bit lenghty and wordy but it was also riveting.

I had really high expectations going into this book so I was really sad when I found it just ok. Parts of it dragged and I wasn’t really quite as hooked as I wanted to be.

The twists actually surprised me a couple times which was nice. I was pretty hooked at the beginning but yet I couldn’t really get invested the whole time

3.75

I love how the story's theme is modern day Greek Mythology. I enjoyed the idea of the agon, which gives me The Hunger Games vibes (I loved this element)
The story was jam-packed with action. I liked a lot of the characters, but felt some of them were a bit lacking.
I lowered the rating as there was a lot of info dumping at the start, which made the read a bit of a struggle at first. I only started to really enjoy it after a third of the way through. And found the amount different houses and characters, a bit forgettable. Overall I really enjoyed it but just needed a bit more

A twist where nine Greek gods must walk on Earth every seven years to be hunted by the descendants of the ancient bloodlines. If they survive the hunt they get to hold on to their immortality for another seven years, if not the one who claims their life will also claim their power.

I enjoyed this modern take on mythology. The pacing was a little slow at times but I did enjoy the overall story, especially the further into it that I got. There are a lot of well-done characters in this book but I found myself the most drawn to Castor's story. I appreciate that this is a standalone title. It would have been easy to draw the book out into multiple installations but as a standalone it shared this world while still giving you an appropriate ending that I, personally, really appreciated. I'm excited to see what's next for Alexandra Bracken and if she'll share more stories based on mythology.

This has me sooo excited for whatever else Alexandra Bracken has in her amazing brain! I'm hyped and ready to read anything that comes my way!

This sounds like the start of a fun book. From this chapter sampler, I'm very excited to read the rest of the book.

I just don't even know where to start, I love Mythology, and this story just had everything I hoped it would and more.
I loved this twist of the old gods fighting to win back favor with Zeus, and the family traditions, and the fallacy. Malora was an incredible heroine.