Unfortunately I will not be able to finish this book before the archive date. However, I was able to get 55% of the way through the book, so I wanted to provide my initial feedback. Once I finish the book later this week, I will be posting a review to my goodreads profile.

In the beginning, I was very confused. We are dropped into the world of Lore, the Agon, and a present day New York City with very little context. Through the course of the story, we learn more and more about the world and what is happening. Overall, it is a very enjoyable story, but I found myself struggling to connect with the characters. I am looking forward to seeing where the last 45% of the book takes me and if I will feel differently. Thank you again for the opportunity to read this novel.

Ahhhhhhh y'all! Lore was one of my absolute favorite reads of 2020 and I cannot wait to tell y'all all about it and why you need to grab it/read it when it comes out tomorrow! Thank you so much to Disney-Hyperion Books and Netgalley for letting me read Lore early. I had been looking forward to Lore for the longest time and I love everything about Greek mythology, so i knew I was going to enjoy it, especially because I love Alex Bracken's writing, but man, I didn't realize just how much I was going to love it!

Lore 5/5 Stars

Summary from Goodreads: Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.<br>Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family's sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory. For years she's pushed away any thought of revenge against the man--now a god--responsible for their deaths.<br>Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.<br>The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore's decision to bind her fate to Athena's and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost--and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees. 

First off, I love the concept of the descendants of heros competing every 7 years against each other and the gods to try and 1) survive and 2) take the power of a god. Such a fun/intense concept! I love it so much. Next, I love Lore as a narrator/main character. She's easy to empathize with, especially because of the way she lost her family when she was super young. I also loved Miles and Castor. The new Ares, Wrath, is a great villain and the way that Alex Bracken has the story pan out and the way things happen were definitely unexpected (I'm trying to be as vague as possible so y'all don't see it until it hits you either). I can definitely see myself rereading this book over and over again- this has for sure become my favorite Greek mythology based book (plus, it's set in NYC, and your girl loves NYC). There wasn't a second where I was bored or wanted to put Lore down- and it's not like Lore is a short book- the hardcover is 480 pages! I highly recommend picking this one up ASAP!

Thank you to Netgalley and Disney Publishing Worldwide for the ARC.

🌟🌟🌟🌟 4/5 stars
Publication Date: 1/5/21

Lore is the new fantasy novel by Alexandra Bracken. When nine Greek gods rebel, their punishment is the Agon. Every seven years, they are forced to walk the earth as mortals and be hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines who hope to take their power and immortality. In present day, Lore Perseous has fled that life following the murder of her family and her choice to not seek revenge against their murderers. As the new hunt begins, Lore is reunited with a friend she thought she lost and with Athena, who offers her a deal - become allies to take revenge and end the Agon forever.

Lore has a very complex plot (a summary is very hard to do it justice) and is such a throwback to the days of Hunger Games and Divergent. I loved Bracken’s The Darkest Minds series and she has created another inventive world full of lovable characters. Lore begins quickly and the world building never slows down the plot. You become interested in the story and the world right away and I enjoyed seeing Bracken’s spin on the famous Greek mythological figures.

Overall, Lore is a cinematic, complex, and fun adventure fantasy that is perfect for fans of The Hunger Games and Shadowhunters!

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

* I received this eARC for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review *

For one week every 7 years, the gods of all the old legends become mortal and return to earth. During that week, the descendants of mythology’s greatest heroes must hunt them. If a god is killed, their slayer assumes all their power, bringing honor to their own mortal families. Lore thought she left all this behind her, until an injured Athena arrives on her doorstep and Lore has the chance to stop the cycle once and for all.

First and foremost, this book is incredibly well researched and it is obvious, even in the first few pages, how much care the author brought to reimagining these familiar, old myths. This book has elements of some of my favorite YA Fantasy series, and it is an exciting read.

But, the book is a bit too long, and the story often lags for the sake of smaller details. The end left me wanting so much more, but not in a good way. I felt like the romantic relationship was still underdeveloped, and I still didn’t have a full grip of Lore’s past.

Overall, this book is a great deep dive into the familiar greco-roman mythology with an interesting new twist.

Lore is the kind of YA character we all “hate” because she’s so realistic that we’re mad how she’s representing society. She has given up her life of training for the Agon and wishes to live a normal life after her family’s murder. Until Athena shows up at her doorstep injured at the beginning of the current Agon, begging for help. Lore is revenge driven and accepts her offer in exchange for Athena’s help taking down the man, now god, who killed her parents. She’s a good person, with a good soul, who wants the people who killed her family to pay. But that also means she makes bad decisions that ultimately ends up hurting her and her friends. So, while frustrating, don’t say I didn’t warn ya!

This book is filled with so many twists and turns. Just like Greek mythology, nothing is at it seems, and if you aren’t careful, you will get burned. There were so many moments that I thought to myself “you’re a little too trusting”, “are you sure you want to do that?”, “I KNEW IT!” – all actual things I said or shouted out loud. As a lover of Greek mythology and its retellings, we all know that there are no “good” or “bad” guys in stories. There’s bad and worse guys and you really have to just hope that you don’t end up badly burned or dead by the end of it.

And of course we have some romance thrown in there. I loved how we get to see Lore’s past because it helped me to understand her and Castor’s friendship and how they were as children. Especially now since he’s shown up in Lore’s life again after she thought he was dead. The beginning was a little confusing on this part for me as we are introduced to him in a weird way, but with the flashbacks and more solid information, it makes sense how and why Lore thought he was dead all this time. Through it all, I loved this book, and I read it in a single day.

By the end of this story, I was teary eyed. There is so much that happens to these characters in five days, not even a whole week, five days, that my poor heart couldn’t handle it by the ending. This book is filled with a lot of action, some gruesome imagery (definitely not for the little ones), romance, friendship, and more – I loved it. Besides feeling a little confused in the beginning, Bracken does an amazing job of spoon feeding us the information we need without it feeling like she’s spoon feeding us. And the mix of present day scenes with flashbacks made the book that much more mysterious and interesting. A new favorite of mine that I’ll probably end up rereading soon!

I was definitely intrigued by this book and I went into it with pretty low expectations. I wasn’t looking for it to blow my mind. I just wanted a good time with Greek mythology which is something I love and honestly, that’s what I got with this book. The cover is absolutely gorgeous as well so that also added to my desire to read it.

Characters

Our main character is Lore and she was a pretty fun protagonist to read about. I definitely empathized with her and was always rooting for her to be the one winning. She was a solid character with flaws and strengths. The romance was not my favorite but it was cute. I’m not the biggest fan of childhood friends to lovers but I think in this book it was well done and fun to read about.

My favorite characters though were definitely Van and Miles. I wish they had more page time but I’m glad they were in the book as every time I read about them I was smiling and laughing.

Plot/Story

I was a little confused when I first started the book as I didn’t really get the synopsis and didn’t understand exactly what the hunt entailed but the more I read the more I was intrigued and the pieces all started to come together. One thing I really appreciate about the plot was that it was fast-paced. There weren’t many pauses and that really helped to keep me engaged with the story. I stayed up until midnight to finish as I had to know what happened.

Since this book is set in the modern world, specifically New York City there wasn’t much world-building. I do think that Bracken did a really good job of fleshing out the secret society that exists within the city as well as makes the reader feel like they know what the city is like even if they’ve never been there. I also think choosing NYC as the backdrop for the hunt was a good choice and thinking about Greek Gods running around the city trying to evade one another was fun.

Writing

I enjoyed the writing style. I don’t think it was overly poetic which can sometimes be a real turn-off for me. It was clean, straightforward, and easy to read which is exactly how I like my books.

Conclusion

I think if you’re looking for a new take on Greek Gods this book might be right up your alley. The fact that it’s a standalone is also a plus because everything was neatly wrapped up at the end and it left me feeling really satisfied. I definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for more Greek mythology-inspired books to read about!

This book throws you right into the clutches of action from the very first page! The stage is set, Manhattan, the backdrop, and the curtains rise on a new Agon. Melora (Lore) Perseous, our reluctant heroine, has no intention of fighting for power or immortality until the unexpected arrival of an old friend throws her completely off balance. And readers will be very grateful!

The stakes rise so quickly after that and it's only slightly hard to keep up with. At first. The revelations begin to tumble out, but Lore's wit, her education, and her heritage have all prepared her for every adjustment. Lore's characterization is the epitome of a strong female lead. Imperfect. Capable. Intelligent. Her identity is never once determined by a man, or her insecurities, but by her own beliefs. She has the confidence to continue moving forward in spite of every faltered step, and it's an example we could all use going into 2021.

This is what a contemporary urban YA fantasy is all about! A strong, no-nonsense, bad-ass female protagonist descended from an ancient Greek hero's bloodline who has real friends and makes believable, well-thought out decisions (and mistakes) is what I'm talking about! Throw in a cast of developed supporting characters and I was hooked.

So, this is a wholly unique take on Greek mythology and the various gods and heroes, and where they are in the present. So unique, that although I had a pretty strong grasp of the myths prior to reading, I really had to slow down in the beginning to fully understand the characters and their houses. Pro tip: there is a cast of characters list at the end which is SUPER helpful.

This book is almost 500 pages long, but the pacing was great (once I got a handle on who was who), the action was plentiful and gorey, and the twists were surprising enough that the pages just flew...I stayed up till past 2am reading this one! This book pulls no punches. Actually, with the serious topics brought up, such as child torture and killing, multiple murder, and attempted rape, I think this may be better categorized as new adult vs YA.

There is very little romance, but what there is is sweet, very briefly mentioned and inconsequential to the plot, which was actually perfect for the flavor of this story. I'll definitely be checking out other books by this author.

**Disclaimer: I received a free early access copy of Lore by Alexandra Bracken through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  Thank you to them and the publisher for this opportunity.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken is a young adult fantasy novel set in a world where the Greek gods walk the Earth as humans.  Lore thought she escaped the world she was raised after the murder of her parents, but finds herself sucked back in. It is set to be published on January 5th, 2021.  I rated it five stars on GoodReads.

Here's the summary from Goodreads:

From the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Darkest Minds comes a sweepingly ambitious, high-octane tale of power, destiny, love and redemption.
Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.
Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family's sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory. For years she's pushed away any thought of revenge against the man--now a god--responsible for their deaths.
Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.
The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore's decision to bind her fate to Athena's and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost--and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.

I found myself really intrigued by the premise of those book, and ended up requesting it twice because I got approved for the chapter sampler first, and I wanted to read the whole book.  I am SO glad that I did, because I absolutely loved the story and it's officially my first five star read of 2021.

This story was a bit of a slowburn despite the fact that it took place over a few short days.  It was very well paced with good moments of action in between moments of world building.  This was a really cool world.  I liked the roots in mythology while being cemented in a modern world.  I am a sucker for a good urban fantasy, and this one fully didn't disappoint.  I know that Greek mythology is something that has been explored a lot in young adult fiction, but I felt that the way that the gods and their stories were included in the world was really original, and I was very impressed.

I loved Lore as a main character.  She's got a lot of traits that make her a typical hero, but she was still reluctant to get back into it, which is a feature I love.  I also really sympathised with her story and how she felt like she didn't fit in, and how she was blaming herself for various things that happened.  She's not typically likeable, but I honestly really enjoyed her and she's probably one of my new fave female characters.

The story was well constructed.  The action scenes were well paced out so that I wasn't completely stressed out and biting my nails the entire time.  There were moments to recover and recollect but never long enough to get too comfortable.  The story kept me guessing with who could be trusted and who was on the right side of things.  I appreciated that the exposition was well done and I didn't feel overwhelmed or overly confused.  Information was revealed at just the right pace.  I also liked the inclusion of flashbacks to show what things were like for Lore prior to the events of the novel.

The side characters were also quite well developed.  I really enjoyed how the characters came together and split and just overall how all their relationships developed.  They felt real, and the author did a good job at making me fall in love with the characters pretty quickly.

Overall, I had a really good time reading this book, and I highly recommend that you check it out when it releases on January 5th.

Alexandra Bracken has done it again! The world she created was Lush and compelling, and the use of greek mythology has me stopping to grab my computer and searching more on the gods. This is book is definitely one to look out for.

Lore was my most anticipated read of 2021 and it did not disappoint.

Every seven years, the Agon begins. For 7 days, nine Greek gods are hunted by ancient bloodlines who seek their power. Lore has sworn off this life after her family was brutally murdered in the last Agon. However, as the new one begins, she is dragged back into battle by her childhood friend, Castor, and Athena, one of the last original gods.

This book was honestly sooo good. The plot is epic and fast-paced. It's the kind of book that keeps you at the edge of your seat and compels you to stay up late in order to read one more chapter. It's also filled with Greek mythology and so incredibly well-written. I loved each of the characters and the relationships that Lore develops with them.

And Lore's relationship with Castor omggg. I loved how sweet Castor is towards her and the whole "childhood friends to lovers" dynamic.

I had so much fun reading it and I highly recommend picking this book up!

This review is for the full ARC of Lore. I accidentally posted it under both the sampler and the full ARC.

Oh my god wow!😍 This book was so beautifully written the it easily made the list of my top 10 favorite books ever!

Lore is set in modern day New York City except with a Greek twist. There are gods and decedents of gods living among everyday new yorkers. What they don’t know is that there is a war among the gods and the decedents that they can’t see. Through death and destruction of New York and the people who live there, these descendants (also known as hunters) seek the gift of immortality from the gods.

Lore just wanted to live a normal life. She wanted out. One day during a boxing match as an under ground fight club, her past comes back to pull her straight back in to the life she thought she left behind.

This book is so amazing! I finished it in a little over a day. The concept is so unique and I think that is what made me like it even more. I’m not a massive greek mythology fan but this book made me want to explore it more. If you are looking for a read that you can’t put down and is going to suck you into a world we didn’t think was possible, you should definitely check out Lore!

Lore follows Melora, an orphan who has tried to escape the world of Greek gods/goddesses fighting for immortality after it takes her family from her. Every 7 years, the gods temporarily lose their immortality and their powers will be passed to whoever can kill them. Families train for the hunt their whole lives, but Lore just wants to end it once and for all.

Fans of Percy Jackson who are ready to move on to more complex titles will eat this one up. Personally, I was a bit confused and it took me a while to get into the book. It's an ambitious debut novel with many characters and plenty of action. Every time I thought I figured out where things were going, there was another twist or betrayal to keep me on my toes.

I'd always loved a good Greek myth-inspired retelling set in the modern world. So, when I first heard about Lore, I was so intrigued. I mean, vicious and ambitious descendants of Greek heroes running off to kill Greek gods and take their power? Give me that!
I'm so happy that this book lived up to the hype. Think of Camp Half Blood kids in The Hunger Games. Except, instead of targeting each other, they're targeting the true enemy.
Lore is a great protagonist and the perfect character to show one of the underlying themes of the book, which is the forgotten heroes in Greek myth. We almost exclusively only hear about the Greek gods and, if not them, the male Greek heroes. But the women are often sidelined or forgotten. Well, in this book, Lore wouldn't be sidelined and I loved that the most. She's determined and fierce and an overall badass.
This is my first Alexandra Bracken book and I love it so much! Cannot wait to get a physical copy in my hands.

How do you cope if you don’t really like yourself, and want to escape your destiny? Melora (Lore) has ghosts haunting her, and it’s fair to say there’s the looming possibility of death that hovers over her as well.

This book has a really intriguing concept. It’s Greek mythology meets the Hunger Games in modern New York City.

Lore is a kick-ass feminist YA fantasy novel that combines intrigue and action while developing a rich protagonist. Lore’s an intriguing character who’s wrestling with a lot of demons. She’s haunted by choices she’s made and regrets she has, and she’s scarred by loss. These factors inform a lot of her decisions. When someone from her past (that she believed was dead) shows up, she feels her old life imposing on the new life she’s carved out for herself. She’s still determined to avoid her past, but circumstances prevent that. When she finds an injured god on her doorstep, she has to make some tough choices that pull her back into the Agon, where she has to fight for her life against the descendants of the ancient bloodlines, old gods, and new (false) gods who remain.

The tension between Lore’s old life and new life affects her motivation and choices throughout the entire story. On one hand, this is an action-packed book. Lore has to sneak into buildings, spy on enemies for information, and flee for her life on multiple occasions. There are also a lot of fight scenes. It isn’t enough that Lore’s own life hangs in the balance; her roommate is a potential target who doesn’t have supernatural abilities and has no idea what he’s been pulled into. As the last of her bloodline, Lore has to scramble to find allies wherever she can, and trust isn’t easy to come by. It doesn’t help that there are a lot of secrets Lore’s keeping, and she’s still wrestling with her guilt.

One one level, this is a story about epic battles and rival bloodlines, with sinister gods who will do anything to win the Agon. On another level, there’s a deep love between Lore and Castor that’s evident from the start of the story, but there are a lot of obstacles that make it hard for them to trust each other, and the possibility of a future seems hopeless. Their focus is on surviving the Agon, and as events progress this seems less and less likely.

Lore also has a rich character arc. She comes to terms with her past, and the choices she’s made that have affected her life and her relationships.

The multiple layers of the story had me thoroughly engrossed. I felt like no part of the story lagged, and I was just as interested in their recon operations and battles as I was in her history and how it impacted the present. Honestly, after a number of great reads, I couldn’t put this book down. And it’s important to note that none of the critical storytelling elements were sacrificed. The character development was as comprehensive as the plot and subplots, and there were plenty of surprises along the way.

Lore is also one of the strongest feminist stories I’ve read in a long time. I thought it was intriguing that the author raised the fact that history is written by the victors, and that as the rulers within their society, men determined what myths were passed on and changed the substance of them. There were a lot of bloodlines and names to keep straight, and I think it would have been easier to read this in hard copy, because there was a directory at the back. I had an e-arc, so I didn’t flip back and forth. Still, the volume of names and groups didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the story at all.

Bracken uses an immersive writing style and takes you right inside the character, allowing you to feel her pain and uncertainty as she wrestles with the choices she’s forced to make, and this suits the story very well. It would have made my top 5 reads of the year if I’d read it earlier, but since I finished it after our best of lists were done, it counts as my first 5/5 read for my 2021 list.

RATING: 4 out of 5 Enchanted Roses

ONE-WORD REVIEW: MYTHICAL

READING TUNE: Afraid by No Wyld

TAG LINE:

Bind your fate to mine.

OPENING LINE:

Her mother had once told her that the only way to truly know someone was to fight them.

REVIEW:

I was fortunate enough to be gifted a copy of LORE on Netgalley -- thank you Disney Hyperion! LORE is actually the first novel by Katherine Laurin I have finished. I tried to read PASSENGERS and made it at least 2/3 through but had to DNF it (which I RARELY do, like ever but I would love to give it another chance in the future). Nevertheless, LORE was a completely different experience for me, in the best possible way.

I am a big lug for Greek mythology especially retellings. While LORE isn’t a retelling per se it is heavily inspired by badass goddesses and gods of Greek mythology. To add the icing to the cake, LORE's premise also heavily resides around cool ancient fighting tactics while using New York City as its arena for the hunting of gods during the week-long Agon. During the last Agon, seven years ago, Lore's entire family was murdered in their house and her best friend died from cancer. With no one left in the world, Lore was insistent on starting a new life away from all of the death, loss, and glory. To change her fate.

You may deny the Fates, but they will not deny you.

But on one fateful night, her past catches up with her when a legendary goddess bleeding from a mortal wound tracks her down and seeks her help. And forces Lore to deal with deep wounds and bloodthirsty desires for vengeance. I mean: COME ON! I love the premise of LORE.

For seven days, every seven years, the gods walk on earth as mortals. If you can kill one, you become a new god and take their power and immortality.

Having said that, as much as I enjoyed LORE there some adjustments could have been made to the story. It was a little hard to follow what exactly was going on in relation to making plot connections to the gods & hunters' motives and what they were searching for during the hunt. For example, it took me a bit to figure out Wrath a.k.a False Ares was searching for not one but two mythical items which explained why he was on this homicidal rampage. Also, I couldn’t understand why False Ares wanted these mythical items -- by page 275 I still was lost as to why Ares was on his search.

It also took me a long while to figure out why goddesses and gods were being punished by Zeus via being cast out of Olympus and thrust into mortal bodies --although they were able to retain their powers--which could be killed by the Houses of mortal hunters. Moreover, I feel like all of the logic and intentions of the Hunters and gods could’ve been clearer because I was pretty much lost for at least the first third of the story -- my understanding of Agon, motives, logic, etc. felt splotchy for a while there.

As for what I enjoyed most about LORE, there are many things. The characters were well-rounded and I connected with many of them. The worldbuilding was fleshed out -- it was the perfect blend of the real world and mythical legends. As a native New Yorker, I also think Bracken captured my city really well, which is always bonus points in my book.

I loved Bracken's play on the infamous lore of Greek gods and goddesses. But, most importantly readers were given the chance to see those gods in a different light, in an interesting and refreshing new way. As gods and goddesses, they are not required to uphold the same standards mere mortals are. Mortals are defined by their consciousness -- their conscious decisions to do right or wrong--, whereas Greek gods are not so restricted. Gods are not confined by the same moral codes of humanity. So, it was super interesting to see these unfathomable immortal beings of divinity cast into human roles, where they struggled to reconcile their divinity with flesh and blood bodies that could die, became physically fatigued, required sustenance, etc.

“You may be a god,” she told him, relishing the sight of his struggle. “But I’m the Perseides.”

The pacing was the perfect speed for the unfolding of the plot -- fast during the action-packed scenes, lulling but gutting during the emotional scenes. And let us not forget the incredible Plottwist crafted by Bracken, the goddess of Wordery. I will not spoil it here but: DAMN. It was great.

Monsters lived in the shadows. To hunt them, you couldn't be afraid to follow. And the only way to destroy them was to have the sharper teeth and the darker heart.

My favorite thread when I read is generally the romance, and Bracken -- who claims to have difficulty with romance beats -- did not disappoint! The story doesn't have the instalove trope but more of a childhood friends turned enemies (onesided) turned friends turned lovers trope going on I delighted in. I wanted to desperately squeeze and hug Castor while reading LORE. Lore and Castor had great chemistry and the tension in defining their rebuilding a connection make me swoon with its angst and sweetness.

"You confuse me," he said plainly. "It's always been this way. I want to tell you everything, but there's a part of me that's still afraid of seeming weak."

All in all, I had a great time reading LORE and recommend it to anyone who has a sweet tooth for badass heroines, soft, warrior boyfriends, Greek Mythology, and cool fighting scenes.

CHARACTERS:

LORE PERSEIDES: Suffice it to say Loris character is my favorite archetype of heroine. She is fierce as hell, can fight tooth and nail, surly on the outside and warm and gooey on the inside, and fiercely loyal to her friends. I empathize with her character very much because I understand what it means to have to hide your heart behind hard walls in order to survive.

She slammed a fist against the front of the shield, and the roar that burst from it was deeper than thunder -- it was primordial.
It raged through the air, bellowing through the quiet streets. She struck it again, and again, until her ears rang and she heard the call echo back to her from distant buildings. The power blazed through her. She felt invincible.

CASTOR ACHILLEOUS: Castor is my favorite brand of delicious cinnamon roll boyfriends. Although he grew up in a blood-thirsty world filled with bullying, hatred, murder, and betrayal, and suffering from cancer, he still managed to be sweet, kind, loyal to his friends, and loyal to himself.

“He didn't want to let her down, because she would have lost her training partner and had to leave the program. But more than that, he always wanted to see her. He always wanted to follow her, even if it was right into trouble."

FAVORITE QUOTES:

She had had her family. Her bloodline. Her name. Lore had borne the weight of those responsibilities from the moment she first learned the word Agon. Castor, though -- Castor had been different. It felt as if he had been given to her by the gods, and she to him.

+

"I accept your apology," he told Iro. "Thank you for helping the Achillides."
Lore blew a piece of hair out of her face. "This is why I always had to hold all of our grudges as kids. You've never had the heart for them."

Happy Reading!
Ashley
www.TheTatteredPage.com

Wow, that was pretty amazing. This reminded me a little bit of the War on the Gods series by A.P. Mobley, but it was probably a bit darker than that. It was sort of like a cross between the Hunger Games and War on the Gods with a bit more emphasis on the ugly aspects of war and sacrifice. But don't get me wrong--it was not a war book. The focus was on Lore and her friends and uneasy alliances as they fight to survive the Agon, which is a 7-day event that happens every 7 years when 9 of the Gods who betrayed Zeus will walk the earth in mortal forms and their houses have to survive to be the last ones standing. Several of the houses have already died off at the start of this book, and Lore is the last of her line, the house of the Perseides (Perseus). She has spent the last 7 years in hiding and trying to avoid the world of the Agon, but she is quickly sucked back in. This is an action-packed story and there is definitely a fair bit of death, but somehow the story is energizing and by the end, I was moved to tears, but not all in a bad way. I loved the ending and thought this was a great stand-alone novel. At 576 pages, it's a fairly hefty novel, but it's the perfect length for a serious stand-alone story. The author did a great job researching all the various myths and the story was both well-written and well-thought-out. I have not read her books before, but I will definitely check out her Darkest Minds trilogy after this!

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

***I received an uncorrected proof of this ebook from netgalley in exchange for an honest review***

"The old gods must die to allow the new to rise."†

This book was basically Greek mythology meets the Hunger Games set in modern NYC. Every seven years, a group of nine gods are made mortal and forced to fight for their lives in the Agon. This is their eternal punishment for rebelling against Zeus in ancient times. If the human descendants of the other gods succeed in killing them, they gain their power and immortality. There are very few originals left by the time we get to Lore's timeline. This in itself is such an interesting concept! Readers still get to experience some recognizable Greek deities, but also new incarnations in the image of others. Lore has also got a great amount of legend built in and organically shaped to fit the narrative... tons of anecdotes, stories, weaponry, language-use. I'm Greek and a mythology-nerd so I was into it. Like, damn, this book really checked all my boxes.

Star lost for lackluster characterization of major "side-characters" (Miles, Van, Iro). They weren’t in enough scenes (present or past) to flesh them out completely. This made it difficult to understand their emotions and motivations.

Lore is a stunning example of a perfect standalone.* Bracken masterfully executed complex world-building and organic character development all while filling the plot with unexpected twists and turns. *I would not complain if she ever decided to return to this world and write about some of the previous Agons, just sayin.


†check against final text

I was very impressed with this novel. I wasn't sure that the story would hold up, given that it was a lengthier novel than I had expected, but there were no unnecessary lulls in the story. The pacing was well done. The action and intrigue remained interesting throughout, the plot twists (while sometimes predictable) were entertaining, and the characters were well developed. I would love to know more about Miles after his introduction to this world, and about Van's history. In my opinion, they both have stories to tell. However, I do think that the author inserted just enough of their stories into this novel, given that the principal storyline was based on the past of another character.

Thank you to Netgalley and Disney Hyperion for providing a copy of this e-book for review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Publishing for providing me with an ARC to review.

Lore was one of my favorite books that I read in 2020, as well as my last read of the year. There was something about this book that stood out to me from other books that I read—and it definitely wasn’t because it was fresh in my mind.

Lore is set in a world where humans have the ability to become gods. Due to a punishment from Zeus, nine gods—Athena, Ares, Poseidon, Dionysus, Artemis, Apollo, Hephaestus, Hermes and Aphrodite—face the Agon every seven years, where they walk the Earth as mortals. If they are killed by a hunter, the hunter takes on their powers and the original god is lost. In Lore, only four of the original gods remain—Athena, Artemis, Apollo and Hermes. Lore left the world of the Agon and hunting behind years ago, with no intention to go back. That is until a friend from Lore’s past finds her and Athena turns up at her doorstep with a promise: to help her kill the man who killed her family.

The dynamic between the new gods and the old gods was interesting and their distain for one another was well developed in this story, as was the Agon in general. This world is so expansive that, even though Lore is a standalone, there could be prequels told about this world and how the Agon came to be without over saturating.

The characters in this story and their friend dynamic were perfect, they felt as though they’d known each other forever, despite some of them having met during the course of the book. None of the characters fell flat and they all contributed to the story, the plot couldn’t have gone on without them. My one issue with the characters, though, was the childhood friends to lovers romance in the story. These two characters, in my opinion, showed zero romantic chemistry throughout the story and it almost felt like they weren’t the characters that were fulfilling this trope, but they were. The story could’ve remained the same without this added romance.

Overall, Lore is an action packed story with an amazingly immersive world and a cast of characters that feel like your friends while you’re reading. There was never a dull moment in this story and every twist and turn will keep you on your feet and the book in your hand. Lore is perfect for any fan of Rick Riordan or general greek mythology and turns those figures we know into something fresh and exciting.

TWs: blood, violence, murder (parents, children), gore, terminal illness, abuse, attempted rape/sexual assault, arranged marriagearranged marriage