Oh. My. Goodness. I need this book turned into a movie right now. In Alexandra Bracken's newest book, Zeus has punished the Olympian gods with an event known as the Agon - for seven days every seven years, gods like Apollo, Athena, and Poseidon are mortal. And if they're killed during this week? The mortal who kills them inherits their powers. The mortals vying for these powers are descended from ancient Greek heroes, and Lore finds herself the last mortal of her line. Together with allies new and old, Lore must fight for revenge, fight for love, and fight to end this vicious, bloody cycle.

Right from the start, Lore was an exciting read, packed with action, adventure, and mythology. The Greek myth was woven beautifully into Lore's past and present, and Bracken likewise seamlessly connected ancient myth with modern New York City. The action scenes pull you in, making it impossible to put the book down. The characters, both god and mortal alike, had such wonderful character development; I rooted for some characters, immediately despised others, and felt conflicted over some gods the whole time. The story was gritty and unapologetically steeped in Greek mythology, yet readers unfamiliar with the mythology will have a great introduction to some of Mt Olympus' biggest gods. Lore is a fantastic read, perfect for anyone looking for action and adventure with just a touch of romance.

This is probably my favorite Young Adult book of the year. I have been in an adult-fantasy mood all year, so it has been hard to read some YA books and have it keep my attention. This book grabbed my attention, made unbreaking eye contact until... well, I'll let you know because I still cannot stop thinking about this book.

What you need to know :
A few gods really upset Zeus. So he did a thing.
First, he took the nine gods and every seven years they are mortal for seven days.
Second, if the descendants of ancient hero bloodlines kill a god during those seven days, they seize their divine power and become a god themselves.
Third, each bloodline, or family, wants a god in their bloodline in order to have them bless their family with riches. Example, their god could agree to spread a plague that only their bloodline has the cure for. Which means they would end up being super rich from all of that.

With all that, the families work together to an extent.... and also kill each other for the glory of their family. So it comes to no one's shock that Lore is the last in her bloodline due to a brutal massacre of her family. She has been hiding for years, wanting to live and not let the other families know she was left. But when a god finds her and gives her a chance at revenge... she can either walk away or take it to avenge what happened to her family.

GUYS THIS BOOK.

The romance, the friendships, the twists after twists, the lore (the actual noun, not the main character) of the book and and and and.... I just loved everything about it. I honestly do not have one single bad thing to say about this book except that it ended and I am sad about it. . Everyone needs to add this to their 2021 TBRs!

3.5 Stars
I love Mythology. This mix of Greek Mythology with a Gladiator type vibe was intoxicating. A great mix of old world and new age. One aspect I really appreciated that I didn't see coming was the awesome feminist tone set throughout. The writing on that end was quite inspired. So many highlighted passages. It's pretty much what you'd expect from a story drenched in mythology, violence, glory, trials, alliances made and broken, tragedy, monsters in many forms, friendship, perseverance, heroes, with just a dash of romance.

The gods were pretty spot on for me. Their general aloofness, mercurial and otherworldly came shining through. Lore was a good leading lady, a solid reluctant hero. Castor, Van and even Miles had their moments too but she was clearly the star.

All in all this was a quality read but it did take me a little bit to truly get into it. It had all the right ingredients to draw me in but it really didn't fully grab me until about halfway through.

I don't know about you, but a story about Greek gods and heroes in the modern world causes my fantasy-loving mind to tingle with excitement.

Lore is a delightfully unique urban fantasy featuring classic figures from Greek mythology and legend. The world in Lore is complex and, at times, confusing in its complexity, but it just takes a leap of faith from the reader to bridge that gap between the world they know and this new, multi-faceted world found within the pages of the novel.

The characters have just the right blend of loyalty, determination, and inner strength. Lore, the title character, struggles with so many inner demons. It is inspiring to see her grow into the heroine she is meant to be, and Miles, Lore's ever-present faithful friend - well, I adore him for his steadfast, practical nature that is an illuminating foil for Lore's darkness and doubt. Castor – Lore's training partner – is one of the most incorruptible characters ever to be written and deserves every sacrifice made for him. And, Van is a character that is to Castor what Miles is to Lore. Every hero and heroine must have that friend with the heart of a hero and the dedication only a loyal friend can have.

I love the profound and essential message that's threaded throughout the story. Zeus, angry over the betrayal of the nine gods and goddesses closest to him, decrees a final agon. For seven days every seven years, the descendants of Greek heroes of note can hunt and kill the gods, who will be mortal for that brief time. If a god is killed, the powers of that god will be granted to the hunter who slays him or her. If another god kills a god, the power of the slain god no longer exists, and this will continue until only one god's powers remain, and then the prophesy states, "that person will be made whole."

At its root, this story is about how "absolute power corrupts absolutely. "Zeus recognized this in the other gods and decided that men and gods will be made equal for small bursts of time until that rare individual left uncorrupted by power is found. This person is the salvation for all people showing that there is still good in the world. That message is even more critical today, as things continue to escalate out of control around us, and it feels like there is no end to the direction the world is heading in.

Lore is a compelling, action-packed urban fantasy that delights and disturbs as a war to save humanity ensues.

DNF @ 25%

I feel terrible for not finishing this book, but I just can’t force myself. I was pretty excited about this one. I mean, I’d greatly enjoyed The Darkest Minds series, and I adore Greek mythology, so I figured that this one would be a hit.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

At 25% through this story, I find myself at a place of not caring. I feel no emotional connection to any of the characters, since their motivations thus far are flimsy at best, including Lore’s. There also is a LOT of telling and not showing, I find, especially in terms of the backstory of Lore and her former friend Castor. The book is trying to make me feel like there’s a connection between the two, but I just do not see that spark.

Beyond the characters, I found the plot hard to follow. Look, not to brag about my awesome smarts, but I am a reader who can typically follow fairly confusing plots. In this case, however, I was left scratching my head at many instances, and having to go back and reread paragraphs (to little avail). And I truly believe this is a fault of the book, and not me. Many details seemed vague, and aren’t explained very well or aren’t there at all. You’re just kind of tossed into this mess of different bloodlines and gods and this 7 year cycle with next to no explanation or preparation.

As well, though I hate to say it, because not every Greek mythology book is Percy Jackson, I couldn’t help feel like this book was hinging on the hope that readers had gained Greek mythology education from that series. The gods are explained in MINIMAL detail, and could leave readers unfamiliar with Greek myths rather confused. I don’t even know if it mentioned what some were the gods OF. It makes sense that the hope that people had read Percy Jackson before this exists, because this is YA and that series is middle grade.

Overall, I think a lot more development of the plot and motivations of characters should have been pushed to the forefront of the novel, and that perhaps we hadn’t jumped right into the action so quickly, instead taking a pause to allow for a bit more attachment to our protagonist.

Wow!! Alexandra Bracken has done it again! Lore is a phenomenal new standalone fantasy set in a world where every seven years, as punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek Gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals being brutally hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines. It is called the Agon. The story follows Lore Perseus who lost her family as a child in the Agon and fled from that world with no desire to participate in the hunt and seize a God's power and immortality. Now that the next hunt is beginning, Lore is going to be tempted to get her revenge when some very unexpected people approach her - a childhood friend she thought was dead and a very injured Athena. This story is outstanding!! It is filled to the brim with action, fantastic world-building, greek mythology, romance, and so much more. The characters are well-developed and ones you get excited rooting for. The plot is fast-paced and addictive. Bracken's writing is solid. Fans of The Hunger Games will fall in love with this fresh YA story involving Greek Gods in modern New York. Highly recommended!!

If anybody read and loved Percy Jackson, but thought 'this needs a higher body count', then this is the book for them! From an intense opening all the way to the end, this book is deliciously bloody. I am a sucker for Greek mythology so having a retelling of sorts that still summons the same themes that permeate the classic stories (passion, vengeance, betrayal, redemption) is such a comfort (and it is also nice to know that in any form Ares is still quite the *$*% is also a consisting comfort). I am a massive fan of this book!

For Libraries: Buy it! That is all.

Look out, Riordan! I actually liked this one more than Percy Jackson. I loved the action, plotting, and world-building. I really think that middle-grade readers are going to eat this one up. Heck, I’m a grown man, and I gobbled this one up in two sittings. Do yourself a favor and get this one when it releases.

Alexandra Bracken's new novel <i>Lore</i> is a fascinating new twist on the tales of the Olympic Gods. The store centers around Lore, a 17-year-old who has been trying to run for her past and her family's legacy. Her family comes from a line of clans that both worship and hunt Greek Gods. In this story, the Greek Gods were cast to earth and if a mortal kills one of the Gods, then he (yep, there' a sexist component to this story) will take on that God's powers.

Over the centuries, some of the original Gods and their respective houses have died out while others have become extremely rich and powerful. At the beginning of the story, there are five houses that still exist: Perseus, Achilles, Theseus, Kadmos, and Odysseus. Every seven years, the Agon takes place, which is when the Gods become mortal and can be killed. As you can imagine, this leads to a lot of tension and killing as clans protect their Gods while trying to take down the other houses' Gods in the process.

Lore is the last standing member of The House of Perseus after her parents and sisters were brutally murdered at the end of the last Agon. Since their murders, Lore has done her best to stay off the radar. Unfortunately, all of that changes when one of the Gods shows up on her doorstep needing her help at the beginning of the Agon. The God promises to help Lore seek vengeance for the murders of her family in exchange for helping her survive the Agon.

Over the course of the book, new romances blossom and there is plenty of murder and backstabbing to be had by all.

As for my review, I really liked this book. I originally received the first couple of chapters from the publisher to review. After falling in love with the initial chapters, I asked (and was granted) the full book for review. I found this take on the old Greek Gods very interesting and fun. I read that this version is akin to the Greek Myths meeting the Hunger Games, which I think is a really apt description of this book.

I found the writing fun and fast-paced. This book is definitely a page-turner. I would recommend for both teenagers and adults alike.

Probably my only critique is the overuse of the term "new god," to refer to those mortals who previously killed a god and took their powers. We get that their new gods, but this phrase was just a bit overused throughout the book. I'm hoping the final version of the book will have removed a good number of these because it became a bit repetitive after a while.

This book was full of action-packed details! What a great ride full of twists and unexpected alliances.

I loved this book so much and would recommend buying it to all my friends and family! This book had such a great story line and definitely took me on such a wild ride! I really enjoyed this authors writing and felt engaged the entire time. The cover is beautiful by the way and really helped me visualize the characters I felt. This was a 5 out of 5 for me and I thought was a hit out of the park.

Greek mythology set in modern day New York, a dangerous game of cat and mouse, and one girl waring between survival and vengeance. This book WAS AMAZING! When I first heard about it I knew I had to read it and oh boy did this not disappoint! It met my expectations and went far above. It was a bloody good time! The story is set in a world where Gods and Goddesses are hunted by their line, as by killing a god you receive their power. These “hunts” occur every seven years and Lore, who’s entire family was killed, has managed to disappear from the hunt until now. With the fresh arrival of her childhood friend whom she presumed had died, a dying goddess coming to her with an offer to help her achieve vengeance against her family’s murderer, Lore is thrown right back into the world she left behind. This book is gritty and brutal and I loved every second of it. Lore is a wonderful protagonist, she takes no shit and isn’t afraid to get rough and bleed for what she wants. She was strong and yet had a heart full of grief for the wrongs not only she suffered, but what had been done to her family. I adored Castor, Miles, Van, and even Iro, and oh boy don’t get me started on Athena and Hermes. This book has a strong theme of family, the lengths we go for them and to return to them, and in the end, what it means to stay strong in a world that keeps trying to push you. Lore was a kick ass protagonists who I fell in love with, and her story, this story, was a wonderful read. I couldn’t put the book done and I honestly need more books set in this world ( crossing my fingers). So yes, please go read this freaking amazing book and fall in love with the legend that is Lore.

So i was so excited to get this ARC of Lore!

let me start by saying its not a bad book, no way! But it wasn't what i was hoping it would be either.
firstly, if you are hoping for a mythology-filled greek atmosphere, its not really here.
most of the great gods are already dead, which means we just get newer versions of the gods in new forms.
Actually, i think there was only 2 original gods left by the start of the book.
This disappointed me, i didn't really want to read about "new gods" (people who killed either the god themselves for their power or the person who killed the god)
That story could have been told without including greek mythology at all.

basically, every 7 years, for one week, the Gods become mortal, meaning they can be killed. They still retain their powers and strength, so if someone were able to get close enough to kill them, the killer would obtain their godly power.
Instead of it all being a free-for-all there is order to how this is done.
4 houses that pick someone to be their leader and thats the one who kills the god and obtains the power. which doesn't make too much sense, i'd just assume for that kind of power, it would be more "every man for themselves" type deal.
Some of the houses have joined forces, and one of the houses (Lore's house) is down to the last of her line.

The book is massive, just under 600 pages but the first 50% was all world building and rule explaining... thats about 300 pages of explanations you have to get through before the story starts... I found it hard to get into.
I actually stopped at 53%, read another book, and came back to this one..

Lore was a great MC. she was tough, smart, and tool no crap from anyone. She apparently has a lot of money from a gentleman she used to take care of after his passing, but she wont touch that money claiming "Its not really hers" so she struggles for money, fights in the rings for spare cash - yet when one of the other characters dropped a pile of cash, she was trying to be sneaky about stealing a few bucks for herself... well that money "isn't hers" either so i guess i didn't understand where her moral line is drawn.

her love interest was typical YA "super hottie" that is all powerful with a more timid personality, and puts her safety above all else. lets be real tho, if your reading YA still its what you live for. so no complaints here.

Lore's best friend was the best character, he constantly had no idea what was going on, had everything to lose but he stuck by his friends no matter what. he was the true hero in my opinion.

The writing was excellent.
the story was good just not what i was hoping it would be.
i wanted more mythology i suppose. but if you are looking for a magical, action-packed YA read, you'll love this book!

4 stars because even tho it wasn't what I was hoping for, it was still a good read.

Thank you Netgalley, disneybooks and Alexandra Bracken for the free E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't sure what to expect from Lore, but I loved the cover and assumed mythology was part of the story! Every seven years as a punishment for their past deeds, nine Greek gods have to walk on the earth as mere mortals where they are being hunted down by those who know if they kill a God, they will assume all of their powers.
Lore, our leading lady, has refused to seek revenge against the man, who is now a God, who is responsible for the brutal (really brutal, warning!) death of her entire family. But now Athena, one of the original Gods, and Castor, (the leading man of this story whom Lore thought was dead) offer her an alliance against their mutual enemy.
This novel is action-packed and extremely well written. I thank NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for this hard to put down story!

Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Publishing for sending me an e-arc. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book! I got it done in 2 days and definitely plan on buying a hard copy. It’s an amazing take on Greek mythology that I have never seen done before. Definitely recommend!

Thank you #netgalley and of course Alexandra Bracken for allowing me to read this ARC titled #Lore. I truly am a sucker for all things Greek mythology. And that cover! So beautifully done! For years I have wondered why there aren't more people writing stories about Greek mythology because it's such a fascinating concept to me. Somehow extravagant and desolate at the same time. And this book does not disappoint. I really enjoyed the characters and their relationships to each other. I enjoyed the God/human dynamic. It was very well written and there was good world building, Though it definitely caught me off guard that this continuation of the story of Greek mythology was happening in essentially nowadays New York. It definitely adds a new layer. Imagining a world like today but with Greek gods roaming around is a head scratcher. 😅I do think that if you have less of a generalized understanding of Greek mythology and who is who it could be confusing to keep track of all of the Gods. But overall she did a great job. I've literally been trying to keep my eyes open for the last 20 minutes falling asleep Because I didn't want to stop reading. I wanted to finish and know what happens. ❤️ I really look forward to reading more of bracken's work. I highly recommend this book for anybody who loves fantasy, mythology, Percy Jackson, madeline miller, etc. I believe you will enjoy it as I did.

The Purge meets Clash of the Titans! What a creative and interesting concept. I must admit I did struggle a bit with following all the different characters and houses who had become which new god and the names. It took a lot of focus which was not always present for me. I do love the strong female main character though. The story is well-paced and took me on a great journey. All in all a good book. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves Greek mythology or books like Red Rising. Thank you to NetGalley and Disney Publishing for granting access to this book in exchange for an honest review. I will post this review tomorrow to my Bookstagram and companion Facebook page @thatreadingrealtor.

*Thank you to the publisher for this ARC.

This was an action-packed story with updated mythology, grandiose writing, and romance.

But, there was constant exposition for the dense world-building and relationships., so the momentum was a little too up and down to get completely hooked into the flow. There were some entertaining character dynamics and fun plot-lines, but not enough to keep me engaged.

Overall, this will be an exciting release that works for a lot of the YA audience, just not for me.
Pick this up for a bloody and melodramatic action plot with a focus on fate, duty, and a FTL romance.

Alexandra Bracken has done it again, continuously solidifying her position as one of the best teen and YA writers today. I could NOT put her newest book, Lore, down and loved every bit of it! Full of action, drama, lore, and suspense...I did not want it to end! Phenomenal!!

5 out of 5 stars for Lore by Alexandra Bracken.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

9781368002318


576 Pages
Publisher: Disney Publication / Hyperion
Release Date: January 5, 2021

Fiction, Mythology, Teen & Young Adult

Every seven years the Agon takes place. During this week, nine ancient gods appear on the earth as mortals. If you kill one, you receive the god’s power. Lore has been hiding since the slaughter of her family. This year however, she has been found by not one but two people from her past. Castor comes into the ring to spar with her. She was startled since she thought he was dead for these past seven years. On her way home, she and her friend Miles follow a blood trail leading to Lore’s brownstone. Leaning at the top of the stairs is the goddess Athena suffering from a severe stab wound.

To be honest, I picked up this book because of the cover. I love anything to do with Medusa and the image on the cover was intriguing. The book is written in third person point of view and the characters are very developed. The book jumps back into Lore’s past as she trains with the Achillides bloodline then back to the present. If you like Percy Jackson and other mythological stories, you will enjoy this book.