Are you ready for a twisted tale?? By # Jen Calonita , #Go the Distance is a #Disney novel. Perfect for summer vacation. With a interesting storyline of what if Meg had to become a Greek god? Zeus has told Meg she can't be with Hercules.......
Thank you for the advance copy,
#Netgalley, # Jen Calonita, and #Disney Publishing Worldwide 💜🐾🐾

I really do love this series of fairy tale retellings. They have the ability to bring a reader back to their childhood, allowing them to take new journeys with old favorites! Admittedly, Hercules was not one of my favorites growing up, so I only knew the basics of the original story. That might be why I found a good majority of the story annoying. I found Megara to be whiny, especially in situations where she was faced with something she didn’t want to do. However, in the end, I did enjoy this story and it brought tears to my eyes.

I'd like to thank NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Let's first be clear: Hercules was the most underrated Disney movie from the 90s. The songs, the world. Hercules was adorable. Peg was more adorable. But I was not a Meg fan. Even understanding why she betrayed Hercules as she did, I still just didn't vibe with her. When I had the opportunity to read "Go the Distance" I was thrilled. I loved the idea of being back in the Hercules world. Now interestingly, "Go the Distance" takes place after the events of the movie. This is different than the other two Twisted Tales books I've read because they twist something in the plot of the film, and it changes things. I much preferred this. Also, it was nice seeing Meg get the opportunity to redeem herself a bit. In this book, Meg can't stay with Hercules after he gets to go live with the Gods. She isn't a God. Hera gives her a quest to go on and if she succeeds she will become a God too and get to be with Hercules forever. The book provides an interesting backstory about Meg and how she grew up as a child and a story about her first love. It does a good job of explaining why Meg is the way she is. It also shows her make some unselfish decisions and show concern for others. It raised my opinion of her most definitely. The beginning of the book was strong with a dip into Meg's back story and then the middle of the actual quest lagged a bit for me. But the final third of the book was so much fun. I enjoyed all of the time in the underworld. I loved the fun bit about Persephone as well. I adored a bit about Phil and a baby. Just a lot of good stuff in this one.

Finally giving Meg a chance and not just the focus on Hercules was so refreshing. Even in the movies Meg was awesome, and such a strong female character. Seeing her being the main character and handling these tasks was great. Mixed with the inclusion of Greek mythology. A must read!!!

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* i LOVED this book!! wow! i read the Tangled Twisted Tale and it was good but this was amazing! always liked Hercules but i will be buying this series just because of this book!

What 90's child did not grow up loving the love story and the magic that was Disney's Hercules? I love that in Go the Distance we follow Meg and Hercules love story and Meg gets a quest of her own! This was super fun and lighthearted.

Absolutely amazing novel. I was hooked from the first chapter until it was entirely taken aback that it was over. I’m officially a follower of this author, and will preorder anything that they release. Their ability to rewrite a known story and still keep you guessing was a talent in of itself.

One little-known fact about me is that HERCULES is one of my favourite Disney movies. (Unusual, I know. But growing up obsessed with Greek mythology does that to a person!).

So, when I saw that the Twisted Tales series -- one of my all-time teen favourites -- was doing a HERCULES-inspired story, I knew I had to read it ASAP!

This story, as described in the blurb, focuses on Meg. Ah, Meg. My favourite HERCULES character, and one of the first fierce females I ever saw on-screen! In this title, she's nowhere near the damsel in distress. No, her agency is strong, her intellect is honed, and her tongue is whip-smart -- both in humour- and comeback-ability.

Still, though, it felt like it was missing one key aspect of the character. In making Meg the leading lady, it seemed as though she had to fall into the trap of "demure, selfless, love-driven", which... took away from the "selfish, hedonistic, almost-rude-at-times" traits of the Megara of the original film.

Regardless, though, she was a wholly compelling character, and easily carried the story throughout the pages!

And the STORY! Pulling from both the Disney film and the original Greek myths, it's a patchwork of non-stop adventure, a history buff's dream. Not to mention, there's a mythological character who makes a surprise appearance and... well, being one of my favourite mythological figures, they almost had me falling off my chair and squealing with joy. (You'll have to read it to find out who)!

All in all, this is another great hit from Jen Calonita and the Twisted Tales team! Centring the story on Meg was the best decision they could have made, and from start to finish, it was wholly engrossing, engaging, and altogether brilliant. Can't wait to see which Twisted Tale they conjure up next!

As a fan of the Disney film Hercules, I knew I immediately wanted to read this book. I was intrigued by the fact that this focused on Meg more than Hercules. This read like a true greek odyssey filled with quests, trials, and twists and turns.

I was surprised to see Persephone in this, and I would love to see her story told more in stories. However, with the introduction of Persephone, Hades felt a bit off to me and didn't seem like the character I grew to love in the movie. I also felt the same about Hercules. His character felt different and actually seemed like Meg could do without Hercules.

As for Meg, I enjoyed her character development immensely, and I liked how the story delved into the backstory of how Meg came to be in Hades's "employment." This was a great read, and I look forward to reading more from Jen Calonita.

These twisted tales are always my favorite. I've always been a huge Disney nerd and I love seeing them twisted into a way that make them deep and dark.

I wanted to love this one so bad! The premise was enticing, and offered a new, exciting story for Meg outside of her love for Hercules. But the whole point of this story was for her to go on a quest so that she could be with Hercules. It honestly felt like character regression for Meg to go from a sarcastic, desperate, independent woman who swears off love and learns how to fall in love again only to have to go on a quest for a man—oh, actually, a God.

At the end of Hercules, Meg learns how to love again. But I don't think she truly learned how to love herself again. I wish I would have seen more of that aspect of her character growth in this story, rather than all of her actions be the result of proving her love and devotion to "Wonder Boy." There was much more to be explored of Meg, one of my favorite sarcastic Disney characters, only to be put in a box out of love for a man so that she can become a God so she can be with him forever.

Speaking of sarcasm, there was hardly any in this book. Meg felt like a completely different person from the person she was in the movie. It was all "I'm doing this for Hercules because I love him and now I have to go reconcile with my past lover who left me for another woman . . ." and I just wanted more from Meg. She is one of the few, vocal, strong, independent women in Disney and this book did her a disservice.

The only thing I enjoyed about this book was how it filled in the gaps in Meg's backstory. That's what I really enjoy about the Twisted Tales series, how they reach deep and explore plot holes in the original movie source material and fill in the blanks where we could learn more about characters. This one just took it in the completely wrong direction for one of my favorite characters. Out of the few Twisted Tales books I've read, this one was by far the weakest.

I found this to be an enjoyable read, keeping me on my toes throughout. The storyline was written well and flowed seamlessly. I look forward to reading more by this author!

I love retellings and this one was so fun! I need to read more in this series because they’re just so fun and unique. I loved this retelling!

I love these twisted tales stories! The first one I read was the little mermaid one and it set a really high bar for me but this one definitely lived up to it! Hades is one of my favorite villains so reading more about him (even if it’s in an alternate world) is very fun for me! I definitely recommend this twisted tale if you enjoy Hercules or retellings of fairy tales.

There are things that I loved about this retelling and things that I didn't. The Twisted Tales are hit or miss for me. I enjoyed the Beauty and the Beast retelling, but the Peter Pan retelling fell flat for me. This one had promise, as I love the Hercules story, and the dry wit and sarcasm of the movie Meg is just amazing, so of course, I would love to read a whole book about her getting her time in the sun.

I did like the female empowerment element of this story, and her character was believable and didn't make me cringe. But why on Earth did they use so many nicknames for people? That really pulled focus and was incredibly distracting from the narrative. Aside from that, and the fact that a few too many things were changed for my taste, this was a decent offering from this series. If you're a Twisted Tales fan, this is one to pick up.

Go The Distance is a fun and quick read! Megara is one of my favourite characters from the Disney movie Hercules. This novel focuses on Megara and her story after the events of the Hercules movie. I thought Jen Calonita’s writing flowed nicely throughout the book. Go the Distance was easy to read, and it was a fast-paced novel. This book kept me entertained while making me ponder how it would wrap up at the end.

By far my favorite of the series.
I had doubts because Hercules is one of my favorite Disney movies and this wouldn't live up to expectations, but it so did.
I am so glad we got background on Meg. Her childhood makes so much sense. She was obviously independent and I think her mother made her that way in more than one way. It made her want to not love anyone, which we already knew.
I did not know about Aegus though and now I want to dive back into my Megara myths and learn more about the 'truth' behind that. I love that she grew enough to rescue Katerina after she believed that she'd stolen the only person that Meg loved after her mother's death. Also, Hades was so tricky. I knew he was sneaky, but not that he openly lied like that. Anyway, she grew so much.
I also really enjoyed the other characters- like Phil! OMG I loved Phil so much and heard Danny DeVito whenever I read his lines. Pegasus was also such a character in this that I could almost hear when he was saying with his grunts. lol He definitely didn't think much of Meg.
Hera is rarely the good guy and usually it is Zeus who gives mortals the benefit of the doubt and I'm glad that was switched up. Overall, really enjoyed the book.

This one wasn't one of my favorite retellings unfortunately. I have read so many Greek mythologies and Hercules/Hades retellings and this one just fell a little flat for me. This also is not one of my favorite Disney movies ever. I just found it a little boring.

With Hercules being one of my favorite stories from my childhood I think I went into this story with a mindset like I already knew the characters and where the story would go. I realized quickly that I didn't really know who Meg was as a character on her own so it is a fun story in getting to know more of who she is and her willingness to prove herself.

That being said, it is hard at times to read when you keep comparing characters to one's you are previously accustomed to.

Overall I liked the story but was annoyed at times by the nicknames. It also reads more along the lines of middle grade book which turned away my interest a bit. If it was more YA or adult I think I would've like it more.

Go the distance took me for a ride! This is a re-telling of the classic story of Hercules and is a part of the Twisted Tales collection. This collection takes a beloved fairy tale and tells it through the different lens. Go the Distance explores the story of Hercules through Meg’s eyes, where she needs to become a God to be with Hercules. The story explores themes of love, sacrifice, family ties, and power. Seeing the way Meg stands up for herself in front of Hercules’ family sets the tone for this book and exemplifies bravery and confidence. I liked that the story is written so anyone can enjoy reading it. These fairy tales are widely known, reading them often at a young age. I like that the Twisted Tales series can be geared toward YA readers, as well as adult readers who have an affinity for Disney. As a Disney lover myself and having enjoyed these stories growing up, adding a bit of magic into our imagination, I like that as an adult I can enjoy these stories all over again from a new perspective. The Twisted Tales series is a fun way in jumping back into the stories we all know and love. I really enjoyed this book and I thought this twisted tale was a fun way to explore to depths of possibilities within this magical world.