"Tell me your favorite colour Daphne, and I'll paint the sky with it" - Scions, Josephine Angelini.

"Scions" is part of the long-awaited sequel to Josephine Angelini's Starcrossed series and tells the story of Daphne and Ajax.

I would recommend reading the Starcrossed series (Helen and Luca´s story) first.
When I saw that there would actually be more books in the Starcrossed series, I was so happy! What will Daphne's story be like? That's a question I've asked myself constantly. She wasn't exactly a sympathetic character in Helen and Luca's story. But one with a tragic love story that everyone wants to read. So can Daphne's story convince me?

Daphne hates her looks or better said she hates the curse that weighs on her much more. She has the face. Men can't resist her and women hate her. Daphne is actually a very lovely and kind 17-year-old girl. And to be honest, I can't put this in with the Daphne from Starcrossed.
I can finally understand why everyone loved Ajax and why he is nicknamed "The loveable". Ajax is so so adorable. He loves his family, always does the right thing and is simply someone you have to take to your heart. Also, is super poetic and leaves Daphne messages that are like poems. So he's not just an artist.

The more I delved into the story of the two, the more I realized that it's just so different. Maybe because they are both so young? Unfortunately, I didn't really like the plot 100% this time. The story dragged at some points because it was developing so slowly and in this story, Josephine failed to play with the suspense this time. Still, I liked the story! I really liked the scenes with Ajax and Daphne. Ajax is a real heartbreaker and I really hope there's more to come about these two because for me the story isn't finished yet.

"Scions" gets 3,5 out of 5 stars from me.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing me with ARC.

I haven't read the original Starcrossed trilogy this book is a prequel to, but I was able to easily understand everything going on with the Houses and demigods. I'll admit this one was hard to get through. There were cringe worthy scenes and there should have been some trigger warnings at the beginning. I don't want to spoil anything for those who want to read it, I'll just say it wasn't for me.

11 years after the original trilogy was published, Scions takes us back to Helen’s mother Daphne’s childhood and her own Starcrossed lovers situation which made the Delos’ despise her so much.

Daphne lives a sheltered life as one of only three remaining descendants of Aphrodite; who everybody assumes is dead. Moving to New York she makes her first ever friend and meets Ajax who she is cursed to not be able to be close to, yet falls in love with.

The whole series is based on characters from the Trojan war being reborn generation after generation as descendants of the Greek Gods. They are all chunky books at 400+ pages but I must say this was the most enjoyable of the four.

This was a wonderful prequel of this series that I have loved since I picked up Starcrossed. I can not wait to see where this all goes. I hope to see more of the characters we have fallen for in this series and even more as the books go on.

Thank you Netgalley and Ms. Angelini for the ARC copy. This is my first Starcrossed novel so I have no idea what it is about when I started. I liked the chemistry between Daphne and Ajax. Their chemistry was undeniable and electrifying. I loved reading about them. However. that's the one thing I liked but find other story plots weird and not that well though of. I don't know if I need to read the other books to appreciate it more but judging from the summaries the characters are different. I'll try to read the other novel and maybe might appreciate it more.

Absolutely yes! I really enjoyed reading this novel. The characters were fun, it held my interest, and provided an escape from reality. I would definitely recommend!

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review this book.

While I'm normally a huge fan of anything greek mythology inspired, this particular approach did not appeal to me. I just didn't like the characters, even if the concept was initially interesting; although at some point the whole no one can resist thing becomes a bit too much.

I can see that there will be a lot of people who like this; it's just a matter of personal preference. Ultimately, I decided to not finish the whole book.

I received my copy of Scions as an ARC, and I also bought my own copy as well. This book was phenomenal. I read the Starcrossed trilogy when I was 11-14 and loved it but I always felt like I couldn’t make up my mind about Daphne. Sometimes I liked her and other times I just could not figure out why she made the decisions she did. This book changed that for me. I understand why she made the choices she did with Helen and I now love her as a character more than I ever have before. Her story was one of many I was curious about and seeing the origins of so many of the characters from the trilogy was everything I’d hoped it would be. I highly recommend this book even if you haven’t read the Starcrossed trilogy because Daphne (and Ajax’s) story is one worth reading about. I laughed, I cried, I screamed-I honestly can’t recommend it enough.

Ten years ago, I read a series called Starcrossed. It was a retelling of Greek Mythology in Shadowhunters style and until these days is my favorite Greek inspired series (sorry Percy!). So, I can’t explain to you how happy and excited I was when the author announced a prequel and another trilogy in this world. 4 new books?? Are you kidding me?! Of course I had to put my hands in an ARC of it. And I did it, starting with Scions, the prequel.

This book brought me so much nostalgia, it was like coming back to a place where you were happy once. I loved this world, I loved how the myths are used, I loved the concept of the families and the Houses, I loved the tragic atmosphere we live in these pages. That, the writing, the worldbuilding, were there, were exactly how I remembered it. But the complex plot? I didn’t see it. And that ruined it for me because I knew Josephine was capable of more than that.

The plot was fast paced and full of action, the romance was not bad but all was too plain and simple. The author didn’t used the rivalries, the starcrossed and tragical lovers thing, the fateful tragical destiny in the full potential I know she is capable of. And was sad because the characters are lovable, I loved to see this generation in a younger version. Even Daphne that I hate, I could see her human fragile sweet side. Even if the romance was too rushed. And the Easter eggs! That was the best part actually.

So I will forget this book and I still will read Timeless because is with the Starcrossed’s characters and I have faith that it was to be better. Please, read Starcrossed anyway because is really worth it 💜

* Thanks to @netgalley UK for providing me an arc of this book in exchange of an honest review

Very interesting story. I really like it, considering I haven’t read the previous book, but this book made me want to read the first books and then come back to this one. I recommend it!

Ohhh my god this is exactly what I wanted and needed. I can't even describe how happy I am to be back in this world. I fell in love with the trilogy years ago (..... although I admit I was disappointed with Goddess) and I JUMPED when I saw there was a prequel available on Netgalley. The only reason it took me so long to get to it was because I was trying to fit in re-reading the others first. Then I was just thought "Ok I can't wait anymore and I still remember everything anyway."

I always wanted to know more about Helen's mother and what made her so hard. We heard bits and pieces about Daphne and Ajax, but not enough to piece the bigger parts together. I felt like this story gave me all I wanted and more. Especially the troubles and jealousy that follow The Face. This story was even a little bit darker since the lust took hold of people you wouldn't expect. I thought it also had a lot to say about love vs. possession.

Oh man. I'm pumped after reading this. This is how I want to feel after every book I read. This is how you know when you love a world and story so much. So excited that this saga will continue next year!

When the original series came out, I read it like it was my job. I loved it. So of course I requested the prequel. Sad to say time has moved on and I’ve clearly moved out of the target audience for this. I can’t help finding some of the tropes cringey now. So overall I enjoyed it. It was kind of a nostalgia trip for me to go back to this series, but it didn’t land for me personally. No reflection on the book. I’m just a bit too old now!

When I heard there'll be more of the Starcrossed Series I was sooooo excited!!

I absolutely devoured the first 3 books and of course I had to request an early copy of Scions by Josephine Angelini when I had the chance on NetGalley.
Honestly I didn't expect to really get an early copy but here I am! The happiest person in the whole wide world!
I want to apologise for my late review but sometimes reality distracts you from the more important things - reading ARCs.

So let's talk about this wonderful book!
It was like coming home! To be back in this wonderful world full of gods and magic and romance! Awwwww!
As a huge fantasy fan it was such a great experience to read the story of Daphne and Ajax and all the stuff they had to deal with.
Don't worry, I won't spoil you because you just HAVE to experience this book for yourself!
Scions put me into this special mystical kind of mood I never want to ever lose again.
Honestly. Who wouldn't want to deal with strange creatures and magic and hot people?!
I'd definitely would love that! ❤️
Aaaaand there'll be another book?! OMG! YES PLEASE! 😍🥳

Thank you so very much to Sungrazer Publishing and Josephine Angelini for this ARC via NetGalley.
This is my honest review in my own words and I am still so grateful for this opportunity.
I'm a huge fan of the Starcrossed Series!

I have a hard time finding the right words and the right rating for this book.

There were times where it was a solid star read for me and only a couple of pages later it dropped to a well meant 2.

Daphne is the Bearer of The Face, the very one that was bestowed upon Helen of Troy and made countless men loose their lives. This family curse has been passed down from mother to daughter in Daphnes family and none of the women were able to lead a normal and happy life. Wherever Daphne goes, her Face causes conflicts. Be it her own father, every boy at school or girls wanting to hurt her out of envy - she is never save.

(Short criticism her on the absolute heteronormative and binary world...)

But being the Face is not her only problem. She is the heir to one of the remaining four Houses and therefore always in danger of being slaughtered by another house because of the curse the Furries put on them. Not going into more detail as the world building and slowly unraveling is the major strength of this book.

The love story is very cute, heart rendering and epic and if I were in my teens I would have swooned over it. (Sorry, I am 32, marriage at 17 - even out of love - sounds terrible).

All in all very interesting take on Greek mythology and maybe I will have look into the trilogy as well.

3.5/5

The Starcrossed series was one of my absolute favorite series a while back. 10 years ago to be exact... so I thought I'd love this 4th book of the series but I found that it was written like the first books, meant for a much younger crowd. Had I read this book 10 years ago when I first fell in love with this series, I would have probably felt a little different. But I couldn't really get into the high school drama and the mean girls etc... I'm sure a lot of people will love this book, especially the target audience. It just didn't do it for me.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book.

I‘m a huge fan of the starcrossed series since I was a teen and have reread them countless of times. I never warmed up to Helen’s mother, she felt too cold and calculating so I was surprised but nevertheless exited when I heard that “Scions” will be published.

This story follows Daphne, Helens mother, and Ajax, a character I was always interested in. It took me some time to forget my resentment against Daphne but after some pages I began to like her and enjoyed the story and the journey in the past. Like Helen and Lucas before, these characters hated each other and it was a great journey following them along hoping they will be happy.

I enjoyed this book a lot, i felt like I was 12 again and I can’t wait to read more books by the author.

TW: incest (parental), rape, sexual assault, sexual content, suicide attempt
I cannot recommend this book to anyone. I never read the original series, figured it was okay since it was a prequel. I understood it just fine, even if I wish I hadn't. I DNFed at 25%, and for that reason I will not be promoting this book. I could tell where this was going early on and I'm sad to say I was right. I don't know that it's appropriate to have such triggering themes in a young adult novel with absolutely no warning whatsoever.
The only character I actually liked was Harlow.
With that being said, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Some books never leave you, just sleep until you find them again. Reading Scions was like returning to an old place where you know every nook and cranny. Because it’s been 10 years since I last read this series. But it doesn’t matter, because this one hooked me like it was yesterday. It reminded me why I adored the original trio loft back in the day, and how good mythological retellings can be.

The high school drama bit was a bit meh for me, but the actual flesh and bone of the story - the Greek mythology, the fighting houses, the forbidden romance - made up for it. I had an enjoyable time with this book. The main character Daphne is head-strong but has this feel of fun to her, and I adore her and Harlow friendship. Also Daphne and Ajax’s enemies to lovers forbidden romance was just so deliciously over the top in the best way possible. The one person I didn’t like was Tal, I just couldn’t help to feel that he was a bit shoe-horned into it


Don’t expect the best written book ever, but it’s a fun read that I recommend that you pick up - especially if you like Greek mythology and star crossed lovers.

4.5 stars. Of course Josie knocks the ball out of the park with Scions :) Add this to your TBR’s! You won’t regret it :)

Contains minor spoilers.

I absolutely despised Daphne in the Starcrossed trilogy, so I was really weary of reading Scions (as a Starcrossed prequel starring the infamous Daphne), but within just a couple of chapters, I was already sympathizing with Daphne, and totally understand now why she’s the way she is in the Starcrossed trilogy. By the time Ajax comes in the picture, I’m totally loving Daphne, and her with Ajax? Pure magic.
Daphne grows so much as a character. She learns the importance of friendship and love- Deuce and Harlow, they were great in their own ways. Ajax being blessed by the muses- wow. Ajax’s art, swoon- sky scraper scene, cough cough :) The cameo from Helen and Lucas- perfection 🥰

The setting (mid 90’s nyc) made me feel so wistful. I lived in the city in the early 2000’s, so the city vibe was a bit different post 9/11, but this story setting still helped me reminisce about the good ole’ days :)

Favorite quotes:
Daphne: “It’s impossible for me to keep thinking about what he could meet for the world, when he means more than the world to me.”
Ajax: “Tell me your favorite color, Daphne, and I’ll paint the sky with it.”

Breathtaking writing and world-building! The romance was really good and made me blush a lot even, and the actual plot was focused on well. It’s great to read this since it helped me understand the trilogy that follows this book better! The way that Greek mythology was embedded into the story was great and lots of claps to the enemies-to-lovers subplot! Highly recommend reading this book!