Antigoddess

Title: Antigoddess

Author: Kendare Blake

First Published: September 10th, 2013

Series: Goddess War #1

Genre: YA, Fantasy, Greek Mythology

Available As: Hardcover, paperback, ebook

My Rating: 8/10

Goodreads Summary:

Old Gods never die…

Or so Athena thought. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and Hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health.

Desperately seeking the cause of their slow, miserable deaths, Athena and Hermes travel the world, gathering allies and discovering enemies both new and old. Their search leads them to Cassandra—an ordinary girl who was once an extraordinary prophetess, protected and loved by a god.

These days, Cassandra doesn’t involve herself in the business of gods—in fact, she doesn’t even know they exist. But she could be the key in a war that is only just beginning.

Because Hera, the queen of the gods, has aligned herself with other of the ancient Olympians, who are killing off rivals in an attempt to prolong their own lives. But these anti-gods have become corrupted in their desperation to survive, horrific caricatures of their former glory. Athena will need every advantage she can get, because immortals don’t just flicker out.

Every one of them dies in their own way. Some choke on feathers. Others become monsters. All of them rage against their last breath.

The Goddess War is about to begin.

Let's first begin with the cover. It is beautiful. I love it so much! It's dark and captivating, so you know this isn't your Percy-Jackson-type book. Yes, it's based on Greek Mythology, but it's like the complete opposite of PJ.

Athena. One word. Badass. (Sorry for the language). But yes, she travels the world (whilst dying) with Hermes (who is also dying) to find Cassandra, who they hope will be able to help them. Along the way, they meet up with some old friends and foes. Everything is dying in this book. The gods, mostly. Each and every one of them are cursed to die in a painful, slow, humiliating way. Athena is choking on feathers. Artemis is hunted down. Demeter has melted down as part of the ground. You get the gist of it. But I thought this was a strong idea. You see these all-powerful beings, sometimes arrogant, being doomed to a humiliating fate. And now the gods need a human's help to solve everything.

Cassandra and Adain - they are one of the main ships in this book. I find them cute, and the chemistry was there, but Kendare Blake didn't do such a good job at letting us know. Her writing is good, just not when it comes to romance. Same goes for Athena and Odysseus. I get they are love, but I'm not feeling it.

Here in this book, the gods are portrayed more human than anything. Athena, Hermes and Apollo especially. Athena is more like a teenage girl, with the burning need to protect and save her family. Apollo flings everything away for a girl. Hermes is just along for the ride.

The book consists mainly of 80% running from evil, 10% finding Cassandra and 10% discussing things without taking any action. Sure, when Athena finally confronts Hera, the scene is written vividly - it isn't at all difficult to imagine it. But the problem is: the plot unravelled way too slowly. There wasn't much action. It was just conversations and running from everything until they thought of a plan. Other than that, it was good.

If you're looking for some mythology-based books, here is one. It's a darker version of Greek Mythology, the good guys and bad guys are jumbled up, but it's a good book nonetheless.

My Chosen Quote:

“For the record I don't believe in Fate. I believe that the pieces have been placed. The ending hasn't been written yet.”