The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Summary:
EVERY GIRL WHO HAS TAKEN THE TEST HAS DIED.

NOW IT'S KATE'S TURN.

It's always been just Kate and her mom--and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear that her mother won't live past the fall.

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld--and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.

Kate is sure he's crazy--until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she suceeds, she'll become Henry's future bride and a goddess.

IF SHE FAILS... (from GoodReads)

Review:
When I started The Goddess Test, I wasn't sure if I would like it. Unlike many other people, I'm not a big fan of mythology. But I was willing to give The Goddess Test a chance because if it's well-written I know I would like it. (Example: Troy by Adele Geras). However, I didn't like The Goddess Test at all.

My biggest problem is that the mythology was so confusing. All of the characters are supposed to be Greek gods but it was almost impossible for a person not well-versed in mythology to figure out who was who. There was a guide in the back of the book but couldn't the author make the names more similar so I didn't have to keep flipping pages? Henry is Hades but other characters don't have the same beginning letter: Calliope is Hera, Ella is Artemis, Theo is Apollo, etc. Even the things/traits that you associate with certain gods were missing. Phillip, who is supposed to be Poseidon, is the horse master. Couldn't he have something to do with water? He could be the boat master or something.

Other than being utterly confused throughout The Goddess Test, I was also bored. Kate is supposed to go through seven tests and if she passes (without dying first like all the other girls) she gets to become Henry/Hades's queen. She doesn't always know when the tests are coming and neither does the reader. I thought this part of the novel would be really epic, with interesting challenges to test Kate's strength, fortitude, intelligence and other characteristics like that. Nope. I won't give away what the tests were but they were super lame.

Overall, I was disappointed in The Goddess Test. It did a terrible job of translating the mythology into a modern context and the plot didn't hold my attention. I also didn't care for any of the characters including our protagonists Kate and Henry. Suffice to say, I will not be reading the sequel.

Rating: 3 out of 10.
FTC: received from publisher.

2011/Harlequin/298 pages.

Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George

Princess Rose is the eldest of twelve sisters condemned to dance each night for the wicked King Under Stone in his palace deep within the earth. It is a curse that has haunted the girls since their birth - and only death will set them free.

Then Rose meets Galen, a young soldier-turned-gardener with an eye for adventure and a resolve that matches her own, and freedom suddenly begins to seem a little less impossible. To defeat the king and his dark court, they will need one invisibility cloak, a black wool chain knit with enchanted silver needles, and that most critical ingredient of all - true love.

Jessica Day George's inspired reimagining of The Twelve Dancing Princesses demonstrates yet again her mastery at spinning something entirely fresh from a story you only thought you knew. (Taken from inside flap)

I have never heard of The Twelve Dancing Princesses, so I started reading this book with no knowledge of the story. So, I won't be able to compare this retelling with the original. Even so, I really liked Princess of the Midnight Ball. Normally this kind of book would be boring for me, because the plot moves a little slowly, but the writing is so good that I wanted to keep reading. There is a bit of a mystery, because at the beginning you don't know what's going on and it's not even until halfway through that you get to follow Rose and her sisters to King Under Stone's palace. As for characters, they were all very well-written. Rose has twelve sisters, so it seems like it would get confusing, but all of them are given some page time (I think). Galen was also a good character; he's in love with Rose and will do anything to break the curse, which I thought was so sweet. I enjoyed Princess of the Midnight Ball but would probably only recommend it for fans of fairy tales, only because the story is a little slow at times.

7 out of 10.

FTC: I borrowed this book from my library.

A Kiss in Time by Alex Flinn

Princess Talia is heir to the great kingdom of Euphrasia and has been blessed with many important qualities, such as beauty, grace, and intelligence. But there is also a curse on her head, a curse that deems that when Talia turns sixteen, she will prick her finger on a spindle and the whole country will fall into a deep sleep. The only way everyone can be awakened is by Talia's true love's kiss. In comes Jack. Forced on a trip of Europe by his overbearing parents, Jack sneaks away and stumbles upon Euphrasia, now in ruins. He is compelled to kiss a slumbering Talia, and when he does, everyone awakens and is shocked to find that they are in the twenty-first century. Talia is determined to make Jack fall in love with her, but he can't stand her whining and complaining. Meanwhile, the evil fairy that placed the curse on Talia is still lurking, waiting to make her next move. What will happen to Jack and Talia, and how will the Euphrasians survive?

I actually really enjoyed A Kiss in Time. Sleeping Beauty is one of my favorite fairy tales, so this modern retelling was right up my alley. The book switches between Jack and Talia's point-of-views, which makes it interesting to get into the heads of both characters. Talia was actually really annoying at first. I mean, she is a princess, which basically means she's completely spoiled and she really acts like a brat at times. But when Jack takes her back to America, she starts learning the error of her ways and becomes way more tolerable. When I first read the synopsis of A Kiss in Time, I couldn't wait to read the part where Talia wakes up in the twenty-first century. It just sounds like the perfect opportunity for comedy, and I was right. At times, this book is hilarious. Talia is living 300 years in the future, so she has no idea what certain things, like airplanes are and it is so funny. The book was even a little suspenseful, because I wanted to know if Jack and Talia would eventually fall in love, and what would happen with the evil fairy, Malvolia. The ending is extremely satisfying, and A Kiss in Time is the perfect book for fans of fairy tales.

8 out of 10.

Sea Change by Aimee Friedman

Miranda's summer has been planned out for her: she is to stay in New York City to intern at the Museum of Natural History, something her scientific and logical mind enjoys. But when her estranged grandmother Isadora suddenly dies, she and her mother must travel to Georgia to clean out Isadora's vacation home, the mansion that Miranda's mother has inherited. Selkie Island, the quaint vacation spot, is full of Southern charm and pirate lore, including a mysterious local boy that Miranda finds herself drawn to. Leo is different than other boys and there is something about him that Miranda can't place. Something almost mythical.

When I first started reading Sea Change, I thought it was going to take place up North, like the New England-Cape Cod area. It seemed that a book full of legends and mystery would be more likely to take place up where the weather is cooler and foggy. But no, Selkie Island is in Georgia which seems more tropical and happy to me. I still liked the location, it just didn't seem to fit as well as other places would have.

Besides that, I really enjoyed Sea Change. Miranda was like the antithesis to Selkie Island: she's logical and doesn't believe in legends and mythical creatures, but Selkie Island is clearly full of both. I liked seeing Miranda accept that some things in life are not explained and become more open to things she doesn't understand. Obviously from the summary you know that something's up with Leo, and Aimee Friedman makes it obvious what he is right away. I think I knew what he was before I opened the book. So there is some annoyance as Miranda is trying to figure out what was going on, but it's not too bad. I actually really liked Leo too, he's mysterious and interesting and at the end you never quite know what Leo is, so the book is open for interpretation. And the fact that this book takes place in the summer and on the beach makes it that much better, in my opinion. Sea Change is a good summer read, especially if you like legends and mythical creatures.

8 out of 10.

Release Date: June 1, 2009

Aurelia by Anne Osterlund

Aurelia, the crown princess of Tyralt, is headstrong and independent. She doesn't like being told what to do, especially in regards to the looming prospect of marriage. But there's a problem: someone is trying to kill the princess. Who or why is unknown, and it's Robert's job to find out. The son of a royal spy and a former classmate of Aurelia, Robert is sent to protect her from the assassination attempts that are becoming more and more frequent. As Robert's and Aurelia's friendship begins to blossom into something more, Robert becomes determined to find the assasin, at whatever the cost.

This book was okay. For some reason, I always feel a little confused reading these types of novels because it's a fictional kingdom set in some time in the past. I'm more of a historical fiction type of girl and this always feels like historical fantasy, which is my own personal name for this genre. Actually I put it under Fairy Tales, but whaterver. Anyway, the book was kinda boring. The writing was good (it usually is) but the plot was lacking something. This was supposed to be a mystery, but it wasn't done right. There weren't enough suspects and clues for this to feel like a real mystery. The romance between Robert and Aurelia was meh; it wasn't developed enough, plus the two didn't have enough interaction for my liking. The book wasn't bad, but just one of those that you forget about in a few days since it doesn't leave much of an impression.

6 out of 10.

Hush: An Irish Princess' Tale by Donna Jo Napoli

Melkorka is a fifteen year old princess in Medieval Ireland. During a Viking raid on her kingdom of Downpatrick, she and her sister Brigid must flee to a nearby village. But all is lost when both girls are kidnapped by Russian slave traders. Now powerless under bounds and gags, Melkorka takes on a vow of silence-- much to the fascination and bewilderment of her captors.

I was disappointed in this book. I thought the idea sounded really interesting, so I kept reading even though I couldn't get into the story. It was just so boring and the writing was really sparse (not unlike the writing in Wake by Lisa McMann, but at least I enjoyed that story). Half-way through the book, I just wanted to put it down and stop reading. And I could do that without caring about what happened. That was the problem: I didn't care about Melkorka or what happened to her as a slave. So instead I just skimmed the last fifty pages. And it was a good thing too, because I didn't miss much. The ending was kinda dumb, so I'm glad I didn't waste anymore time reading this book. And it's a shame too, because the cover is gorgeous.

4 out of 10.