Member Reviews
i really enjoyed reading this and was glad that it was another Gorgon sister. The characters were great and I really enjoyed this book.
MyyyGodddddd!! Such a mindboggling read it was!! I loved absolutely everything about this one. From that awesome cover to the characters to that ending.. still in the book word! Dreaminggg!!
It is time for Euryale to be given her true body back by the Gods - no longer having to listen to the hisses of snakes (her hair) and the feel of scales under her hands ( her skin ) …………….. can she trust the Gods to fulfil their promise ?
Euryale reluctantly agrees to take on one last task …….. she must discover who is killing lesser Gods and why ?
No one cared until they get too close to the greater Gods !
To accomplish this she must take on a partner - Asher ,who has an unusual gift for horrific sound effects - with a bargain outstanding between his Banshee mother and Ares his father , it is time to pay up or his life will be forfeit .
Euryale and Asher must succeed as she holds the fate of her two equally cursed sister in her hands - the Gods cannot be trusted to keep their promises , can she keep hers ?
Their quest to find the murderer is full of pitfalls and danger, their mistrustful budding attraction , just one .
This book was an entertaining fantasy with rich characters , full of myth and legend of all pantheons .
I was given an arc of this book by NetGalley and the Publisher in exchange foe an honest review
3/5 - a cool perspective on familiar characters...
The story and protagonist had solid bones. I was happy to see Ares around because I’m a fan of his anti-hero personality.
For me this story was too angsty for me. The gods’ actions and their motivations sometimes felt drawn out. The steam was a little glossy.
First installments in a series have a lot of work for a book. World building, character introductions, and a book and series arch’s to structure out. This book did a good job setting up the series.
"For the first time in millennia, Euryale woke up without a head of snakes. Her ears registered the quiet. Since they had been transformed into monsters by Athena so long ago , she had spent every waking moment —and some sleeping ones— with the sound of hissing. Now the silence settled around her like a blanket, soft and low and a little unnerving."
-The Gorgon's Price by Claire Davon
Publisher's description:
"Euryale will never forget the day the gods turned her into a monster. After millennia, her heart beats faster at the idea of regaining her normal form. For the feel of skin and not scales, hair and not snakes. But the price could be too high. Knowing full well the gods can’t be trusted, Euryale agrees to take on a reluctant partner to track down whoever is murdering a growing number of gods. A murderer no one cared about until the killings edged uncomfortably close to bigger and bigger pantheons. Tracking the murderers down is the price she has to pay for her newly restored form—and that of her two equally cursed sisters. Asher’s unusual gift for eerily horrific sound effects make him a highly sought-after voiceover artist. While he keeps a low profile, there has always been a ticking time bomb in the form of the bargain between his banshee mother and his father, the god Ares. It’s time to pay up—or pay with his life. As Euryale and Asher dance around their mutual mistrust, the friction ignites a fire of unexpected attraction. But love is almost as impossible as the dangerous task ahead. Because even if the murderers don’t stab them in the back, the fickle gods certainly will."
My thoughts:
The book is well written and the characters are well developed. You can certainly tell that the author has spent some significant time researching the various myths and pantheons from around the world. I thought it was fairly interesting to see how members of those varied pantheons interacted. One touch that I thought was nice was giving the banshees and Tuatha dé Danann a more modern Irish accent. It was also fun globe trotting with Euryale and Asher and seeing the different settings and cultures. A lot of times with books involving gods and mortals, the female MC is a mortal that requires the protection of the mighty male god that she's quickly falling for. It was a nice change of pace to not have Euryale be helpless but rather powerful in her own right.
One aspect I struggled with a bit was the steamy content. I love a good romance but this seemed a bit rushed and a little more explicit than what I usually read. All in all, I did enjoy their love story. I think it's just a matter of personal preference and it in no way detracts from the fact that Davon has written a solid story. It reminds me of an adult Percy Jackson (by Rick Riordan) story or well written fan fiction. But again that does not detract from the story. I happen to enjoy a good fan fic. I also think that readers who enjoy Jaymin Eve or Linsey Hall's works would enjoy this as well. The romance in this book did bring one quote to mind:
"She looked like a sin he wanted to commit."
Braving Fate by Linsey Hall
I was provided and ARC by Netgalley in exchange for my honest review.
This book has a lot going for it. First off, the cover is stunning, no wonder men would die for a look at a Gorgon! Secondly I really enjoyed that there were so many various mythologies and religions from around the world represented, and the way that the pantheons interacted with one another and humanity. Third it felt like the author is pretty knowledgeable about all these myths and stories. Because of that the story felt really seamless and flowed well, nothing felt forced. Well almost nothing. Which brings us to the cons of the book and why I had to dock a star. The sex scenes and chemistry between Euryale and Asher were pretty bad. I appreciate that the expedited love story goes along with Greek mythology but to me it felt strange, almost like if Disney had tried to add sex scenes to their version of Hercules. I didn't care for the way those were written at all. Otherwise great story! I would be interested in continuing with the series.