I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly, when I requested Lore I thought I was going to get the whole book when accepted. Yet, I got the email stating that it was a chapter summary. To say I was disappointed would’ve been an understatement.

The handful of chapters were okay but they didn’t grab my attention right off the bat. Which is pretty normal or typical for any book because it doesn’t always start off with a bang.

We do get to meet Lore and we knows she a mortal and a fighter. Yet we learn a little bit more about her towards the end of this sampler. Not sure if I’m super excited to dive into the rest of the book based off of what I read today. Maybe I will but I have no way of knowing if I will be accepted for the full book or be rejected like usual and wait to get the book when it comes out.

Sadly, I was really excited when I requested this book and now I’m just in a funk. Maybe NetGalley should label samplers before the book can be requested?

I usually do not request chapter sneak peeks because they always leave me wanting more! But this was posted as a book and then it was later changed as a chapter sample, and I couldn't resist! This was so fun! I cannot wait to finally read this book as a whole because so far it has really grabbed a hold of me! I have loved books by this author and I am expecting the same with this one!

Honestly, if this had been labeled as a sampler when I requested it, I never would have requested it. I feel I can't give an informed review on a partial galley, nor do I have a desire to read part of a book.

Never in my life have I been so excited for a book after reading a chapter sampler. Reading the start of Lore has made me so unbelievably happy. With such a short part of the story, I can honestly say I am going to love this book.

With that said, is it 2021 yet? Because I need the rest of this book asap.

Give me this book RIGHT NOW!

What a thrilling introduction to what will surely be one of the most anticipated books of 2021. American Gods meets Mortal Instruments.

Wow! What a great chapter sampler! I have eagerly been anticipating Lore and loved reading the first few chapters. Even from the first few chapters I already love the characters. I can't wait to learn more about Lore's past and how her oath with Athena plays out. This world is super intriguing and not like anything I have read recently. I can't wait to read the entire book!

Granted a sneak peek at Lore and I cannot get enough. The premise of this story is incredibly unique and from the very beginning the reader is thrust into what is shaping up to be an action packed adventure. From gods of old to gods anew and the descendants of heroes thrown in for good measure, I can’t wait to see where the plot goes. This chapter teaser cuts of right as your ready to delve in until the book is finished - I eagerly await the completed product!

Did I absolutely play myself and think that reading it would help me calm down the hype?? Absolutely yes of course. Am I even more excited for this book now?? ABSOLUTELY YES OF COURSE.

Alexandra Bracken immediately owned my soul with these characters and it took approximately 1000 words for it to happen. I cannot wait to read the entire novel.

I hadn’t thought I could get more excited for Alexandra Bracken’s new book. One of my favorite authors + Greek mythology? Match made it heaven. And then I read this sampler. I am so excited for Lore and reading the rest of this story. Definitely one of my most anticipated 2021 releases!

Even though I thought this was going to be the full book I really enjoyed this sample. I will be reading the full book when it comes out because the sample hooked me!

This is my most anticipated release for 2021 and this sampler did not disappoint! I love Alexandra’s writing style and this piece flowed seamlessly. I can’t wait to read the rest of the book!

Greek gods and heroes in the modern world cause my fantasy-loving mind to tingle with excitement. The first few chapters are full of action and the peeling back of just the first few layers of what promises to be an delightfully unique urban fantasy featuring classic figures of myth and legend. Lore struggles with so many inner demons, it will be inspiring to see her grow into the heroine she was always meant to be, and Miles, the ever-present faithful friend - well, I adore him already for his steadfast, practical nature that is an illuminating foil for Lore’s darkness and doubt. I’m looking forward to seeing where this story goes and to traveling the dark and dangerous path with Lore.

A great little taste of the upcoming novel by Alexandra Bracken. I am so excited to read the rest of this book and can't wait! The story is already so intriguing and I really like her writing style. This snippet was a great sample of what is to come and I absolutely cannot wait!

Lore Perseous is an ex-hunter who has decided to abandon her old life after the annihilation of her entire family. She belongs to the House of Perseus, an ancient bloodline who have hunted down the gods over the course of centuries in order to steal their divinity. She's bitter, she's angry, she thinks she's done killing—until an old childhood friend and a bloodied goddess inconveniently show up to bring her back into the fold of the hunt.

Pros so far:
- Hot people doing hot things. The (I'm assuming) love interest character appears early on, and he's appropriately enigmatic and broody. Lore is a fairly standard "strong female character," so withholding opinion on that until later.
- Probably good for older fans of the Percy Jackson series, (of which I only read one book and then decided to DNF the rest). So go dive in if you don't mind a very loose interpretation of Greek mythology. Might also be good for fans of The Hunger Games, Divergent, Maze Runner... Basically YA of that sort of flavor.
- Apollo will hopefully make an appearance???

I picked this up primarily because I thought it had an interesting concept (reminds me a lot of the comics, THE WICKED + THE DIVINE) and I'm curious to see if Bracken will pull it off in the end. So far, a lot has already happened in the first few chapters and is developing fairly quick. This might just be a personal thing, as I like my introductions to characters + their motives to drag a little longer in order to set up the stakes properly, but if you are someone who wants to get into the meat of things really quickly then this won't be an issue.

Bracken favors a lot of action and then straight exposition, which I don't think I am a huge fan of—there is a lot of info dumping in the beginning that could have been woven into the overall novel in later chapters, especially in her conversations with Athena and Miles. A LOT of info dumping. But she's very talented at writing quick paced, high intensity fight scenes, which will probably be a huge feature of this book later on.

Overall, a highly intriguing concept. I've only read one other Bracken book (The Darkest Minds) and in just these few chapters I see a massive improvement in writing and characterization.

I'd be a bit concerned for readers unfamiliar with Greek mythology going into this story, as the starting chapters seem a bit info-dump heavy, but as someone familiar with the names and stories, I was hooked immediately.

I am excited to read the rest of this book someday. The Greek God pseudo-Battle Royale seems like it will be an intensely gripping story and I'm already so curious to know some of the characters that this snippet introduced.

I am a big fan of books that find a beautiful way of weaving in mythology. However, even though the book description is beautiful, the writing for the few chapters here didn't grab my interest.

This is SUCH an interesting revamp of some of my fave aspects of Greek mythology. It takes PJATO's half-blood world-building one step further: What if humans could become gods?

Well, in this world, they can.

Thousands of years ago, nine gods—Athena, Artemis, Poseidon, Dionysus, Apollo, Hermes, Aphrodite, Hephaestus, and Ares—staged a failed revolution against Zeus. As punishment, they are doomed to face the Agon every seven years: they will walk the earth as mortals, and if they're killed by a Hunter, they forfeit their immortality.

It's essentially the bloodiest game of family-run Assassins you'll ever read.

Of the old gods, only Athena, Artemis, Apollo, and Hermes remain. The rest have been slain by members of the nine Hunter houses (whose bloodlines trace all the way back to famous ancient Greek heroes—Perseus, Kadmos, Achilles, Herakles...). Lore is the last mortal member of the House of Perseus. She has no intention of returning to the ruthless world she left behind all those years ago, but when her supposedly dead best friend turns up, and the goddess Athena promises to help her kill the man-god who brutally murdered her family—Lore's drawn right back in.

In terms of rep, so far we have several BIPOC characters—one of whom is gay and of South Korean descent!! Miles is Lore's best friend and such a funny foil to her intensity.

I've always found Alexandra Bracken's writing a little more verbose than your typical YA (this one's 480 pages y’all). In The Darkest Minds I found it made the story drag. In Lore, though, the descriptions of New York, mythological tidbits, and action scenes (Lore brawling in the ring, Athena bleeding out on her front stoop) keep the pace moving, and it really works.

I am SO excited to see where this heads!

Oh man, I was pretty interested in reading Lore, but now that I've read this sampler, I can't wait. I've always loved Greek mythology, so I'm very interested in exploring the world Alexandra Bracken has created. I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for the full book on Netgalley once it is added.

I enjoyed this! Hard to say with a chapter sampler, though 63 pages was a decent enough time to get a nice introduction. Can't wait to see where this goes, feels like it will be a long wait all the way to 2021!

WOW this sampler was just not enough!! Lore seems like a reimagined, modern version of Greek Gods, where the power of the gods are reborn when they are killed. Lore is the last living descendent of a branch, but has been in hiding for 3 years. That all changes when she finds Athena outside her house, almost dead, in human form. Athena needs Lore's help, and Athena has something Lore wants, so they strike a deal and a blood oath to keep each other alive.

The action begins immediately in the first few chapters and the world is already fascinating. Set in New York City, but also hailing to ancient times, it's a wonderful combination of modern day and high fantasy. I've excited to be able to read the full version!