CONTENT WARNING: Lore features themes of sexual assault, child brides, and mentions rape/attempted rape


Lore is a contemporary fantasy standalone published by Disney-Hyperion and written by Alexandra Bracken (The Darkest Minds, Passenger). Years ago, nine gods, Athena, Artemis, Apollo, Poseidon, Hephaestus, Hermes, Ares, Aphrodite, and Dionysus, tried to defy Zeus, overthrowing his position as king of the gods. When their rebellion was unsuccessful, Zeus began the Agon. Every seven years, descendants of the nine heroes chosen for the first Agon hunt the gods for seven days.

Despite being from House Perseus and the last of her line, Lore wants to be a normal human. She wants to sit out the Agon, and especially to avoid the new Ares intent on hunting her down and eliminating House Perseus for good. But when the goddess Athena shows up on her doorstep close to bleeding out, Lore finds herself thrust into the middle of the Agon. She has the opportunity to regain her house’s lost honor. Lore agrees to bind her fate to Athena’s, but will it be worth the cost?

Bracken’s unique take on the interactions between gods and mortals helps Lore stand out among other Greek mythology-inspired novels. During the course of the Agon, the gods become mortals, capable of being killed by the hunters. And if a hunter kills one of the gods they will gain that god’s powers, becoming the god reborn. This remains so until the next Agon, when they will be hunted themselves. This idea is central to the book as Lore is hiding from Wrath, Ares reborn, and working alongside her childhood friend Castor, Apollo reborn.

In the world of Lore—the world of the Agon—the lives of gods and mortals are deeply intertwined, but the gods are just as chaotic and selfish, if not more so than the mortals.

From the first page of Lore, Bracken throws readers directly into the world of the gods, old and new. While Bracken doesn’t dump all of the information on the reader at once, and the worldbuilding does feel natural, it’s just a lot of information to take in at first. There are so many different families mentioned that the guide to the houses (found at the beginning of the book) is needed for at least the first few chapters. But as the plot unfolds and the story builds, readers will become more familiar with all of the names.

Lore is only 17, and there are moments when her fighting skills and general maturity level make her feel like she should be older. But Lore’s not a normal human. Bracken lets the reader know that she’s been training to be a hunter since she was a child and compared to the gods, including Castor and Athena, Lore is weak and very, very mortal. It’s not as if Lore is just an exceptionally powerful character; while she is a skilled fighter, she’s only about as powerful as the rest of the hunters. And she isn’t able to easily win, or win at all, every fight she’s in.

In the world of the Agon, women are subservient to men. While women are hunters and fight alongside the men, they’re not supposed to kill a god and ascend. Women are there to help and support the men, and to help carry on the bloodline of their house. This is where the content warnings come into play. During the course of Lore, Bracken deals with several heavy topics including sexual assault, attempted rape, and child brides. Bracken doesn’t include these moments for shock value, rather, they enforce the horrific and brutal culture of the hunters and the agon. Lore also contains moments of graphic violence.

Lore is an exciting new take on Greek mythology. And because it’s a standalone book, it’s perfect to binge read and lose yourself to the savage world of the hunters and their gods.

Lore will be available wherever books are sold on January 5th, 2021.


My review is also available at https://butwhythopodcast.com/2020/12/20/advanced-review-lore-is-thrilling-and-brutal/

received a free copy from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This did not turn out quite how I expected. Honestly, that’s a good thing. Though the first chapters I initially received as a teaser were good, it was really heavy and made me wonder how the story intended to wrap it all up in this book. Thankfully, though there was a LOT of backstory, it was woven beautifully into the fabric of the story and augmented the plot well. I’m not normally a fan of jumping between timeframes (unless it’s a plot device) but in this case, it allowed a great depth of emotion and storytelling to be included and drive the current story forward. The pace was quick, but as this was a story expected to cover only a week’s time, and thousands of years of hatred, plotting and history tied up in the Games, it was precisely what was needed. You never felt too rushed or left behind, and it kept you wanting to read more. And at the very end, you were hopeful with the outcome. Some things weren’t spelled out, but sometimes it’s good to have that.

This is one of those times where I almost gave the book 5 whole stars and probably should have, but I wished for just a little more, a smidge of something to really push it over the edge. This is a strong 4 stars and if I did half ratings, it would be a solid 4.5. I highly recommend this one if you’re into Greek mythology.

Lore was spectacular. It took me a while to get through it, but I savored the experience and really enjoyed the world building and conflict. It was Greek mythology in the modern world, but it involved a sort of game where the descendants of ancient bloodlines fought to kill the mortal version of Greek gods to claim their power.

Lore was violent. It was so incredibly violent and I wouldn’t really categorize it as YA. It felt adult and it’s something I would recommend to fans of the more adult driven mythology books like the Red Rising trilogy. Lore as a character was fierce and not afraid of combat. I loved her character so much. She was soft about some things and totally ruthless about others.

If you know me, you know I LOVE stand-alone books that aren’t contemporary because there are just not enough of them in the fantasy/scifi genre and I’m happy to see this looks like a standalone book. (Honestly I should have rating this 5 stars just for that!)

I wished the story flashed back to Gil a little more, but I could see that Lore needed time to understand and sort through her own emotions and bias to get there. I just wished for more of those memories. I also wished there was a bit more chemistry.. there was so much at the beginning when she was in the ring, but I felt like it could have just gave me a smidge more so I could root for the romance as well as the action at the same time. However, I will say that it did do a good job at keeping the action and conflict in the forefront and not letting the main characters go all goo-eyed and distracted, so I can’t say I didn’t appreciate that.

This is a must read. The cover is beautiful, the writing is spectacular, and the story felt so unique and interesting. I highly recommend this!

When I started the book I was hooked. I loved Lore's strong will and relatable attributes. I enjoyed her relationship with Miles and was very excited to get into the story and see where it took her.

Unfortunately the Greek Mythology was hard for me to follow. If I’d know more about Greek Mythology I might have enjoyed this book more. But I felt lost in all the story telling and characters, it was overwhelming.

I kept reading in hoped to get more Lore and Castor time and came up short. I really enjoyed The Darkest Mind series and came in hoping to love this one as well.

I think if someone was into Greek Mythology then this book will be amazing for them, because Lore is an amazing protagonist and all the characters are well written.

My problem lied in how many other gods/goddess were mentioned and I couldn’t keep track of all the story lines and houses.

I gave the book a 3 stars because I think it would be a great book for someone else but it just didn’t work for me.

Hello to my favorite book of 2021. Yes, it is published in the first month of 2021, but I don’t care, nothing will top it! I have loved Alexandra’s work since The Darkest Mind series, but this book takes the cake! It’s a mixture of Greek Mythology and The Hunger Game.

As punishment for past rebellion, nine Greek gods must come back to earth as mortals. Where the must fight against others trying to steal their immortality. Our lead Lora from a wiped out line of Perseides, is draw into the fight and the road gets interesting.

This book starts out the way Crescent City by Sarah J Maas begins; in the sense that it’s a lot of information to unpack, but the end result is this beautiful, masterpiece of a story. My one salute to this book is WOMEN IN GREEK MYTHOLOGY!! Show some respect to the names and that’s what Alexandra did! We only hear about the men but not the women that stood beside them, or even in front of them. Bravo! This book has a little bit for everyone so even if Greek mythology isn’t your cup of tea, I would still give this a try. You will be pleasantly surprised.

Thank you NetGalley and Disney-Hyperion for my e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Oh my. I’ve been hearing people call this book Greek mythology meets hunger games and they are not wrong. Absolutely fantastic, the characters, the battle scenes. I loved it all. It was everything I never knew I wanted.

Thank you to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Bracken opens strong with an intriguing overview of this book's world building presenting greek mythology in a brand new way. Zeus, always known for his complex punishments, have sentenced the greek pantheon to become mortal each year, where the lineages of greek heroes have the opportunity to kill them and become gods themselves. An ancestor and one of the last remaining original gods team up for a fascinating revenge story!

Lore is a refreshing stand alone book about ancient bloodlines hunting the Greek gods that is great for novice and dedicated lovers of greek mythology alike. I eat up everything involving Greek mythology, but this was truly something special! There is edge-of-your-seat action and betrayals, and a fun new way to look at New York City. This is another must-read from Bracken!

First of all, thank you to Disney for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Lore follows Lore, the last of the Perseous line. Every seven years the Agon begins, where the Olympians appear on Earth as mortals, and the anciet hero bloodlines can kill the Gods for for their power and immortality. Lore's entire family was murdered in the last Agon, and since then, she has steered clear of the other bloodlines.

Until her old friend Castor (who she believed dead) appears. A severely wounded Athena appears on Lore's doorstep, and they make an alliance to take out the new Ares.

Listen, I love most things with Greek Mythology, so this already was high up on my TBR! I love that Bracken highlights the sexism in Greek Myth, and this is quite the feminist tell. Our heroine is Lore, and there's a lot against her in this world, so it made for a really fast-pased high-stakes story!

Overall really loved the story. There was some rep, which I appreciated considering this follows a rather small, close-knit crew. I'm a little sad this is a standalone, and I would have loved to learn more about this world! Definitely recommend ot all of my Geek Myth friends out there.

My only critique is that I still can't decided if the young marriages and sexual assault were entirely necessary to the story. I feel like we could have gotten the same results without giving all of the specifics or not even including it. It was definitely creepy and made some of the men in charge of these bloodlines gross. Hard to say! Only reason why I'm marking it down to a 4 star read.

TW: abuse, sexual assault.

4.5

This was a highly anticipated read for me and it did not disappoint!

Lore is an exciting, fast-paced read, filled with Greek mythology, battle wounds, and the take down of some nasty foes.

The title character Lore was a great point of view and I loved learning about her past as it collided with her present. She is strong and caring and determined and a total badass. But she is also stubborn and relentless.

She is joined by an all-start cast of side characters, too. Including some old gods and new. I was, personally, a fan of her best friend Miles, who was not at all descended by a Greek mythological character.

What brought it down a notch for me was the romance. I just wasn’t as invested in it as I would have liked to be. The material was there, just something about the execution wasn’t it for me.

At times, things also felt a bit rushed. This is a standalone, so a lot of material is packed into one book.

Overall, though, this is a great book. I can’t wait to see what Alexandra Bracken comes up with next!

*note: I received a copy of Lore from Netgalley in exchange for a review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*
5/5 stars!
This book was amazing! I don’t even know what to say about it! I liked it so much I already preordered a hardcover copy, because I can’t wait to see this book in the flesh!
If you like high stakes adventure, friends-to-lovers romance, and greek mythology then you should totally read this book! (Honestly, even if you don’t like any of those things you should still read this book).
This book did really well in terms of plot, characters, and worldbuilding. The characters were all so unique and I felt like each one had a clear motive that helped show why they were doing the things they were doing. The plot of this novel shook me. I will say I guessed the major plot twist, but that was only because I’m super observant and noticed all the little clues Alexandra Bracken left for her readers in the book.
The worldbuilding in this novel was also very well thought out. The information was presented in an interesting and non-info dumpy way.
One of the best (and worst things) about this novel is that it is a standalone! The ending wraps up very nicely, so you don’t have to worry about desperately waiting for a sequel. I say it’s the worst thing, because I just loved Lore’s world so much. I would really enjoy reading a short story set in Lore’s world sometime, maybe from Evander or Miles POV.
Overall, this book is going to the top of my favorite books ever list. It’s a great contemporary fantasy, and is a riveting story!

I'll post a full review in a few days but OMG, I absolutely LOVED reading this book!! It was such a page turner and I never wanted it to end.

Triggers : Violence, Death (detailed)

What I thought : OMG. Just go buy this and read it ASAP. I didn’t want it to END at all. I hope maybe there’s another one, praying for something else. If you loved the Hunger Games, you will LOVE this book.

I loved it SO MUCH. I enjoyed how Bracken went back and forth in time to explain Lore’s background and Castors relationship. The growth, love and pain they all went thru. It was so detailed, everything from the storylines, the Gods and Goddesses, explaining all of them (hard to catch at first but at least for me, it was easy to catch on right away) - there are guides at the beginning and end to help understand and follow all the names*

Characters : Lore - a force to be reckoned with, never back down. Castor - dying and then revived, never gave up. Van and Miles, my heart was just bleeding for them the whole time, loved watching them all grow.

Read if you like : HUNGER GAMES
Would I pick it up again? YES

I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Oh. My. Goodness. I need this book turned into a movie right now. In Alexandra Bracken's newest book, Zeus has punished the Olympian gods with an event known as the Agon - for seven days every seven years, gods like Apollo, Athena, and Poseidon are mortal. And if they're killed during this week? The mortal who kills them inherits their powers. The mortals vying for these powers are descended from ancient Greek heroes, and Lore finds herself the last mortal of her line. Together with allies new and old, Lore must fight for revenge, fight for love, and fight to end this vicious, bloody cycle.

Right from the start, Lore was an exciting read, packed with action, adventure, and mythology. The Greek myth was woven beautifully into Lore's past and present, and Bracken likewise seamlessly connected ancient myth with modern New York City. The action scenes pull you in, making it impossible to put the book down. The characters, both god and mortal alike, had such wonderful character development; I rooted for some characters, immediately despised others, and felt conflicted over some gods the whole time. The story was gritty and unapologetically steeped in Greek mythology, yet readers unfamiliar with the mythology will have a great introduction to some of Mt Olympus' biggest gods. Lore is a fantastic read, perfect for anyone looking for action and adventure with just a touch of romance.

This is probably my favorite Young Adult book of the year. I have been in an adult-fantasy mood all year, so it has been hard to read some YA books and have it keep my attention. This book grabbed my attention, made unbreaking eye contact until... well, I'll let you know because I still cannot stop thinking about this book.

What you need to know :
A few gods really upset Zeus. So he did a thing.
First, he took the nine gods and every seven years they are mortal for seven days.
Second, if the descendants of ancient hero bloodlines kill a god during those seven days, they seize their divine power and become a god themselves.
Third, each bloodline, or family, wants a god in their bloodline in order to have them bless their family with riches. Example, their god could agree to spread a plague that only their bloodline has the cure for. Which means they would end up being super rich from all of that.

With all that, the families work together to an extent.... and also kill each other for the glory of their family. So it comes to no one's shock that Lore is the last in her bloodline due to a brutal massacre of her family. She has been hiding for years, wanting to live and not let the other families know she was left. But when a god finds her and gives her a chance at revenge... she can either walk away or take it to avenge what happened to her family.

GUYS THIS BOOK.

The romance, the friendships, the twists after twists, the lore (the actual noun, not the main character) of the book and and and and.... I just loved everything about it. I honestly do not have one single bad thing to say about this book except that it ended and I am sad about it. . Everyone needs to add this to their 2021 TBRs!

3.5 Stars
I love Mythology. This mix of Greek Mythology with a Gladiator type vibe was intoxicating. A great mix of old world and new age. One aspect I really appreciated that I didn't see coming was the awesome feminist tone set throughout. The writing on that end was quite inspired. So many highlighted passages. It's pretty much what you'd expect from a story drenched in mythology, violence, glory, trials, alliances made and broken, tragedy, monsters in many forms, friendship, perseverance, heroes, with just a dash of romance.

The gods were pretty spot on for me. Their general aloofness, mercurial and otherworldly came shining through. Lore was a good leading lady, a solid reluctant hero. Castor, Van and even Miles had their moments too but she was clearly the star.

All in all this was a quality read but it did take me a little bit to truly get into it. It had all the right ingredients to draw me in but it really didn't fully grab me until about halfway through.

I don't know about you, but a story about Greek gods and heroes in the modern world causes my fantasy-loving mind to tingle with excitement.

Lore is a delightfully unique urban fantasy featuring classic figures from Greek mythology and legend. The world in Lore is complex and, at times, confusing in its complexity, but it just takes a leap of faith from the reader to bridge that gap between the world they know and this new, multi-faceted world found within the pages of the novel.

The characters have just the right blend of loyalty, determination, and inner strength. Lore, the title character, struggles with so many inner demons. It is inspiring to see her grow into the heroine she is meant to be, and Miles, Lore's ever-present faithful friend - well, I adore him for his steadfast, practical nature that is an illuminating foil for Lore's darkness and doubt. Castor – Lore's training partner – is one of the most incorruptible characters ever to be written and deserves every sacrifice made for him. And, Van is a character that is to Castor what Miles is to Lore. Every hero and heroine must have that friend with the heart of a hero and the dedication only a loyal friend can have.

I love the profound and essential message that's threaded throughout the story. Zeus, angry over the betrayal of the nine gods and goddesses closest to him, decrees a final agon. For seven days every seven years, the descendants of Greek heroes of note can hunt and kill the gods, who will be mortal for that brief time. If a god is killed, the powers of that god will be granted to the hunter who slays him or her. If another god kills a god, the power of the slain god no longer exists, and this will continue until only one god's powers remain, and then the prophesy states, "that person will be made whole."

At its root, this story is about how "absolute power corrupts absolutely. "Zeus recognized this in the other gods and decided that men and gods will be made equal for small bursts of time until that rare individual left uncorrupted by power is found. This person is the salvation for all people showing that there is still good in the world. That message is even more critical today, as things continue to escalate out of control around us, and it feels like there is no end to the direction the world is heading in.

Lore is a compelling, action-packed urban fantasy that delights and disturbs as a war to save humanity ensues.

DNF @ 25%

I feel terrible for not finishing this book, but I just can’t force myself. I was pretty excited about this one. I mean, I’d greatly enjoyed The Darkest Minds series, and I adore Greek mythology, so I figured that this one would be a hit.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

At 25% through this story, I find myself at a place of not caring. I feel no emotional connection to any of the characters, since their motivations thus far are flimsy at best, including Lore’s. There also is a LOT of telling and not showing, I find, especially in terms of the backstory of Lore and her former friend Castor. The book is trying to make me feel like there’s a connection between the two, but I just do not see that spark.

Beyond the characters, I found the plot hard to follow. Look, not to brag about my awesome smarts, but I am a reader who can typically follow fairly confusing plots. In this case, however, I was left scratching my head at many instances, and having to go back and reread paragraphs (to little avail). And I truly believe this is a fault of the book, and not me. Many details seemed vague, and aren’t explained very well or aren’t there at all. You’re just kind of tossed into this mess of different bloodlines and gods and this 7 year cycle with next to no explanation or preparation.

As well, though I hate to say it, because not every Greek mythology book is Percy Jackson, I couldn’t help feel like this book was hinging on the hope that readers had gained Greek mythology education from that series. The gods are explained in MINIMAL detail, and could leave readers unfamiliar with Greek myths rather confused. I don’t even know if it mentioned what some were the gods OF. It makes sense that the hope that people had read Percy Jackson before this exists, because this is YA and that series is middle grade.

Overall, I think a lot more development of the plot and motivations of characters should have been pushed to the forefront of the novel, and that perhaps we hadn’t jumped right into the action so quickly, instead taking a pause to allow for a bit more attachment to our protagonist.

Wow!! Alexandra Bracken has done it again! Lore is a phenomenal new standalone fantasy set in a world where every seven years, as punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek Gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals being brutally hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines. It is called the Agon. The story follows Lore Perseus who lost her family as a child in the Agon and fled from that world with no desire to participate in the hunt and seize a God's power and immortality. Now that the next hunt is beginning, Lore is going to be tempted to get her revenge when some very unexpected people approach her - a childhood friend she thought was dead and a very injured Athena. This story is outstanding!! It is filled to the brim with action, fantastic world-building, greek mythology, romance, and so much more. The characters are well-developed and ones you get excited rooting for. The plot is fast-paced and addictive. Bracken's writing is solid. Fans of The Hunger Games will fall in love with this fresh YA story involving Greek Gods in modern New York. Highly recommended!!

If anybody read and loved Percy Jackson, but thought 'this needs a higher body count', then this is the book for them! From an intense opening all the way to the end, this book is deliciously bloody. I am a sucker for Greek mythology so having a retelling of sorts that still summons the same themes that permeate the classic stories (passion, vengeance, betrayal, redemption) is such a comfort (and it is also nice to know that in any form Ares is still quite the *$*% is also a consisting comfort). I am a massive fan of this book!

For Libraries: Buy it! That is all.

Look out, Riordan! I actually liked this one more than Percy Jackson. I loved the action, plotting, and world-building. I really think that middle-grade readers are going to eat this one up. Heck, I’m a grown man, and I gobbled this one up in two sittings. Do yourself a favor and get this one when it releases.

Alexandra Bracken's new novel <i>Lore</i> is a fascinating new twist on the tales of the Olympic Gods. The store centers around Lore, a 17-year-old who has been trying to run for her past and her family's legacy. Her family comes from a line of clans that both worship and hunt Greek Gods. In this story, the Greek Gods were cast to earth and if a mortal kills one of the Gods, then he (yep, there' a sexist component to this story) will take on that God's powers.

Over the centuries, some of the original Gods and their respective houses have died out while others have become extremely rich and powerful. At the beginning of the story, there are five houses that still exist: Perseus, Achilles, Theseus, Kadmos, and Odysseus. Every seven years, the Agon takes place, which is when the Gods become mortal and can be killed. As you can imagine, this leads to a lot of tension and killing as clans protect their Gods while trying to take down the other houses' Gods in the process.

Lore is the last standing member of The House of Perseus after her parents and sisters were brutally murdered at the end of the last Agon. Since their murders, Lore has done her best to stay off the radar. Unfortunately, all of that changes when one of the Gods shows up on her doorstep needing her help at the beginning of the Agon. The God promises to help Lore seek vengeance for the murders of her family in exchange for helping her survive the Agon.

Over the course of the book, new romances blossom and there is plenty of murder and backstabbing to be had by all.

As for my review, I really liked this book. I originally received the first couple of chapters from the publisher to review. After falling in love with the initial chapters, I asked (and was granted) the full book for review. I found this take on the old Greek Gods very interesting and fun. I read that this version is akin to the Greek Myths meeting the Hunger Games, which I think is a really apt description of this book.

I found the writing fun and fast-paced. This book is definitely a page-turner. I would recommend for both teenagers and adults alike.

Probably my only critique is the overuse of the term "new god," to refer to those mortals who previously killed a god and took their powers. We get that their new gods, but this phrase was just a bit overused throughout the book. I'm hoping the final version of the book will have removed a good number of these because it became a bit repetitive after a while.