I really tried to get through this book but I ended up DNFing it. It’s not that it was bad, I enjoyed the story but it was a little slow and I just couldn’t get into it

Threads That Bind was one of my most anticipated releases of 2023, and it did not disappoint! The world building was so unique and fascinating. I was sucked into the world right from the get go. I also loved how subtle yet sweet the romance between Io and her love interest Edei was. Io herself was a wonderfully layered and complex main character. Plus, the plot was very engaging, there was never a dull or slow moment. I honestly cannot wait for the sequel!

This book was fine for me, but LORDY is that cover a beaut. I liked the premise of the story here. It got a bit convoluted in places, but I was very glad I stuck with the book through to the end.

Oh my gosh.
I absolutely loved this book!

I haven't been reading as much YA lately as I have in the past, but this one exceeded my expectations.
I was first drawn in by the Greek fates mythology, and there is so much more than that woven in.
I really loved our main characters and the fact that there was a very interesting mystery element that kept me obsessed with figuring out what was going on.

I can't believe we ended the way we did, and I need book two NOW!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing the E-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Loved this fantasy book for the readers who enjoy fantasy! It is not my most heavily read genre BUT a I have so many students requesting fantasy books.

This book was well detailed and I was constantly engaged. Myths, murder, and magic. All of this in one book and done well?! I will definitely be recommending this one!!

I’ve always loved mythology. I also love reading stories inspired by mythology, so it was a no brainer to read Threads That Bind. I loved this fresh take on retelling the ancient myths. This world also covers more than just Greek mythology too, which was awesome.

Threads that Bind follows Io Ora, who is a descendant of the Fates. Descendants of the Fates always come in threes, so Io’s older sisters are also known as moira-born. Each sister has her own unique ability, and Io has the ability to cut the strings that tie others to the things they care most about. This ability often skews her an outsider as cutters are not easily trusted in this world.

Io uses her gift to become a private investigator. On her most recent case she encounters a woman whose life thread has been cut, yet she’s still alive. The person she’s staking out gets murdered by this strange undead woman and in turn brings her to the attention of the Mob Queen of the Silts. She wants Io to investigate this recent murder and some others that are similar. She’s then paired to work with Edei Rhuna, the right hand of the Mob Queen, and it turns out he’s also Io’s fated love. Io and Edei have been linked by a rare fate-thread long before they ever met.

Io and Edei have to work together to get to the bottom of the murders and find out who is creating these “wraiths” to carry out the heinous crimes. The case hits a little tougher close to home when both of her sisters end up being involved with two of Io’s most likely suspects. She’ll have to act fast because the deeper she gets into the case, the more dangerous it becomes for Io and everyone around her.

I really liked the set up and world building. The unique magic system was really fun. I like how the author included so many different types of descendants of the gods. Plus I loved the brief mentions of other mythology used in the book as well. It gives the world in this book a wider range of possibilities and made it seem more realistic. Io is also a great character and I loved how spunky she was. I definitely look forward to reading book two and seeing what happens next. I would recommend this to anyone who loves mythology and retellings of mythology.

It was all a young adult fantasy reader could ask for!
Multiple Greek myths are retold in an urban fantasy setting, along with political intrigue, a slow-burning romance, a murder investigation, relatable complex sibling relationships, rich world-building, and inclusive, diverse characters—including representation of immigrants!

All in all, I found it to be a well-rounded read that I quite liked reading. Will love to read the next book!

Rooted in Greek mythology, this tale tells the story of the Descendants of the Greek Fates. The Descendants are born in threes: the weaver, the drawer and the cutter of the threads that connect people to the people and things they love. Io is the youngest of her sisters and uses her abilities to work as a detective when she realizes something is wrong in their city of Atlante. When she is paired with Edei to try to fix the problem, she finds herself in the difficult situation of knowing that she has a powerful thread connecting her with Edei, but she doesn't trust herself to tell him the truth. It's an interesting battle with herself and to try to defeat that is overrunning their c

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Young Readers for an advanced copy of this book.

Wow! I went into Threads that Bind not really knowing what to expect and perhaps was a little hesitant to read a book so tied to mythology since that isn't really my forte.... BUT I was so glad I did. Hatzopoulou tells a story that is truly accessible to all readers, including those who might not be well versed in Greek mythology.

Without giving anything away, I would just say that this is definitely a must-read for me. It kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next.

Plus the cover is.... simply beautiful.

Highly recommend this one!

This book has a lot of great ideas, and was very unique, too, in both magic system and setting, but I felt like it didn’t have the depth that it could have, and was a little hard to get into.

Give me a YA fantasy mystery steeped in connections to Greek mythology and I am going to eat it up. I loved this book. I listened to this book on audio at work and barely got any work done (shhh🤫).

I really enjoyed the world the author ha begun to build in this first book. Not going to lie, as happens with many fantasy series, it took me a bit to understand what was going on, as these reads tend to just drop you into the world and take off running, but once I got more familiar with the story after a few chapters, it was no struggle to keep up. I really loved how fast paced this book felt. Straight from the beginning I was thrusted into a story of mystery as main character Io is already investigating a strange occurrence that ends up being part of a much larger scheme than anyone was imagining. While diving right into the action did cause me to stumble at first, I prefer it as it caught my interest immediately and kept it through the story.

I also loved the way the different descendants of the gods, Other-born, are written. I had a great time connecting which powers went to which greek mythology references (some were explicitly told in the story, some were not).

This story was very creative and exciting and I cannot wait for the sequel already!

Thanks NetGalley and Penguin Group for the ARC of this book.

Rooted in Greek mythology, this tale tells the story of the Descendants of the Greek Fates. The Descendants are born in threes: the weaver, the drawer and the cutter of the threads that connect people to the people and things they love. Io is the youngest of her sisters and uses her abilities to work as a detective when she realizes something is wrong in their city of Atlante. When she is paired with Edei to try to fix the problem, she finds herself in the difficult situation of knowing that she has a powerful thread connecting her with Edei, but she doesn't trust herself to tell him the truth. It's an interesting battle with herself and to try to defeat that is overrunning their city.

I really enjoyed this book! It took a little time for me to get the magic system, but once I did I thought it was really different and interesting.

I loved the setting and can't wait for the next book!

it was really good! i liked the pacing, the writing, the characters and their development, i also loved the plot development and all the pretty details!

This was ultimately a very middle of the road fantasy book for me - the world building didn't really exist, the magic system was minimally explained and I didn't get the sense that the Gods really played an important role in the story/world/plot...
I wanted to love it but it just fell flat.

I did find Threads that Bind to be fun. I LOVE Greek mythology, not only was it full of stuff that I loved but it was also such an original world. Reading it was like a breath of fresh air.
While parts of the lore could feel jumbled, the compelling world and mystery kept me interested throughout. There are many twists and turns that the plot takes that I couldn't see everything coming and I'm excited to see what happens next in the sequel (which was set up well).
I also LOVE soulmates/fated to be together tropes, especially when the author includes ALL the potential drama that those tropes can include. There was just so much in this book that I loved that the parts that could have turned me off were easy to ignore.
Thanks so much to the author and publisher for providing a free ARC copy of the book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I love this streak of really unique young adult fantasy novels I’m finding this year. I love a book with magic in a way I haven’t seen and this book definitely had that. The characters were great and complex. My biggest frustration as I put this book down was how long I will probably have to wait for the next part. Io and her sisters is a descendant of the Greek Fates and she has the ability to cut the threads of anyone. When she is on a routine private detective job she witnesses a murder that shouldn’t have been possible as the murderer’s life threat was severed but she wasn’t dead. The world building in this story was really good. It did make the story move a little slowly at times, but I appreciate the time to really make a realistic post-apocalyptic world where magic and the gods are woven into a world with gangs, prejudice, and now murder. I gave this one 4.5 stars rounded up for the creative magic system.

Great story and unforgettable characters. Threads that Bind is a breathtaking story with great world building.

I love reading debuts. I can go in with absolutely no expectations and get totally blown away and this book was no exception! Threads That Bind was a five star read for me.
I loved the intermixing of Greek mythology into a sort of dystopian world. The magic was unique and interesting, although a bit confusing at times.
I also loved all the characters. Kika Hatzopoulou incorporated diverse cast of characters and gave them individual personalities to avoid the characters getting mixed up, which is no easy feat.
I also loved Io's magic. She's able to see and cut people's fate threads, including the one connecting her to Edei, her soulmate. (The romance? Unless you have a problem with slow burn, you won't be disappointed!)
I can't wait for the second book!

3.75/5 stars! So I love the cover of this book and the premise around 'the fates' and Grecian history was strong. I liked some of the cast but found the main character really frustrating. If you treat the book as firmly YA. her whininess is more acceptable, but it doesn't work as a strong novel. I especially disliked that it ended on a cliffhanger because I don't think it needs a sequel. That being said, the supporting characters were really fleshed out and that redeemed the story for me.

I received an advance review copy for free through NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.