A Veil of Gods and Kings

"Big thanks to Netgalley and Victory Editing for the e-arc!

4.5 stars
"You're a god, Apollo. It's what you were born for."

I love a good Greek mythology retelling and this one did not disappoint. Sorry Achilles and Patroclus, but Apollo and Hyacinth are supreme. This was a fun enemies to lovers filled with some amazing characters. This is the first book I've read where Apollo was centered stage and I really loved seeing him get the attention he deserves!

"It doesn't matter how long something lasts. I'd rather have a moment of intense beauty and joy and treasure that than something dull that lasts forever."

Let's look at characters. I loved Apollo in all his stubborn and flirtatious, goofy self and he paired perfectly with *cough* *cough* stick in the mud Hyacinth - who everyone lovingly calls Cyn - who learned to loosen up a little with Apollo's help. Epiphany was a great character and watching her fight for her freedom and recognize what she wanted in life was amazing to watch. At times I don't think her perspective was needed, but it created a nice subplot through the story. Temi is by far my favorite character. She stands up for what she believes in and is the kick - butt, rule breaking huntress she deserves to be.

"I didn't know then that those stars were already gone.
They were only the light remaining, a memory of what once was.
Like we one day would be.
And I didn't know that yet, either."

I loved the pacing of the story. It was by no means fast, but wasn't slow enough that you would get bored or feel the story drag. This story is very much character driven although I have a feeling the second book will be more plot driven based off of the ending.

"We'd snuck out of the palace and played games and spoke of our dreams, as if we were boys, our futures still so far ahead it shone as bright as the morning star, not close enough to it yet to see the scars it brought, to notice that some parts didn't sparkle."

Overall, if you love Greek mythology retellings and enemies to lovers I highly recommended A Veil of Gods and Kings. It will not disappoint!

I am so grateful for NetGalley for allowing me to read this ARC!

OK first off - whoever coined the phrase “Never judge a book by its cover” obviously has never seen this book before. The cover is GORGEOUS and immediately lured me in.

I devoured this book in one day. I stopped eating and held off all of my responsibilities because I just could not look away from the page.

The descriptions were so lyrically beautiful,
I truly felt transported to the realm of the God’s, to the foot of Mount Olympus and to every room within the Palace.

Nicole Bailey is great at showing and not telling. For example, when everybody started to find out that Apollo was going to visit Prince Hyacinth we learned all the different sides of Apollo which gave us deeper insight into his character. This could have been difficult to achieve through first person perspective but Bailey did it excellently.

Usually when there are multiple POVs in stories, I dislike at least one of the characters, but in this story I loved each and every protagonist as well as the side characters.

Epiphany’s arc was enjoyable to read and very relatable. Without revealing too much, I liked how her actions reflected her internal struggle with becoming an adult - a theme which is prominent throughout the story in Apollo’s chapters as well. Bailey did an excellent job of humanising the Gods. Although Apollo possessed qualities that could have made him unlikeable, we were shown many sides to the half mortal God, which allowed us to empathise and connect with him.

Temi - Apollo’s witty, determined and uncompromising brown-skinned mortal sister - stole the show for me. Her character was tremendous. I loved every moment with her!

And finally, the romance in this story was perfect. Delicate and gentle, with little flutters and touches here and there that made my heart race and my breath stop.

This was an absolute joy to read and I MUST get my hands on the next book in the series, when it’s available.

This book was amazing. I entered this read expecting something different, almost an ACOTAR but make it gay, I was happily wrong. The writing was fluid and almost poetic, I loved pace of the romance and how the author didn't leave the final open with a misunderstood. I hate when we end the book in a misunderstood and was almost disappointed until the last pages.
I also found it amazing to read the story of Temi and Pip, they both made an amazing duo and I really liked the friendship they formed, including the times when Val was with them.
Apolo and Hyacinth were absolutely lovable, they both struggle with the pressure and trusted each other so much, it's a beautiful relationship and I'm happy that it was not rushed.
Also, I was not expecting the king's plan? Gladly surprised and now I'm really looking forward to read the next book!

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review*

I don’t remember how I came across A Veil of Gods and Kings, but oh MAN am I glad I did.

In A Veil of Gods and Kings, we follow Apollo as he is forced, by Zeus, his father, to spend a year getting mentored by Prince Hyacinth. What starts out as mutual distain for one another, but soon turns into something else. A spark, that if turned into a flame, could ignite everything they’ve always protected.

This retelling was SO GOOD. We have 3 POVs (Apollo, Hyacinth, and Epiphany), and each of them are so strong,

Epiphany, Hyacinth’s younger sister, is one of my favourites. She’s strong, willing to fight for what she believes in, and let’s her emotions guide her in times of need. Epiphany is also plus sized, and I was SO happy to have a plus sized character in this book. Non-fat people might misinterpret her description, but I will fight anyone who says she’s just ‘curvy’ and not plus-sized. She’s my plus sized queen.

As for representation, MAN I was not expecting as much as there is. We obviously have Apollo as bisexual, Hyacinth is gay, but then we have Temi who is aromantic, and Epiphany is plus sized. Apollo, Hyacinth, Temi, and Epiphany are also all nonwhite. There is character art on Nicole Bailey’s website that I highly suggest looking at because it is BEAUTIFUL!

The plot was so good. I never felt bored or that there were filler scenes. Also, the chapters are pretty short which helped with pacing a ton!

The relationships themselves are so cute. Apollo and Hyacinth start out as enemies. They absolutely hate each other and don’t want to do anything. Their hate slowly turns into liking, and then into love. I do think that if you aren’t a fan at how fast characters realize that they love one another, this isn’t the book for you. They go from liking one another to kissing one another pretty fast, but it’s not that bad. I think it’s perfectly written for enemies to lovers. There’s also a second one between Epiphany and a stable man, Valerian. It’s a forbidden romance and I just keep yelling ‘KISS KISS KISS’ every time they are on page together. They are absolutely adorable and I will fight anyone who doesn’t like them.

I love everything about this book, and I am desperate for book 2! I love all the characters and can’t wait to see what will happen now.