Gameboard of the Gods by Richelle Mead

Goodreads Blurb

In a futuristic world nearly destroyed by religious extremists, Justin March lives in exile after failing in his job as an investigator of religious groups and supernatural claims. But Justin is given a second chance when Mae Koskinen comes to bring him back to the Republic of United North America (RUNA). Raised in an aristocratic caste, Mae is now a member of the military’s most elite and terrifying tier, a soldier with enhanced reflexes and skills.

When Justin and Mae are assigned to work together to solve a string of ritualistic murders, they soon realize that their discoveries have exposed them to terrible danger. As their investigation races forward, unknown enemies and powers greater than they can imagine are gathering in the shadows, ready to reclaim the world in which humans are merely game pieces on their board.

Gameboard of the Gods, the first installment of Richelle Mead’s Age of X series, will have all the elements that have made her YA Vampire Academy and Bloodlines series such megasuccesses: sexy, irresistible characters; romantic and mythological intrigue; and relentless action and suspense.

OKAY, so even if this is a YA (once in a while NA) review blog, how could I pass up Richelle Mead? So I decided to finally start my first adult read. And it was...a bit disappointing. I guess I finally realized jsut how big the difference between YA and Adult is!

Gameboard of the Gods was so slow for me. I was bored so many times and the twists were completely predictable. While there were plenty of developments and action scenes, my attention slowly withered away and, I admit, I may have started skimming a bit without realizing. (NO I DID NOT SKIM THE WHOLE BOOK. Maybe 25 pages.). From the first mention of ravens, I already guessed the big "surprise" at the end and that was sort of ridiculous, considering it was so obvious. Same goes for the mystery goddess too. They were (SEMI SPOILER) pretty much the most written about gods, excluding Greek. (SPOILER END)

Richelle Mead is always great with characterization and this time was no exception. They were all flawed characters who were still likeable, to a point, though it did take some time to get to know them. Though I do have to admit, Mae is a lot better than Justin  in my eyes. I think that's mainly since she was so kickbutt!

I liked the dystopian world in this story and it was captivating from the first description. Everything fit together and every question I had about the world was eventually explained. It was a creative concept that I enjoyed reading about and one that's definitely pure Richelle. It was such a complex world!

I didn't really enjoy the alternating POVs, though. It was random and often confused me. and I mean often. I'm not really a fan of alternate POVs, though, so that may make me a bit biased! Each section did advance the plot though and I did enjoy, at times, seeing the story from a different character's view.

Fans of Richelle Mead's work are sure to like this one (if they generally read adult, that is!). It brings a new idea to the table and a story that's pure genius. People who usually avoid dystopian should definitely try this one since I'm pretty sure it'll coax a great reaction out of readers! 

Pages: 464

Genre: Dystopian/Mythology

Series: Age of X #1

Publisher: Dutton Adult

Release Date: June 4, 2013

Rating: 3.5--->3 stars