Review
Can we just say right off the bat that Kendare Blake is a literary goddess? She has a way with words that just makes you fall in love with her novels, and Antigoddess is no exception.
Usually, as y'all know, I'm not a fan of multiple POV's, especially when it's third person, but Blake manages to pull it off with two kickbutt characters--both not (quite) human and both in dangerous situations. Athena and Cassandra are such different characters, but you can't help but fall in love with them, even as they opposed each other for a short time.
And the fun thing about dual POVs?
Dual romances.
We all know this author can write swoony romances and she does it again in Antigoddess! While Athena's story doesn't focus much on the romance, you can't deny that Odysseus (yes, that Odysseus) and Athena's dynamic isn't brilliant. Athena seems to melt whenever her hero (literally, since she's his patron goddess) is near and Odysseus is so absolutely loyal and sweet around Athena. Plus, I always did like those kind of snarky love interests! He seemed to love Athena for a while too, and it broke my heart whenever she pulled away.
As for Cassandra, well, I can't really say anything about that (spoilers, m'dears!), but let's just say that their relationship made me squeal, smile, giggle, and cry. Emphasis on cry.
Blake did a brilliant job bringing the gods and goddesses of legend to YA form and it was always amazing seeing our weary characters slip into their more powerful personas. And, as sadistic as it sounds, I did love the irony in how each god was dying...as much as it hurt my heart.
While there wasn't as much worldbuilding as I'd hoped, what was there was absolutely enchanting and her penchant for horror definitely played a role in some of the creepy crawly bumps in the night. Like most Greek mythology based books, things seem to revolve around the Trojan War and seeing the characters' flashbacks was exciting since I always did love new takes on it!
The plot was thrilling and I, honestly, got chills at times. There wasn't a slow moment and it was a never ending battle of trying to be a step ahead of someone who's already winning the game. Seeing it from Athena and Cassandra's perspective only made things all the more exciting and I couldn't help but be sucked into the story! If I have to say only one thing about this book, it's that it never let's you down!
I've said it before, but I'll say it again. Kendare Blake is a genius with her words, weaving them into an un-putdown-able novel that'll keep you anxious for ages. She raised expectations with her name alone and delivered it all in one pretty package! It's amazing how brilliant this story is and I honestly can't stop recommending it!
Recommended for fans of Anna Dress in Blood (because Kendare Blake, y'all) and Starcrossed!
Pages: 333
Genre: Fantasy/Mythology
Series: Goddess Wars #1
Publisher: Tor Teen
Release Date: Sep 10, 2013
Rating: 5 stars
Fiction Freak: If you were to die in
some ironic, morbid way, how would it be?
Kendare
Blake: Ironic? Electrocuted by my keyboard? Or perhaps if I was
murdered and came back as a murderous ghost, and then Cas murdered me. Or maybe
if I died by getting a feather stabbed through my eye.
FF: Suppose you were a Greek goddess--what would you be the
goddess of/what existing goddess would you be?
KB:
I would be Athena. Or at least I would be friends with
her. She’s always seemed the coolest. But if I could invent a goddess of dairy
products and hamburgers, I would be that.
FF: How was writing Antigoddess different from writing Anna
Dressed in Blood--and whose situation would you rather be stuck in?
KB:
I would rather live through ANTIGODDESS, I think. It’s
more on the road, and big, big strong hero types. No wait. I would rather go on
the road with Cas. No wait. Don’t make me choose.
Antigoddess was definitely harder to write until I figured
out how to tell the story and what the story was.
FF: What did you like better--writing about ghosts and
exorcism or Greek gods that died in morbid ways?
KB:
I don’t know which I liked better…I love them both!
FF: If you would pick one place where the world would end,
where would it be?
KB:
Well, it should start inside the checkout line at WalMart.
That should definitely end first.
Antigoddess Blurb
The Goddess War begins in Antigoddess, the first installment of the new series by acclaimed author of Anna Dressed in Blood, Kendare Blake.
Old Gods never die…
Or so Athena thought. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and Hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health.
Desperately seeking the cause of their slow, miserable deaths, Athena and Hermes travel the world, gathering allies and discovering enemies both new and old. Their search leads them to Cassandra—an ordinary girl who was once an extraordinary prophetess, protected and loved by a god.
These days, Cassandra doesn’t involve herself in the business of gods—in fact, she doesn’t even know they exist. But she could be the key in a war that is only just beginning.
Because Hera, the queen of the gods, has aligned herself with other of the ancient Olympians, who are killing off rivals in an attempt to prolong their own lives. But these anti-gods have become corrupted in their desperation to survive, horrific caricatures of their former glory. Athena will need every advantage she can get, because immortals don’t just flicker out.
Every one of them dies in their own way. Some choke on feathers. Others become monsters. All of them rage against their last breath.
The Goddess War is about to begin.
Author Bio
Kendare Blake is an
import from South Korea who was raised in the United States by caucasian
parents. You know, that old chestnut. She received a Bachelor’s degree in
Business from Ithaca College and a Master’s degree in Writing from Middlesex
University in London. She brakes for animals, the largest of which was a deer,
which sadly didn’t make it, and the smallest of which was a mouse, which did,
but it took forever. Amongst her likes are Greek Mythology, rare red meat and
veganism. She also enjoys girls who can think with the boys like Ayn Rand, and
boys who scare the morality into people, like Bret Easton Ellis.
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