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    Antigoddess
    Antigoddess
    Antigoddess
    Audiobook10 hours

    Antigoddess

    Written by Kendare Blake

    Narrated by Kate Reading

    3.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    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.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Audio
    Release dateSep 10, 2013
    ISBN9781427233578
    Antigoddess
    Author

    Kendare Blake

    Kendare Blake is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Three Dark Crowns series. She holds an MA in creative writing from Middlesex University in northern London. She is also the author of Anna Dressed in Blood, a Cybils Awards finalist; Girl of Nightmares; Antigoddess; Mortal Gods; and Ungodly. Her books have been translated into over twenty languages, have been featured on multiple best-of-year lists, and have received many regional and librarian awards. Kendare lives and writes in Gig Harbor, Washington. Visit her online at www.kendareblake.com.

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    Reviews for Antigoddess

    3.5/5

    125 ratings22 reviews

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    • 3/5
      I picked this book up because I enjoyed Blake's book Anna Dressed in Blood. This isn't quite on par with that first book but it's not too bad either. It took me about a 100 pages to really get into the book but once I did it was very fast reading. Enough gruesome YA imagery to show you it's Blake's writing but not a horror story either. I actually really like books about the roman/greek gods and goddesses. This book didn't quite meet my expectations on that front in the beginning but, the same way the story took a while to engage, the characters eventually grew on me. I think they could have stood for some more character development, but overall the book was enjoyable.
    • 4/5
      Read this in two days. Kendare Blake's talents for high-speed action, interesting characters, inventive plot, and genuinely good dialogue continue to impress. This first of three books in the Goddess Wars series reminds me of Kevin Hearne's crackling Iron Druid Chronicles, and that's pretty good company.

      I'm digging into the next book in the Goddess Wars series right after lunch. Yep.
    • 4/5
      I thoroughly enjoyed this book and am looking forward to reading the next one. I'm a sucker for stories involving the Greek gods, especially in a contemporary setting, so I was hooked on this from the very beginning. The characters are wonderful and the plot is complex and fast-moving. If you like urban fantasy I'd recommend this one very highly.
    • 5/5
      Lots of action with a dash of romance. Loved it!!!
    • 3/5
      I have kind of a thing for stories of old and dying gods. (Or new gods.) I like to know what happens to them after they're no longer actively worshipped by multitudes. I like to know if they fade away or rage against the dying of the light. And I really like to know if they continue to fight each other. So, for me, this book was fascinating. Gods searching for gods, gods where you least expect them, ancient things in a modern world.

      Cool book. I want more.
    • 3/5
      I really enjoyed “Anna Dressed in Blood” so I picked this book up a couple years after reading that one. This is the first book in The Goddess War series, there are three books in that series. This book was okay, but not great. I never really understood the driver behind the main characters and their story.I listened to this on audiobook and the audiobook was well done. I would recommend if you enjoy audiobooks.This book is told from two different character’s POV. The first is Athena and the second is Cassandra. Athena is dying and wants to figure out how to stop it, she’s been told Cassandra holds the key to her survival. Cassandra is a high schooler who can do neat tricks predicting things; she doesn’t realize that she is the prophetess Cassandra reborn.The story jumps back and forth between the two characters until they eventually come together. The story is set in modern day and most people don’t know about the Gods.My main issue with this story is that we never really find out why the Gods are dying or if there is a larger reason they shouldn’t die (aside from Athena just not wanting to die). Not knowing these things makes it really hard to see the point of the story; there’s just absolutely nothing driving the story forward. I mean why should mortals sacrifice themselves for a God that is dying? Especially when the God hasn’t been all that helpful? What’s in it for humanity?Overall this was okay but not great. I had a hard time understanding what the point of the plot was and why it wasn’t a bit more complete. I don’t plan on continuing the series.
    • 4/5
      I’m a sucker for stories based on Greek mythology, so it’s unsurprising that I practically devoured Antigoddess in a short amount of time. Then again, “devoured” might not be the right word to use in the context of this book when certain Greek gods are trying to postpone their deaths by destroying and consuming other gods ala the good old-fashioned Titans way. That's right, the almighty immortal gods are dying, and they're permanently stuck in the denial/anger stage.


      WHAT WORKED FOR ME:

      Established Relationships
      Even though it's set in our times, the Greek gods and goddesses are still more or less the same while our favorite Greek heroes/heroines have been reincarnated. If you know your mythology, you know where each character stands in relation to each other, which is nice to see clearly.

      Athena and Odysseus
      Right from the beginning, I knew I would like Athena. She's brash, knows exactly what she wants and how to get it, and she goes for it. I also melted a bit during her interactions with Odysseus. He's Athena's favorite mortal, and he's also mine. I just love him in every incarnation of him in every media, whether it's in the book Song of Achilles, the movie Troy, or the original Odyssey. Antigoddess is no exception.

      The Goddess War Setup
      The upcoming war between the gods adds an epic mood to the story and makes it a bit more unpredictable. Even though we knew who each character were aligned with in the Trojan War, alliances have changed the second time around. There’s always room for betrayal, which makes me excited to see how this will play out in subsequent books.


      WHAT DIDN'T WORK FOR ME:

      Somewhat Predictable Romance
      The problem with already established relationships is that you can easily see who is going to end up with who and how their relationships will develop.There was one exception at the end, however, which did catch me by surprise.

      Why Are They Teenagers?
      One thing that bothered me is that the characters are so young. Cassandra is still in high school, and Athena and Hermes are barely old enough to drink. (I sincerely hope that if Dionysus shows up in future books, he's also over 21.) Well, it is a YA book after all, so it's not too surprising, but I personally would never repeat high school even for love.


      VERDICT:

      I'm looking forward to the rest of this series.

      [ SEE REVIEW @ BOOKCHARMED ]
    • 5/5
      Cassie thought she was a regular girl who just happened to have visions of the future. The thought that disturbed her the most was a feeling that her visions would end near her eighteenth birthday and whether that possibly meant her death.

      Soon she starts having visions of creatures that she'd only read about in books and of people she had never met but felt what they were going through. Her best friend who also appears to be her boyfriend Aidan eventually finds himself having to reveal that he is Apollo, the Sun God and that she is in danger.

      Things don't go quite as planned when Aidan insists they run for their lives from the coming evil of his family and lines are blurred that will cause Cassie's world to be turned upside down, particularly when she learns who she really is and her importance in this War of the Gods.

      Enter in Athena, Hermes and Odysseus who need the help of Cassie and Aidan in order to possibly save them from dying and to stop the destruction of Aphrodite, Hera and Poseidon who have teamed up and are trying to find Cassie as well as Achilles which would be a very bad thing.

      When Cassie goes on the run with Aidan, her brother Henry and close friend Andie who are also connected to Cassie's past, they find themselves in a war that they really didn't want to be a part of. Cassie learns that she's more powerful than she realized and it is revealed why she is a key to stopping the destruction of the Dying Gods that have gone mad.

      I love reading books that are steeped in mythology with a modern twist. It's always interesting to see a different side to the myths and the figures that have often been portrayed as cruel. The Gods in this book are an interesting mix of what the myths portray them as and what they could be if possibly faced with death. Athena is one of my favorite characters because she chooses not to follow the same path as some of her relatives and doesn't allow the madness to get to her. She loves her family but also knows that most of them that choose to go mad can't be stopped and doesn't want to die herself but refuses to try to stop the dying in a destructive way.

      I loved the connection of Aidan and Cassie particularly finding out their history and what brought their relationship about. My heart truly goes out to the both of them who love each other fiercely and struggle to get past mistakes from their past. Aidan does his best to protect her and has chosen to shed his godhood to be at her side.

      Personally I don't think Cassie gives herself enough credit with her powers and may eventually learn what to do with them once she can accept they are a part of her. I can't wait to see what next is in store for this awesome twist on the myths and what may become of Athena, Cassie and Hermes.
    • 3/5
      The immortal Greek gods aren't so immortal after all. Never a pleasant lot to begin with, the idiosyncratic ways in which they are dying have made them more than a bit testy. . . and not above destroying the earth and each other in a desperate bid to stay alive.

      On one side of this fray are Athena and Hermes, sent by Demeter to find the reincarnated prophetess, Cassandra, who's now living as a teenager in upstate New York, completely unaware of her past life and baffled by her latest round of disturbing premonitions. On the boo hiss side are Hera, Aphrodite and Poseidon, looking for a couple of reincarnated Trojan heroes, and eager to get their hands on Cassandra as well. As each group races to New York, carving out a swath of death and mayhem along the way, neither fully realizes Cassandra's pivotal role in this oncoming war, not the fact that she is protected by a god.

      Kendare Blake's Antigoddess does for the Greek gods what Anna Dressed in Blood did for ghosts--confirm their dark and gruesome abilities while also revealing a hint of humanity in these inhuman beings. Readers unfamiliar with the Greek gods and their mythology may get a little lost because a fair amount of background information is assumed. But like the Percy Jackson series, this could entice new interest in Zeus' family, and what a family it is. . . .

      Liberal references to the Trojan War and the journey of Odysseus clearly recall the cruel and inconsequential ways the Greek gods bandied about mere mortals, even their favored heroes. Luckily, several centuries later, at least a few of the gods are regretting their past behavior and trying to make amends. But real angst and emotional depth was never something the gods displayed in the past and that, unfortunately, is still in short supply now. They did, however, excel at springing into action and wrecking havoc, which go a long way toward propelling the story's pace and suspense. While this is not a character-driven book, as the first of a trilogy Antigoddess does introduce an interesting mix of gods and mortals which will, hopefully, continue to evolve as the storyline progresses. Until then, readers can root for Athena.

      Slowly suffocating from the owl feathers that are sprouting inside her, Athena, the goddess of wisdom and the leading opponent to Hera, fears she's fighting a losing battle, yet determined to find answers before death takes her. Athena's the equivalent of a sarcastic Princess Leia without Hans Solo, and the most engaging character in the story. She shares equal page time with Cassandra, who spends half the book unaware of her reincarnated self and, despite her clairvoyance, living a rather uneventful life. Clearly, Cassandra will play a greater role in future installments as her awakening power progresses.
    • 3/5
      The Greek Gods are dying and not all of them are willing to go down without a fight. Cassandra (a reincarnation of the original from Troy) may be the key to the survival of the remaining sane gods and they most certainly need her help to deal with those that are going mad.

      All of the characters were interesting and the methods of the various gods deaths were incredibly crazy and painful. I'm definitely interested to see where the series is going.
    • 4/5
      I have absolutely no idea why, but I am extremely drawn to books that have a basis in mythology lately. This is the third such series I have started lately, and I am loving every blessed minute of it!

      Well, mostly. I had a little trouble getting started with this one, felt that the beginning was a little hard to get into, but it did pick up quickly and around every turn of the page, I was met with something I could not see coming. To me, that is the mark of an excellent writer. Young adult fiction has gotten a bit predictable and sometimes that can be irritating.

      But that was not the case with Antigoddess and I look forward to seeing what more is in store for Cassandra and Henry and Andie. Because, as it said, this is not over!
      This was the first novel I have picked up by this author, but it will not be the last. I read an ARC copy, and usually with ARCs the editing is a nightmare but I found only one minor editing error and for an ARC that is amazing.

      I love the setup of the small town in up state New York because I am a New York native, so seeing my home state in books just makes me smile.

      The story laid out in the pages of this novel is familiar and yet unique at the same time. If you love mythology, this is a must read. If you are a fan of Amanda Hocking's Watersong series or Meg Cabot's Abandon trilogy, then you will definitely want to check this out.
    • 3/5
      I was very disappointed with this book. I enjoyed Anna Dressed in Blood, but I had a hard time connecting with the characters in Antigoddess. I really didn't care for Blake's re-interpretation of Athena, but mostly I felt like the book meandered without any sense of purpose or suspense.
    • 4/5
      Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: Very unique story featuring the Greek Gods. It had a slow start, but once it picked up, I couldn’t put it down. Full of action, romance and suspense, this is sure to please all young adult fans.Opening Sentence: The feathers were starting to be a nuisance.The Review:The Greek Gods of Olympus are dying! Athena is slowly choking on feathers, Hermes has a fever that is slowly eating away his flesh, Hera is turning to stone, Aphrodite is losing her looks, all are dying in their own way, but can it be stopped? It was prophesied a long time ago that the Twilight of the gods would come and eventually they would all die. But Athena refuses to just give up. With the help of Hermes they travel the world looking for a way to stop their slow and painful deaths. They gather allies and face off against some of the other gods who have gone mad. Eventually, they find Cassandra, a normal human girl that has the gift of prophecy. She was once a great priestess and she may be the only hope the gods have left.Cassandra is happy living her normal life with great friends and the perfect boyfriend. Sure, she is psychic, but that’s never been a problem until now. She has started to see dreams of people being tortured and people are dying. Then the dreams start to come true and Cassandra discovers that the old time Greek gods are real. She is thrown into a world at war and she could be the only person left that can save not only humanity, but the world.Because the cast of characters were so large, I am only going to talk about a couple of them or this review would be way too long. First, I am going to tell you about my favorite character in the story and that was Athena. Everyone should be familiar with her since she is a Greek Goddess, but you get to see a very different side to her. Like all the other gods she is dying. Feathers are slowly filling her lungs and organs, until eventually they will suffocate her. But she’s not the type of person to take her fate just lying down, she is going to fight to find a solution or die trying. I loved that Athena has all the traits that you would expect her to have being the goddess of wisdom and all that. But on top of that you get to watch her evolve and develop more human traits. This made her a much easier character to relate to and connect with. She’s not a lovey dovey type of person, her presence demands a certain respect, and she has used that to her advantage. She also has a very hard shell put up and there are very few people that see the real her. I loved the small glimpses you got of her vulnerable side.The other character I am going to mention is Cassandra. She is just your standard teenager that happens to be able to see the future. She was so ordinary, I actually found her to be a little boring at first. But luckily this didn’t last too long, once more of her story started to be revealed she became a lot more interesting. She is a very sweet and caring girl that is caught up in a pretty nasty war. All she wants to do is protect the people she loves and live a normal life. But she was never destined for normal, and I liked that she eventually accepted her role in everything. By the end, I was a big fan of Cassandra and I am excited to see how she develops in the next book.Antigoddess is a very unique retelling featuring some of my favorite Greek gods. It is filled with action, romance, suspense, and amazing writing. It was a little hard for me to get into it at first because there was a lot of background information at the beginning. I will admit that the first part of the book moved really slowly for me, but once I finally got into the story, I couldn’t put it down. The fact that the gods are dying was so different from anything else I have ever read, so props to Blake for taking something that has been retold many times and putting her own twist on it. There is a fairly large cast of characters which I didn’t like at first, but eventually they all grew on me. By the end of the book, I was really invested in all the characters and I can’t wait to see what is going to happen next in each of their stories. If any of you have read any of Blake’s previous works you will know that she has a knack for writing very good creepy stories. While this one wasn’t nearly as scary as her other series, there were still moments that made me want to run and hide. Blake has amazing writing that just captivates you and leaves you enchanted days after finishing her books. I am really looking forward to the next book in the series and I would highly recommend this series to anyone looking for a thrilling mythological YA book.Notable Scene:He grinned. Blood coated his teeth.“Aidan? I think you bit you lip.”“What?”“I—“ Cassandra stopped. It wasn’t just his lip. Blood seeped up into his eyes. Glimpses of his tongue as he spoke words she couldn’t hear looked crack, split open, wet and red. Pinpricks stood out on his cheeks and forehead, tearing the skin as she watched. Something pressed through as she looked closer, frozen in horror as his face degraded right in front of her. Feather. White, and speckled brown. After they wriggled free they fluttered to the ground, leaving bleeding gashes behind, all over his body. He was a monster, holding her shoulders, his sliced-open lips mouthing her name.FTC Advisory: Tor Teen/Macmillan provided me with a copy of Antigoddess. No goody bags, sponsorships, “material connections,” or bribes were exchanged for my review.
    • 4/5
      Antigoddess is the second book I have read by Kendare Blake, after the fun times I had with Anna Dressed in Blood earlier this year. And as much as I appreciate a good ghost story, I have to say Antigoddess was more up my alley.Funny story, though: When I first added this book to my reading list, I only saw the cover and thought it was going to be a story about angels. Damn feather threw me off. It wasn’t until I read the description that I realized I was wrong, but that it was actually about something even better! Not angels, but gods. Greek gods. The mythology buff in me was tickled pink. And that feather on the cover which originally misled me turned out to be a symbol for something much more sinister…At the heart of this novel and series is an ancient conflict stemming from the events of the Trojan War. So before reading this, it might be a good idea to brush up on your Greek Mythology 101. Or rent Troy. It’s all good! In any case, you don’t have to be an expert on all the details to enjoy this, as Blake uses her prerogative to do some very cool and unique things to the legend and the characters involved. For one, the gods themselves are dying – and in the most bizarre ways. We learn of their plight through mainly Athena and Hermes’ perspectives, the former experiencing impending death by way of random feathers sprouting in her body like a cancer. This is making all the gods a little desperate, and some are driven to insanity.Even from the very start, we’re presented a mystery. What do the gods have to do with a teenage girl named Cassandra from Kincade, New York? Granted, she appears to have some freaky psychic powers, but the character perspectives going back and forth between Athena and Cassandra cannot be any more different. The latter’s chapters show life in your typical small town high school, while Athena and Hermes’ chapters (at least in the beginning) have an almost abstract, dream-like quality to them which I really enjoyed. While the characters’ connections are revealed early on, the plot doesn’t explode until gods and mortals meet. And then the revelations are even more mind-blowing and unexpected.The book’s greatest strength is its characters. I suppose if you’re a god you can choose to be whoever you want to be. I liked how Blake gave her gods all different and interesting identities – from Athena’s stern demeanor to Apollo’s loyalty or Hermes’ fun-loving personality and fondness for pop culture.Most obvious weakness? This had the feel of “first book of a series” all over it. In other words, it read like one big long introduction. Voracious readers of YA fiction will probably know exactly what I’m talking about, and probably won’t find this all that surprising. It’s not hard to guess whether a book will have a satisfying ending or leave things wide open for the sequel; once it became clear that there was no way any of the conflicts would be settled by the end the novel, I admit my interest waned a little as that “let’s just bring on book two” attitude settled in.That said, I am on board for book two. It’ll probably be one of my higher-priority sequels too, because let’s face it – how often does a book with a good Greek mythology angle come along?
    • 4/5
      it would be interesting to see if, like American Gods, there are versions of these Greek Gods still in Greece. Possibly saner and more alive.Cassandra is psychic, she can predict the fall of a coin, and occasionally she has visions, they're getting stronger but past a certain time she can't see anything. No-one knows what that means, not least her boyfriend, who turns out to be Apollo, known now as Aidan. Aidan desperately wants to shield her from what's going on in his world and what's going on is that the gods are dying, some peacefully, some roaring.It's interesting, I do want to know what's going to happen next with everyone who survives this book and what the ramifications of what they've done will be.There were moments where I felt somewhat unsatisfied with what was going on but largely this was an interesting read.
    • 4/5
      Oh, I have some major anger over the ending. THAT WAS NOT SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!!!

      Overall, really enjoyed this book. Greek mythology is one of my most favorite themes, and Kendare Blake's interpretation is really cool.

      I think I'll be buying a finished copy.
    • 3/5
      I was really excited to read Antigoddess because I absolutely loved Anna Dressed in Blood. Unfortunately, this book fell pretty flat for me. Speaking of flat, let's talk about the characters. They are fairly one-dimensional, though a couple had their charms. But really, I could not connect with them and had a hard time caring about what happened to any of them. It was also hard to care about what was happening because, well....I had no idea what was happening! No explanation is given as to what is killing the gods or why they need to kill each other to stop death. And as Cassandra said in the book, they've lived for thousands of years. We are told that they aren't really active anymore so why should we care if they die? The author does a great job accurately portraying the personalities of the gods that we're familiar with - selfish, vindictive etc. but this in turn makes it impossible for me to root for them. This is the first book in the series but I'm not too interested in reading the rest. I had to force myself to finish this one, and started skimming towards the end just to finish it.
    • 4/5
      I'm one of the few people who never got around to reading Kendare Blake's Anna Dressed in Blood, though I do have a copy and will read it...someday. Initially, it wasn't really on my radar, because horror isn't something I seek out, but the reviews convinced me. Antigoddess, however, was a topic that called my name and I was hopeless to resist that call, much like Odysseus and the sirens. Thankfully, Kendare Blake lived up to all the hype, and Antigoddess was a non-stop horrorshow and thrill ride.Antigoddess is one of those books where the reader basically has no idea what is happening at any point. To predict the outcome, you'd basically need to be a prophetess like Cassandra. Sometimes, I hate this in books, especially in mysteries, but with Antigoddess it works. That feeling of being out of your element and out of control really plays into the mythology, the fact that these gods, even diminished are really beyond our ken. Though I don't mind predictable formulas (like romances and their inevitable HEAs), Antigodess was a refreshing change, because I had zero clue how it would end at any point, and have even less idea what will go down in book two.I am all about Greek mythology, and, while Blake's interpretation might not exactly be canon, it's mindblowingly cool and creepy. So the Greek gods have basically continued existing and doing their things, blending in with humans or running around in non-populated places, whatever they want. But then, dun dun dun, they began to die. Obviously, they're not super thrilled about this because 1) they're supposed to be immortal and 2) they're dying in really nasty ways. Like Athena getting slowly smothered to death by owl feathers growing inside of her body. Anyway, Athena and Hermes are trying to figure out a way to stop dying, and so are some other gods (most importantly Hera and Poseidon) and they're all also at war. There are also so humans involved and it's all just nuts in the most awesome sort of way.What really makes me squee about Blake's world building is how empowering it is for women. Yes, there were always female gods, and some of them are quite powerful, but, in Greek mythology, the dude's are still really running the show. In Antigoddess, though several male gods are present, it's the women who are running the show, specifically Athena and Hera. Hermes defers to Athena, for example, and Poseidon to Hera. In the original mythology, Hera is powerful, but mostly just gets to be cuckolded over and over, without any ability to prevent Zeus from sleeping around and then punishing the girl, who, often, Zeus even raped. Hera still may not come out of this smelling like roses, but at least she's imbued with agency. Within the human characters too, Cassandra and Andie are exceptionally strong. Blake writes female characters who kick serious ass and have brains to back that up.Though I didn't emotionally bond with the characters, they're all fascinating and compelling, so that even the comparatively slow beginning didn't drag for me in the slightest. Also, good news for those who are sick of romance dominating plot, that is not the case here. There are some ships that you can board, but they take up relatively little page time. Also, for the record, I am definitely on a couple of those ships, and got to watch the one I wasn't on sink. Mwahahaha. *high fives Kendare*The other thing I really want to note is how well Kendare writes. I'm not a visual reader, but Blake has a way of making things very visceral, and putting definite images in my head. Very few writers can do this for me, and I'm always so impressed when it happens. Her descriptions of the feathers seeding Athena's body especially will be haunting me for a while.Kendare Blake's Antigoddess is a dark, creative roller coaster ride of a read. For readers who enjoy action-packed books or unique mythological retellings, particularly with a feminist bent, Antigoddess is a must.
    • 5/5
      Oh, you guys. I was so excited for this one, and it delivered. I think it's safe to say that Blake has proven herself an awesome talent in YA/NA lit (it's kinda hard to tell whether this one is mature YA or NA just due to the horror/gore imagery alone). If you liked "Anna", but wanted more, I think you guys are going to love "Antigoddess" - I know I did. One of the more original looks at the Greek pantheon and the Trojan war (plus "Iliad/Odyssey"), "Antigoddess" has a little something for everyone - horror, love, rage, revenge, and of course, teenage shenanigans. Definitely one of my favorites of 2013 so far.What I think I loved the most about this book: unlike so much YA/NA lit that does retell old myths, this one sticks by its guns in terms of violence and anger of all of the characters involved. I mean, come on - there was a lot of backstabbing (most of it literal), sword fighting, and wars in those myths, and Blake definitely kept it real when she brought back the famous romances in those myths, yet didn't make them YA/NA cliches. There was no dumbing down of anything, nor blunting of feelings. No love triangles with the girl wringing her hands helplessly wondering which guy to choose. No forgiveness for when feelings (or other certain acts) were forced upon a girl by another. There are loyalties, and it's hard to choose which side you want to be on - do you want to win, and go mad? Or do you want to possibly lose, but do it with honor and die anyway? "Antigoddess" asks us these important questions that have cropped up in all lit (but specifically YA lit as of late), and asks us to think hard, showing us what might happen to each side.While the pacing of the book can be slow at times, Blake more than makes up for this with the action sequences, along with the memory sequences with all of our main cast involved - specifically, that of Aphrodite's golden apple contest, a montage of Odysseus' journeys, and Hector and Achilles' battle with Andromache watching along the wall of Troy. These sequences pop up multiple times throughout this first book of the series, and it really helps build the world, comparing it with the modern world of now, with Blake slyly asking us between the lines about how much has really changed in the last thousand years. These experiences, both recent and ancient, help build all of our characters, and our characters help build the world through the relationship web school of worldbuilding, which was a great move on Blake's part. It made her job easier, yet it didn't let her take the easy way out. She had to remind us of some of the more obscure happenings in these classics, and that helped us build the world as well as the audience just in our participation. It felt like while writing this book, compared to the "Anna" duology, Blake grew leaps and bounds - and she was already really good in all of these technical departments to begin with. And I guess, that's saying a lot.Finally, the sensory language and imagery. If the image of feathers choking Athena to death, or Hermes losing so much weight that his body eats himself doesn't show you how much Blake has grown in the sensory department (and damn if she wasn't great in it with "Anna")...well, just keep a watch out for some of the other predicted ends of the gods are laid out. I think I can honestly say I'm going to have a few nightmares about Poseidon, but I won't spoil him otherwise. Good job, Blake. I tip my hat to you.(Also? I love how the reincarnated characters were made to remember their past lives. Very merciless. Very clever. Bravo!)Final verdict? If you're looking for some particularly realistic, fresh turns on some old classics, you really don't want to miss this release. "Antigoddess" hits shelves September 10, 2013 in North America so definitely check it out when you get the chance. It's definitely in my top ten of 2013 so far for a reason. (posted to goodreads, shelfari, librarything, and birthofanewwitch.wordpress.com)
    • 5/5
      Antigoddess is unlike anything I've read before. A fresh, creative, and engaging take on mythological gods and goddesses in the modern world, this third novel from Kendare Blake is sure to both wow current fans and earn her many more.It's normal and completely expected to see novels and films that feature mythology, gods, and goddesses set in places and time periods that fit the stories and legends on which they are assumed to have taken place. Blake departs from this expected and well-established pattern, instead putting the gods and goddesses of myth into the modern world. A world in which they clearly do not fit in and where their meddling and use of humans garners very different reactions than during the historical periods in which they flourished. In one passage, Hera wreaks destruction on Chicago. The attack is speculated to be terrorist related; there isn't even the smallest mention of the wrath of a goddess as a potential cause of leveled buildings and multiple deaths.I've always had an interest in mythology, but, at the same time, gods and goddesses have always seemed rather one-dimensional. They were motivated by simple desires and their personalities were very straight forward. They didn't have the complexity of, for example, human heroes featured in their stories. In Antigoddess, Blake gives these characters more malleable shapes and complex personalities, in a way, humanizing them. They are still very much set apart from humans, having living countless years and experiencing the invincibility of eternal life, but Blake creates a situation in which they are brought down from the throne of godliness. Suddenly, these timeless beings are forced to face the possibility of an end... of death. Death not only humanizes them, it makes them feel small... vulnerable... emotional... accountable. Through this unique premise, Blake's novel says something very important about the nature of humanity.Even a reader who knows very little about mythology will enjoy and be able to understand the importance of the gods and goddesses featured in Antigoddess. Blake weaves a significant amount of detail, leading the reader to bits of information and background deatil without becoming overwhelming or falling into the habit of dropping large amounts of overwhelming information on the reader.I highly recommend this first installment in The Goddess War series. With Antigoddess, Blake sets the scene for the series to reach epic proportions and I can't wait to see where she takes readers next
    • 4/5
      I have read ARC from BEA. Kendare tells a wonderful tale of gods and goddess that are thousands of years old that look appear to be teens in this tale. Will not spoil it for readers. Short version: Goddess Athena is mottling like a baby bird inside out. Every other god is dying or going mad trying to prevent death. Athena and her brother Hermes, who happens to be wasting away like a skeleton, must find out what or who is behind this change in fortune of the once mighty gods. The answer lies in a small Maine town where the god Apollo and the prophetess Cassandra carry on as if nothing is going on until Cassandra begins to have the dreams.. Blake handles the subjects with a range of emotion inducing prose that is truly masterful. I could not put it down once I began to read.
    • 3/5
      Book Info: Genre: FantasyReading Level: Young Adult (there are f-bombs and making out)Recommended for: those interested in Greek mythology, those who prefer fast pacing to character development and action over musingBook Available: Book available September 10, 2013 in Hardcover and Kindle editionsTrigger Warnings: violence, murder, mutilation, tortureMy Thoughts: This is the first book in the Goddess War series, written by the same author who wrote Anna Dressed in Blood (which I loved, review link here). I had high expectations.This book has one of those tropes that are starting to drive a lot of people crazy, and that is an immortal creature that pretends to be a high-school student to date someone in the school. This one makes more sense than most, however, since the student being dated is the reincarnation of someone the immortal creature has loved for thousands of years. On the other hand you have Athena, the ever-chaste goddess who cannot understand the silly “love” thing. I actually laughed a lot at Athena's musing about falling in love and how she could easily fall in love with Odysseus, while at the same time it scared and annoyed her. Check this out:“The urge to fall was utterly new and made her dizzy. He could catch her and hold her up. She knew he could.“If this is how Aphrodite feels every day, it's no wonder she's such an idiot.” I mean, yeah, really, this is so true. As Buffy says: “Love makes you do the wacky.”The main problem I had with the book was that it didn't have much character development; the characters talk and do things, but don't develop much of a sense of individuality, other than extremely broad, almost cliché types: haughty, cruel, jock, mischievous, etc. I think more could have been done to differentiate the characters rather than just painting them with broad brushstrokes of a stereotype. I know this writer can do that, as I saw it in Anna Dressed in Blood. Maybe the development will come during the series, we can only wait and see. There was also a certain degree of head-hopping going on.Overall, I liked the book well enough, but it didn't blow me away like Anna Dressed in Blood did. I will probably watch for future books in this series, but not as a priority. However, I think that a lot of people will like this book, especially those who prefer action to words, and plot pace to character development. Blake kept fairly true to the character traits of the gods she is using in this series, so it should also prove entertaining to those who like Greek mythology. If this describes you, then definitely check out this upcoming novel.Disclosure: I received an ARC from Amazon Vine in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.Synopsis: 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.