Book Review: Lore by Alexandra Bracken
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Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Main Genre: FantasyAs soon as I heard this book was about Greek Mythology and the great god of wisdom (ahem ahem Athena) was a major character in this book, I knew I had to read it. And I’m sure glad I did because I completely loved this book and devoured it.
Synopsis: Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.
Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family's sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory. For years she's pushed away any thought of revenge against the man--now a god--responsible for their deaths.
Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.
The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore's decision to bind her fate to Athena's and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost--and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.
The Agon is a punishment from Zeus where Greek Gods are mortals on Earth as they are being hunted and chased by the descendants of the ancient bloodlines. This occurs every seven years and if one of the descendants kills a God, they get their power and immortality. So basically, they become the new God. Melora (aka Lore) is the last of the line of Perseous and is not interested in the Agon anymore and wants nothing to do with it. This is, until a few events take place which sway her into rejoining the Agon, hoping to get revenge on the man who she thinks murdered her parents and two younger sisters. Though as Lore becomes more involved in the agon, the more is revealed to her including truths that she did not see coming.
The plot of this book was fast in some parts, a bit slower in some parts. Though, I didn't necessarily have any problem with this because after an action-packed scene with tons of fighting, a slow, calm-down scene is perfect to catch your breath before the next action scene arrives. Some people may not like this, but I definitely appreciated this good mix of both. There were tons of action with fighting this bad guy, then this Greek God and so on. We started off the book with Lore fighting in this underground arena so doesn’t that set you up well for the rest of the book. There was some romance involved in this book, but very minimal. Like it was in the background and not something super important to the book which is, honestly, fine with me because when you’re getting hunted and chased, I think whether this person likes you back or not isn’t your biggest worry. There were plot twists, things that I didn't see coming and left me disappointed, shocked, and frustrated. The fact this book took place roughly in the time span of a week, since that’s how long the Agon is for, was crazy because it felt like way more with everything that took place in that week. There wasn't much world-building needed as this took place in New York. Though, important objects and scenes, along with people, were described in detail.
Lore, our main character, is no one to mess with. She is strong and has been through so much at such a young age. We can tell her pain from losing her family has never truly gone and it’s still hurting her on the inside. As more of her childhood was revealed, I just wanted to give this girl a big hug. I loved the variety of personalities of the other characters which made up her friend group. We had Castor, the childhood best friend who Lore thought was dead until he reappeared into her life. He loved Lore, and wanted the best for her even when he was a child. He would make sure to show up to practice even when he was sick just so Lore had someone to spar with. Next, we have Miles. Miles is super loyal to Lore and sticks by her side no matter what. Lore wants to protect him and keep him safe, but he wants to help in any way he can. We can’t forget about Athena. She has some real character development throughout the book along with twists which I won’t spoil but I had sometimes where I loved her and then sometimes where I hated her, and I’ll leave it at that. There are more characters as well that I could list, but I don’t want to drag this out for too long but, overall, I loved their friend group as they were all supportive and simply had a great vibe.
The writing style of this author in this book was different than in most other fantasy books that I’ve read. Though it’s not completely uncommon either as I’ve noticed this style in other genres. I thought it was cool to see it in a fantasy book though. We were in the present for some time then switched into some of her childhood memories. I think this was a good aspect in the book because the past may seem unimportant, but it helps reveal new information and it led up to an event which was related to a plot twist as well. Some readers could find this style a bit confusing, but I think it was perfectly executed and was an important part of the plot.
I personally think everything about this book was incredible, but I think my love for Percy Jackson and Greek Gods had a big hand in this. Saying this, I don’t think this book is a good fit for everyone. If you’re a Greek mythology fan, definitely give this book a try. If not, this book could possibly reveal some new love for Greek mythology that you never knew you had. For new Greek Mythology Readers, I recommend taking it slow and don’t rush through it or else understanding what’s going on will be a challenge.
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