Review | Lore

Title: Lore by Alexandra Bracken

Date Published: January 5th, 2021

Dates Read: August 13-17, 2021

Current Goodreads Rating: 3.86/5

Let me tell you something I've probably already told you - I freaking LOVE everything Greek. My husband will tell you that's not true because I don't allow him to order Mediterranean food every single night for dinner, but don't listen to him. One of my favorite classes in high school was Epic Tradition even though the teacher was abysmal. My dream vacation is to go to Greece and see the old temples of the gods. Also, perhaps a little less impressive, I've put hundreds of hours into Assassin's Creed Odyssey which takes place almost entirely in ancient Greece and I'm probably going to put hundreds of hours uncovering all the secrets of Supergiant Games own take on Greek mythology, Hades. I am obsessed with Greek mythology. When I saw the cover of this book I was immediately in love.

Ok, so what happens? As a consequence of a long past rebellion, every seven years the Greek gods we know and love are forced into what is called the Agon. This Hunger Games-esque free-for-all is a seven-day hunt where the only main rule is kill or be killed. If you kill a god you become that god and not only gain their powers, but their immortality. After generations of Agons there are only three remaining 'true' gods: Athena, Apollo, and Artemis.

After her family was brutally murdered in the last Agon, Melora "Lore" Perseous (yes, as in the hero who slayed Medusa) turned her back on that world. Her plan for this Agon is to lay low and keep her nose clean until the week is up, but that plan is quickly thrown out the window when she is visited by a man she believed long dead, Castor. Her life is further thrown into disarray when she is later visited by a wounded Athena who offers Lore something too difficult to pass up: justice. Lore is quickly thrown back into the bloody politics of a world she thought she'd never see again and it's anyone's guess if she, Athena, or Castor will be able to make it through this Agon alive.

Ok, so what did I think? To be honest, the blurb I just wrote explaining the plot sounds much more interesting than the actual story. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mindset for this book or something, but the Agon itself was super confusing to me alongside the politics of the different house and the positions within them. There were several chapters where Lore and her friends travelled across New York City to visit some new god for some reason I could never properly follow.

Don't get me wrong I think it's a super interesting concept, but I just couldn't wrap my brain around it other than 'Hunger Games, but for Gods' and that just wasn't enough for me. Lore's exploring the city with her friends felt less because they had a plan and more because Bracken just wanted her readers to meet the other New Gods she had created, which, again, super cool concept, but the motivation didn't really seem to be there for Lore and her friends.

To this book's credit, the characters are super strong and I don't mean that just literally.

• Lore is the last surviving member of her house and she doesn't let that grief consume her. Instead she forces herself to grow. She learns how to kick ass and then she kicks some serious ass!

• Castor is a character I don't feel like I have ever met before. When they meet as kids he's dying of cancer or some other kind of vicious disease, but he doesn't let his illness be a weakness. I say this as someone who doesn't have a voice within that community, but I thought it was pretty cool to see a character with an illness that wasn't just defined as the ill character.

• Iro is Castor's protector and almost brother. In my reading of him, despite being not so great of a fighter he managed to triumph over those who scoffed at him and became a spymaster so dangerous that many refuse to cross him.

• Finally, Miles is probably the best friend in the entire damn world. If my roommate told me one day that she was a descendant of an actual Greek hero and now a bunch of super powerful gods (including the new Ares, God of War) was after me I would probably tell her that she was crazy and then I'd pack up my things and move to Australia or something. Miles is snarky and brave and just cunning enough to make me a little suspicious of him. Oh and also he and Iro are probably the cutest little will-they-won't-they couple in the entire world.

Despite the strong characters, I just couldn't really connect with the story and oftentimes I felt like things happened because Bracken felt like they should happen. For example - obviously some spoilers ahead - in an intense meeting between the Lore gang and Artemis, Castor is struck through the heart by one of Artemis' arrows. He's very obviously dead. However, somehow through the power he inherited when he somehow killed Apollo, he is resurrected and I don't think that power is ever truly explained. I'm not saying Bracken doesn't try to explain how Castor can survive a literal arrow to the chest, but I personally didn't think it was a good enough explanation to let me suspend my disbelief.

Long Story Short:

• I am going to get out of Hades one day - oh wait, this is supposed to be about the book.

• I LOVE A DIVERSE CAST!

• Things don't just happen because you want them to.

My Rating: 3/5