Title: The Goddess Test
Author: Aimee Carter
Publisher: Harlequin Teen
Pub. Date: April 26, 2011
Source: Netgalley
Length: 297 Pages
Series: The Goddess Test #1
Summary (from goodreads):
It's always been just Kate and her mom—and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear her mother won't live past the fall.
Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.
Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld—and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests.
Kate is sure he's crazy—until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride, and a goddess.
My Thoughts: I was left with mixed feelings about The Goddess Test. For one, it was a lot different than I thought it would be. From the description, I thought it would be an action packed read and Kate would have to accomplish 'impossible' feats (a Hercules type thing), but infact, most of the time Kate wasn't even aware she was taking a test. There were other faults as well that made it hard to enjoy The Goddess Test and that left me disappointed.On the other hand, I did find myself surprisingly addicted to the story (which may have something to do with my inner Greek mythology nerd).
I try to not judge a book until I am about 75 pages into it, to see if things turn around if the beginning is particularly bad. The Goddess Test was like that for me and to be honest, if I wasn't so eager to find out what happened in the end, I probably would not have kept reading. The beginning felt much too rushed, and some things that happened were not explained at all. SPOILER ALERT! (highlight to read): When she makes her two new friends, it is not at all explained how they came to be friends. One moment James was a kid who followed her around and the next he was an amazing friend. The same thing happened with Ava, one moment she was some crazy girl and the next she was Kate's best girl friend.
There were a lot of things that felt entirely too convenient, and one 'twist' in particular was repeated about three times in the book and got quite annoying. The thing that bothers me most is that I believe the beginning could have been as good as the second half if the effort was put into it. The book is only 300 pages, and there could have been 100 pages added to the beginning to make it seem less rushed, and it would not have made the book a long read at all. Infact, it would still be of normal size.
As for the characters, I don't really have anything to say. Most of the book seemed to lack real emotion and feeling, which made it hard for me to really know Kate, or any of the characters.
It was hard for me to rate this book. In my mind I split it in two, the first half and the second half, and each felt almost like a separate book. I found the first half incredibly hard to get into, full of unbelievable or unexplainable events, and poor development; and while the second half wasn't amazing, it was a lot better. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, in hopes that there will be none of that rushed introduction-to-the-story like stuff that was in The Goddess Test.
I try to not judge a book until I am about 75 pages into it, to see if things turn around if the beginning is particularly bad. The Goddess Test was like that for me and to be honest, if I wasn't so eager to find out what happened in the end, I probably would not have kept reading. The beginning felt much too rushed, and some things that happened were not explained at all. SPOILER ALERT! (highlight to read): When she makes her two new friends, it is not at all explained how they came to be friends. One moment James was a kid who followed her around and the next he was an amazing friend. The same thing happened with Ava, one moment she was some crazy girl and the next she was Kate's best girl friend.
There were a lot of things that felt entirely too convenient, and one 'twist' in particular was repeated about three times in the book and got quite annoying. The thing that bothers me most is that I believe the beginning could have been as good as the second half if the effort was put into it. The book is only 300 pages, and there could have been 100 pages added to the beginning to make it seem less rushed, and it would not have made the book a long read at all. Infact, it would still be of normal size.
As for the characters, I don't really have anything to say. Most of the book seemed to lack real emotion and feeling, which made it hard for me to really know Kate, or any of the characters.
It was hard for me to rate this book. In my mind I split it in two, the first half and the second half, and each felt almost like a separate book. I found the first half incredibly hard to get into, full of unbelievable or unexplainable events, and poor development; and while the second half wasn't amazing, it was a lot better. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series, in hopes that there will be none of that rushed introduction-to-the-story like stuff that was in The Goddess Test.
Rating:
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| 2.5 Moons I'm still having trouble deciding what to rate this. Maybe it doesn't even deserve 2.5, or maybe it deserves something way higher :/ |
