I'm not sure why it has become a trend for authors to just shove a bunch of knowledge into a book and call it a story, but it has and I am not a fan.

Lore was insanely hyped and I was insanely excited to read it. I found it to be slow, with a ton of information that had very little actual explanation. There were so many "false gods" and "new gods" and "old gods" and titles that made no sense and everything got mixed up so easily.

It also seemed like I was reading a sequel. As if there had been another book with all the world-building and then this one was picking up where the other left off, making the assumption that the reader understood all of the characters and the world when, in reality, I did not.

The end felt rushed. I got to the point where there were only about 50 pages left and was baffled as to how they'd wrap up the story in such a short period of time. I'm still not sure whether the ending was the real ending or if there's supposed to be a sequel. 

Needless to say, definitely not one that I enjoyed. I had potential but didn't live up to it.

4.25 

this was FUN!! I loved reading a book that talks about the ruthless and brutality of the Greek gods/goddesses and I loved discussing the misogyny that they had (side eyeing Athena). 

I really enjoyed the premise and plot, and all the characters. some parts felt a bit confusing and the writing was a bit hard to follow at times (main reason it didn't get five stars). 

Lore is an inventive and thrilling modernization of Greek mythos that overall left me satisfied with its conclusions. Following the titular character, Lore, as she lives her life in New York City, debating her next move as time moves her closer and closer to the next Agon. An ancient and cruel punishment designed by Zeus for nine gods that betrayed him long ago, and an opportunity for the hero bloodlines, people like Lore, if they survived long enough to seize the opportunity that is. This is an aspect of the novel that really shines throughout, the Greek mythos is complex, but not expected or implied, and the information is revealed in a way that it carefully balances those reader expectations and subverts them without becoming too convoluted or suspending willing disbelief. 

As much as the Agon is driving the events of this novel, Lore does not remain stagnant. Her emotions and the rawness of her feelings are ripe on the page, which is another strength Bracken displays throughout. Despite the briefness of certain moments (I do prefer a bit more romance personally), throughout the novel Bracken shows her mastery of character emotion as she played with my heartstrings. Lore's history and her family background, as well as the connection between her "past" and her "present" creates really intense emotions for her as she must finally face emotions she has not dealt with for the past seven years, Bracken not only handles those emotions but does a great job at putting Lore into the right mindset for where she might have been at the time of the events occurring. 

My biggest problem with this novel was the age of the characters. From the very beginning of the book it was implied that Lore was maybe young adult, early twenties at youngest, mid-twenties at most. I'm not marking this as a spoiler because it's in the first chapter but the first chapter establishes Lore in an underground fighting ring, she then eventually goes back to her brownstone that she has inherited with no questions asked. I mention this because later in the novel there is a flashback seven years that establishes Lore to be ten years old in the flashback. There is no other definitive age establishment that i could find within the text so this means that during the Agon and the events of the book, Lore and the majority of our main characters are meant to be seventeen years old. Not only do a lot of Lore's actions now feel a bit more mature than they should, but a great deal of the flashback's also feel greatly aged up as well. Perhaps this was an intentional character choice to show the effects of this type of life and the way that Lore was raised, but it pulled me out of the story on more than one occasion and ultimately brought the star rating down because of it. 

I guess my biggest thing is that half way through, I started to realize I was loving the book just because it had Greek mythology in it. Everything else was interesting, but not always quite keeping me engaged.

 

“If there were once heroes, they are all gone now. Only the monsters remain.”

Lore is about a brutal tournament set in modern day New York, where every seven years the gods are cast down into mortal vessels and hunted by the descendants of mythic heroes. If a god dies by the hand of a hunter, that hunter gains godly powers but also has to take the old god’s place in the tournament. God, imposter, hunter, messenger, unblooded: they may be pitted against each other but all of them are really fighting to break a cycle of pain and owning up to the fact that they can’t blame the Fates for their own choices and mistakes. 

As you can imagine this book is bloody, action packed, and infused with Greek Mythology every step of the way. It tackles a loss of morality in the midst of a ruthless struggle for power, glory, revenge, and survival. It felt very dark and mature for YA, Alexandra Bracken doesn’t hold back on traumatic situations and backstories. There’s this feeling of almost constant disillusionment, there are small betrayals sewn throughout the narrative, and a couple of big ones too. These characters seriously couldn’t catch a break and there were so many mini cliffhangers at the end of most of the chapters that kept the pages turning.

I had super high expectations for this book because I absolutely love The Darkest Minds series by Alexandra Bracken. I also really enjoy books inspired by mythology so I was excited going into this. I don’t want to say that it let me down, because I did enjoy it, but there were a few reasons why this book wasn’t quite a five star read for me. Firstly, this book is so full of action and yet it still managed to drag on. It also felt repetitive at parts, especially in Lore’s inner monologue. And let’s talk about Lore.. I understand that this is her epic, and it all amounts to a beautiful journey in the end.. but she frustrated me and I felt emotionally disconnected from her for most of the book. Maybe that just means that I’m heartless, because she goes through some pretty horrific things, but I didn’t really feel for her until the latter half. Also, I wish this book had multiple POVs because a lot happens “off screen” and I adore the side characters!! I wanted to get inside their head and dive deeper into their layers, because we only get to glimpse their complexities. Okay, enough of the negative stuff, let's get back to the important stuff… that being: the romance. 

I absolutely loved the subtle romance in this book, which I wasn’t expecting. It’s pretty much a slow burn childhood best friends to lovers, it is so pure, sweet and tender on the surface with a hint of angst and heartache. I’m all for that kind of morally grey, emotionally inhibited, bad boy type that is so typical in YA but it was so refreshing that this book broke away from that trope and gave us a love interest that is just so fundamentally good. He’s pure hearted, sweet, tender, self-conscious, and a healer right to his core (while still being super powerful… and hot). I’m not saying he single handedly made me believe in love, but it’s a possibility. Also, we get to glimpse a super sweet side romance as well! 

Lastly, this book had reluctant allies teaming up out of necessity… which is literally the perfect recipe for a chaotic found family. I’m a sucker for found family so that alone was enough to keep me invested in this story, I just wish there was a bit more character depth. 

All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.

TL;DR REVIEW:

Lore was an imperfect book, but it was definitely a fun read with an exciting story.

For you if: You like fantasy based on Greek mythology.

FULL REVIEW:

As soon as I heard about Lore — new modern-day Greek mythology fantasy set in NYC, yes PLEASE — I was in. Now, having read it, my feelings about it are sort of a paradox. Because while I did think the execution was a bit clumsy, I definitely did enjoy it, and I thought the story was fun and exciting and creative.

Hundreds of years ago, Zeus punished his children by condemning them to the Agon — seven days that happen every seven years in which they become mortal and anyone who kills them inherits their power. Lore is the last surviving member of one of the great families descended from the Greek gods, and the last thing she wants is to get swept up in this cycle’s hunt. But as you can imagine, fate has different ideas.

What didn’t work for me: I thought that the world-building in the beginning could have been cleaner. Having read a lot of fantasy books, even I spotted opportunities where they could have reminded us who a person was or what a thing meant in order to help us follow along. Similarly, I found myself sort of lost during the final confrontation of the book, struggling to follow the logic of the revelations and discoveries that brought all the pieces of the puzzle together. There were also just some clumsy moments with word choices now and then, but enough to be noticeable.

What I did like: The story itself; the unique and creative world she built; the characters we can’t help but root for; and the dueling themes of freedom and destiny, history and perception; heritage and individuality; feminism and tradition.

Bottom line: If you’ve got experience following along with world-building and fantasy plots, and especially if you love fantasy based on Greek mythology, this will be fun to pick up.