Review: The Goddess Test

Title: The Goddess Test
Author: Aimee Carter
Publisher: Harlequin
Pages: 304
Challenge: None
Source: Own


My Rating:

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. -summary from goodreads.com

I’m sad to say that I didn’t enjoy TGT as much as I thought I would…. I did enjoy it, just not to the level I was hoping too. Being a big fan of Persephone's story, I had a very difficult time identifying the myths and happenings. Kate as a character felt rushed. As the reader, I felt as if I didn’t get enough of a feeling to her, for me to decide if I like her or not. This whole novel is done in the first person perspective, yet I feel like Kate is a stranger. We never really got a view of her inner conflict, just her decisions and actions. She had this vulnerability about her that made her relatable in certain situations, but at the same time I wanted her to wake up and take action. I like my characters to have a backbone, and Kate just didn’t make the cut!

Henry was very… what’s the word I’m looking for… Bland?! Dull?... I went from thinking, “what a total creep!”, to thinking, “ok, maybe he’s just hardcore old school. Total gentleman.”, and lastly, “AHHH! Henry, you’re supposed to be the King of the Underworld; ACT LIKE IT!”

Now don’t automatically think I hated the book, because I didn’t. There were a few aspects that kept me interested, thus the 3 hearts and not lower. Although the plot didn’t have many similarities to the myth that we all know, the author made up for it by adding several original elements that I think enhanced the storyline. TGT had a ton of potential but the story just didn’t feel like it was carried out the right way. It was a little hot and cold for me; in the beginning I couldn't take it, but at the end I wanted the story to keep going. Let's hope the sequel, GODDESS INTERRUPTED, steps it up to the next level!