Review - The Goddess Test

by Aimee Carter
publisher: Harlequin Teen
date of publication: May 1, 2011 (first published April 19, 2011)
format: ebook
pages: 216
source: purchased
Amazon / IndieBound / B&N / The Book Depository

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.

What I Thought

At long last I finally read The Goddess Test after struggling with much trepidation.  I was concerned about a few opinions I initially heard about the book, but after being reassured by a friend, I bought a copy and gave it a go.  I was happy to find that my concerns were unfounded.  Though The Goddess Test contained a few minor details that didn't really sit right with me, it ended up being a quick, fun read with a lot of imagination and an intriguing mystery.

I found Kate to be a fairly decent character.  Though she has a lot to deal with for one so young, she manages to be a pretty well-balanced protagonist.  I found myself responding well to her moral make-up and straight-forward manner.  The only thing about Kate that bothered me was the seemingly rapid change in her feelings toward Henry.  The transition from frustration and anger to love and devotion was a little to whiplash-inducing for my liking.  Likewise, the development of Henry's feelings for Kate left me feeling as though I had missed something.  I did, however, enjoy trying to guess which character corresponded with which Olympian.  Some were relatively easy while others took me completely by surprise.  It definitely added a level of interactivity to the novel.

The pacing of The Goddess Test was great.  It moved along at a nice pace and made the reading experience go very smoothly.  That the book includes the Persephone myth made for a very appealing aspect that I, myself, loved.  Aimee Carter took just enough artistic license with the myth to put a fresh spin on it, which I very much appreciated.  Overall, the style in which the book was written was probably my favorite aspect of the reading experience.

When all was said and done, I had a lot of fun reading The Goddess Test.  It was perfect for a fast, light weekend read.  The incorporation of Greek mythology was well done and the character interactions were, for the most part, easy to read and the guessing game aspect was a lot of fun.  Add in the threat of a would-be murderer and you have quite the read.  If you're looking for a fun read that will whisk you away for a little while, try The Goddess Test.  I am definitely looking forward to seeing what direction is taken in Goddess Interrupted.  I definitely thing the series has room to grow, so I have decided upon a rating of 3 hoots.

Review - The Demon Lover

by Juliet Dark
publisher: Ballantine Books
date of publication: December 27, 2011
format: eGalley
pages: 371
source: Netgalley
Amazon / Goodreads / B&N

From Goodreads:

I gasped . . . or tried to. My mouth opened, but I couldn’t draw breath. . . . His lips, pearly wet, parted and he blew into my mouth. My lungs expanded beneath his weight. When I exhaled he sucked in my breath and his weight turned from cold marble into warm living flesh.

Since accepting a teaching position at remote Fairwick College in upstate New York, Callie McFay has experienced the same disturbingly erotic dream every night: A mist enters her bedroom, then takes the shape of a virile, seductive stranger who proceeds to ravish her in the most toe-curling, wholly satisfying ways possible. Perhaps these dreams are the result of writing her bestselling book, The Sex Lives of Demon Lovers. After all, Callie’s lifelong passion is the intersection of lurid fairy tales and Gothic literature—which is why she finds herself at Fairwick’s renowned folklore department, living in a once-stately Victorian house that, at first sight, seemed to call her name.

But Callie soon realizes that her dreams are alarmingly real. She has a demon lover—an incubus—and he will seduce her, pleasure her, and eventually suck the very life from her. Then Callie makes another startling discovery: He’s not the only mythical creature in Fairwick. As the tenured witches of the college and the resident fairies in the surrounding woods prepare to cast out the incubus, Callie must accomplish something infinitely more difficult—banishing this demon lover from her heart.

What I Thought

I was quite taken by surprise when I began to read this book.  I went in expecting an adult paranormal romance with an intriguing premise.  What I found was so much more.  The author took the time to fill out her story with such amazing background information and character development in such unexpected ways that I couldn't help but become more intrigued.  The Demon Lover is one of those books that comes out of left field: you expect to enjoy it, but it surprises you in some way in the end that leaves you feeling refreshed and pleased.  

The Demon Lover is just the type of book that I look for when I need a slight break from YA novels.  Before I began reading YA books again, I read quite a number of adult paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and high fantasy novels.  This is just the type of book I would have gravitated toward then.  Filled with intriguing elements such as folklore and mythology, a town established to house varying supernatural creatures, and enough literary terminology to make an English major feel warm and fuzzy, The Demon Lover takes what is already an intriguing premise and runs with it.  I was especially pleased to find mention of a bit of Celtic lore that I have read about before, though the Anglicized version of the name threw me off (leave it to me to know the Irish word before the English one).  The gean-cānach (or Ganconer, as he is known in the book) is such an interesting version of the incubus.  While he isn't entirely recognizable in this book, I did like the changes made to the character that rendered just the right adversary for this book.  It wouldn't have worked quite as well had he been more like folklore describes him when held up next to the other characters at play within the story, which range from witches, faeries, and brownies to lidercs (a Hungarian version of the succubus) to vampires.  This book is a mythological free-for-all that left me very excited to read all of these old stories once again.  I'm sure the main character, Callie, would approve of that, as she is very much a researcher and a huge fan of literature.  For the most part, I adored her and can't wait to read more about her in subsequent installments.

While there is much about The Demon Lover that I loved, there was one issue that I became disappointed by.  About half-way through the book, the plot seems to lag in a way that felt disruptive to the reading experience.  I can see now what was taking shape, but it made for a halting flow for the plot that I wasn't too fond of.  While it gave time for some of the subplots to float to the surface and gain attention for a little while, it just wasn't done as though it were all part of the same book.  The best way I can describe it is to say that it felt almost as though I were reading a book within a book (which actually does take place, oddly enough, although with less fits and starts).  This aspect left me feeling frustrated with my own rating system, as it isn't quite adequate for a situation such as this.

The Demon Lover is a great read for fans of adult paranormal romance.  I wouldn't recommend it for young teen audiences, as it gets quite racy at times, but it also isn't so over-the-top as other novels of its kind.  If you love novels containing lots of mythology and folklore, then you should definitely give this one a chance.  It was vastly entertaining and I couldn't have been more pleased to have been approved to read it.  I think it is safe to stay that I've still got it when it comes to selecting adult novels for myself to read.  The Demon Lover rates as a 3.75 for me, so it earns a 4 hoot distinction.     

Obligatory legal statement: This eGalley was provided to me free of charge by the publisher via Netgalley. No monetary compensation was received in exchange for this fair and unbiased review.    

The Mythology Behind Kersten Hamilton's Goblin Wars Series, Plus a Giveaway!

Today I have something special for all of my readers here at Starting the Next Chapter.  It is November 22, meaning that the latest installment in Kersten Hamilton's Goblin Wars series, In the Forests of the Night, has just hit store shelves!  I recently received an email from Kersten Hamilton who has been so kind of offer up a special prize for one lucky STNC reader.  More about that later, though.  First up, I have written a little something regarding the mythology behind the characters and places in the Goblin Wars books.  Having long been a mythology and folklore buff, especially when it comes to mythology of the Irish persuasion, I thought I would prepare a little glossary of some of the names and terms found within the series for all of you so that you will have a better idea of just what the inspiration of Tyger Tyger and In the Forests of the Night is.  Remember to keep reading, as there will be a giveaway announcement at the end of the post!

photo from The Ireland Newsletter

Finn MacCumhaill - pronounced Finn MacCool; hero of the Fenian cycle of Irish lore; legendary chieftain in charge of the Fianna Éireann, a band of warriors renowned for their hunting and battle prowess and whose purpose was to protect the Ard Rí na Éireann (high king of Ireland); said to possess gifts such as poetry, second sight, and healing; often portrayed as a giant and is associated with the creation of the Giants' Causeway in Northern Ireland, which he is said to have created in order to aid other giants in making the crossing between Ireland and Scotland


Mag Mell - "plain of joy;" believed to be a paradise that plays home to the dead; described as either an idyllic island or a grand place found at the bottom of the ocean; believed to be ruled by Mannanan mac Lir, a sea god associated with the Tuatha dé Danann; also known as Tir na n-Og ("land of youth")

photo from Mike's Blog

Phooka -  Irish goblins known for their shape-shifting capabilities that are often believed to take on the form of a goat, dog, or bull; also known for being vicious tricksters with destructive ways; it was believed that to leave a crop unharvested after Samhain (pronounced "sow-wen" and the basis for what is now known as Halloween) was to lose the crop altogether, as it was then believed to belong to the phookas; to attempt to cut a phooka's crop was to invite the death of one's cattle





Fear Doirich - "dark man;" the druid known for having turned Finn MacCumhaill's future wife, Sabdh, into a deer; though Finn spared her (having been alerted to her human status by his once-human hounds) and returned her to her human state, Fear Doirich turned her once again into a deer, after which she vanished; she gave birth to their son, Oisin, during this time, who Finn was later reunited with after seven years


Fir Bolg - "bag men;" known in Irish mythology as one of the races to have inhabited Ireland prior to the arrival of the Tuatha dé Danann; fought in the battle of Mag Tuired against the Tuatha dé Danann, where they were defeated and granted possession of either Connacht or the Aran Islands


Amergin - name of two famous Irish poets; one was a druid, bard, and judge, the other, a warrior poet; credited with having supernatural talent; the first Amergin is that who is credited with the creation of "The Song of Amergin," one of Ireland's most prized poems; the second Amergin is described as having a honeyed tongue and was the chief bard of Ulster (Northern Ireland)

photo from Sluagh

Sluagh - a flock of evil spirits said to have been barred entrance into the afterlife; often described as dark birds that fly from the west in an attempt to capture the souls of the newly dead; thought to be the Irish version of the Wild Hunt








What do you think?  Pretty interesting stuff, huh?  There is so much more to learn about Irish mythology and folklore.  I highly recommend seeing what is out there!  You're probably wondering what the big giveaway is, though, so why don't we move along with things?  Kersten Hamilton has offered up something special for one lucky reader.  I will be hosting a giveaway for Kersten, for which the prize is one, brand new copy of her book 1 of the Goblin Wars series, Tyger Tyger.

Very generous, no?  This is another US only giveaway, as Kersten will be taking care of the purchase of the book.  What do you have to do?  Simply enter via the handy Rafflecopter widget below the page break.  I have given you several chances to earn entries, so good luck to all of those who will be vying for this prize!  However, be sure to enter your GFC name in the main entry box, otherwise I have no way of verifying readership. 

P.S. Don't forget to check out my reviews of both books.  Comment on one or both and earn extra entries into the giveaway!  You can find my review of Tyger Tyger HERE and my review of In the Forests of the Night HERE.

Special Note

For a limited time, you can get the ebook format of Tyger Tyger for $2.99 from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple.  Step lively, all you ereader aficionados!  Make sure you don't miss out on this one, because it will be gone after November 29th!