#YA #UrbanFantasy #BookReview | Lore by Alexandra Bracken

From the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The Darkest Minds comes a sweepingly ambitious, high-octane tale of power, destiny, love and redemption.

Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals, hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.

Long ago, Lore Perseous fled that brutal world in the wake of her family’s sadistic murder by a rival line, turning her back on the hunt’s promises of eternal glory. For years she’s pushed away any thought of revenge against the man–now a god–responsible for their deaths.

Yet as the next hunt dawns over New York City, two participants seek out her help: Castor, a childhood friend of Lore believed long dead, and a gravely wounded Athena, among the last of the original gods.

The goddess offers an alliance against their mutual enemy and, at last, a way for Lore to leave the Agon behind forever. But Lore’s decision to bind her fate to Athena’s and rejoin the hunt will come at a deadly cost–and still may not be enough to stop the rise of a new god with the power to bring humanity to its knees.

I don’t know about you, but a story about Greek gods and heroes in the modern world causes my fantasy-loving mind to tingle with excitement.

Lore is a delightfully unique urban fantasy featuring classic figures from Greek mythology and legend.  The world in Lore is complex and, at times, confusing in its complexity, but it just takes a leap of faith from the reader to bridge that gap between the world they know and this new, multi-faceted world found within the pages of the novel.

The characters have just the right blend of loyalty, determination, and inner strength.  Lore, the title character,  struggles with so many inner demons. It is inspiring to see her grow into the heroine she is meant to be, and Miles, Lore’s ever-present faithful friend – well, I adore him for his steadfast, practical nature that is an illuminating foil for Lore’s darkness and doubt.  Castor – Lore’s training partner – is one of the most incorruptible characters ever to be written and deserves every sacrifice made for him. And, Van is a character that is to Castor what Miles is to Lore.  Every hero and heroine must have that friend with the heart of a hero and the dedication only a loyal friend can have.

I love the profound and essential message that’s threaded throughout the story.  Zeus, angry over the betrayal of the nine gods and goddesses closest to him, decrees a final agon. For seven days every seven years, the descendants of Greek heroes of note can hunt and kill the gods, who will be mortal for that brief time.  If a god is killed, the powers of that god will be granted to the hunter who slays him or her.  If another god kills a god, the power of the slain god no longer exists, and this will continue until only one god’s powers remain, and then the prophesy states, “that person will be made whole.”

At its root, this story is about how “absolute power corrupts absolutely. “Zeus recognized this in the other gods and decided that men and gods will be made equal for small bursts of time until that rare individual left uncorrupted by power is found.  This person is the salvation for all people showing that there is still good in the world. That message is even more critical today, as things continue to escalate out of control around us, and it feels like there is no end to the direction the world is heading in.

Lore is a compelling, action-packed urban fantasy that delights and disturbs as a war to save humanity ensues.