This Inheritance Sucks

Expected Publication: February 26th, 2013

The Goddess Inheritance (The Goddess Test # 3)

By: Aimee Carter

Harlequin Teen

ISBN-13: 9780373210671

Love or life.
Henry or their child.
The end of her family or the end of the world.
Kate must choose.

During nine months of captivity, Kate Winters has survived a jealous goddess, a vengeful Titan and a pregnancy she never asked for. Now the Queen of the Gods wants her unborn child, and Kate can't stop her--until Cronus offers a deal.

In exchange for her loyalty and devotion, the King of the Titans will spare humanity and let Kate keep her child. Yet even if Kate agrees, he'll destroy Henry, her mother and the rest of the council. And if she refuses, Cronus will tear the world apart until every last god and mortal is dead.

With the fate of everyone she loves resting on her shoulders, Kate must do the impossible: find a way to defeat the most powerful being in existence, even if it costs her everything.

Even if it costs her eternity.

Review

     Kate Winters has spent nine months as the hostage of Calliope (a.k.a Hera) and Cronus, while they wait for her baby to be born.  Now, the Queen of the Gods is going to take her son away from her - unless she accepts a bargain with Cronus to belong to him.  He says that he'll spare the human race and let Kate hang onto her son, Milo.  But all the other gods and goddesses are going to be destroyed no matter what Kate decides.  Is there a way for her to save Henry and the others, keep her son and defeat Cronus and Calliope for good?  Or will the entire world be destroyed in the crossfire of a final showdown between the Gods and the Titan who fathered them?  This was the last book in a series that started out great and got mediocre in my opinion.  So I was hoping that it would get better and that Carter would give me a good enough ending, with a decent resolution to all of the problems.  The book picks up when Kate is about to give birth to Milo, leaving out the entire nine months that passed beforehand which disappointed me.  The betrayal of Ava (Aphrodite), who gave Kate over to Calliope under false pretenses has caused some major friction among the Gods and Kate doesn't know that Walter (Zeus) set up the whole thing.  Kate spends the entire book trying to martyr herself, so she can 'save' everyone else.  She refuses to listen to anyone else, or even consider a plan that would endanger Henry, her Mother or her son in any way.  Kate is always crying, upset and making half-assed attempts at decisions.  There was almost no interaction with Henry, which didn't make her character any more sympathetic to me as a reader.  I felt like the pacing was extremely slow with short bursts of action and a really rushed, poorly written ending.  I still want to know what happens to James and the others now that Calliope is gone and Cronus is in Tartarus again.  Maybe she'll do a side series that will make up for the insipid nature of this ending.  Overall, a mediocre ending to a pretty good series.  I would recommend that fans of the other books read it, if only to see how it all ends.   

VERDICT:  2.75/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via Edelweiss. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book's expected publication date is February 26th, 2013.*

Tainted Legacies

Expected Publication: July 31st, 2012
The Goddess Legacy (Goddess Test # 2.5)
By: Aimee Carter
Harlequin Teen
ISBN-13: 9780373210756

For millennia we've caught only glimpses of the lives and loves of the gods and goddesses on Olympus. Now Aimee Carter pulls back the curtain on how they became the powerful, petty, loving and dangerous immortals that Kate Winters knows.

Calliope/Hera represented constancy and yet had a husband who never matched her faithfulness....

Ava/Aphrodite was the goddess of love and yet commitment was a totally different deal....

Persephone was urged to marry one man, yet longed for another....

James/Hermes loved to make trouble for others-but never knew true loss before....

Henry/Hades's solitary existence had grown too wearisome to continue. But meeting Kate Winters gave him a new hope....

Five original novellas of love, loss and longing and the will to survive throughout the ages.

Review

   Hera was once a loving, loyal and happy goddess - time and Zeus' unfaithfulness changed that.  Aphrodite saw love as something that is shared by many, not tied down by committment.  Was it so wrong to love Hephaestus and Ares both, just in diffferent ways?  Persephone grew up destined to be with the man her parents chose for her, thinking that they knew best.  But she never loved him and only grew to feel trapped and resentful.  There is a man she could love, however it might be too late for a happy ending.  Hermes was a mischief-maker, but when he became involved with an indepent and spirited human girl, a tragic ending may shatter his heart.  Hades had given up on life after Persephone chose to be with someone else.  His siblings have an idea that might save him.  Will he allow them to carry it out or will he fade into a mere memory?  I enjoyed the revelations that came from Hera/Calliope's novella.  It gave a lot of insight into why she became scorned and angry at everyone in the family.  Plus it explained her unreciprocated attachment to Henry/Hades.  Ava/Aphrodite's novella was definitely one of the more interesting ones, but I honestly felt like she was a tramp/whore who was just looking for an excuse to not have to choose between Hephaestus and Ares.  Her erratic 'romantic' behavior really spoiled any enjoyment I had for her story.  I was bored and annoyed at Henry's novella because I felt that it was totally unneccessary.  Everything had already been told by that point and there was no good reason to have yet another telling of how the tests for the next Queen of the Underworld came about.  My absolute favorite novella was the one for Hermes/James.  I adored his attitude which was quirky and sarcastic as always.  I loved the Robin Hood type setting for the plot that unfolded.  The way he connected with the band of orphans and the slightly tragic romance with their leader was heartrending.  He is definitely my favorite character now, hands down!  One major complaint is the soap-opera behavior and situations of the gods and goddesses.  But then again, Greek mythology is rife with that sort of drama.  Still got really old.  I would recommend reading this before the other books actually, since it's more of a prequel, if you're new to the series.  If not, you should read this for the background it gives.  Overall a decent prequel.

VERDICT:  3/5  Stars

* I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. This book's expected publication is July 31st, 2012.*

Goddess in Training

Expected Publication: March 27th, 2012
Goddess Interrupted (Goddess Test # 2)
By:  Aimee Carter
Harlequin Teen
ISBN-13: 9780373210459


Kate Winters has won immortality. But if she wants a life with Henry in the Underworld, she'll have to fight for it.  Becoming immortal wasn't supposed to be the easy part. Though Kate is about to be crowned Queen of the Underworld, she's as isolated as ever. And despite her growing love for Henry, ruler of the Underworld, he's becoming ever more distant and secretive. Then, in the midst of Kate's coronation, Henry is abducted by the only being powerful enough to kill him: the King of the Titans.  As the other gods prepare for a war that could end them all, it is up to Kate to save Henry from the depths of Tartarus. But in order to navigate the endless caverns of the Underworld, Kate must enlist the help of the one person who is the greatest threat to her future.  Henry's first wife, Persephone.

Review

   Kate Winters thought that once she married Henry and took over as Queen of the Underworld, all of their problems would pretty much be solved.  Imagine her surprise that upon arriving home from a summer spent in Greece with her best friend James (a rival of Henry's for Kate's affection) that things are still unsettled.  Henry is more distant than ever and there still needs to be a ceremony inducting Kate as a ruler of the Underworld before things are official.  Oh and she's developing powers, beginning with creepy visions that she doesn't quite understand, but give her a really bad feeling.  It turns out she was right to be nervous, when Henry and the other 'big six' are taken by Kronos who is working with Hera (who is still looking for revenge against Kate for 'stealing' Henry from her).  Kronos isn't yet powerful enough to surface in the world, but without the original six to stand in his way when he does the world will most likely end.  It's up to Kate and the rest of the gods are refusing to help her.  Wanting to save Henry, she has to find the entrance to Tartarus.  The only other person who knows is the one person Kate wishes she could forget about - Henry's first wife Persephone, Kate's sister.  Will they be able to work together in time to save Henry and the others, while stopping Kronos from rising.  I liked this book quite a bit, but I felt that it never reached the level of the first one.  The side characters were far more one-dimensional in this book and the focus on Kate and Henry's romantic predicament did nothing special for me personally.  It was all angst and despair on Kate's part, with a side of emotional turmoil and cruel subconcious desires on Henry's part.  The amount of time that Aimee Carter spent on the will-they, won't-they (when they're already FREAKING MARRIED!!!) detracted from what could have been a truly intriguing adventure.  It instead became a subplot that depended on the romantic heroine saving the day.  The cliffhanger on this book TRULY pissed me off!!!  Seirously, yet more angst.  Kate just can't catch a break, which is too bad.  Because when she's away from Henry she's a pretty interestng character.  I don't think that I will be reading the third book in the series.  I honestly just don't care anymore.  But I will probably read the short story between books one and two, for more about James and Kate's vacation.  Not recommended too highly, unless you're a big fan of extremely gushy and angst ridden romance with little plot to go with it.

VERDICT:  2.25/5  Stars

*I received an Advanced Reading E-book Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. No money or favors were exchanged for this review. The expected publication for this book is March 27th, 2012.*