Wonder Woman: Warbringer by Leigh Bardugo

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Publication date: 2017
Publisher: Random House
Pages: 384
My rating: 3 stars
Ages: 15+
Series: DC Icons

Diana, though princess of the Amazons, has tried to prove her place an Themyscira her entire life. When she rescues a human from a shipwreck, she has the choice to either let her die or to save her. Alia has been overprotected her entire life and just wanted to experience some freedom. What she doesn't realize is that, as a warbringer (a descendant of Helen of Troy), she creates a spirit of discord wherever she goes. It's up to Diana to try to break the warbringer line and bring peace to the world, even if it means sacrificing her place as an Amazon.

There is something I learned from reading this book, and that is that you can't try to fit these new superhero books into what you know about the character and their story line. If you'll remember, I had a problem with that before. It's important to keep this in mind because it doesn't follow the time line of the old TV series, or the new movie. Instead, Warbringer takes place in the present day, though Diana is still a teenager.

I felt like it was slow to get into, with the middle being interesting and intriguing, and the end again slowing down. The twist was unexpected, though I'm not sure how well I liked it, even if it did go against cliches and tropes.

I was also a little disappointed when my copy came and the cover had been printed incorrectly.

There wasn't any language that stood out to me, and very little mention of sex.

*I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.

The Hidden Oracle by Rick Riordan

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Publication date: 2016
Publisher: Disney Hyperion
Pages: 384
My rating: 4.5 stars
Ages: 12+
Series: The Trials of Apollo

After angering Zeus, again, Apollo lands in New York as a completely mortal teenage boy. Immediately enslaved by Meg, a young demi-god, Apollo and Meg head to Camp Half-Blood for safety. Apollo hopes that he can just hang out until Zeus is ready to reinstate his godhood, but campers have started disappearing, all lines of communication have stopped working, and the Oracle is still missing.

I have come to the point where I will preorder Riordan's books because I know I'm going to like them. This first book in a new series did not disappoint. It is highly amusing, especially since it's told in first-person from Apollo's point of view. Apollo's ego is probably only exceeded by Narcissus's.

Though I usually suffer from "series fatigue" (not wanting to read a book that is the beginning of a series because then I feel obligated to read the rest of the series), I never feel that way with Riordan's books. This is probably because most of the books in a his series have an ending, for that story line at least. I also like how they are all connected in some way, with "Easter eggs" for those who have read his other books.

I think that this book would be best read after having read Percy Jackson and the Olympians and The Heroes of Olympus, just because it gives a nice background to the events leading up to this. However, Oracle could be read without doing that.

I think this is a great way to introduce younger kids to mythology.

No language and no sex.

*I do not receive compensation from Amazon.

Cruel Beauty by Rosamond Hodge

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Publication date: 2014
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Pages: 342
My rating: 3.5 stars
Ages: 14+

Nyx was raised to do two things: to marry the Gentle Lord and to kill him. For 900 years her country has been ruled over by the demon they call the Gentle Lord and, as her father had bargained her away, Nyx is chosen to be the woman to defeat him and free Arcadia. The only thing no one counted on was that she might fall in love with her husband.

I passed over this book many times before I actually decided to get it from the library. I was wary about another Beauty and the Beast retelling, especially after the last one I read. But after having seen it recommended several places, I finally bit the bullet and got it.

This is not your typical retelling of a familiar fairytale. Taking place in a parallel world where the Grecko-Roman empire was destroyed, save for the island of Arcadia, Hodge intertwines Greek mythology with fairytale, creating something I wouldn't have expected. This isn't a story about a beautiful girl taming a wild beast, but a story of revenge, complicated love, and bargains that harm more than they help.

Since I had such low expectations going into the book, I finished it surprised. It's a debut novel, and I expect that Hodge's writing will just continue to get better. Nyx's jealous and dark hearted nature was a little wearing at times (I find it hard to believe that twins could be so blind to each other's true nature for seventeen years), but the characters grow in change throughout the novel which is always good. A good book for anyone who wants a new kind of fairytale, but it's not exactly the first title that will come to my mind when someone asks me for a recommendation.

*I do not receive compensation from Amazon.