The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Title:   The Goddess Test

Author: Aimee Carter

Pages:  304

Genre:  YA/ Teen

Source:  Netgalley  

Every girl who has taken the test has died.

Now it's Kate's turn.

It's always been just Kate and her mom--and now 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.

If she fails... [via GoodReads]

I loved, loved, loved this book!  That should suffice as a good review, right?!

What can I tell you?  Ms. Carter "had me at hello" when I read that her book revolved around Greek mythology and even more so around the story of Hades and Persephone.  le sigh.  I'm a sucker for a romance riddled with heartbreak and despair.  

I found that I read this story without over-thinking it too much and this may be why I enjoyed it so much.  I didn't really give too much thought to the characters or scenarios, instead I just read the story, enjoyed Kate and the part that Henry played in her life.  This may be why I was surprised by the twists and turns the story took.  I was fascinated by the Greek mythology (of course!) and I really liked the modern twist on the Gods.  Not to mention I found the whole premise - a girl undergoing various tests and if succeeding becoming a goddess - to be a very intriguing one.

Kate was a great heroine.  She was brave, tough, selfless and you find yourself truly invested in her.   Her maturity and strength are something that you know she's acquired during the years of taking care of her mother.  She brought me to tears when it came to the love she felt for her dying mother... I definitely found myself sniffling more than once over it.  Then there's Henry (a/k/a Hades) -  I love a dark, brooding and tortured hero... and he's definitely that.  While he was quiet and reserved most of the time, I found him  very appealing.  I liked that he wasn't portrayed too severely  as the God of the Underworld but instead someone whose strength and power can be felt as underlying threads in the story.

In the end, (and I'll say it again) I loved, loved, loved this book! From the first page, I found myself rooting for Kate and hoping that she'd find some happiness in her bleak life.  Ms. Carter has crafted a beautiful love story- but be prepared, for Gods have the same feelings as humans do and there is no shortage of jealousy and insecurity amongst them.  With twists and turns that I definitely did not see coming, this was an edge-of-my-seat read.  Fans of YA fiction but especially ones who enjoy fantasy and paranormal stories with a clever twist on Greek mythology will love The Goddess Test.  I know I did! 

My Rating: