alyssoid's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
This was a fast read and clearly written by someone who loves running. As a runner myself I enjoyed Phoebe’s internal monologue during her training and racing. Plot/character-wise this book could stand to be about 100 pages longer. Nothing really feels earned and conflict is resolved wayyyy too quickly and easily. But overall an enjoyable read.
amy_inthecatacombs's review against another edition
4.0
Phoebe Castro loves to run and is about of her cross country team. She wins a competition and her mom makes to it. Her mother had been visiting family memebers and Greece and wasn't expected back early. Her mom reveals that she is getting married and eventually tells Phoebe that she is getting married. To make it worse, she and Phoebe are moving to Greece. Phoebe is extremely mad. She wansts to stay at her old school. She's been trying hard to get a scholarship to USC.
Phoebe not only is moving to Greece, but she is attending an academy where everybody is descended from gods and goddesses. She also has an evil stepsister Stella that hates her and uses magic against her. Her classes are really hard, but she has to keep at least a B average and do well in cross country to get the scholarship to USC. Will she keep up her grades and make the team? Will she get the cute Griffin to like her?
I really enjoyed this book. I was frustrated several times at the characters though, but their actions did suit the portayal of their character.
Phoebe not only is moving to Greece, but she is attending an academy where everybody is descended from gods and goddesses. She also has an evil stepsister Stella that hates her and uses magic against her. Her classes are really hard, but she has to keep at least a B average and do well in cross country to get the scholarship to USC. Will she keep up her grades and make the team? Will she get the cute Griffin to like her?
I really enjoyed this book. I was frustrated several times at the characters though, but their actions did suit the portayal of their character.
book_nut's review against another edition
3.0
Quintessential beach read with a mythological twist. Fun.
starbound's review against another edition
4.0
Jeg elsket den! Den var litt som Percy Jackson (gresk mytologi, halvguder) og Hex Hall (gammel skole og hovedpersonens “attitude”) blandet sammen. Hovedpersonen Phoebe var morsom å lese om og hun var tøff og selvstendig. Boka inneholdt noen komiske scener som fikk meg til å smile og så var det selvfølgelig litt romantikk med (som også fikk meg til å smile). Det var ikke bare fokus på gudene. Slutten kom ikke like overraskende på meg som leser, som den gjorde på Phoebe, men jeg tror heller ikke det var meningen, så det gjorde ingenting. Har veldig lyst til å få med meg neste bok også!
kittykatrain's review against another edition
1.0
After trying to sort myself out I've finally gotten to a place where I can tell you without a doubt:
I DETEST THIS BOOK!!!!
Why?
1. The formatting is wonky, there's no indication when it time jumps.
2. it felt very rushed.
3. I could see the ending from a mile away.
Onto something better.
Seriously give me better greek myth-inspired books to read than this
I DETEST THIS BOOK!!!!
Why?
1. The formatting is wonky, there's no indication when it time jumps.
2. it felt very rushed.
3. I could see the ending from a mile away.
Onto something better.
Seriously give me better greek myth-inspired books to read than this
bahbadook's review against another edition
3.0
Comfortable little snack instead of a buffet
Kindle version read and I believe that this is important.
This wasn't a complicated book. There was a fake big cast of characters. The plot was pretty linear and there was barely a subplot going on.
So this book was about Phoebe running. Not running away. Just...running. And it was fine. I realized very early on what the twist was but the twist didn't come until very late game. So that was a little surprising.
Two things though:
1. Pertaining to the Kindle edition specifically. I don't know if it is different in the physical book. But there weren't any breaks between places or time jumps. So that was a big formatting error that threw me until I realized it was the case and just had to mentally flex around the jarring. There is also a section of text that is primarily IM messages back and forth between Phoebe and her friend from home, and Phoebe and her new friend at school. Again, this could just be a Kindle error in formatting but it would have been a little more readable to have the two different conversations one different sides of the page because, despite the fact that I have done what happened many times, it still took me five minutes of rereading before I understood what had happened.
2. The ending didn't feel like an ending. It felt like, if you'll excuse the metaphor, a second wind before the big problems erupted. Because of this, I am going to have to grudgingly read the second book. I'm not sure I liked this one well enough to warrant a sequel read if it weren't for the fact that the story didn't feel ended. The ending felt like the ending of Alita: Battle Angel, which was a little annoying to watch because as I told my dad, the ending didn't feel like an ending. It felt like a pause. And this could just be me finally developing a taste for stories but I think I like my endings to feel like endings, even in middle of the series media. My favorites tend to be middle stories though there are some exceptions.
There we go! I figured out what this felt like in terms of plot. The entire book was exposition and the twist at the end felt like the inciting incident. That's what this felt like.
I think this book might be suitable for high school aged individuals who are more casual in their readership than I've ever been. But it was a nice enough read as long as you are looking for something comfortable and following of the tropes and plot of this kind of book. If you're looking for complicated, this is the wrong tree to be barking up.
One thing I will note and do greatly appreciate is that the potential for a love triangle was there and it was side stepped AND while there is a romance element to the book, it wasn't anywhere near the focus. I'd actually say it was third in line behind Phoebe's running and the family dynamic. If the book had been more focused on the romance, it would have dropped a star in my estimation. The prophecy though. That was intriguing.
Kindle version read and I believe that this is important.
This wasn't a complicated book. There was a fake big cast of characters. The plot was pretty linear and there was barely a subplot going on.
So this book was about Phoebe running. Not running away. Just...running. And it was fine. I realized very early on what the twist was but the twist didn't come until very late game. So that was a little surprising.
Two things though:
1. Pertaining to the Kindle edition specifically. I don't know if it is different in the physical book. But there weren't any breaks between places or time jumps. So that was a big formatting error that threw me until I realized it was the case and just had to mentally flex around the jarring. There is also a section of text that is primarily IM messages back and forth between Phoebe and her friend from home, and Phoebe and her new friend at school. Again, this could just be a Kindle error in formatting but it would have been a little more readable to have the two different conversations one different sides of the page because, despite the fact that I have done what happened many times, it still took me five minutes of rereading before I understood what had happened.
2. The ending didn't feel like an ending. It felt like, if you'll excuse the metaphor, a second wind before the big problems erupted. Because of this, I am going to have to grudgingly read the second book. I'm not sure I liked this one well enough to warrant a sequel read if it weren't for the fact that the story didn't feel ended. The ending felt like the ending of Alita: Battle Angel, which was a little annoying to watch because as I told my dad, the ending didn't feel like an ending. It felt like a pause. And this could just be me finally developing a taste for stories but I think I like my endings to feel like endings, even in middle of the series media. My favorites tend to be middle stories though there are some exceptions.
There we go! I figured out what this felt like in terms of plot. The entire book was exposition and the twist at the end felt like the inciting incident. That's what this felt like.
I think this book might be suitable for high school aged individuals who are more casual in their readership than I've ever been. But it was a nice enough read as long as you are looking for something comfortable and following of the tropes and plot of this kind of book. If you're looking for complicated, this is the wrong tree to be barking up.
One thing I will note and do greatly appreciate is that the potential for a love triangle was there and it was side stepped AND while there is a romance element to the book, it wasn't anywhere near the focus. I'd actually say it was third in line behind Phoebe's running and the family dynamic. If the book had been more focused on the romance, it would have dropped a star in my estimation. The prophecy though. That was intriguing.
amberinpieces's review against another edition
3.0
Imagine that you are completely satisfied with your life. You have a great mom, two awesome best friends, you are the fastest runner on your high school track team, and a track scholarship to your first choice college is yours as long as you keep up your grades and your record-breaking track times.
Well, nothing lasts forever.
Phoebe’s mom returns from a trip to Greece with a disturbing surprise: that Greek man on her arm? Yeah, she is marrying him. Oh - and then they all, including Phoebe, are moving to a remote Greek island called Serfopoula to live with the new stepdad and his daughter. Goodbye level-headed mom, awesome best friends, and track scholarship.
But there is more.
Phoebe’s new stepdad is an actual descendant of the Greek gods. They protect the island and the school that is on it. The students at Phoebe’s new school are also all descendants, which puts her at a great disadvantage academically, athletically, and socially. Fortunately for Phoebe, two students, Troy and Nicole take her under their wing.
Of course, it would not be high school without trouble and since it takes place at a school of demigods, the trouble can be powerful. Stella, Phoebe’s evil stepsister, uses her powers and blackmail to screw up Phoebe’s life while she alternately crushes on and hates Griffin Blake.
Read the full review here.
Well, nothing lasts forever.
Phoebe’s mom returns from a trip to Greece with a disturbing surprise: that Greek man on her arm? Yeah, she is marrying him. Oh - and then they all, including Phoebe, are moving to a remote Greek island called Serfopoula to live with the new stepdad and his daughter. Goodbye level-headed mom, awesome best friends, and track scholarship.
But there is more.
Phoebe’s new stepdad is an actual descendant of the Greek gods. They protect the island and the school that is on it. The students at Phoebe’s new school are also all descendants, which puts her at a great disadvantage academically, athletically, and socially. Fortunately for Phoebe, two students, Troy and Nicole take her under their wing.
Of course, it would not be high school without trouble and since it takes place at a school of demigods, the trouble can be powerful. Stella, Phoebe’s evil stepsister, uses her powers and blackmail to screw up Phoebe’s life while she alternately crushes on and hates Griffin Blake.
Read the full review here.
arushi_a13's review against another edition
4.0
It was really good and funny. I think they stressed Stella's evilness a little too much but overall, good book!
williamsdebbied's review against another edition
3.0
Phoebe has big plans--all she has to do is maintain good grades and have one more winning season with the cross-country team and all her dreams will come true. She'll be up for a track scholarship and will attend USC with her two closest friends. Instead, her mom comes home from a trip abroad to announce that she is marrying a man she met on the trip and moving to Greece. (Though Phoebe's mom is a therapist, she sure does a crap-ass job of preparing her daughter for the move and several other big changes. I found this more unbelievable than a lot of things that came later in the story.)
Before she knows what's hit her,Phoebe is on her way to a Greek island. And guess what? Another pretty big secret. Her mom's new hubby runs a school for "special" kids--they are all descendants of Greek gods and goddesses and they have superpowers.
Phoebe endures all of the normal angst of a girl switching schools in her senior year, with the added bonus of a bitchy step-sister and a bunch of bullies who "zap" her whenever they get the chance. Oh, and don't forget the cute guy who may or may not like her.
Cute concept (especially the take on the school cliques based on who the students' ancestors were). Good for teens who enjoy their mythology with a touch of romance.
Before she knows what's hit her,Phoebe is on her way to a Greek island. And guess what? Another pretty big secret. Her mom's new hubby runs a school for "special" kids--they are all descendants of Greek gods and goddesses and they have superpowers.
Phoebe endures all of the normal angst of a girl switching schools in her senior year, with the added bonus of a bitchy step-sister and a bunch of bullies who "zap" her whenever they get the chance. Oh, and don't forget the cute guy who may or may not like her.
Cute concept (especially the take on the school cliques based on who the students' ancestors were). Good for teens who enjoy their mythology with a touch of romance.
lpcoolgirl's review against another edition
5.0
Oh, this was just such a freaking great novel! So funny, and great, I can't wait to read more!!