Review: The Goddess Test by Aimée Carter (The Goddess Test #1)

onyxdarkling
Nov 27, 2014
2 min read

Kate Winters and her mother, who is battling terminal cancer, have moved from the bustling city of New York to the tiny, quiet town of Eden, Michigan, so her mother could see the place where she was born before she died. But Kate is quickly launched into a world she doesn't understand when she is offered a chance to compete for immortality. The bit that makes this interesting in YA? She'll be competing to rule as queen of the underworld - and to be an olympian. Yep, it's the greek gods.

Kate agrees, but she will have to complete a series of tests first. And then there's the nasty little detail that someone has killed every other girl who has ever tried to compete. Kate's not only going to get immortality if she wins, though. She'll also have to marry Hades, lord of the dead. But as Kate tries to complete her tests and tries to get to know Hades and the other olympians, the killer may be closing in, and she'll have to figure out who's behind the murders before it's too late.

I'm not sure what to think of the characters. Most of them didn't have much of a personality and some were downright annoying. The author was trying to make Henry "brooding", but his strange mood swings and sulky behavior was awful. Kate struck me as slighty insecure and whinny.

I've read a lot of books that have to do with greek/roman gods. It's not uncommon. But this was an interesting twist, and the author didn't keep the gods' names, instead giving them more normal ones. Carter's writting style is good, but the characters need work. It was entertaining as a time-passer, and the plot was good. 3.5/5 stars.