Review: The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Pages: 293 Release Date: April 19th 2011 Publisher: Harlequin Teen Source: Won

Goodreads:

It's always been just Kate and her mom—and 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.

My Review:

‘The Goddess Test’ is one of those novels that sticks with you after you have read it. It was fantastic! It deals with tough emotions very well, but also creates realistic situations.

‘The Goddess Test’ is based mainly on Greek mythology, me being a fan I was looking forward to reading about it. Myths such as Persephone, Hades, Zeus, Hera, Aphrodite, Apollo etc. all feature in the story and even if you don’t know much, you will still understand the concept.

The majority of the setting in ‘The Goddess Test’ takes place in Eden Manor, with Henry. It is described as being extravagant, with massive wardrobes and huge country estates. It’s shrouded in mystery really.

The characters were richly developed over the course of the novel and I particularly enjoyed the twist at the end! Aimee Carter has the wonderful ability to create such vivid emotions in the story, I actually felt myself welling up at certain times, I could never imagine losing a parent to a disease but the emotions in ‘The Goddess Test certainly felt very real.
Kate is a normal, down to earth girl who just wants to look after her mother. She is not interested in dating boys or making friends or partying. She has a strong mind of her own and I like her for that.
Her mother, I feel very sorry for. I’m very close to my mother –like Kate, and I thought it was a very very sad situation. But that twist! I did NOT expect that!
Henry is the dark, mysterious brooding character, who we meet in the dead of night. Instantly, I wanted to know more about him and I was glad that his personal side was revealed throughout the story.
I really enjoyed reading about the majority of characters and I loved the twist at the end!

The plot was wonderful to read. I didn’t expect some of the situations to take place, such as one major twist near the end, regarding Kate’s near-demise. I did expect some things to happen, but the majority of the time I didn’t.

I would recommend this book to fans of love, mystery, suspense and Greek mythology. I cannot wait for ‘Goddess Interrupted’ which will definitely be as good –if not better than this!

5 out of 5 stars.