City Of Gods Hellenica

I won a print copy of City Of Gods Hellenica by Jon Maas (Jonathan Maas on Goodreads) in a Goodreads Firstreads Giveaway.


This book is outstanding! Probably don't need to say anything beyond that: but what fun would that be?

City Of Gods Hellenica is the story of ancient gods behaving poorly; petty and selfish. An academy is created to bring stability to the world. In true YA fashion, the proposed saviors are kids. The godlings (my word not Mr. Maas's) don't seem to get along much better than their adult counterparts. The four main characters are about as diverse as can be. As City Of Gods Hellenica is the beginning of a series we do see these disparate characters starting to meld into a somewhat cohesive unit.

We have plenty of action, violence, political intrigue, young love (or at least infatuation), horror, honor and youthful idealism. Author Jon Maas does a good job of painting a mental picture of the sometimes disturbing atmosphere of the academy. Particularly the more disgusting parts of the local environment.

The development of the characters is progressing nicely, complete with flaws and prejudices. There is suspense and intrigue. The true motivations of several peripheral characters has yet to be revealed. I'm looking forward to reading more of this series; good YA fantasy that does not talk down to its younger audience. I actually hesitate to use the term "YA" in reference to City Of Gods Hellenica. It is simply just very good fantasy that appeals to pretty much any age group of fantasy readers (like me).

I'm finding it very difficult to identify any negatives for City Of Gods Hellenica, so, I guess I'll stop trying now. Jon Mass has given us a fantastic fantasy read in City Of Gods Hellenica (fantastic fantasy, see what i'm doing there? Okay, sorry). Fantasy readers should find this book very enjoyable. So as I always say, Enjoy!

Oh, before I go, one tongue-in-cheek complaint: How on earth do you pronounce "Saoirse"? I think I hurt my mouth trying.

Mike