Alexis has lived in a horrific, torturous life of starvation, beatings and loneliness. During her exams she is discovered to be a missing ‘mutt’ Spartan and is taking to compete in their trials for immortality.

I wizzed through this book in a day, so I definitely had a lot of fun. It is the beginning of a Romania’s with some spice. I enjoyed Alexis’ internal monologue and sarcastic, horny snake friend.

There was language used that felt out of place and changes in moods of characters that threw me a little. The audiobook of blood of Hercules is great and I loved the voices used especially for Nyx.

This feels like the beginning of a spicy, dark romance so of that and funny internal monologues are your thing, you will devour this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read this in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the audiobook ARC of Blood of Hercules by Jasmine Mas.

I really loved the idea of this book. Greek mythology, poor down and out girl with a mythical snake companion competing in a Greek theatre Hunger games-esque competition to be immortal? Sounds amazing.

The book itself, I sadly, was let down. I really did not get on well with the FMC. We get it, she's shy and anxious, but the internal monologuing in relation to actual dialogue is 90/10, and with the nature of the character and her actions, it doesn't gel with me.

I've seen this book getting a lot of love on Tiktok, and I'm glad it is reaching the right audience, but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations of its own blurb.

This was addictive! Such a funny heroine. It was great being inside her head. Hilarious inner monologue.
Why choose romance, lots of action, lots of twists and turns. Loved the Greek mythology elements that the author put in the story. Loved the dark romance.
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Loved the audiobook. The narrator really brought out the action and humor!

Alexis is used to living life in pain and suffering. She doesn't know any other way. But when she is whisked away to become a Spartan warrior and have a chance for a better life for herself and her brother, well... she has no choice but to go. Literally. But the horrors of Spartan life are just beginning.

This book was great! Everyone needs a bitey friend like Nyx in their corner. She was the comic relief that made me giggle out loud a few times. Overall, I liked everything about this. Truly. The voice actors were amazing. I actually highly recommend the audio on this. I will definitely be reading the sequel.

💭🎧📚 Blood of Hercules 🩸🏺(#VillainsOfLore)
- Jasmine Mas (narrated by Teddy Hamilton, Tristan Morris, Aiden Snow and Meg Sylvan)

I’ve seen this one get a lot of attention on the socials, and as I’m a fan of Greek mythology and retellings, I was really lucky to be granted early access to an audiobook. Swipe ➡️ for the blurb and read on for my thoughts.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Before I start this one, this one has a lot of content warnings, a lot. Read more at the end for more information if you want to learn more.

Back to the book. This is billed as a gender twist to the Hercules story, with a different take on the Greek mythology trope - and it was interesting. Although it was a little hard to keep track of in parts. Alexis is also snarky. Really snarky. And some of her internal monologue that did have me chuckling. But this did have me conflicted. I enjoyed the story, but how she responded to some of the situations she found herself in didn’t sit well with me.

Whilst the narration is delivered by a trio, the main narrator was top tier. She really put the snark in Alexis’s voice and I was here for that.
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⚠️Content warning/potential spoilers: there’s detail and repeated reference to suicide, abuse and assault. There are also heavy references to suicide. And whilst Alexis has gone through a really traumatic past, her references felt more flippant rather than truly and reflection of her emotional distress. ⚠️

Well this is not your typical Greek mythology retelling. A dystopian Hercules meets hunger games. Definitely a unique story.
The writing reminds you of being a teenager so could be aimed at that audience but also there are a lot of tough subjects covered and mature themes so check your triggers. Follows Alexis as she goes from slums to trials mentored by Achilles and Patroclus. Odd but hilarious and I am intrigued to see where the story will go

I absolutely adored this book, Alexis is my all time favourite character she’s brilliant. I loved the storyline and tensions and the narrator was really fun as well! This was a top read for me.

2.75

Unfortunately this one just didn’t work for me.

The premise of this one was so promising with the mesh of Ancient Greek mythology with an almost dystopian futuristic SciFi setting, however the tone and rhetoric really let this down (in my opinion).

The FMC is said to be 19 but reads more like 14/15 due to her naivety and “innocence”, the other characters fell quite flat and the insta lust/love again just didn’t have the payoff I would hope for.

In terms of the rhetoric style, I feel this is definitely a “this just isn’t for me” thing and not necessarily a books issue. We spend most of the book in Brynn’s inner monologue which is written in quite an immature way and continually (and repetitively) sarcastic which just became tiresome for me.

All of all it was a disappointing read for me but would probably be more suited to dark romance readers as I think that may be more the target audience for this one.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing the Audiobook for me to review

This book started off so good and I wasn’t hooked. Alexis was so interesting and the mystery around her had me reading one more chapter. Her sarcastic and self deprecation voice was actually fun to read but I was not a fan of the romance as there was no development or chemistry between any of them and so i struggled with the second half of the book.
I also wasn’t a fan of certain reveals at the end but there are some interesting things that I want to know the answers that I may read the sequel.

I really wanted to like this but it wasn’t for me. It was to cringey and it felt like there were so many logic and continuity errors that it was really off putting.

That being said the performances from all of the narrators were great inspire of the poor story.

I know I’m in the minority for the reviews but this style is not for me.
It droned on and felt so repetitive.

I could feel the irony and some of humour coming through which was so dry and dark it certainly isn’t going to be for everyone but that didn’t put me off.

Maybe listening to this as an audiobook didn’t help because the tone set made it feel slow and dreary and I don’t think that is the narrator’s fault it just may be a book better read so the reader can inflect their own tone and humour to it or at least skim read the very many repetitive parts

I received this book as an ARC and provide my honest review

🎧Audiobook Review🎧

#adprproduct

I want to thank NetGalley for approving me for an ARC of this audiobook.

I loved the uniqueness of this book, the use of Greek mythology in a post-apocalyptic setting was genius.

The trials and angst were evident throughout and the romance has been set up to be interesting in future books.

My only critique is that it felt quite long for what happened. I loved the narration and thought having multiple narrators helped to distinguish from the different characters.

⭐⭐⭐⭐.25

I started this as an audio bit then finished it on my kindle. I loved the story, this was exactly something for my taste! Not sure how I will wait for the next book now, desperately need to continue this series omg

I listened to the arc audiobook, and I must admit I think I definitely enjoyed the audiobook more than I would have enjoyed reading the book, because there was a lot of dialogue within dialogue, within dialogue, this FMC doesn’t stop thinking. She doesn’t say much but her inner dialogue is endless. I’ll say it was definitely funny, but more of a “oh my gosh this is silly “ kind of funny.

It was my first reverse harem, why choose romance and im not to sure if im a fan, I didn’t hate it, but I am definitely a one love interest kinda girl!!

It kept me interested, if nothing else I wanted to see who she ended up with in the end. Unfortunately It was not totally for me, but im sure there are tons of readers out there that love it.

Thank you for the opportunity to get the arc audiobook.

I have such mixed thoughts on this book…

Did I find it rather messy? Yes
But did I inhale this book? Also yes…

3.5 🌟 just for the potential.

I’d say it’s an extremely bingeable book, especially the audiobook. Normally for fantasy I find audiobooks harder to keep up with the world build, but this was easy enough to get to grips with. But as addictive as it was, that didn’t stop me cringing and groaning at some of the content.

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Premise:

Alexis is a homeless orphan in a post apocalyptic world where Greek gods are revered. During a routine school test she is discovered to have Spartan blood, and forced to enter the crucible, a deadly competition for young Spartans.

Achilles and Patroclus become her hesitant mentors and Kharon and Augustus are her terrifying professors, all with ulterior motives.

And whilst trying to survive the competition, Alexis is certain someone is stalking her and sending threats.

—-

Firstly just leave all your knowledge of the Greek gods at the door and go with the flow… although Hades proves himself as still my favourite in every universe! (Definitely read the bonus chapter!)

There are some really good characters in the book, and I especially love Nyx, who is 100% me as a motivational friend! And there are some good relationships, especially Alexis’ bond with her brother. I think the characters I like the most aren’t necessarily the main characters.

The plot itself, is really fun and I think it’s what had me hooked. The whole deadly tournament and mystery of Alexis’ heritage and powers. The entire concept was great and the world created is really strong!

Where it kind of fell flat for me was:
- all the MMCs were kind of one dimensional. Kharon went all broody emo. Augustus I still don’t quite believe even likes Alexis. And Patro was so over the top and whiny. (Which annoyed me because of how emotionally intelligent he should be). I only like Achilles because he never spoke and I feel kind of bad for him. He seems like a gentle murderous giant. I think a lot needs to be done in the next book to build on their characters and actually show that they genuinely feel for Alexis. The challenge with a RH is you are given limited pages to develop each love interest, compared to a book with a singular MMC. There’s potential but I hope their characters are fleshed out.
- Alexis, whilst being marketed as a rather badass FMC, infuriated me. Why all these men were obsessed with her was beyond me, when her outward persona was so weak. I loved her inner monologue, it was punchy and hilarious, but I really hope she starts showing that!

But there’s potential, and I love the world, so I will continue!

Audiobook notes:
- I really liked the narrator for Alexis, especially in drowsy / sleep deprived mode. She really immersed you in the crucible.
- Teddy Hamilton is fantastic as always. Definitely suited Kharon!
- The narrator for Augustus at first was far more gravelly than I expected but it kind of grew on me.
- I kind of liked Patro’s narration. Again it’s not the Patro I imagine based more on who Patro is in my head but he suits the Patro of this world.

thank you so much harpercollins and netgalley for this audiobook!

i loved the narrators SO much, like i could even listen to it at 3x and have no issue, though i did mostly listen to it at 2x or 2.5x to enjoy the story more, but just wanted to point out that they all did a wonderful job!

onto the book itself...
blood of hercules is a dark greek myth retelling following Alexis Hert, who has been living with mortals until she is 19, when she is discovered to have Spartan blood. she is then ripped from her world and forced to enter the Spartan War Academy as the only female as female Spartans are extremely rare. from there we follow her through the academy as she tries to survive. she also two mentors, Patro and Achilles, as well as two professors, Kharon and Augustus, who seem to constantly glare and nag at her, so she also needs to find a way to survive them.

i loved this read so much, like from what i had heard from others, i expected a lot of smut, but there was like only one or two scenes and the main focus of the book was more of the war academy and Alexis surviving. i really enjoyed the world and how we got to learn about it alongside Alexis. everything was so interesting, from the titans to the war academy to the creatures. the war academy felt a bit repetitive at times, especially because of how Alexis was going through it, but i liked how Jasmine spiced it up each time with the different things happening.
the writing was surely cringey at times but it actually wasn't THAT bad, like i could just move on and focus on the story and sometimes it was funny and added well to the story.

Alexis was such an amazing fmc to follow as she is resilient and strong, but she doesn't come off that way to the others who don't know her. she comes off as a shy girl with a stutter. i loved her inner monologue and seeing how she tried to fight and survive through it all. her character arc was so interesting and i cannot wait to see where it goes, especially after that ending!!!!!

Patro and Achilles were great. they were so grumpy and mean, and i loved it. it was truly funny to me. i personally love Patro and Achilles outside of this book so i was VERY happy when i knew they were gonna be two of the mmcs. i think Jasmine did an amazing job at displaying their relationship and i cannot wait to see more of them in book 2 AND i hope that we will get more of Patro's pov and finally get Achilles' pov!!

Augustus and Kharon!!! also lil mean grumpy men but i adore them. though i did side eye them with their lil manoeuvre at the end, i still love their characters sm and i just love how it feels that Kharon and Alexis are each other's mirrors (imo - i could be totally wrong by the next book lmao), but i am so excited to see where it all goes.

although Patro, Achilles, Augustus, and Kharon were all grumpy men, they each had their own flavour to it lmao. i also want more of their povs in book 2!! also Patro became my favourite and i need him in my arms rn

also special mention to Nyx, my favourite serpent... i do have theories about her and who she may be or who she may be linked to... she was such a fun edition and i loved her sm!! also Charlie?? i love him sm, i know we saw him for live 5mins, but i wanna protect him at all costs!!
Drex was a pleasant surprise and i love him too

i honestly ate this up and i was very pleasantly surprised. i was only a bit wary because it is dark romance, and i am not really a dark romance girlie but i think this was a good kind of dark romance that didn't make me personally feel iffy.
anyways i need book 2 asap because that ending had me on the FLOOR!!

Thank you to Harper Collins Audio, Harper Voyager and Jasmine Mas for a complimentary audio copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Romantasy isn't always my bag, but I had SUCH a good time with this book and I can't wait for the sequel next October to release.

The star of the show for me is really our heroine/protagonist, Alexis who after growing up in an abusive foster home is unexpectedly thrust into a brutal society, where the men are more like monsters. What's a girl to do? Endure.

Alexis has always been at the bottom of society but when a drop of her blood reveals she's actually a Spartan, a race of immortal god-like people split into Olympians and feared Cthonics, she's unexpectedly pushed into a punishing set of trials along with a group of other initiates to claim her immortality... something she really could care less about. All she wants to do is go home to her brother, but that future is out of her hands now. Assigned with two mentors in the terrifying Crimson Duo, Achilles and Patro, she soon finds that they are the least of her troubles as not only is surviving the Crucible itself pure torture, she's receiving death threats and two Cthonic heirs are growing ever increasingly more obsessed with her.

I'll admit that I was not here for the romance in this book (though I DID appreciate the fact that all society was mostly bisexual and the Achilles/Patro relationship), though the promise of a Why Choose relationship definitely appealed to me as I hate love triangles. For me though this book is definitely not a romance as Alexis is lured into a deadly game by two of the male leads, as something of an unwitting participant but whilst the men were definitely assholes, I had so much fun with this book.

Part of that is down to Alexis' internal monologue and her fighting spirit. I was rooting for her the whole time and was fully invested in her character arc and what will happen to her going forward. I'm so used to romantasy books I've previously read to have protagonists I find to be quite one-dimensional, but Alexis gave me so much, from her vulnerability, to her love for her brother, to her outright derision of the men around her. It was also super rare to see a female protagonist to be touch averse, and I thought this was portrayed really well and made me relate to her so much. She also made me laugh so much and I loved her attitude, even if she had the tendency to just be so done with everything (which if I were in her position... same, girl). It doesn't hurt she has a sassy talking snake companion also - a character who I really hope we find out more about origin-wise in the sequel as I definitely have some theories regarding her.

I'd have loved a little more from the trials aspect as I did find this section got a little repetitive, but I appreciated the dedication the author gave to staying true to how harsh and gruelling the Spartan training regime was also famously said to be. Given that this book was set in an alternate world modern times/near future time, the slang and more meme-y dialogue didn't really bother me all that much though I know others haven't liked this. Overall, I enjoyed the world building elements also, from the different Cthonic and Olympian Houses to the powers and beast protectors.

Overall, I had a great time with this book and found the humour and snarkiness of the overall tone to really work for me. The audio narration for Alexis really helped convey this also. Don't go into this book expecting a healthy romance, as this is really about twisted obsession but the chemistry is definitely intense and I'm really excited to see where it's going, given the book's conclusion.

Also this book goes HARD for the 'Touch her and Die' trope: you have been warned!

Thank you NetGalley and HarperCollins for access to the audio version of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Actual rating: 3.5 (rounded down)

This has to be the most entertaining shitshow I've ever read. Truly a unique, CW-esque experience, filled with TikTok humour on basically every page, psychopaths (literally all 4 MMC should be locked up, as consent or any base decency must be a foreign concept to them - but hey, at least they are sinfully attractive).

I hate how much I enjoyed it.

I can see this series grow to become a guilty pleasure, but it isn't a good book by any stretch of the imagination.

Ps: I can't say that I enjoyed the audio version of it as much as the kindle option. This kind of storytelling became way too much in that format, even if the female narrator reminded me of Jinx.

Alexis is abandoned at birth and spends the first 11 years of her life being raised by her abusive foster parents in a world where Spartans rule the few, wealthy elite and the remainder of society are left to suffer in a brutal, post-titan world. Age 19, she finds herself unveiled as a “mutt” (half Spartan, half human) and she’s automatically entered into the Spartan War Academy’s initiation massacre. If she can make it through the crucible to her 20th birthday, she’ll be granted immortality.

Sparta is split into 2 main factions - Olympian and Chthonic. The former have powers that enhance themselves and focus on self-improvement. The latter have powers that hurt others, through torture, mind control and pain. Not only are Alexis’ two mentors, Patro and Achilles, from Chthonic Houses, two of the Chthonic House heirs are also professors at this year’s crucible. For someone who’s lived her whole life as a human in poverty, her chance of survival through the crucible look slim.

I liked Alexis, who is a self confessed “deeply troubled, slightly older teen with psychological, physical and abandonment issues.” And her antisocial tendencies often made me chuckle:
“Maximum made small talk the entire time.
I wanted to die.”
However, I can definitely see that this book wouldn’t be for everyone. Despite her awful life experiences, Alexis reads as a young, naive character, which feels quite at odds with the dark backdrop of the story.

For me, this reading experience gave me the same feeling as the Beasts of the Briar series - like watching trash tv, you know it’s not by any means a literary masterpiece but it’s so entertaining that it’s addictive 😂 I listened and read, and would highly recommend the audiobook, it was so well performed that it really enhanced my reading experience.

And I loved Fluffy Jr!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the audiobook.

As someone who’s not a big fan of dark fantasy, Blood of Hercules was an okay read for me.

It had an intriguing premise, and the story itself was decent, but it didn’t entirely win me over. Perhaps it’s just my preference for lighter genres, but while the book had its moments, it didn’t leave a lasting impression.

For fans of dark fantasy, it might resonate more, but as my first foray into the genre, I found it to be just alright.

Not last, I would like to thank to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for offering me a copy in exchange for my honest review.