This was the perfect storm of mythology, fantasy and dystopian.

📚 enemies to lovers
📚 Greek mythology
📚 found family
📚 multi POV
📚 reverse harem
📚 slow burn

🌶️🌶️

“Home is not a place, it’s a person”

|Thoughts|
Something about this story that just hooked me from the jump. It felt like a mix of some of my favourites - dystopian elements (Hunger Games), competition to the death (HG, Fourth Wing, Serpenet & the Wings of Night) and enemies to lovers (all the best ones).

“Alexis Hurt matters more than you could ever imagine. And she’s mine to protect”

Really appreciated the dry humour in this story. The sarcastic and small commentary throughout the story had me giggling.

“Someone coughed up water (it was me)”

Plus, every characters needs a snarky and murderous snake as a side kick. Nyx was such a great addition and can’t wait to see what gets revealed about her in the future.

Really enjoyed the politics of the Olympian world and the role she plays within it.

“At least there was no chance I’d end up in the Assembly of Death. And I most likely wouldn’t survive until January. A silver lining. Yay”

Highly recommend listening to the audiobook narration. As the story has multiple PoVs, it does change up the narrators for each perspective.

Speaking about future books, I still am tossing up with the ending of this one and if certain characters are redeemable or just evil. I’m also convinced Charlie has a more significant part to play.

So keen to get my hands on book two in this duology.

“What a—powerful union … There will be consequences for sure—dark consequences.” She shivered. “There always are.”

Thanks to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an ALC in exchange for my honest review.

In a dystopian world, Spartans rule while Titans ravage the mortal lands. Shy foster-child Alexis gets dropped in the middle when she is entered into the Spartan War Academy. I went into this mostly blind and enjoyed it even though it was not at all what I thought it was going to be. There is a why choose aspect to it that I wasn’t expecting that really takes off towards the end of the book. Will I check out the sequel? Probably.

The Blood of Hercules is a fast-paced, action-packed ride blending Greek mythology with a post-apocalyptic world and Spartan warfare. The writing is a bit rough, and the mythology often feels disjointed, but if you don’t mind straying from traditional myths, it’s a fun and unpredictable read. Alexis, the main character, lacks depth and comes off as more naive, but her sharp, sarcastic inner monologue keeps things lively. The romance is more toxic than romantic although I’m intrigued to see how things progress, I was expecting a bit more spice than we got in this book. The plot can be chaotic but if you're looking for something fresh and unconventional, it's an entertaining read, despite its flaws. The narrator wasn’t one of my favourites but it was an easy enough listen. Will I read book 2? Probably!

I went into this book without any expectations and honestly had a lot of fun. I found myself giggling a lot while listening to the audiobook and could definitively see the influence of other book series I have enjoyed in the past. If you liked Anna in All the Pretty Monsters by Kristy Cunning, you’re going to love Nyx, the FMC’s sidekick.
To be fair, the plot twists were all very predictable and I really didn’t like any of the MC’s interest for Alexis. I was glad at first that Patroclus and Achilles were not depicted as the love interests, but I also hated the other two most of the time. However, I kept going because I was really invested in Alexis.
I picked it up having read the critics already but I’m glad I decided to give it a try. I didn’t take this book seriously but as a way to be entertained and get out of my own head for a while and it definitely did that, so I’ll definitely pick up the next one as well.

This is probably the weirdest / worst book I have ever had the displeasure of listening to.
It is written like a PJO book but with an even more immature FMC who has a horny snake as a pet for some reason???!!
I do not recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for the ALC! ✨

Is this book good? No. Will I read the second one? Probably...

A homeless girl with a traumatic past finds out she's half god (also known as a mutt) and has to complete tasks while her teachers plan how they can trick her into marriage. Turns out she's actually the long lost daughter of two gods, who knew? Oh, and her blood is poison.

Given that the names and locations are based on greek mythology I'm at a total loss as to why they speak latin.

The audiobook is good in terms of voices, although the pacing was maybe a little slow - I listened to it on 1.5x and it sounded like a normal pace.

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I received an audiobook ARC courtesy of Harper Collins UK Audio in exchange for an honest review.

This is difficult to rate as I did enjoy myself but I don't think it's a great book. The plot was obvious and I don't understand how the main character didn't see the plot "twists" coming. She was young so maybe that's why, but also I think it bothered me that she was so much younger and this was obviously a dark romance. That's just my personal taste though.

I did enjoy the many many love interests that she had throughout 😂 I was rooting for her to have to wear Achilles mask but maybe we get that in book 2. It was also quite funny, I think the cringey jokes did save it for me. I'll probably pick up book 2 at some point as it was an easy fun read.

Thank you to HarperCollins UK Audio and NetGalley for an audio ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is a captivating read that keeps you hooked from start to finish. The storyline is engaging and the characters are well-developed, making it a very enjoyable experience. However, be warned that the book contains graphic scenes that might be challenging for some readers. If you prefer less intense content, this might not be the best fit for you. Overall, it's a thrilling adventure that fans of the genre will appreciate.
Also of note, the voice actors are excellent and do a great job at making this a very full bodied experience.

This book took me by complete surprise. I found the FMC's dry humour to be perfection, and Nyx was probably my favourite character.

The narrators did a fantastic job, especially the female. She brought this book to life with the emotions poured into her work, and I loved it.

Thank you to Netgalley for this copy of the Audio ARC in exchange for my honest review 💕

Blood of Hercules by Jasmine Mas

With excitement, I picked this up as an audio ARC on NetGalley in November but struggled to engage with it. After multiple attempts, I finally gave up. I was excited for this dark Greek mythology romantasy, but unfortunately, it didn’t live up to the hype. The main character is well-written—strong, funny, and emotionally balanced—but the male characters were overbearing, and the story felt rushed, messy, and amateurish. The writing often came across as childish, with weak plotting and awkward language. Despite its potential, I just couldn’t connect with it and ultimately DNFed.

Listening to Blood of Hercules was quite an experience - definitely a binge-worthy ride from start to finish. The audiobook does a stellar job of bringing Jasmine Mas’s wild mashup of Greek mythology, a post-apocalyptic vibe, and a brutal Spartan War Academy to life. The narrator’s performance really stood out, perfectly capturing Alexis Hert’s sharp inner monologue and that dark, brooding energy the story thrives on. I loved how the story blended ancient legends with modern, gritty twists, and it kept me on my toes with all the unexpected turns.

That said, there were moments when the plot felt a bit chaotic and some of the tropes leaned into familiar territory a bit too hard. I found myself occasionally wishing for a little more depth in Alexis’s character, as her inner turmoil sometimes bordered on cliché. Still, the unique setting, the killer narration, and the overall energy of the story kept me hooked. It’s a solid listen for anyone into mythological retellings with a modern edge, particularly if you consume it as satire - definitely a four-star adventure worth checking out.

For me this book is DEFINITELY one of those that works best as an audiobook! Some of it was slightly cringey, but damn - I enjoyed it! Such an easy listen, and I'm DYING to know what happens next...

Narrator was brilliant, story was interesting and easy to follow, men were brooding - I can't wait to listen to the sequel!

Hilarious, bloody, and the promise of toe-curling evil romance (and a raccoon) making the perfect novel.

It's been YEARS since I've had a book making me laugh out loud so much. I wish I hadn't taken so long to read it, I didn't know what I was missing all these months! I need book 2 stat!

Boring. I could not get past the first few chapters.
The book was definitely not for me.


#netgalley #BloodofHercules

DNF
I really wanted to like this, with all the hype and artwork I’ve seen my expectations were very high. Unfortunately, I got to chapter six and could read no further as I dislike the FMC, the tropes were over done and unrealistic. The FMC was contradictory, the author embraces all the YA stereotypes for a FMC. It felt like reading a bad fanfiction where the main character needs to have the most tragic backstory. It almost felt comical how bad the backstory is.
Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins for the opportunity to read this.

An incredibly unique Greek inspired romance. Action-packed and gripping with deliciously morally grey characters. Alexis Hart finds herself at the Spartan War College where she is fighting for her birth right - immortality. A brilliantly twisty story that is brought to life perfectly by amazing narrators, if possible I think the audio is better than the book!

Although I found this quite hard to start with Alexis being a very young child, I eventually got really invested in the story and by the end, I couldn’t stop reading! I wasn’t sure how to feel about Alexis but she really came into her own and became a fantastic and powerful character. I loved the twists and turns near the end and it just made me more eager for book two! I loved the concept of Spartans, Olympian and Chthonic, and how their powers manifested differently. The story was really gripping and I grew to love all the background characters as well. The mythological theme throughout was executed brilliantly and the narrator did a great job with this book. Definitely worth checking out if you like mythological fiction with a modern touch and romantasy elements.

I listened to the audio on the NetGalley Arc app.
I have to start by saying this book is very bingeable but in terms of the actual plot and characters I didn’t fall in love and therefore I didn’t feel connected to the characters.
I found the whole book a little chaotic and confusing if I’m being honest.
Overall it’s not a bad book it’s just not a memorable read for me.

Thank you @netgalley for the chance to listen to this for an honest review

This book/audiobook was fantastic although not my usual vibe as I don’t enjoy harem or reverse harem romances. Some of the stand out tropes are;

- Morally Grey Love Interests
- Reverse Harem
- Greek Mythology
- Multiple POVs
- Post Apocalyptic Setting
- Strong MC

Smashing Greek Mythology/Gods together with a post apocalyptic setting is an intriguing and different perspective to the usual books on the Gods. It peaked my interest from the first chapter and kept me gripped through the book with an inevitable cliff hanger setting us up perfectly for book 2!

This audiobook was amazing. This book itself was amazing but the narrator did and incredible job, it was empathizing with Alexis so deeply it hurt at moments. The book itself was such a breath of fresh air in the genre. And I is at the top of my list for my favorite new books. I cannot wait for the next book.