Kate's mother has been dying for four years, and Kate would do anything for her to live just a little bit longer, whatever the cost. As her mother's last wish, Kate agrees to move with her to Eden, so her mom can spend the last few months of her life in the place where she grew up. Kate is not looking forward to starting at a new school and plans to lay low and avoid friendships because she'll be moving back to New York after her mother's gone. Things don't go according to plan when right away she meets new classmates: James, Ava, and Dylan.
James attaches himself to her quickly and Ava doesn’t try to hide her disdain about her boyfriend Dylan paying so much attention to Kate. When a horrible accident occurs, a mysterious man named Henry shows up and does the impossible in exchange for a promise from Kate, leaving her confused and wondering what to believe. Henry is impressed by Kate's bravery and strength and he offers her a deal, he can keep her mother alive while she tries to pass seven tests, the reward being her immortality. Kate knows she has to take the deal because the extra time with her mother will be well worth it, but will she be able to pass? There is also the question of who exactly Henry is, how can be possibly be Hades, god of the Underworld, like he claims?
I thought The Goddess Test was a fresh take on mythology, giving it a modern spin. It started off a little slow, but after awhile I was completely engrossed in the story. I really enjoyed the way the love story developed between Kate and Henry. Although she was really attracted to him, they didn’t jump into anything too fast and it was realistic. He started to develop feelings for Kate based on her unique personality traits and her caring nature. He didn’t expect her to fit a certain mold or behave a certain way. Kate knows that if she passes all seven of the tests she will become Henry’s wife, but Henry is very understanding of her and doesn’t expect her to have romantic feelings for him, even if she becomes his wife.
Kate does her best to get Henry to open up to her and feel comfortable around her, even as he tries to push her away. Eventually, he lets Kate in and they finally act on their romantic feelings for each other. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking for a good love story, but you do have to be open minded about the mythology aspect of the novel because the author doesn’t follow the typical characteristics of the gods and goddesses and she does chance some of the myths as well. Overall, a great read and I can’t wait to read about Kate’s future adventures!
- Author website: http://www.aimeecarter.com/
- Publisher: Harlequin Teen
- Date of Publication: April 2011
