4.0 on the Masq Scale. Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by @DianthaJones #ya #fantasy #bookreview
Cover links to Amazon.com
Prophecy of the Most Beautiful
Oracle of Delphi #1
Written by Diantha Jones
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
She has a destiny so great that even the gods fear her.
Constant hallucinations and the frequent conversations with the voices in her head, have earned eighteen-year-old Chloe Clever the not-so-coveted title of "Whack Job" in her home town of Adel, Georgia. With the onslaught of prescription medications and therapists threatening to push her over the edge, she wishes for a life far away from the one she has, a life where she is destined to be more than the butt of everyone's jokes and mockery.
Be careful what you wish for has never rung more true.
After living through an attack from her worst nightmare, she awakens to find herself far from home, surrounded by glorious riches and servants…and a few demigods who enjoy killing things.
Upon learning that her favorite rockstar is an Olympian god, she is thrust into her new life as the Oracle of Delphi, the prophesier of the future, and the great Pythia that the gods have been anxiously awaiting to arrive for centuries. Setting out to fulfill the prophecy she has been given and to keep her family safe from a demigod Princess that wants her dead, Chloe learns of how great she is to become, all the while fighting mythical monsters, evading divine assassins and trying to outwit the ever-cunning Greek gods who harbor secrets of their own.
In the hopes of discovering the Most Beautiful and the truth of her destiny, she strives to uncover the mysteries of the demigod Prince who has sworn to protect her with his life…and threatens to win her heart in the process.
Constant hallucinations and the frequent conversations with the voices in her head, have earned eighteen-year-old Chloe Clever the not-so-coveted title of "Whack Job" in her home town of Adel, Georgia. With the onslaught of prescription medications and therapists threatening to push her over the edge, she wishes for a life far away from the one she has, a life where she is destined to be more than the butt of everyone's jokes and mockery.
Be careful what you wish for has never rung more true.
After living through an attack from her worst nightmare, she awakens to find herself far from home, surrounded by glorious riches and servants…and a few demigods who enjoy killing things.
Upon learning that her favorite rockstar is an Olympian god, she is thrust into her new life as the Oracle of Delphi, the prophesier of the future, and the great Pythia that the gods have been anxiously awaiting to arrive for centuries. Setting out to fulfill the prophecy she has been given and to keep her family safe from a demigod Princess that wants her dead, Chloe learns of how great she is to become, all the while fighting mythical monsters, evading divine assassins and trying to outwit the ever-cunning Greek gods who harbor secrets of their own.
In the hopes of discovering the Most Beautiful and the truth of her destiny, she strives to uncover the mysteries of the demigod Prince who has sworn to protect her with his life…and threatens to win her heart in the process.
Kay F.'s Review
Every once in a while, we come across a book that just fits us. A book that takes so many of our interests, and combines them into one giant ball of awesome. I recently encountered a book such as this. It took a major interest of mine, Greek Mythology, and gave it a fresh new face, and a fun engaging plot. Needless to say, I was hooked.
Prophecy of the Most Beautiful by Diantha Jones was recommended to me by a rather awesome chick, so I knew I was probably going to like it. I then got a chance to review it via the totally awesome Masquerade Crew, so clearly I jumped all over that. I could not put it down. It was just...epic.
A part of my love has to do with my obsession with mythology, so my opinion may be a bit biased. Still, whats not to love about a rugged, punked out version of our favorite Greek deities? Not to mention the author has a fluid writing style that ensnares you.
Prophecy of the Most Beautiful follows a rather funky, rough-edged fashionista who is prone to getting into fights. I really enjoyed Chloe for the most part. I thought she was refreshing. She didn’t feel forced, or over the top. I liked her mild awkwardness, and her fits of anger. Her abilities were not too overstated, and I didn’t feel like she was too powerful, even though it alluded to the fact that she was. Overall I thought she was very well developed.
Where there is a female lead, there must be a male lead yes? That would be Mr. Stafford Law. Okay, the names in this book are not what I would call fabulous, but oh well. Stafford works. Whenever I saw Stafford Law, my mind always twisted it to say Stanford Law, which would mar the image of the pierced, tattooed hot guy into a slick hot guy in a suit… while still hot it definitely took away from his personality and image. This was just a personal issue though. Normal people won’t have that problem!
Now I freaking loved Stafford. I mean, he is a possessive jerk how could I not love him. I love cold, jealous men. It makes them interesting and fun. And Stafford was definitely a jealous man. Not to mention he was muscular and tattooed. I am drooling. Not to mention he is Irish. That may ore may not be my favorite aspect of his character. I love the Irish accent. It is totally understated. British accent has nothing on the funk of the Irish. Makes me want to move to Ireland… *sigh*.
Ace and Swindle. Ugh I kind of loved them. They were adorable. The twins though, they won my heart. Hector and Theseus were just fan-freaking-tastic. I know we don’t see them as much as the other characters, but I am definitely looking forward to reading more about them in the next books. (They better be in there!) While these characters do not go through much development, their personalities add a warmth to the story that it would otherwise lack. Greek mythology is largely focused on relationships – and sex – so having this tight knit group really gave it a epic style feel.
Another area where I felt the author truly succeeded was bringing in the mythical elements. Not just in the use of the different gods, but also in the feel of the story. I especially liked the use of the Billows. I found the whole concept of the Billows fantastic, and truly wished it had been used more. Maybe in the next book? The trip back in time, the emergence of the Scorpion, and even the visions, helped create an ambiance in line with the old myths.
Now as with most stories, there were other elements alongside the mythological aspect that contributed to the story. The most noteworthy is easily the romance between Stafford and Chloe. Not going to lie, sometimes it annoyed me. I absolutely despise the instant-love stuff, on the other hand though she is an oracle so it sort of makes sense for her to fall head over heels for him, since a part of her probably knew it anyways. Sometimes I felt it was a bit overdone, but the majority of it worked. Its not overly sexual, nor is it filled with simpering and brooding like other stories I have read. It also was not mushy. It was much more possessive, which I liked.
There were a few other areas that I had trouble with. First, despite the fact that I loved her character, the Chloe in the first chapter or so is very different from the Chloe we see the rest of the time. It was a bit confusing. She was so hard-edged, almost emotion-less in the first chapter. Minus the rage of course, but still. The rest of the story, while not necessarily emotional, she was passionate. She had her opinions and she was certainly going to say them. She even mouthed off to a few gods. That takes balls!
So for 95% of the story, I thought she rocked. For 5% of the story, I thought she rocked, but in a very very different way. In addition to this, the author introduces characters at the very beginning that in the end make no difference nor serve any purpose, and do not partake in the rest book. It felt like a plot line was opened, and then abandoned without another thought. Now, this issue may change if she incorporates them into future stories, or if they somehow turn out to be hereos in disguise. Until then, however, I will remain skeptical about their importance.
Another thing I had an issue with was Dropper. Thought he was fantastic… until the end. His fate just sort of happens and no one really says boo about it? I can’t say more without giving things away but still. It just happens and everyone is okay with that? I was reeling. I just…what the heck!
Okay moving on before I get sidetracked, I really liked how the author handled the Gods. She made them bitchy, catty, irresponsible, vain, competitive, and seriously messed up. They were perfect. Too many mythological books have morphed into responsible, fatherly type figures. Have you ever read Greek myths? They are positively awful, but in such an awesome way!
Plus… she made Aphrodite a brunette. I therefore love her. Dionysus was a bit of a surprise, but I guess it makes sense. He always was popular with the ladies! I blame it on the wine. My favorite God so far was easily Hermes. And Bonkers. Loved it! They cracked me up. GREAT job on them!
I would have personally loved to see a few darker elements to this story. Even the death that was involved was told in a more lighthearted way, and I think that may have detracted from a the shock value of the story. The lighter side made the action scenes pack less of a punch. While I don’t think it crippled the book, it made it feel a little younger than I think the plot called for. All in all though, it was a good freaking book.
I truly loved this book, and will definitely purchase a paperback copy as well as scurry off to read the rest of the series.
I highly recommend it to any mythology and romance lovers out there.
Review Disclaimer: Book provided in exchange for an honest review.
