Persephone - Third Eye Blind

The Goddess Test
The Goddess Test, Book 1

Author: Aimée Carter
Pages: 293
ARC Acquired from: HarlequinTeen via NetGalley

Brief Summary:
Kate Winters does not want to face the future, a future without her mom. Above and beyond the mom thing, her mother is also her best friend. Kate doesn't know what she'll do when her mother finally succumbs to the disease ravaging her insides. During her last days of life, her mom requested a return to her hometown, Eden, MI. Although Kate hates to leave New York City, she would do anything for her mother, except face a future without her. As soon as she moves to Eden, Kate's life starts taking a turn for the different and strange when the popular girl at school tries to trick her and ends up dying in front of her. Thankfully, a mysterious stranger named Henry brings her back to life, in exchange for Kate spending six months a year with him...

Review:
I really do not know why I did not read this book sooner! I've had an ARC copy of it for a while now and just didn't have a chance to get to it, but, had I known how good it would be, I would likely have bumped it up the queue. While the book wasn't perfect, as I had some concerns with the pacing, I wholly enjoyed reading every page.

First of all, my one complaint: the pacing. This may be an issue that has been resolved in the print version, but, as I read an ARC, I cannot say. In this version, a few times the plot seemed to jump from one point in time to another without warning, as though a scene were missing. One example I remember off of the top of my head is that Kate receives a puppy and then, in the next chapter, a dog named Pogo is mentioned, without any mention having been made of the puppy being named Pogo. I figured it out, but it was a bit clunky.

The writing was fantastic, though. I really enjoyed the characters and the story line, even though it was rather strange. So far, Aimée Carter is doing something really new and I'm loving it. The ending of the book was totally not what I was expecting and I have some serious questions. I really wish I knew someone else who had finished this, so that we could discuss the book's conclusion!

If you love mythology, don't miss this YA romance!

"I pushed away a summer breeze
I want the promise of a real spring
Free and born again
Help me

Old emotions are coming back to me"