The Games Gods Play By Abigail Owens

The Games Gods Play hooks readers in and takes them on an action-packed adventure that will have you on the edge of your seat.

Favourite Quote: 

He squeezes my shoulder, “No matter what Lyra, remember one thing.”

One thing? He just told me like ten. “What?”

“I picked you for a reason. You can do this.”

The god of death picked me. Chose me. Has faith in me. Despite my curse.

The sensation is up to my chin now, and Hades starts to fade from sight as I disappear. His voice follows me into the nothingness.

“You can do this, Lyra… because you’re mine.”

Book Synopsis: 

The gods love to play with us mere mortals. And every hundred years, we let them…

I have never been favored by the gods. Far from it, thanks to Zeus.

Living as a cursed office clerk for the Order of Thieves, I just keep my head down and hope the capricious beings who rule from Olympus won’t notice me. Not an easy feat, given San Francisco is Zeus’ patron city, but I make do. I survive. Until the night I tangle with a different god.

The worst god. Hades.

For the first time ever, the ruthless, mercurial King of the Underworld has entered the Crucible—the deadly contest the gods hold to determine a new ruler to sit on the throne of Olympus. But instead of fighting their own battles, the gods name mortals to compete in their stead.

So why in the Underworld did Hades choose me—a sarcastic nobody with a curse on her shoulders—as his champion? And why does my heart trip every time he says I’m his?

I don’t know if I’m a pawn, bait, or something else entirely to this dangerously tempting god. How can I, when he has more secrets than stars in the sky?

Because Hades is playing by his own rules…and Death will win at any cost. 

Review:

I love Greek mythology, and I always enjoy seeing how authors take the myths, gods, and goddesses many of us know so well and create their own stories with them. I am obsessed with this book. It is so well done and such a fun action-packed read. My only complaint is that the second book doesn’t come out until September, and this book ends on a big cliffhanger. I don’t know how I will wait until September to find out what happens next. 

Let’s start by talking about the world-building and the overall story. This book is set in a modern-day world where gods and goddesses exist. The human world that Abigail has created looks like ours in many ways. There is technology, all the countries in our world exist in this book, and many of our cultural norms also exist in this book. Where Abigail’s world differs is that Greek gods and goddesses exist, and temples worldwide worship these godly beings. Like in the myths, these gods and goddesses can interfere with humans by cursing, blessing, or killing them. Also, Olympus and the Underworld exist and are where these mythological beings live. I liked the world that Abigail created. It’s interesting and well thought out, and I enjoyed exploring it. One of the great things about using parts of our modern-day world is that instead of just dumping a reader into a completely new world, we get to step into a familiar world. It gives readers time to situate themselves in this world without feeling completely lost. 

The story is incredibly entertaining, and I enjoyed every moment of this book. The big overarching story is centred around these deadly games or trials that take place every 100 years. These games were created in order to determine which god or goddess would rule Mount Olympus for the next 100 years. But instead of the gods and goddesses competing in these trials, they pick a human champion to fight for them. For the first time, Hades has decided to take part in these trials, and his involvement in the games has everyone on edge. I loved the premise of this book. It does have a bit of a Hunger Games vibe; the trials are very showy in nature, and these champions are competing against each other to win this big prize. But it’s not a copycat of the Hunger Games series. The trials are just one part of the story, and the way they unfold is incredibly interesting and heart-pounding. I loved how Abigail injected different Greek mythological elements into the trials. She did a great job at breathing new life into these myths and had me wanting more. Other stories are unfolding outside of these trials. You have this growing relationship between Lyra and Hades, as well as this mystery around what truly motivates Hades to participate in these games. You know that whatever Hades is up to is going to be the catalyst to whatever the bigger conflict will be for this series. 

I liked all the characters in this book. They all had a purpose and added so much richness, heart, humour, and depth to the story. I enjoyed Abigail’s take on how the various gods and goddesses would act and thought she did a great job modernizing them. In many ways, Lyra is like that typical reluctant heroine. She doesn’t choose to be Hades’ champion and is constantly calling bull-shit on what the gods and goddesses are doing. Lyra also chooses not to play according to those typical champion rules and is unwilling to let the games change who she is as a person. She helps everyone out in the games because she doesn’t want to see anyone die. I liked her outspoken nature, which often lands her in hot water, especially with Hades. She was just a great character to spend time with. Hades may have stolen my heart. He was such a mysterious and swoony character. I felt instantly drawn to him, and my god when that “touch her and die” side of him came out, my heart melted. His character was interesting because he gave off that dark and cruel vibe because he knew that is what the world expects him to be like, but in reality, he was a fierce and loyal god who truly cared for all the souls that entered the underworld. 

The chemistry between Lyra and Hades is addictive. There is just something about two characters that find themselves working together in dangerous and deadly circumstances that heightens any feelings that they may have and will often cause outbursts of emotions that are just so delicious to witness on the page. Those outbursts often came from Hades and were a result of Lyra being seriously hurt or endangered. It’s always a glorious thing to watch an alpha male who is always in control lose his shit and become completely undone. There was just something that made the growing relationship between Lyra and Hades so damn good and enjoyable to watch. I liked everything about them. There is, of course, plenty of conflict, which is to be expected in a fantasy romance. Most of the conflict is external, but there is this question of whether Lyra can completely trust Hades. She doesn’t know if he is being completely honest with her and that hesitancy is a barrier these two need to work through. 

The Games Gods Play is a fast-paced, addictive read with characters you cannot help but love and a romance that will have your heart racing.