Blessed With A Curse – Blessed With A Curse Duology Book One
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From the moment of my birth, I became Zeus’s number one Most Wanted.
I’m so screwed.
Zeus doesn’t care that I’m training to be a nurse so I can help and heal people. All he cares about is his law: that humans are forbidden from using magic. A crime punishable by death. That didn’t seem like something I had to worry about since I live my life in meticulous secrecy, but turns out, one can’t hide forever.
Because on the night my magic activated on its own to release a gorgeous demigod from the town’s statue, my deadly fate was sealed. Now Nikandros and I are on the run, and while Nik thinks I should fight for my freedom, I see it as a fast track to being caught and killed.
My magic may be strong, but going up against Zeus himself? Impossible. Run or fight, it doesn’t seem to matter anymore.
Thanks to this magic I’ve been cursed with, I will soon meet my end.
If you Greek Mythology-inspired books like Percy Jackson, observing a young woman forced by circumstance to embrace the heroine within like Katniss in The Hunter Games, and exploring light and innocent romance within your fast-paced Young Adult Fantasy books, then you’ll devour Katie Cherry’s imaginative duology.
Beba –
A statue, a prophecy and the gods of old, a human girl desperate to keep her Magic hidden, is a great way to start a book! Magic use is a big no no on Earth, Zeus has forbidden all use of magic by human, to the point of death. Paige keeps her magic tightly wound up inside her, fearing for her life if anyone discovers she has magic. The town statue of a gorgeous hunk of a man, is one Paige is afraid to touch but on her birthday, she does just that, by mistake but the statue comes to life. What follows is comical, Nikrandos, trapped in stone for centuries, is hysterical in trying to understand modern life. He behaves like a lovestruck teen, completely throwing Paige for a loop! Fearing for her life, Paige thinks she has no alternative but to run away. She and Nik do just, although this leads them to other gods, who want her demise. It really gets interesting from here, the decision Nik forces upon Paige, her horror and disbelief that his scheme could work, even though her magic is soaring now that she’s no longer constraining it. I enjoyed seeing the various gods make their appearance, they’re well described and very fickle! Loved the magical brings popping in, especially Pegasi! The battle scenes are thrilling and at times, just when I thought all hope is gone for our unwilling heroine, a new development! Enjoyed the fun this book evoked.
Karen Eisenbrey –
This fantasy romance is a quick, enjoyable read that folds Greek mythology into a contemporary fantasy setting.
Paige Lindsey is a nursing student who just wants to help people. She is also a secret, illegal magic user—illegal not because of human laws, but because magic was banned by Zeus, and the punishment is death. In this setting, the Greek gods are still worshiped, though they have left the world long ago and rarely take direct action … except against magic users who are reported and caught. Paige lost her family this way, so she is careful to practice her skills in secret and not reveal her ability to anyone. But when a silly 24th-birthday ritual leads to her awakening a statue of a hot demigod, Nikandros, who thinks she’s his destined true love, she has to get out of town. Her choices: spend the rest of her life running and hiding; or confront Zeus and defeat him.
There is a lot to like here. Paige doesn’t immediately buy the soul-mates trope, but allows Nik to help her (and helps him just as much) as they get to know and like each other. It was fun to see the Greek pantheon as characters outside their own myths. And I will always cheer for the downtrodden little guy who stands up to an authoritarian ruler for the right to be who they are or die trying. I was a little sorry that I never got to see Paige try something new and fail the first time. Because the story begins when Paige has already been practicing her magic for years, she is already strong and skilled. Everything she tries just works, even things she hasn’t done before. But she is pretty creative in how she uses her magic, and some of the helpers she gains are adorable.
If you like mythology-based fantasy with clean romance, give this one a try.