Mythothon: Journey Through Hades - Wrap Up & Mini Reviews

Happy Wednesday everyone! Today, I'm sharing my Wrap Up & Mini Reviews for Mythothon, a mythology themed readathon that ran the entire month of September.  It was hosted by Louise @ Foxes and Fairy Tales and was based on the Journey Through Hades of Greek mythology.  I managed to get through 10 of the 11 books on my original TBR, not counting the group book (which wasn't a required read anyway).  Keep reading to see my thoughts on the books I read for this challenge: 

Enter the Underworld - The Most Direct Route:

1. River Styx - Read A Book About A Journey

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We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez is absolutely outstanding and should be required reading as far as I'm concerned.  It's a tough read and it feels like it's ripped right out of the headlines.  I know I can't say anything that hasn't already been said about it, but do yourself a favor and read it.

My review is also on Goodreads.

2. Cerebus - Read A Book With A Dog-Related Word In The Title

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I liked the idea of Dog Days (Dog Days #1) by John Levitt more than I liked the end product.  It sounded like it could have been my sort of urban fantasy series opener, but I was hoping for more from the characters and the magic system.

My review is also on Goodreads.

3. The Plains Of Judgement - Read A Book In A Trilogy, The Third In A Series, A Book With 3 Authors, Or Any Other 3 You Can Think Of

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Courageous (The Lost Fleet #3) by Jack Campbell is another great sequel in this series.  Military sci-fi isn't usually my style, but this series has consistently worked for me.  The characters may not be the best, but the action is excellent.  I can't wait to see where this series goes with Valiant.

My review is also on Goodreads.

4. River Lethe - Read A Book You Keep Forgetting About 

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Fool (Fool #1) by Christopher Moore isn't quite my cup of tea, but it's still a solid read. It's always interesting to see what is done with a Shakespeare retelling.  I don't see enough King Lear retellings.

My review is also on Goodreads.

6. Persephone's Gove - Read A Book By A Female Author

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League of Liars (The League of Liars #1) by Astrid Scholte is a solid YA fantasy mystery thriller, but it doesn't quite manage to live up to the premise.  It's been compared to Six of Crows so of course my expectations were fairly even though I read a lot of mixed reviews.  I would definitely consider this much more of a courtroom drama in a fantasy setting than a heist.  It's a little overlong and repetitive as well, but that said the world-building elements are pretty fascinating.  I see that there is a planned sequel on the horizon, but I don't think I'm interested in it enough to come back into this world.

My review is also on Goodreads and my Magical Readathon: Orilium - Choose Your Own Adventure: Year In Aeldia - September Update.

7. The Fields Of Asphodel - Read A Book About A War, Battle, Conflict, Or Fight

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I really wanted to like 13 Bullets (Laura Caxton #1) by David Wellington more. It starts off pretty well, but it was downhill from there. I did appreciate that the vampires are really monstrous, but the characters were so irritating. Or at least the writing style and dialogue got old after a while.

My review is also on Goodreads.

8. Hades' Palace - Read A Book With Gold, Silver, Or Bronze On The Cover

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The Pure Land by Alan Spence is based on the real life figure of Thomas Blake Glover.  He had an interesting life (given that he's linked to Madama Butterfly and Miss Saigon), but with this novel I'm not sure if I was supposed to take this seriously or not.  It felt far too flat when it comes to characterizations.  No one felt like they could walk off the page or were actually inspired by real people.  Certain language things bugged me too, especially "Irasshaimase" when "Okaerinasai" would have been made a lot more sense in context.  Overall, this just didn't work for me as much as I was hoping.

My review is also on Goodreads and my 2023 Popsugar Reading Challenge - Update #9.

9. The Elysium Fields - Read A Book By A Favorite Author

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The Company Man by Robert Jackson Bennett is probably actually closer to a 3.5 than a 4 for me but I rounded up.  Even though this might be my least favorite of this author, I still enjoy having any chance to read his work because his style really jumps off the page.  I love his blend of old-school noir and steampunk.  I need to get caught up on all of Bennett's work.

My review is also on Goodreads and my 2023 Popsugar Reading Challenge - Update #9.

10. Tartarus: Meet Sisyphus - Read A Book About Death Or A Death

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You're Not Supposed To Die Tonight by Kalynn Bayron would have been a 3 star YA horror story for me if it weren't for that ending. I'm a big fan of horror movies, but a little less so horror movies so I was really hoping the characters would be a bit more genre savvy especially considering they work at a slasher/ horror movie experience camp. Honestly, though, they make some real brain dead decisions that make absolutely no sense. It made me think Geico horror movie commercials about good choices, if you've seen those you'll probably know what I'm talking about. Anyway though I was pleased in the beginning where Charity, the main character, stands up for Crimson Peak. It is a masterpiece.

My review is also on Goodreads.

11. Tartarus: Meet Tantalus - Read A Book About Mythology

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Heart of the Sun Warrior (The Celestial Kingdom #2) by Sue Lynn Tan is a great sequel and finale to this duology, but I didn't quite love it as much as its first part.  That said, though, it was just nice to be back in this world.  The pacing wasn't the best at times and I was hoping for a little more for certain characters.  Either way, I can't wait to read whatever Sue Lynn Tan decides to write in the future because I know it will be beautiful.

My review is also on Goodreads.

Are you taking part in this readathon challenge?  Have you read any of these books?  As always, thanks for visiting my blog and perhaps even commenting down below!