Book Title: The Sky Throne by Chris Ledbetter
Category: YA Fiction, 300 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Month 9 Books
Release date: April 18, 2017
Tour dates: Sept 18 to Oct 20, 2017
Content Rating: PG + M (No f-words but there may be some mild profanity, and mild religious expletives such as "damn", "hell" and "Oh God!", some depictions of violence. No drug use or underage drinking. Some semi-mature themes - suggestion of sexual misconduct by certain characters, but not the actual performing of it.)
Book Description:
Duality dwells at every turn, and an adolescent Zeus will learn that all too well when Hyperion attacks his family on Crete.
When the dust settles, his mother is unconscious and his best friend left for dead.
Stacking epic insult upon fatal injury, Zeus discovers the woman who raised him is not his biological mother. But to ensure her safety while she recovers, a heavy-hearted Zeus leaves her behind to seek answers at Mount Olympus Preparatory Academia.
Zeus embarks on a quest to discover who ordered the attack on his home, avenge the death of his friend, and find his birth mother. When some of his new schoolmates vanish, Zeus's quest is turned upside down, and the only way to make things right is to access the power of The Sky Throne, confront a most dangerous enemy, and take his life back.
On his way to becoming king of the Greek gods, Zeus will learn to seize power, neutralize his enemies, and fall in love.
My Review
The fantasy literary genre dates back to the nineteenth century, with several examples of classical fantasy such as Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and its sequel Through the Looking Glass, not to mention L. Frank Baum’s massive Oz series. Religious mythology would ultimately become a heavy influence in works such as J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy and its prequel The Hobbit, rooted in Norse mythos, and C.S. Lewis’s Chronicles of Narnia, based on biblical themes. Greek mythology hasn’t been heavily utilized, though, except perhaps in works such as Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians cycle.
Modern writer Chris Ledbetter, though, takes a similar stab at Greek-themed fantasy with The Sky Throne, which he dedicates to his father, who introduced him to Hellenic mythology when he was five years old. The perspective is first-person, with the narrator being Zeus, many other characters through the story named after Greek deities, although a few have nicknames, such as Poseidon’s being Don and Hades’ being Shade. The initial setting is the island of Crete in an unidentified period, with the author rarely mentioning his own unique days of the week, appropriate since those in English are largely based on the nomenclature of Nordic gods.
Zeus opens his story with his belief he is an outcast at the Eastern Crete Lower Academy during the two years he has attended, although he does have his talents, chiefly javelin-throwing and wrestling. One of his pranks, however, results in his expulsion, and an ultimate transfer to Mount Olympus Prep, situated on its namesake peak, where much of the action occurs. Several twists abound towards the end of the narrative, with this story generally being enjoyable, if somewhat derivative, particularly with regards to certain familial revelations, although The Sky Throne is definitely a great story for teenagers, particularly fans of Percy Jackson.
To read other reviews, please visit Chris Ledbetter's page on iRead Book Tours.
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Meet the author:
Chris Ledbetter is an award-winning author of short fiction and novels for young adults. “Jason’s Quest,” a short story retelling of the Jason and Medea Greek myth was published in the anthology, Greek Myths Revisited. His first full-length novel, Drawn earned him two awards, Library of Clean Reads Best YA 2015 and Evernight Publishing Readers’ Choice Award Best YA 2015, as well as a USA TODAY “Must Read” recommendation. His second novel, Inked, concludes that duology. The Sky Throne is his newest young adult novel. The second book in the series is set to release in 2018.
He's a proud member of SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) and a strong supporter of the Need for Diverse Books. He now writes and lives in Wilmington, NC with his family, including three cats.
Connect with the Author: Website ~ Twitter ~ facebook ~ Pinterest
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