Helen Kasios is ready to show Olympus that she means business when she throws her name in the mix for the role of Ares. Unfortunately for her, Zeus has declared that whoever gets in the ring and comes out as Ares will also gain Helen as their wife. It was a decision no one spoke to Helen about, and she is understandably furious. It’s why she still throws her name in the tournament: to piss her brother off and show Olympus that she’s not just a prize to win. The fact that Helen falls in love along the way is just a big surprise to everyone involved.
I picked this up excited that we were getting a throuple. I’ve seen a lot of love triangles in books but a throuple? Now that’s both exciting and different! We follow Helen, Achilles, and Patroclus through their rotating perspectives. I discovered I really liked Patroclus right at the start while I had a hard time getting behind Achilles and Helen. However, it really worked at first because Patroclus is sensitive and serious while Achilles and Helen are pure chaos who act before thinking.
By the time the tournament started, which gave me some Hunger Games vibes without the seriousness behind it, the three characters started to merge together. Their individual voices started to sound like the same voice and I just wasn’t digging the romance. It felt like something was missing while also going through the motions and details in a blow by blow fashion any time they hit the bedroom. The only one I can truly believe fell in love with Helen is Patroclus, but I’m not sure that I believe that Helen or Achilles fell for each other or that Helen truly returned Patroclus’s feelings. I like the concept of a throuple but it missed the mark for me here.
While I do think the overall concept and content was good, it just felt like something went missing along the way and the character’s voices blurred into one. I also would’ve loved it to have really leaned into the reality TV contest concept as well, but it was sort of there in name only since there was an audience and hidden cameras only at each arena. I think this was a miss for me while being something a few of my friends would love. That said, I’m still going to read the next book because I’ve been liking Katee’s modern retellings so far even though this one was a miss for me.
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