Review: Sweet Venom (Medusa Girls #1) by Tera Lynn Childs

TITLE: Sweet Venom                              SERIES: Medusa Girls #1 AUTHOR: Tera Lynn Childs               PUB DATE: 9/6/11     PUB: Katherine Tegen Books  FORMAT: ARC                                         SOURCE: won

Grace just moved to San Francisco and is excited to start over at a new school. The change is full of fresh possibilities, but it’s also a tiny bit scary. It gets scarier when a minotaur walks in the door. And even more shocking when a girl who looks just like her shows up to fight the monster.Gretchen is tired of monsters pulling her out into the wee hours, especially on a school night, but what can she do? Sending the minotaur back to his bleak home is just another notch on her combat belt. She never expected to run into this girl who could be her double, though.Greer has her life pretty well put together, thank you very much. But that all tilts sideways when two girls who look eerily like her appear on her doorstep and claim they're triplets, supernatural descendants of some hideous creature from Greek myth, destined to spend their lives hunting monsters.These three teenage descendants of Medusa, the once-beautiful gorgon maligned by myth, must reunite and embrace their fates in this unique paranormal world where monsters lurk in plain sight.

THREE WORDS: Made of AWESOME

MY REVIEW: So, I have a confession to make…I’ve had an ARC of Tera Lynn Childs’ Sweet Venom, that I won, on my shelf for awhile, sitting unread. It was just one of those books that kept getting passed over for newer releases and ARCs until I received an ARC of its sequel, prompting me to finally dusting it off and reading it. And I could just kick myself for not reading this gem sooner because It. Is. Awesome!

Grace, Gretchen, and Greer are three very different girls. Insecure Grace just moved to San Fransisco to attend Alpha Academy, tough Gretchen has spent the last four years hunting monsters and privileged, posh Greer has her whole life planned out. But when fate brings these three girls together they must overcome their differences and work together to fulfill their destiny, because it turns out these three girls are triplets. And descendants of the Gorgon Medusa. AND huntresses that must hunt monsters and send them back to the abyss. Personality differences, family and school obligations, and a couple of cute boys are just a few of the obstacles these three girls must face as they fulfill their destiny.

I don’t believe in perfect books, but sometimes if we’re really lucky, we’ll find a book that is perfect for us an individual and Sweet Venom is the perfect book for ME. I loved everything about this book- the story, the writing, the characters.

I’m a huge Greek Mythology fan and love YA and MG books that take Greek myths and re-imagine and retell them in new and exciting ways; much like Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians series (which I’m a HUGE fangirl of). So, Childs’ refreshing and original take on Medusa and her Gorgon sisters pulled me in quickly and absolutely enraptured and enchanted me from beginning to end. This book is perfectly paced and Childs writing is wonderfully imaginative, captivating, entertaining and pitch-perfect.

The world-building and character development are both excellent. I’ve never been to San Fransisco, but Childs lays out her setting with such vivid, intricate details that I felt completely immersed in this city. Much of the world-building relies on the authors ability to weave together actual myth with her own innovative additions, and she does so superbly. And Childs own extensive knowledge and research of the stories, myths and beings she incorporates easily shines through, making the story incredibly layered and dimensional.

I like that the chapters alternate between the points of view of the triplets, allowing readers to really get to know each girl. And I just love these girls! Childs has crafted three different, yet equally complex, layered, realistic and likable characters. Tough Gretchen has such an enticing fierce and fiery attitude, but also has a surprisingly vulnerable and soft side. Greer can be hard to like with her snootiness and chilliness, but there’s also a lot of depth to this girl.  I adore awkward, sweet, brave eco-geek Grace! There is something so genuine and infectious about her and I totes want to be her BFF. I love each girl separately, but I just lurve them as a trio! Their scenes together as a group are so witty and entertaining.

And I can’t forget the cutey-booty boys because there a few: Milo, Nick and Thane. Grace and Milo have an absolutely adorkable flirtation, while Gretchen and Nick’s flirtation is all fire and sarcasm. And Grace’s brother Thane has that alluring quiet and mysterious thang going for him *swoon*.

The story itself is just So. Much. Fun. I was so addicted to all the action, romance, sisterly interaction, humor and exciting mythological elements that I even set my alarm to go off 20 minutes earlier than normal just so I could read a couple chapters before I went to work. I really like that, even though this story definitely isn’t all fluff and rainbows, it never feels too heavy or dark.

The action and monsterfest is non-stop fun and thrills until the very last page. And ohmygods that ending O_O

MY FINAL THOUGHTS: Reading Sweet Venom was a fanfriggintabulously enjoyable experience. Tera Lynn Childs has created an absolute shiny gem of a story full of fab characters, refreshing mythology, exciting action and fun romance. A definite MUST read!

MY RATING

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Read my review of the second book in this series- 

Sweet Shadows