Spartan Destiny by Jennifer Estep

This Spartan makes her own destiny...

Most kids at the Colorado branch of Mythos Academy know me as Rory Forseti, the daughter of Reaper assassins. Secretly, I’m a member of Team Midgard, a group of students and adults tasked with stopping Covington, the evil leader of the Reapers of Chaos. For me, the mission is a deeply personal one, since Covington is also the man who murdered my parents.

When my friends and I get a lead on a powerful artifact that Covington wants to steal, we think we finally have a chance to thwart the Reapers and stop them for good. Team Midgard comes up with a plan, but everything goes sideways, and I’m suddenly in the fight of my life.

My worst fears might have come true, but I know what my Spartan destiny is—to save my friends, or die trying...

Book 3
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Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Spoiler-Free Review

Spartan Destiny is the third and final (I believe) installment of the Mythos Academy: Colorado spin-off. Not only do I strongly suggest reading the series in order to avoid any confusion, but I also believe it best to start with Touch of Frost, which is the debut in the Mythos Academy series, fully developing the world building throughout all the novels.

Rory and her friends at Midgard are still on Convington's tail, attempting to stop his mission of gaining all the mythical artifacts necessary in his evil plot. There is a definite vibe of urgency, as if they fail this time around, all hope will be lost.

Over the past novel, Rory stepped out from her cousin's shadow and finally came into her own as the heroine and narrator of the spin-off series. Whatever insecurities plagued her have finally shifted to confidence in how she fits into life. Fierce, protective, logical, yet also compassionate and empathetic. Rory has the strength to get things done, even while her world is falling down around her.

There's a strong thread of friendship woven into the series, proving that you shouldn't have to do it alone – the relationships built are important. The shared laughter, joy, tragedy, and companionship are what make life worth living, worth fighting the good fight.

Everything in perfect balance, the thrilling action, the paranormal elements, and the emotional connections, I have enjoyed every book in the Mythos Academy series.

Highly recommend Jennifer Estep for both adult and young adult urban fantasy and fantasy. By profession, I can hear an author's voice underlying on the pages, but Estep has a way of writing strong characters that are individuals, where if I read a quote, I could figure out which character was speaking. No two narrators are alike across all of her series, which is what has me eager to pick up whatever she publishes next.

Young Adult age-range: 12+

Also Available in the Mythos Academy: Colorado Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Spartan Heart post.

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Spartan Promise post.

JENNIFER ESTEP is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author, prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

She is the author of the following series:
The Elemental Assassin Series
The Crown of Shards Series
The Mythos Academy Spinoff Series
The Mythos Academy Series
The Bigtime Series
The Black Blade Series

Connect with Jennifer

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Spartan Destiny (Mythos Academy: Colorado #3) by Jennifer Estep to read and review.

Spartan Promise by Jennifer Estep

Hunting for the bad guys has never been so dangerous...

My name is Rory Forseti, and I attend the Colorado branch of Mythos Academy, a school of warrior kids, powerful artifacts, and mythological monsters.

I’m a student, a fierce Spartan warrior, and a member of Team Midgard, a group of kids and adults tasked with stopping the evil Reapers of Chaos. There is one Reaper I’m determined to hunt down above all others: Covington, the man who murdered my parents.

So when the Midgard gets a tip that Covington is going to try to steal a dangerous artifact, I’m ready to fight. But the situation is far more complicated than it seems, and the Reapers aren’t my only enemies.

I’ll have to use all my Spartan strength and skills to survive this. And even then, it might be my blood that gets spilled...

Book 2
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆☆
It is impossible for me not to love a heroine who can look the guy she fancies in the eye and tell him she’ll rescue herself. Rory is pretty special. Adult urban fantasy has had a few heroines who rescue themselves, but there is something special about this teenage warrior who doesn’t feel the need to prove herself to anyone. Rory is her team’s most skilled warrior and she expects to be respected for her abilities. Rory’s clever, she’s brave, and the feminist in me wants a set of these books in every school library.

I’m revealing my age when I compare Rory to Buffy, but this second book gave me a few flashbacks. Apart from the Mythology twist, the framework for these stories is quite similar. And I swear I saw the episode where the characters follow underground chambers up to a graveyard… I have to say that I’m actually finding Rory a more interesting character than Buffy and her innate confidence is a better fit for the post #metoo generation.

The writing is stronger in this second book than it was in the first. As the characters develop and the world building gets more complicated, this series is turning into something memorable. I’m really enjoying the mythology aspect of the book and the references to so many ancient cultures and theologies. The concept retains the action and power dynamics I love in Urban Fantasy while providing a welcome break from vampires and werewolves. The plot feels tighter in this second book and I like the way the wider story is starting to unravel. I’m very excited for the next book in the series!


Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Spartan Promise is the second installment in the Mythos Academy: Colorado series, a sister series to Mythos Academy. First, I suggest reading the main series first. Second, I strongly suggest reading this series in order, as everything ties together in a continuous plot.

After slightly struggling with Spartan Heart – simply because it was no longer a good fit for me like it was nearly a decade ago, reading-wise – I was apprehensive to begin Spartan Promise. I told myself I'd read a little bit and put it down if the book wasn't doing anything for me, reading a little at a time. I sat down with my Kindle and didn't come up for air until I was finished.

Beyond fast-paced, the pages flew by as I immersed myself in the young adult fantasy world Estep has created. Rory is a member of the Migard team, an offshoot of the Protectorate, battling the insurgence of Reapers in Mythos Academy, stealing artifacts to advance their cause.

Set in the backdrop of a school academy catering to those blessed by the gods, be it Spartans, Valkyries, or Vikings, Rory battles beasties, delves through the angst of unrequited crushes, connects deeper with true friends, and wages war against the very man who murdered her parents.

A true page-turner, the novel was exciting, highly descriptive, with deeper world-building than its predecessor.

Definitely recommend to fans of Jennifer Estep, readers of Young Adult Fantasy, and those young at heart who want a little dose of first crushes while saving the world from impending doom and gloom.

Young Adult age-range: 13+. Be warned of fantasy violence.

Also Available in the Mythos Academy: Colorado Series

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

For reviews & more info, check out our Spartan Heart post.

JENNIFER ESTEP is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author, prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

She is the author of the following series:
The Elemental Assassin Series
The Crown of Shards Series
The Mythos Academy Spinoff Series
The Mythos Academy Series
The Bigtime Series
The Black Blade Series

Connect with Jennifer

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Sarah and Erica reviewed their personal copy of Spartan Promise (Mythos Academy: Colorado #2) by Jennifer Estep for this post.

Spartan Heart by Jennifer Estep

New school year, same old problems...

At Mythos Academy, everyone knows exactly who I am: Rory Forseti, Spartan girl and the daughter of Reapers.

Even though I fought alongside my cousin Gwen Frost to save the mythological world from Loki and his evil Reapers of Chaos, I’m still the most hated girl at the academy because of all the horrible things my parents did. I had hoped that this school year would be different, but the other kids just won’t let me forget about my parents.

But something strange is going on at the Colorado academy. First, I run into a Viking guy who dislikes me more than most. Then I notice some odd artifacts in the Library of Antiquities. And worst of all, I start hearing rumors about a new group of Reapers who can summon mythological monsters.

I might be the most hated girl at Mythos Academy, but I’m also the only one who can save it...

Book 1
Buy Links

Amazon US  ~  Amazon UK  ~  Amazon Au  ~  Amazon Ca
B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
The mythological warriors in the Mythos Academy stories offer a welcome reprieve from the myriad of Urban Fantasy vampire and werewolf stories. A spinoff from the original Mythos Academy books, Gwen’s cousin Rory begins this first Colorado book as a grieving social outcast before finding her place and growing into her potential.

I have to admit that Rory grew on me. She’s a little bit wet and a little bit maudlin at the start of the book. Self-pity doesn’t look good on anyone and Rory is wallowing at the beginning of her story. But as Rory’s confidence grows, she quickly becomes more interesting and more likeable. I like the team around Rory and I look forward to watching the characters and relationships grow as the series progresses.

This is good young adult urban fantasy writing. The genre tropes are pretty familiar and there isn’t anything particularly remarkable about the story, but it is well written. I love Jennifer Estep’s adult writing and while this lacks the complexity of her mind blowing Kill the Queen, this is still decent quality young adult storytelling with a strong female lead.

My one issue with this book is with Rory’s Aunt Rachel. At the start of the story, Rachel is 27 and Rory’s new caregiver. She’s described as more of a big sister than a parent. Which makes sense considering the ten-year age gap. However, through the rest of the book she comes across as a maternal matron who chaperones school dances and prepares healthy balanced meals. It doesn’t work for me. Aunt Rachel is supposed to be younger than Taylor Swift. She’s the same age as Selina Gomez. The domestic maternal thing really, really doesn’t work.


Erica – ☆☆☆☆
Spartan Heart is the first in the Mythos Academy: Colorado series. However, it is a spinoff of the Mythos Academy series. While it's possible to read as new, I do believe that it would cause massive confusion, as events that happened in the previous series were mentioned almost on every page.

I would not call this the debut in a brand-new series, as a new series to me means the reader can just pick it up, with no backstory ever told elsewhere. This is a continuation, set in another campus of the Mythos Academy. I suggest reading from Touch of Frost onward.

Having read Touch of Frost almost eight years ago, I was rusty on what had happened, but Estep does a good job on jarring memories without doing too much info-dumpage. Gwen's cousin is the narrator, Rory, who lost her parents, discovering they were Reapers.

Rory is carrying a ton of guilt, even if she helped the good side win a battle in the never-ending war against the Reapers in the previous series. She has to face her peers on the first day of school, when no one trusts her. Not only has she lost her parents, her faith in her abilities to accurately judge a person's character, but she has no one on the planet on her side, worrying about her welfare, except for her aunt.

Spartan Heart was nothing but endless fast-paced action, from page to page, with a bit of everyday life thrown in, but mostly it gave a rundown on what happened in the previous series and how it connected into the current situation.

Reapers are stealing artifacts, and Rory gets caught up in the action.

Rory has a reluctant love interest, where I am beyond thankful there isn't even a hint of insta-love. However, the enemy’s banter was a bit forced, as it also felt irrational. If anything, Ian would have seen Rory as a kindred spirit, not hated her on sight. So the romance angle simply felt forced to me.

While I do believe young adults will find the novel beyond exciting, I will admit that I believe I'm not the target audience anymore. Had I read this almost a decade ago, when I first read Touch of Frost, I would have been captivated, but today I'm a different sort of reader. This doesn't invalidate the novel, just that it wasn't exactly my cup of tea anymore.

There was a bit too much going on at all times for me to truly relax and fall into the story. Like Rory didn't even get to catch her breath before she was being attacked by more mythological beasties. One battle would be over, yet another would start three pages later, in an endless loop, feeling redundant after several battles. As this was book one, I knew Rory would come out on the surviving end, so that took away from some of the heart-stopping action.

Recommended to fans of the author. New readers, I strongly suggest against reading this without reading the original series first.

Young Adult Age-range: 13+, parental discretion as there is nonstop fantasy violence.

JENNIFER ESTEP is a New York Times, USA Today, and international bestselling author, prowling the streets of her imagination in search of her next fantasy idea.

She is the author of the following series:
The Elemental Assassin Series
The Crown of Shards Series
The Mythos Academy Spinoff Series
The Mythos Academy Series
The Bigtime Series
The Black Blade Series

Connect with Jennifer

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads


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Sarah and Erica reviewed their personal copy of Spartan Heart (Mythos Academy: Colorado #1) by Jennifer Estep for this post.