Review
Check out my book review of The Games Gods Play.
Abigail Owen definitely took it up a notch with The Things Gods Break. She crafted a narrative with the sequel that turns the first book into a completely different story. The book picks up right where the first one left off – Lyra and Boone are stuck in Tartarus with the Titans. Lyra is going through it again, and yes her sassy fed-up-with-the-world attitude is in full swing. Even better is that Boone is also losing his patience – which is equal parts hilarious and hot. Lyra is up against another set of tasks in order to escape – but if she does, then the Titans are released as well. And according to popular opinion, that could be catastrophic.
Readers who wanted to get to know Hades on a deeper level will be thrilled with The Things Gods Break. Not only do we get some chapters in his POV, but we see meaningful events from his perspective, through “flashbacks” with Lyra. We see more of where his story began and how hard he fell for her. I can’t share much more in detail without spoiling the book. Just know that it does not disappoint.
I will warn readers that there is a bit of a learning curve with the sequel. I was a bit confused starting out, learning with Lyra what exactly was going on and why. But once readers push past it, then the party really gets started and doesn’t stop until the final page. Oftentimes, authors are under a lot of pressure to deliver a sequel that is just as meaningful and entertaining as the first. I can confidently say that Abigail Owen not only accomplished this, but it somehow makes the first book better.
Abigail Owen returns to the Cantina Book Club Podcast to *carefully* talk about the new characters we meet and challenges faced while writing this book. The Things Gods Break is available October 21.
Book
You’d think I’d have learned by now:
Don’t mouth off to deities.
Don’t fall for the King of the Underworld.
And definitely don’t get dragged into a divine death match where I’m the cursed mortal prize.
But here I am—trapped in Tartarus, humanity’s worst pit stop, squaring off against monsters who make the gods look merciful. Titans, twisted by centuries of rage and ruin, are sealed behind seven ancient locks.
And guess what?
I’m the key.
To escape, I’ll have to survive every horrifying trial they throw at me.
To win, I might have to become something the gods never saw coming.
Oh, and Hades?
He’s about to break every rule the gods ever wrote.
Because to save me…the god of death will burn the world.
But if I break free? So do the Titans.
And the world won’t just suffer—it’ll beg for the end.
The Crucible series is best enjoyed in order.
Reading Order:
Book #1 The Games Gods Play
Book #2 The Things Gods Break
