Review: Descendants by Rae Else

Descendants by Rae Else
Summary from Goodreads.com
Publication Date April 12, 2017

There are lots of stories about the children of gods. But what about those cursed by the gods, and their descendants...

El, a seventeen-year-old has inherited an ancient and deadly power. She loses control of it, causing a horrific accident, and becomes the prey of a secret organisation, known as the Order.

Forced from her family and home, she hides in plain sight amidst the crowds of London, and is thrust into a world she never knew existed; one full of arete: beings with extraordinary powers like hers.

Arete are beings that can trace their lineage and powers from ancient Greece. They do not claim their inheritance comes from the gods, rather legend says they are descended from cursed beings, such as Medusa.

At the heart of their world is the kerykeion, the symbol that protects them from the humans and the humans from them. El is trapped between two factions, one that has built an empire around the kerykeion and another that is determined to bring it down.

As she is drawn deeper into the conflict, the only way to find the truth is to take matters into her own hands, and the line between friend and foe becomes dangerously blurred.

Descendants is the first book in the Young Adult, Urban Fantasy trilogy: The Arete Series. 


Review: I liked the overall storyline and am interested in what happens next, however the book started kind of abruptly. I felt that I was playing catch up trying to figure out what was going on. Maybe if there had been a better introduction into what the arete were I wouldn't have been so lost. Once I was able to understand the world of the arete, about halfway through, then I really enjoyed the rest of the book. Interesting concept and look forward to seeing how things progress in book two.