#Thursday Review - Theta by Lizzy Ford (Fantasy, Mythology) @LizzyFord2010

Series: Omega # 2
Format: E-Galley, 302 pages
Release Date: August 29, 2016
Publisher: Captured Press
Source: NetGalley
Genre: Fantasy, Mythology

Alessandra, the Oracle of Delphi, is under the control of the Supreme Magistrate, a madman determined to use her goddess-like powers to conquer deities and humans alike. Unable to confront him as she would like to, she bides her time and learns the political ropes while trying to save as many lives as possible. The implant linking her telepathically to the Supreme Magistrate begins to pull her into his madness, until she can no longer tell reality from the fictitious world he has created. With her allies exiled beyond the walls, Alessandra turns to Lantos, the Supreme Priest, a demigod as likely to betray her as help her. Lantos promises to help her on one condition – a condition she’s initially unwilling to accept.

Outside of Washington DC, Phoibe, the Silent Queen, struggles to control her rebellion. The army is fractured and unwilling to follow a teenage queen against the military might the Supreme Magistrate has spent years building. Just when she’s about to give up, she finds support where she least expects to: in the very gods she swore to expel from Earth. They’ll help her, if she calls off her war against them.

The Grotesque Prince, Adonis, has spent his life not knowing who he is. On a journey of self-discovery mandated by the goddess Artemis, he returns to the lands he once ruled. Amidst the rubble and destruction caused by the gods, he uncovers the plaque the goddess tasked him to find. Once he reads it, he understands too well the danger he’s placed everyone around him in, especially Alessandra, who woke him from slumber without understanding the consequences of such an action.

Theta is the second installment in author Lizzy Ford's Omega series. Theta picks up several months after the brutal ending to Omega. 18-year old protagonist Alessandra aka Lyssa, is the fated Oracle of Delphi. She's found herself in a precarious situation after being ensnared by Cleon, the Supreme Megalomaniac who she is bound to thanks an unbreakable implant placed on her spine. After the horrific ending to Oracle, Lyssa has few options left and few allies she can trust. She's basically a weapon that can be pointed at anyone that Cleon doesn't like, and she doesn't have a whole lot of room to say no.

With her her one source of happiness, Adonis, the Grotesque Prince away on a mission to find answers about his own past and her servant/spy Leandra being continually watched, Lyssa has to find a way to hold out as long as she can to avoid having all of her powers. This novel actually is a bit different from the first one. This novel is not only from Lyssa's perspective, but also Phoibe, the Silent Queens. It is from this perspective that we see the real meaning of the war that the Gods brought to the planet 5 years ago. 

It is from her perspective that we get the real meaning of loss, and suffering, and tragedy, and a real desire to rid the world of the Gods who she despises once and for all. With Lyssa being compromised by Cleon, Phoibe and her allies must confront the real possibility of having to move forward against Cleon and Lantos, the Supreme Priest alone. There is yet another perspective as well, and that is of Niko, the mercenary, turned Army Commander who has thrown all in with Cleon. We also can't forget Adonis even though he isn't in the story that much. What parts he is in, explain a whole lot about his bloodline that also affects Phoibe. 

If there were a way for readers to actually travel into a story for just a moment in time so that we could can punch a character in the throat, Niko would definitely be my choice. There's someone else as well, but I won't spoil who else becomes a villain. Ford has definitely turned this series into a curiosity with a damn startling revelation and betrayal that left me itching for the next installment. Before I finish, I should explain that Ford also has a series called Theta Beginnings that actually takes place BEFORE this series. It features characters like Lyssa, Phoibe, Mismatch, Lantos, Theodocia, & Herakles just to name a handful. 

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#Thursday Review - Omega by Lizzy Ford (Young Adult, Dystopian, Mythology)

Series: Omega # 1
Format: Mobi, 464 pages
Release Date: October 26, 2015
Publisher: Captured Press
Source: NetGalley
Genre: Fantasy, Mythology

In a modern world ruled by territorial Greek gods, the human race has been oppressed, exploited and now, nearly destroyed by the constant infighting of gods.

However, a human girl with the power of a goddess is coming of age. Alessandra is the Oracle of Delphi – the last prophesied – and bears the mark of the double omega. Soon after she turns eighteen, Alessandra is told her destiny: to step between the warring gods and the human race and save her world from certain ruin. 

For the gods, her appearance marks the beginning of the end – their end. They and the Triumvirate – leaders of the human elite – who serve them will stop at nothing to preserve their power. 

Alessandra emerges from the forest where she spent her life hidden from gods and men and immediately plummets into a race against time, gods, and herself to discover who and what she is in a world where everyone she meets has a hidden agenda, and those pulling the strings remain in the shadows.

Before she can determine exactly what kind of savior her world needs, she must first master her power by completing three trials devised by the Triumvirate to enslave her. 

One lone girl stands between warring gods and the people she’s destined to protect, but it’s the battle to understand who she is that she must win first. 

Omega is the first installment in author Lizzy Ford's Young Adult Dystopian/Mythology series called Omega. The series features 18-year old Alessandra aka Lyssa. Lyssa has lived in an isolated orphanage run by priests ever since she was Six years old. When she was Six, Herakles, a former Olympian, rescued her after her parents died. For Twelve years, Lyssa has been under the guidance of Herakles. He has trained her and conditioned her, and warned her continually to never ever stray from the woods for which he has tested her. He has kept her from knowing about the real world which is facing a grim reality. 

Lyssa for her part, has a strange double Omega Greek Alphabet birthmark on her bicep which makes her an outcast of sorts among the other orphans. 30 beautiful Nymphs who will eventually serve in the temples of the Gods who have each claimed part of the country. After Lyssa carelessly crosses the border to wade into a nearby lake, she trips key events into motion that will unravel her entire world. Now, with one silly mistake, she compromises the safety of not only the priests and the nymphs who have lived her with, but let's the world run by a group known as the Triumvirate, know where she is.

She encounters a man/beast with fangs, talons, barbed tail, intelligence, and wings who seems to know her from somewhere. After the mansion is attacked, she is told a stunning truth about who she really is. Once every other generation or so, a very special woman comes along. Someone with great power that rivals the Gods; The Oracle of Delphi. The Oracle has the ability to bridge between humans and Gods. Lyssa was brought to the orphanage to protect her from both Gods and Men who will wish to use her. 

After ending up in the hands of a mercenary known as Niko, Lyssa will quickly learn that nothing is at it seems. Her entire existence will be tested by three key individuals. The Silent Queen who is the symbol of unity between Gods and men. The Supreme Magistrate is the political representative of humanity. And, The Supreme Priest who is the Gods advocate on Earth. Lyssa will be forced to face truths about herself, about her parents, about Niko & Herakles, and especially about those who have been around her for the past 12 years. But, none so important as the man known as Adonis Wade who may become her strongest ally, or her worst enemy.

Lyssa will face three separate tests to see if she is deemed worthy to be the Oracle's replacement. She will face consequences for making one silly mistake in wanting to be someone who is able to go and enjoy what other people have while she was studying and training to survive. She will also find that both men and certain Gods are doing everything they possibly can to help her survive against the greatest odds a person can face. But, never count out Lyssa. She is strong. She is determined to face any and all challenges, and she has a mind of her own that won't be easily swayed by brut force or ugly betrayals.

You will definitely want to cheer on Lyssa when she makes her way through this world that is tearing itself apart. You will cheer for Lyssa

when she realizes that those she love really did their best to keep her safe from the world outside even by keeping her ignorant. You will love Lyssa's relationship & bond with Adonis that is gloriously warm and encouraging and seductive. You will want to read past the final chapter of this book because it goes back to when Lyssa was 6, and her world shattered. You will want to read the next installment because Ms Ford leaves you with Lyssa in the den of inequity and caught precariously in a spider web of deceit.  

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