Review: The Dig

The Dig (Zoe and Zeus Trilogy #1) by Audrey Hart
Release Date ~ November 11, 2011
Backlit Fiction
ISBN13: 9781937704124

Goodreads Synopsis:
Zoe Calder has always been an outsider. Stashed away in boarding schools since her parents died, Zoe buries herself in the study of ancient worlds. Her greatest thrill is spending her summers with her archeologist aunt and uncle on digs around the world. And one day, while investigating a newly unearthed temple in Crete, Zoe discovers a luminous artifact that transports her to ancient Greece.
As Zoe quickly learns, the Olympian Gods are real, living people—humans with mysterious powers… Powers that Zoe quickly realizes she has come to possess, as well. However, when the people of ancient Greece mistake Zoe for an Olympian, the Gods must restore the balance of the ancient world… No matter what.
Zoe is forced to play a confusing and dangerous game as Hera rallies the gods against her—all except for Zeus, the beautiful, winged young god who risks everything to save her.
Out of time and out of her element, teenager Zoe Calder finds herself in ancient Greece, battling against the power of the Olympians and the vengeance of a scorned goddess—all for the strange and mysterious boy she has come to love.

I don't think I'll ever get sick of reading books based on Greek mythology and the gods. Never, never, never! I love reading books about it and seeing how creatively the authors can use traditional elements and make them their own. And for what it's worth, I think authors who choose to write stories based off these myths have some unique difficulties, as there is always that constant comparison to the "original" story.

Audrey Hart (a.k.a. Caroline Kepnes, for those of you who are curious who she is) is able to pull this off and leaves us with a delightful and fun story for YA readers.

1. Mythology in a different setting:
   The world Zoe encounters is one you would imagine if you were reading the stories and myths of Ancient Greece, just filled with all sorts of creatures and divine activity. But at the same time, familiar elements are maintained such as the Olympian gods and goddesses and their fascinating personalities. I always love to see how a writer is going to portray the gods, because they are such complex entities in and of themselves that it's neat to see which attributes are played up. Audrey's interpretation of Zeus is particularly cool because how often is Zeus portrayed in a YA book? Plus, her perception of the gods as a whole  as they relate to Zoe and as teenagers was such a different spin on them and I loved it!
2. Teen audience:
   This book definitely read to me as if it was written with a teen audience in mind; for those who enjoy simpler, fast-paced stories this one is going to be an excellent read full of adventure. It's written in such a way that it holds your attention, and fully immerses you in Zoe's head and her world.

That being said, it was a bit TOO much of a teen read for me. It felt young at some times, and some of the characters lacked the maturity I was hoping to see in them.

I was also hoping for more cohesiveness for the story as a whole, and ended up disappointed by the chapter transitions because they just felt a bit clunky to me overall. They didn't flow the way they should in order to carry on the feeling and experience I would expect.

And that ending? SO SUDDEN! I couldn't believe it when it was over, although it was also broken off at the right time so it didn't feel like a cliffhanger exactly. It just felt very soon, although it wasn't rushed either. It's an interesting ending though, and I'm really curious about how this will all pan out for Zoe in the next books.