The Games Gods Play: the Bestselling Greek Gods Romantasy Epic, Perfect for Readers of Rebecca Yarros' Onyx Storm and Sarah J Maas Series: The Crucible Book #1 Published by red tower books on July 29, 2025
Genres: Fiction / Fantasy / Dragons & Mythical Creatures, Fiction / Fantasy / General, FICTION / Fantasy / Urban, Fiction / Romance / Fantasy
Pages: 528
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Reading Challenges: All booksThe beautiful deluxe hardback edition of THE INSTANT #1 NEW YORK TIMES, #1 USA TODAY BESTSELLER, this dazzling romantasy epic from an award-winning author is A Court of Thorns and Roses meets Percy Jackson in an alternate contemporary world where the gods of mythology never died. For readers of Rebecca Yarros.
The gods love to play with us mere mortals. And every hundred years, we let them...
I have never been favored by the gods. Far from it, thanks to Zeus.
Living as a cursed office clerk for the Order of Thieves, I just keep my head down and hope the capricious beings who rule from Olympus won't notice me. Not an easy feat, given San Francisco is Zeus's patron city, but I make do. I survive. Until the night I tangle with a different god.
The worst god. Hades.
For the first time ever, the ruthless, mercurial King of the Underworld has entered the Crucible-the deadly contest the gods hold to determine a new ruler to sit on the throne of Olympus. But instead of fighting their own battles, the gods name mortals to compete in their stead.
So why in the Underworld did Hades choose me-a sarcastic nobody with a curse on her shoulders-as his champion? And why does my heart trip every time he says I'm his?
I don't know if I'm a pawn, bait, or something else entirely to this dangerously tempting god. How can I, when he has more secrets than stars in the sky?
Because Hades is playing by his own rules...and Death will win at any cost.
The Games Were Deadly. My Sleep Never Stood a Chance.
There are books you enjoy… and then there are books that grab you by the throat, throw you into an arena full of angry gods, impossible choices, and one dangerously irresistible Hades, and refuse to let you leave until 3 a.m.
The Games Gods Play was absolutely that book.
I went in expecting Greek mythology and a fun competition. What I got was betrayal, impossible trials, gods behaving exactly like the dramatic, petty immortals they’re supposed to be, and chapter after chapter that had me thinking, “Just one more…” Spoiler alert: there is never just one more.
Lyra was exactly the kind of heroine I love. She doesn’t magically become fearless overnight. She gets knocked down, questions herself, gets back up, and keeps fighting anyway. Watching her refuse to let the gods decide her fate made it impossible not to root for her. Seeing her continue to defy them in ways they couldn’t even comprehend only made me love her more. Every time a god decided a mortal was expendable, I found myself thinking, “Nope. Not on Lyra’s watch if she can help it.”
And then there’s Hades…
Excuse me while I scream into the void.
Mysterious. Powerful. Morally gray. Protective without losing that dangerous edge.
Every scene with him had me hanging on every word. The slow-burn tension was exquisite, and I was completely invested in every interaction.
The games themselves were phenomenal. Every challenge felt dangerous, unpredictable, and genuinely high stakes. Nobody felt safe, and I loved that I could never confidently predict what disaster was waiting around the corner. The pacing never let up, and every victory came with a cost.
What really made this a five-star read for me was how emotionally invested I became. I celebrated the wins, panicked during the losses, questioned everyone’s motives, and spent the last part of the book mentally yelling at the pages because I needed answers immediately.
And that ending?
Absolutely criminal.
I closed the book and immediately entered the “How am I supposed to wait for the next one?” phase of my life. Unfortunately, I borrowed this one from the library, which means now I have to patiently wait for them to get the sequel. If that’s not torture worthy of the gods themselves, I don’t know what is.
If you love Greek mythology, deadly competitions, powerful gods, slow-burn romance, impossible choices, and stories that completely consume your thoughts long after you’ve finished reading, do yourself a favor and pick this one up.
The gods may have been playing their games…
…but Abigail Owen was playing with my emotions, and I happily lost.
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