The Goddess Twins Review

Thank you to Spark Press for giving me access to this eBook via NetGalley to review. this book will be available on May 19th, 2020.

2.5/5 stars ⭐ This is a YA modern fantasy about twin almost eighteen-year-olds. They find out they have powers, and are on a quest to find their mother who was kidnapped. Upon going to London to search for her, they meet their estranged family made up of a grandma and many cousins: all women. The twins learn about a hidden past that allows them to see themselves more clearly- for better or for worse. I was interested in this story, seeing black girls in modern fantasy. I wanted to explore the potential I saw in how it could incorporate the strange familial dynamics into the conflict. I think that the choice of giving a spotlight to the women in the family, especially how they all have these unique powers that they can share with each other, is very refreshing. The main problem with this book is that it is incredibly too short for all the author wanted to include. There was little time for, explanation, action, or character development. A good chunk of the story ended up being exposition dumps. Kind of a "this is how we got here" sort of thing. The twins. Aurora and Arden. Arden is the "good one" and Aurora is the "wild one" with a temper. I honestly don't understand how some people in the reviews hated Aurora over Arden; she is the most complex of the two. Aurora is the only dynamic character in this story, as the rest are pretty static. However, everyone is just an archetype of whatever role they were given. Arden is very self-satisfied in the beginning. She judges her sister a bit harshly for reacting differently than her on the issue of their mother going to London. Throughout the entire book, Arden is just perfect. All the characters we meet crap on Aurora to the point where I think, no wonder she has an attitude problem. This starts my issues with writing. Arden says her sister has the "emotional intelligence of a two-year-old." Pages later someone then describes HER as "one of the most emotionally intelligent people [they] know." Arden's speech is awkward. The dialogue as a whole can get this way; it is unlike how people speak in real life. This writing is inconsistent but very noticeable. It made it hard to connect with certain characters for me. *slight spoilers* The story. This premise was full of potential, but we are skimped of so much of the "magic" and action. Much more telling is happening than showing. It all seems to be placed in Aurora's perspectives- which leaves little room for her actual development to take place. The girls describe things that happen such as the cousins they meet helping them learn techniques to control their magic; which we never see. Also they come up with an extravagant plan to rescue the mom that includes- shape-shifting, astral-projection, diversions, and mind-control- which we also never get to see. The author cuts to the after. The actual climax we do get in the book when we meet the capturer is so... underwhelming. They are turned good in one page; and we get a wrap up of this quirky family finally settling into a new life. Overall, this book had a good premise. From reading in the epilogue, I see the promise of a sequel. Maybe this will do the story better. A sequel could flesh out this world and our characters more; whereas as a standalone this is not a world I think I'd return to.

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Thanks for reading!