Artemis the Brave (Goddess Girls)

By: Joan Holub and Suzanne Williams
Publisher: Aladdin
Publication Date: December 2010
ISBN: 978-1416982746
Reviewed by: Deb Fowler
Review Date: December 7, 2010

Naturally everyone at Mount Olympus Academy thought Artemis was brave simply because she was an excellent archer and the “goddess of the hunt,” but if they could read her mind when they were in the Forest of the Beasts on a Beast-ology assignment for Professor Ladon, they’d think otherwise. She could almost hear them now: “My, godness, we never knew Artemis was such a wuss.” Athena, Aphrodite, and Persephone were counting on her to finish off the Geryon, a “one-headed, two-armed, three-bodied, four-winged, six-legged beast.” She’d finished off two other nasty creatures, a she-dragon and a goat-headed Chimera, but there would be a whole lot of shrieking before they’d get an A from Ladon on this one. “Nah, nah, nuh, nah, nah.” The four best goddess-girlfriends were going to have their work cut out for them if they were going to destroy that “big green patoot” before the next class.

Boys, boys, boys! Artemis really wasn’t into them and after spotting the nymph girls, who were “notoriously boy crazy,” on the way back to MOA she had a few choice words for Aphrodite, MOA’s notorious matchmaker. “I wouldn’t be caught dead mooning over any godboy.” Eeew, eeew! About the only boy she liked was her twin brother, Apollo, but things would soon change when she went to her locker. “Number one thirty-three, please open for me!” The locker opened wide, but so did her eyes when she spotted a heavenly sight a few lockers down. “His skin shimmered slightly as he moved, as if he’d been powdered with a fine golden glitter.” Orion Starr, foreign exchange student. What a heavenly sight! And he even loved dogs. She could hear alarms going off in her head, but who would ever believe that Artemis, everyone’s “buddy,” could fall for a guy?

You’re going to fall in love with Artemis, the girl who never, ever thought she'd be crazy about boys. This is the fourth in the Goddess Girls series and I admittedly enjoyed this one the most (sorry, Athena, Aphrodite, and Persephone). The series is really coming along now and I’m ultra pleased to see another two on the roster. This may be an easy way to learn about Greek mythology, but an even better way to spend a day with some fun, quirky goddessgirls and godboys. Of course in this one we are privileged to meet Orion, the most stuck up . . . OK, no spoilers here, but this magnificently shimmering cast of characters will keep you mesmerized from the first page to the last. If you’ve ever read anything about MOA, I’m sure you’re anxiously waiting to read about Artemis. If not, you don’t know what you’re missing!

Quill says: This delightful, bubbly series will charm the young `tween and teen readers with its "modern spin on classic Greek myths!”