DNF: Cleo by Lucy Coats

Title: Cleo                               

Author: Lucy Coats

Publication: May 7th 2015, Orchard Books

Format: e-ARC, 320 pages            

Source: Netgalley (Thanks to the publisher!)         

Buy it on: Amazon | iBooks | The Book Depository |  National Bookstore / Fully Booked (PH)

Synopsis:                                      

Her precious mother is dead - and it isn't an accident! The young Cleopatra - Pharaoh's illegitimate daughter - must flee the royal palace at Alexandria or die too. As her evil half-sisters usurp the throne, Cleo finds sanctuary at the sacred temple of Isis, where years later she becomes initiated into the secret Sisters of the Living Knot. But now Isis's power is failing, Egypt is in danger, and Cleo must prove her loyalty to her goddess by returning to the Alexandria she hates. She must seek out the hidden map which is the key to returning Isis's power - on pain of death. But will she be able to evade her horrible sisters? And will she find dreamy Khai, the über-hot Librarian boy she met as she fled Alexandria years before? Cleo's powerful destiny is about to unfold...

Gorgeous and evocative, this captivating new YA novel imagines the life of the teenage Cleopatra before she became the icon we think we know.

Misfit Review:

7%

I have no issues with stories that are based off of real people, those who existed and made an impact in society, good or bad, as long as the story is interesting, consistent, not boring and not written in a way I expected it will be.

This reimagining of Cleopatra, in her teenage years, and how she claims her right to the throne is written way too modern for my taste, like reading a usual YA contemporary novel. Maybe if this written with a high fantasy flair, I could've taken it seriously. I also found the rivalry between the sisters quite childish and didn't made me curious enough. And please, Cleo, you just lost your Mom, and you're going goo-goo for Khai, the sexy librarian with the beautiful eyes already? Please. When you think about it, it feels a little like Mean Girls... I mean, just a bit.

But the reason why I had to give up on this novel, even if I know I can at least get through it, is the bad e-ARC copy. Most of the letters are lost. Especially words that start with "th" or "f" at least. Like, why even? I just had to grab a new book to read.

So yeah, Cleo has a lot of holes earlier in the story that may be a total turn-off but if you're interested in how the treatment of this historical figure as a teenager was done, then it might be quite amusing for you. But it wasn't for me.

About The Author:

                                                                                  

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In 2015 I have 6 upcoming titles, 4 books in the brand-new Beasts of Olympus series from Piccadilly Press (Grosset and Dunlap/Penguin Young Readers in the USA), an early reader called The Little Green Drum from Orion and my first proper YA novel, Cleo, from Orchard. Cleo is a mixture of historical and paranormal, and follows the teenage Cleopatra on her journey to become pharaoh. I'm very excited about it indeed!