A Veil of Gods and Kings (Apollo Ascending Book 1) by Nicole Bailey – Review by Wendy Wary

A Veil of Gods and Kings by Nicole Bailey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Apollo, the half-deity, struggles to let go of his humanity to take the throne among his father, Zeus, and his godly siblings, at Olympus. He has contempt for most of the gods, feeling they misuse their power and lack compassion for the plight of humans. While Zeus loses patience with Apollo, who has dragged his feet on ascending to become the god Zeus expects him to be, he gives him little choice in the matter by threatening those he loves if he doesn’t ascend within the year; in the meantime, he expects him to mentor under Prince Hyacinth, whom Zeus believes to be the best example for Apollo to learn obedience from one’s father.

Apollo sets out with his sister, Artemis, for the kingdom whose prince Apollo finds to be arrogant and conceited. Hyacinth seems to be of the same opinion of Apollo, but is careful in handling the demi-god in an attempt to protect his kingdom from the wrath of the gods. At first, Apollo spends most of his time avoiding the prince and holding to his initial opinions of him, but finally relents after his sister convinces him to make an effort. Both Apollo and Hyacinth are surprised to learn that they aren’t all that different after all, and that they each have more depth than the arrogant outer appearance they both veil themselves with.

I found the book captivating, adventurous, and easy to read. I actually completed the book in one day because I found it so hard to put down. The characters were easy to fall in love with, and even the hardships in the story were delicately navigated and woven into a story that had beautiful flow and sensibility. I’m excited to see how the rest of the story unfolds in the series and what new characters might be introduced.

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