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Pantheon #7
Age of Heroes
The demigods of Ancient Greek myth are alive and well and ready for war.
Except the demigods of Ancient Greek myth are alive and, well… dying.
Heracles, Perseus, Theseus, Orpheus, Achilles, Hippolyta, Aeneas, King Minos, Helen of Troy – for centuries they have survived on Earth, doing their best to fit in among ordinary humans. The offspring of liaisons between god and mortal, they are blessed, or perhaps cursed, with eternal life. They cannot be killed.
But someone has figured out how to do just that. One by one, the demigods are meeting gory, violent ends.
Now it’s up to Theseus, comfortably ensconced in New York and making his living as a crime fiction writer, to investigate the deaths. His search for the culprit draws him back into the lives of his extended family of cousins and half-siblings, and into a world of tragedy and long-held grudges that he thought, and hoped, he’d put behind him.
Except the demigods of Ancient Greek myth are alive and, well… dying.
Heracles, Perseus, Theseus, Orpheus, Achilles, Hippolyta, Aeneas, King Minos, Helen of Troy – for centuries they have survived on Earth, doing their best to fit in among ordinary humans. The offspring of liaisons between god and mortal, they are blessed, or perhaps cursed, with eternal life. They cannot be killed.
But someone has figured out how to do just that. One by one, the demigods are meeting gory, violent ends.
Now it’s up to Theseus, comfortably ensconced in New York and making his living as a crime fiction writer, to investigate the deaths. His search for the culprit draws him back into the lives of his extended family of cousins and half-siblings, and into a world of tragedy and long-held grudges that he thought, and hoped, he’d put behind him.
380 pages, Paperback
First published September 8, 2016
8 people are currently reading
379 people want to read
About the author
James Lovegrove
152 books663 followersJames Lovegrove is the author of several acclaimed novels and books for children.
James was born on Christmas Eve 1965 and, having dabbled in writing at school, first took to it seriously while at university. A short story of his won a college competition. The prize was £15, and it had cost £18 to get the story professionally typed. This taught him a hard but necessary lesson in the harsh economic realities of a literary career.
Straight after graduating from Oxford with a degree in English Literature, James set himself the goal of getting a novel written and sold within two years. In the event, it took two months. The Hope was completed in six weeks and accepted by Macmillan a fortnight later. The seed for the idea for the novel — a world in microcosm on an ocean liner — was planted during a cross-Channel ferry journey.
James blew his modest advance for The Hope on a round-the-world trip which took him to, among other places, Thailand. His experiences there, particularly what he witnessed of the sex industry in Bangkok, provided much of the inspiration for The Foreigners.
Escardy Gap was co-written with Pete Crowther over a period of a year and a half, the two authors playing a game of creative tag, each completing a section in turn and leaving the other to carry the story on. The result has proved a cult favourite, and was voted by readers of SFX one of the top fifty SF/Fantasy novels of all time.
Days, a satire on consumerism, was shortlisted for the 1998 Arthur C. Clarke Award (losing to Mary Doria Russell’s The Sparrow). The book’s genesis most probably lies in the many visits James used to make as a child to the Oxford Street department store owned by his grandfather. It was written over a period of nine months while James was living in the north-west suburbs of Chicago.
Subsequent works have all been published to great acclaim. These include Untied Kingdom, Worldstorm, Provender Gleed, The Age Of Ra and the back-to-back double-novella Gig. James has also written for children. Wings, a short novel for reluctant readers, was short-listed for several awards, while his fantasy series for teens, The Clouded World, written under the pseudonym Jay Amory, has been translated into 7 other languages so far. A five-book series for reluctant readers, The 5 Lords Of Pain, is appearing at two-monthly intervals throughout 2010.
He also reviews fiction for the Financial Times, specialising in the Young Adult, children’s, science fiction, fantasy, horror and graphic novel genres.
Currently James resides in Eastbourne on the Sussex Coast, having moved there in August 2007 with his wife Lou, sons Monty and Theo, and cat Ozzy. He has a terrific view of the sea from his study window, which he doesn’t sit staring out at all day when he should be working. Honest.
James was born on Christmas Eve 1965 and, having dabbled in writing at school, first took to it seriously while at university. A short story of his won a college competition. The prize was £15, and it had cost £18 to get the story professionally typed. This taught him a hard but necessary lesson in the harsh economic realities of a literary career.
Straight after graduating from Oxford with a degree in English Literature, James set himself the goal of getting a novel written and sold within two years. In the event, it took two months. The Hope was completed in six weeks and accepted by Macmillan a fortnight later. The seed for the idea for the novel — a world in microcosm on an ocean liner — was planted during a cross-Channel ferry journey.
James blew his modest advance for The Hope on a round-the-world trip which took him to, among other places, Thailand. His experiences there, particularly what he witnessed of the sex industry in Bangkok, provided much of the inspiration for The Foreigners.
Escardy Gap was co-written with Pete Crowther over a period of a year and a half, the two authors playing a game of creative tag, each completing a section in turn and leaving the other to carry the story on. The result has proved a cult favourite, and was voted by readers of SFX one of the top fifty SF/Fantasy novels of all time.
Days, a satire on consumerism, was shortlisted for the 1998 Arthur C. Clarke Award (losing to Mary Doria Russell’s The Sparrow). The book’s genesis most probably lies in the many visits James used to make as a child to the Oxford Street department store owned by his grandfather. It was written over a period of nine months while James was living in the north-west suburbs of Chicago.
Subsequent works have all been published to great acclaim. These include Untied Kingdom, Worldstorm, Provender Gleed, The Age Of Ra and the back-to-back double-novella Gig. James has also written for children. Wings, a short novel for reluctant readers, was short-listed for several awards, while his fantasy series for teens, The Clouded World, written under the pseudonym Jay Amory, has been translated into 7 other languages so far. A five-book series for reluctant readers, The 5 Lords Of Pain, is appearing at two-monthly intervals throughout 2010.
He also reviews fiction for the Financial Times, specialising in the Young Adult, children’s, science fiction, fantasy, horror and graphic novel genres.
Currently James resides in Eastbourne on the Sussex Coast, having moved there in August 2007 with his wife Lou, sons Monty and Theo, and cat Ozzy. He has a terrific view of the sea from his study window, which he doesn’t sit staring out at all day when he should be working. Honest.
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
August 2, 2016
Having read all of Lovegrove's previous works in the Pantheon series I began to worry that he had ran out of tales of this nature. After discovering that he had another coming out I was somewhat disappointed to find out that it was not about a brand new pantheon of gods, but about a bunch of Greek demigods. My fears being that this would not live up to his previous books.
After being given an ARC courtesy of the kind people at NetGalley I was pleased to find out that Lovegrove had proved me wrong. With Age of Heroes being one of his best offerings to the Pantheon Series since the release of the original three.
Without going into too much detail Age of Heroes follows the tale of ancient Greek demigods, having forsaken their fame and fortune, living incognito amongst mortals in the modern day. Somewhat peacefully until a rogue bunch of mortal, dubbed the Myrmidons, backed by an anonymous patron begin to hunt down these demigods one by one and slaughter them using relics infused with the same divine essence that makes the demigods immortal. What follows is an action packed tale of two of the demigods going on the offensive to try to work out who these myrmidons are, why they are hunting them down, and doing whatever they can to stop them.
In all of Lovegrove's books he never fails to write great action scenes but in Age of Heroes he also succeeds at humanising ancient beings, easily conveying how it must feel for them to have once been so well known but now must live amongst the mortals that once revered them, abandoned by the gods that sired them.
Although not perfect, i guessed the twist in the story long before it was revealed, this is still a great read that I would recommend to anybody who loves the rest of the series, or mythological stories in general.
After being given an ARC courtesy of the kind people at NetGalley I was pleased to find out that Lovegrove had proved me wrong. With Age of Heroes being one of his best offerings to the Pantheon Series since the release of the original three.
Without going into too much detail Age of Heroes follows the tale of ancient Greek demigods, having forsaken their fame and fortune, living incognito amongst mortals in the modern day. Somewhat peacefully until a rogue bunch of mortal, dubbed the Myrmidons, backed by an anonymous patron begin to hunt down these demigods one by one and slaughter them using relics infused with the same divine essence that makes the demigods immortal. What follows is an action packed tale of two of the demigods going on the offensive to try to work out who these myrmidons are, why they are hunting them down, and doing whatever they can to stop them.
In all of Lovegrove's books he never fails to write great action scenes but in Age of Heroes he also succeeds at humanising ancient beings, easily conveying how it must feel for them to have once been so well known but now must live amongst the mortals that once revered them, abandoned by the gods that sired them.
Although not perfect, i guessed the twist in the story long before it was revealed, this is still a great read that I would recommend to anybody who loves the rest of the series, or mythological stories in general.
February 1, 2021
A rather depressing read. I set out with high expectations of a new book in the ‘Age of …’ series by Mr Lovegrove hoping that it would reach the level of Age of Odin or the Redlaw series. This unfortunately was simply not the case. It feels that most of the Lovegrove catalogue I have read recently have been something of a let-down and age of heroes is no exception. I struggled through the first 1/3 of the book but could manage no more.
There is almost no tension or excitement and very little plot. Such as there was dull in the extreme. Someone has managed to discover 11 of the 12 weapons of divinity previously owned by the demi-gods from the Age of Heroes. They are using them to kill the demi-gods who due to their immortality are still alive and kicking in the 21st century. Given this one could suppose that Lovegrove could make a good tale of this but one would be wrong. The demi-gods are aware of who they are and that conventional weapons have no effect, but when confronted they just go down in a whimper, no fight, no resistance – nothing. At the point I gave up on the novel there had been no hint as to who is behind, these attacks or what the purpose is.
There is almost no tension or excitement and very little plot. Such as there was dull in the extreme. Someone has managed to discover 11 of the 12 weapons of divinity previously owned by the demi-gods from the Age of Heroes. They are using them to kill the demi-gods who due to their immortality are still alive and kicking in the 21st century. Given this one could suppose that Lovegrove could make a good tale of this but one would be wrong. The demi-gods are aware of who they are and that conventional weapons have no effect, but when confronted they just go down in a whimper, no fight, no resistance – nothing. At the point I gave up on the novel there had been no hint as to who is behind, these attacks or what the purpose is.
October 1, 2019
Age of Heroes takes the idea of myths reimagined to a whole new level. To sum the book up quickly: the Greek Demigods still live and thrive in their own ways in the modern world. They have adapted to the 21st Century while still maintaining some of the traits that made them legends. It turns out that someone has it out for these fabled heroes and heroines and will use any means necessary to stop these living legends from breathing including unearthed instruments and tools of the legends themselves.
Will these demigods survive this threat or will they be sent of the depths of Tartarus?
Personally, of the Pantheon Series I that I have read, Age of Heroes seems not only the most believable, but has that sort of suspense and mystery that you find in classical works.
I truly enjoyed this book.
Will these demigods survive this threat or will they be sent of the depths of Tartarus?
Personally, of the Pantheon Series I that I have read, Age of Heroes seems not only the most believable, but has that sort of suspense and mystery that you find in classical works.
I truly enjoyed this book.
February 9, 2018
The demi-gods of ancient Greece are still among us, living incognito - trouble is, someone has hired a team of mercenaries to track them down and kill them. It falls to Theo (formerly, Theseus) to track down the killers' mysterious employer before all his friends from the Old Days are gone. This is a fast-action thriller that blends mythology with present-day tropes. The action sequences are well executed (as are some of the demi-gods!) and there is some funny banter between the immortals. Lovegrove provides effective entertainment. I would love to see this as a film.
March 4, 2018
What a great read, my first by this Author. Fast paced, great characters and a really great storyline, intense rivalries, awfully bad Baddies, the Greek Demi-God's are just as vain and childish as us Mortals. I romped through this book and will be getting the other book's written by this Author. Fab
January 25, 2023
I have enjoyed all of Lovegrove's Pantheon series. Discovering Age of Ra as a teenager led to me devouring these books. They are, in my opinion, the "blockbuster summer action movie" of literature. And Age of Heroes is no exception to that opinion.
The story is rather simple but full of enough red herrings and false twists to suck me in and make me not want to put the book down. The action is punchy and terse and not filled with the flourish and grandiosity of most other fantasy/sci-fi action stories; I do think that the specificity of certain scenes, like an axe lodging in a trapezeous muscle is a little goofy but in a fun way that serves to guide the fights more clearly for the reader, a simplicity that I greatly appreciate.
While the B plot with Josie does leave a little to be desired, and definitely isn't what I would call "realistic mental health representation" it's still effective and emotional enough that it's easy to forgive that failing.
All in All, a fantastic book by a great author
The story is rather simple but full of enough red herrings and false twists to suck me in and make me not want to put the book down. The action is punchy and terse and not filled with the flourish and grandiosity of most other fantasy/sci-fi action stories; I do think that the specificity of certain scenes, like an axe lodging in a trapezeous muscle is a little goofy but in a fun way that serves to guide the fights more clearly for the reader, a simplicity that I greatly appreciate.
While the B plot with Josie does leave a little to be desired, and definitely isn't what I would call "realistic mental health representation" it's still effective and emotional enough that it's easy to forgive that failing.
All in All, a fantastic book by a great author
February 21, 2017
Lovegrove macht viele Fehler:
Grammatikfehler nicht ausgebessert.
Keine Ahnung von vielem wovon er schreibt.
Lässt seine politische Einstellung in Beleidigungen und schlechten Witzen durchklingen.
Bitte leistet euch Korrekturleser.
Eine Glock hat keinen Sicherungshebel; ein Magazinwechsel geht zehnmal rascher als ein Messer zu ziehen! Beschäftigt euch mit der Materie oder lasst es bleiben. Recherche gehört sich nicht nur bei Journalisten.
Jaja, eh super liberal und progressiv. Gehts auch ohne Beleidigungen? Oder hockt er eh noch im Winkerl und heult, weil sein Hinweis auf weibliche US-Präsidenten nix geworden ist?
Ja, er kann Geschichten schreiben, die man schnell liest. Daher durchaus gute Bewertung. Aber ein bissl genauer sein wäre angebracht.
Grammatikfehler nicht ausgebessert.
Keine Ahnung von vielem wovon er schreibt.
Lässt seine politische Einstellung in Beleidigungen und schlechten Witzen durchklingen.
Bitte leistet euch Korrekturleser.
Eine Glock hat keinen Sicherungshebel; ein Magazinwechsel geht zehnmal rascher als ein Messer zu ziehen! Beschäftigt euch mit der Materie oder lasst es bleiben. Recherche gehört sich nicht nur bei Journalisten.
Jaja, eh super liberal und progressiv. Gehts auch ohne Beleidigungen? Oder hockt er eh noch im Winkerl und heult, weil sein Hinweis auf weibliche US-Präsidenten nix geworden ist?
Ja, er kann Geschichten schreiben, die man schnell liest. Daher durchaus gute Bewertung. Aber ein bissl genauer sein wäre angebracht.
May 21, 2020
Peak Lovegrove. I enjoyed this in a way I hadn't enjoyed a Pantheon book since Zeus, the series retaking its place as my guiltiest pleasure. Possibly one of the more smooth transitions of an ancient "pantheon" to modern times and it was everything I love and expect from the concept - mythology, shoot 'em up, and a bit of mystery. Well worth picking up for light entertainment
August 20, 2017
Enjoyable
I was surprised at the twist end and loved how I had to guess at the heroes' true names. Wonderful
I was surprised at the twist end and loved how I had to guess at the heroes' true names. Wonderful
August 15, 2025
It was ok. But didn’t really capture my attention. The fights are good. It wasn’t bad, but I wouldn’t recommend it either.
February 16, 2018
A friend cleaned out his shelves, and i got this among others. its not my Genre, but an ok read.
August 18, 2016
***** I received this ARC for free from Netgalley in return for an honest review *****
I accidentally requested this book, and it sat in my TBR pile for a long time until I decided to clean it out. Boy am I glad that I was granted access to it! Other than some issues with spelling, spacing, and font in the beginning of sentences there wasn't a single thing I didn't like about this novel! I really loved how it brought the mythical heroes of old into the modern day in a seamless manner. It was beautifully executed, and had that rare polish that sucks you in and doesn't let go until it's over! I can't wait to devour the rest of the series!
I accidentally requested this book, and it sat in my TBR pile for a long time until I decided to clean it out. Boy am I glad that I was granted access to it! Other than some issues with spelling, spacing, and font in the beginning of sentences there wasn't a single thing I didn't like about this novel! I really loved how it brought the mythical heroes of old into the modern day in a seamless manner. It was beautifully executed, and had that rare polish that sucks you in and doesn't let go until it's over! I can't wait to devour the rest of the series!
August 10, 2016
This was a fun book. I haven't read any of his other books so I went into this with a fresh, open mind. I enjoyed the storyline and the action scenes. It's a bit of a "who done it" that keeps you guessing and it kept me entertained. There isn't a lot of depth to the story or characters and I'm not sure I would go in search of another in the series to read but it was well written and enjoyable enough.
October 3, 2016
I didn't think it could be better than The Age of Zeus or The Age of Odin, but alas, I was wrong. Great return to form by James Lovegrove. I really enjoyed the way different demigods were true to their roots in the modern world, their characterization was spot on! (Shame about Iron Dan though, was hoping for more from him!).
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
September 22, 2016
4 stars for Theseus's characterization and the entertainment of playing the "which demigod is this" game from the clues embedded in the chapters before it was ultimately revealed, but MOSTLY for Theseus because MY HERO. Heracles was pretty great, too, and Hippolyta was BAMF.
December 6, 2016
I always forget which shelves I put these on... At any rate, another awesome entry in the series. I always look forward to a new one. Lovegrove has quickly become one of my favorite authors. There are demi-gods among us! Way cool.
September 17, 2016
Love this series, and really enjoyed the twist at the end!
April 10, 2017
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 2.5 of 5
Book #8 in a series? I wish I had known before I started. That is one of the problems with Advanced Reader Copies - you just don't always know when a book is part of a series or not. I suppose in today's book market it's safer to assume a book IS part of a series than not. And...I could look it up before reading, but I do like to go into each book with an open mind and knowing only what the publisher wants me to know from the information on the cover and the front matter. And so I end up in the eigth book in a series...
In Age of Heroes, we meet a series of Greek demigods who have hidden themselves among the mortals over the centuries. As demigods, it has been expected that they could never die, but somehow, someone has figured out how to do precisely that ... kill demigods.
Theseus has been living in New York and working as a crime fiction writer which prompts his interest in investigating the murders. The investigation brings him in contact with a lot of his extended family, each of them trying to quietly blend in, but demigods have a very long memory and family squabbles aren't easily forgotten, making it difficult for Theseus to get the information that might help save the family.
Author James Lovegood does a nice job of weaving an action story using classic Greek heroes who've been, essentially, re-booted. The story moves swiftly, with plenty of action, but not a whole lot of substance. Mostly we get action sequence, followed by clever modernization of demigod, followed by action sequence, and so on.
I'm probably not the only person who will make this obvious connection, but the book reads a lot like an adult version of Percy Jackson.
This was a delightful read for the moments that I was in the story, but it doesn't make me want to run out and get any of the other books in the series.
Looking for a good book? Age of Heroes by James Lovegood is an action-packed sequence of Greek demigods that will appeal to those who want a more adult version of the Percy Jackson series.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
Book #8 in a series? I wish I had known before I started. That is one of the problems with Advanced Reader Copies - you just don't always know when a book is part of a series or not. I suppose in today's book market it's safer to assume a book IS part of a series than not. And...I could look it up before reading, but I do like to go into each book with an open mind and knowing only what the publisher wants me to know from the information on the cover and the front matter. And so I end up in the eigth book in a series...
In Age of Heroes, we meet a series of Greek demigods who have hidden themselves among the mortals over the centuries. As demigods, it has been expected that they could never die, but somehow, someone has figured out how to do precisely that ... kill demigods.
Theseus has been living in New York and working as a crime fiction writer which prompts his interest in investigating the murders. The investigation brings him in contact with a lot of his extended family, each of them trying to quietly blend in, but demigods have a very long memory and family squabbles aren't easily forgotten, making it difficult for Theseus to get the information that might help save the family.
Author James Lovegood does a nice job of weaving an action story using classic Greek heroes who've been, essentially, re-booted. The story moves swiftly, with plenty of action, but not a whole lot of substance. Mostly we get action sequence, followed by clever modernization of demigod, followed by action sequence, and so on.
I'm probably not the only person who will make this obvious connection, but the book reads a lot like an adult version of Percy Jackson.
This was a delightful read for the moments that I was in the story, but it doesn't make me want to run out and get any of the other books in the series.
Looking for a good book? Age of Heroes by James Lovegood is an action-packed sequence of Greek demigods that will appeal to those who want a more adult version of the Percy Jackson series.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.
April 12, 2017
i love this series and i think so far this is the best.... great take on ancient myths and fun to think about them still living among us today
Want to read
July 10, 2017Overdrive
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews