ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Apollo lives his life dreading and avoiding his Ascension to immortality at all costs, so his father, Zeus, presents him with a choice--spend the next year with the insufferable Prince Hyacinth, who seems determined to upstage Apollo at every chance he gets, or take his rightful place on Olympus immediately. Apollo and Hyacinth, first struggling with shared contempt for each other, begin to realize they may have more in common than they thought. When their disdain begins to blossom into friendship, and maybe something more, their lives, families, and kingdom will be put at risk. 

A Veil of Gods and Kings was an absolutely wonderful retelling of Apollo and Hyacinth’s story. Told from three first-person points of views and littered with mythological references, beautiful quotes, and amazing banter, this book grabbed me from the first chapter and held my attention to the very end.

First, the characters, and especially the relationships between them, were absolutely adorable. Apollo and Hyacinth, though they were a tad bit boring on their own, were a fantastic couple. The slow understanding they both had as they realized they were falling for each other was beautiful to see, and their back-and-forth bickering and nicknaming was so cute. I also loved the characters of Artemis, or Temi, and Epiphany. The aroace rep was absolutely delectable, and their friendship made my heart so happy. 

Another thing I really liked about A Veil of Gods and Kings was the author’s writing style. It had this natural rhythm and casual flow to it that made the book an easy and relaxing read. It wasn’t particularly polished or refined, if that makes sense, but I enjoyed it nonetheless.

A couple things you should keep in mind when reading this book: It is not historically accurate, as the author actually addressed in a note at the beginning of the book, or even mythologically accurate. It almost felt like it was more inspired by the myth than an actual retelling. It’s also a series, so don’t expect the whole myth, story, or--slight spoiler warning--tragic ending in this book.

The main problem I had in this book, which was more a personal preference than an actual flaw, was that it had very little action or mystery. It was almost completely political intrigue and romance, which I completely understand is some people’s cup of tea but isn’t really mine. I wish we had gotten to see more of Temi hunting, or Apollo using his powers, or even a more detailed description of a discus game. 

All in all, this book wasn’t my favorite, but it was really really good and I definitely recommend it if you like political-based romance. I’m so thankful I got a chance to read this book, and I can’t wait for the second one to be released. <3