Review: Lore Olympus Vol 1 (Lore Olympus #1)

Lore Olympus Vol 1 (Lore Olympus #1)
By Rachel Smythe

Published By: Del Rey Books
Publication Date: November 2, 2021
Date Read: November 28, 2021
Genre: Adult – Retellings
Source: Bought
Format: Hardback
Pages: 384

From Goodreads:
Experience the propulsive love story of two Greek gods—Hades and Persephone—brought to life with lavish artwork and an irresistible contemporary voice.

Scandalous gossip, wild parties, and forbidden love—witness what the gods do after dark in this stylish and contemporary reimagining of one of mythology’s most well-known stories from creator Rachel Smythe. Featuring a brand-new, exclusive short story, Smythe’s original Eisner-nominated web-comic Lore Olympus brings the Greek Pantheon into the modern age with this sharply perceptive and romantic graphic novel.

This volume collects episodes 1-25 of the #1 WEBTOON comic, Lore Olympus.

I have seen Lore Olympus mentioned over and over online for a couple of years now but I had never taken the plunge and read it. With it being a WebToon I was never really interested. I don’t enjoy reading on my phone or kindle so it was a no from me as that is how I would have had to read it. Fast forward a few years and I saw it was releasing as a physical book and I thought this was the perfect time for me to see what the fuss is all about and read it.

Unfortunately at first I was all like… I don’t get it! I was constantly confused and not knowing what the hell was going on. Now this was nothing to do with the content. I actually know Greek Mythology really well. As I went on, I realised I do actually enjoy Lore Olympus… I just don’t think it has translated from WebToon to graphic novel very well. I decided to switch to reading it on WebToon (I know, I know, I don’t like reading on my phone but just go with me on this!) and I started to enjoy it. I also realised why I was so damn confused! On the WebToon there are something little introductions and recaps of what’s already happened at the end of the last episode before you start the next episode. They kept those in the book… even though it was not explained or shown that it was a recap. It looked like it was just repeating what has just happened for no reason at all! I personally feel like this confuses new readers.

I am glad I read it… I am glad I have the bind-up and I will continue to collect the physical copies however if you’re new to Lore Olympus, do yourself a favour and just read it on WebToon.

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