Tour stop: Oppression by Jessica Therrien (Children of the God's #1)

Title: Oppression
Author: Jessica Therrien
Publication date: Feb. 22nd 2012
Publisher: Zova Books
Age group: Young Adult
Genre: Greek Mythology
Cover rating: 5/5
Content rating: 4/5
Buy: Amazon, Barnes and Noble (grab it while it's on sale!)

Description:
Elyse knows what it means to keep a secret. She's been keeping secrets her whole life. Two, actually. First, that she ages five times slower than the average person, so that while she looks eighteen years old, she's closer to eighty. Second, that her blood has a mysterious power to heal. For Elyse, these things don't make her special. They make life dangerous. After the death of her parents, she's been careful to keep her secret as closely guarded as possible. Now, only one other person in the world knows about her age and ability. Or so she thinks.

Elyse is not the only one keeping secrets. There are others like her all over the world, descendants of the very people the Greeks considered gods. She is one of them, and they have been waiting for her for a long time. Among so many of her kind, she should not be very remarkable--except for the prophecy. Some believe she will put an end to traditions, safeguarded by violence, which have oppressed her people for centuries. Others are determined to keep her from doing just that. But for Elyse, the game is just beginning--and she's not entirely willing to play by their rules.

My thoughts:
Oppression had my full attention before I even started on the first page! The cover is stunning and the description made it sound like exactly my kind of thing. I've been reading quite a few of these Greek Myth YA books that are popping up lately and I'm really enjoying all of them; oppression was no exception! I think the premise is brilliant and unique and I couldn't wait to dive into it.

Thankfully, it did not disappoint! Elyse was a wonderful character and I loved following her on her journey. She ages five times slower than regular people so while she looks like every other teenager on the street, she's actually an elderly woman! I found this concept very interesting and thought Elyse's character was portrayed well. Elyse has always known she's different though she hasn't quite known the full extent of it. It was so intriguing watching Elyse find out her past and I loved discovering more about the powerful world she belonged to.

I think a lot of people will be in two minds about the relationship between Elyse and William. On one hand, it moves mighty fast. But on the hand, there are definitely reasons for this and it was still handled very well. It was definitely believable and one to root for! Elyse is a genuinely nice person who just wants to use her powers for good. She is a very strong and loyal friend and it's hard not to like her.

Overall, Oppression is a well-paced, fantastic novel that I'm sure many people will enjoy. It offers something different to a lot of YA novels out there at the moment and I'd certainly recommend it. Besides, it's only .99 cent on Kindle and Nook right now!