Thursday, October 29, 2009

Gods Behaving Badly - Book #97


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Title Gods Behaving Badly
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Author Marie Phillips
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Genre Fiction
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Pages 292
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Publisher Little, Brown and Company
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Copyright 2007
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Synopsis (from web-site)
Being a Greek god is not all it once was. Yes, the twelve gods of Olympus are alive and well in the twenty-first century, but they are crammed together in a London townhouse-and none too happy about it. And they've had to get day jobs: Artemis as a dog-walker, Apollo as a TV psychic, Aphrodite as a phone sex operator, Dionysus as a DJ. Even more disturbingly, their powers are waning, and even turning mortals into trees-a favorite pastime of Apollo's-is sapping their vital reserves of strength. Soon, what begins as a minor squabble between Aphrodite and Apollo escalates into an epic battle of wills. Two perplexed humans, Alice and Neil, who are caught in the crossfire, must fear not only for their own lives, but for the survival of humankind. Nothing less than a true act of heroism is needed-but can these two decidedly ordinary people replicate the feats of the mythical heroes and save the world?

Why I read It
I liked the title and the author is English. I saw it on the GoodReads website. BTW, if you are a member of Goodreads please friend me.

The Good
Great concept. The 12 Greek Gods are all still alive and well, living in a London row house. A quirky and fun little book.

The Bad
Too Short! I wish this had been fleshed out a lot more – like 600 pages worth. Otherwise, being Gods they tend to be a little crass at times – especially Aphrodite and Apollo.

The Ugly (my opinion)
Great little book and idea. Well worth the few hours it takes to read. FYI – it has been optioned by Ben Stiller – so maybe a movie one day?

The Truth? (other reviews).
New York Times

Mormon Mentions
None

Author Biography
Marie Phillips is a British writer. Her novel Gods Behaving Badly, a comic fantasy concerning Ancient Greek Gods living in modern-day Hampstead, was first published in the UK in 2007, later becoming a bestseller in Canada. She is the daughter of Nicholas Phillips, Baron Phillips of Worth Matravers.

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