The Myth of Monsters by Katherine Marsh

 

Last week, I finished reading the first two books of The Myth of Monsters series. This fantasy series is about Ava Baldwin, a seventh grade girl who struggles control her anger and learns that she is a descendant of Medusa. In the first book, Medusa, Ava's parents send her and her brother, Jax, to the Accademia del Forte, a mysterious international boarding school in Venice, Italy, after she accident freezes her classmate, Owen, for talking over her one too many times and taking a book she wanted to check out from the library for her Greek mythology project on Athena. At the Accademia, the descendants of mythological monsters are taught to control their powers and emotions. Soon, Ava befriends Fia, Layla, and Arnold. When Fia is almost expelled for challenging a teacher, they go on an adventure to find out the secret that the school is hiding about Medusa. In the second book, The Gods' Revenge, Ava, Jax, and their friends return to the Accademia for the next school year. When Layla is accused of biting a new student, Angus, at the Carnival Ball and banished, Ava leads them on a rescue mission while learning the truth about Layla's ancestor, the original Empusa.

Although these books could be a little preachy at times, I truly enjoyed reading them because of the adventure and world-building. I've long loved Greek and Roman mythology (Hercules is one of my favorite Disney animated movies) and it was fun and interesting reading a series that focuses on the monsters of Greek myths. I feel like I learned a lot about some of the lesser known characters, especially the female ones. Ava is a wonderful protagonist, and I really liked how she, Jax, Fia, Layla, and Arnold used their strengths to work together as a team in both Medusa and The Gods' Revenge. Additionally, it was very cool how they went to different places, like Tartarus, Olympus, the Stygian Marsh, and Mount Etna. I was also surprised at how many of the islands in the Venice area I recognized from my own trip there two summers ago in July 2024. That's another reason why this book series especially piqued my interest: I felt like I could actually imagine the setting accurately, which isn't often the case, and I'm very appreciative of fantasies that are rooted in the real world, like Harry Potter and Amari and the Night Brothers. Overall, The Myth of Monsters series is engaging and vibrant, and those who love fantasy and mythology should read it. I'm certainly looking forward to the third book.