I love books with voice. Books where you can hear the characters talk in your head, where they’re serious and witty and believable and bold. The Goddess Twins has a lot going for it, but one of its major triumphs is the voices of its teenage protagonists.
I had twin acquaintances in high school—twins who dressed differently, acted separately, took different classes, had divergent interests. One played sports. The other one was in choir. And yet, with all these differences, people were still calling one by the other’s name, and vice-versa — people who really should have known better.
But if you listened, if you paid attention, you knew their voices.
What I love about this book is that Aurora and Arden are on the same journey in two very different ways—a process that’s not only indentifiable but close to the heart of young adult readers, who are trying to figure out who they are in a world that is rapidly changing.
Aurora is snarky; Arden is heartfelt. Aurora has sublimated the things that aren’t right about her life — like the inattention of her mother — into climbing her new suburban social ladder, hoping that popularity will fill the void. Arden is quieter, but just as troubled for the same reasons; she’d rather write fantasy stories, but what is she going to do when her entire life starts to resemble the stories she writes?
The rest of the cast is just as interesting. The cousins are charming (and, perhaps, a little frightening), and the central mystery is definitely one to stick around for. Will the cousins live to see their eighteenth birthday? Read to find out…
I’m really grateful I got to read The Goddess Twins and hope you enjoy it, as well.
