No, I'm not brave enough.

Gods and goddesses are a big thing in the YA world right now. Some authors are taking mythology that has been around for a long time and making it possible for people today. Others are making up their own mythologies for their YA stories. We don't know which we love more. Some great mythology-themed books are on the list below. Check them out!

Mythology-Inspired YA Books

WITH GREAT AND MISCHIEVOUS GODS & GODDESSES

Set Fire to the Gods

After reading Rise Up from the Embers, Ash and Madoc are gladiators who must fight the gods who gave them their powers.

Ash comes from a long line of gladiators, and she has seen the brutality of war in person. But after her mother dies in an arena, she vows to avenge her by overthrowing her fire god, whose temper has taken away all of her country's resources and made her country poor.

As a child, Madoc had to fight on the streets to pay for his family's tax bills. They don't know this: He doesn't have the earth god's power like them. In other words, his natural talent is something else. It hasn't been seen in a long time.

A revenge plan goes terribly wrong when Ash inadvertently throws the fire and earth gods into a fight that can only be settled by deadly, expensive gladiator games. This puts Madoc in Ash's way. She knows that his powers are what her rebellion needs, but Madoc won't risk his family, no matter how much he likes the beautiful warrior.

But when the gods make Madoc do something, he and Ash find out about a war that will affect more than just one immortal. It will tear the world apart.

The Never Tilting World by Rin Chupeco

Some hope for our world is always welcome. A pair of twin goddesses set out to fix their broken world in the hope of making things right again.

For a long time, Aeon was ruled by twin goddesses. One of their sisters betrayed them 17 years ago, which broke an old prophecy and split their world in two. People now live in two different worlds: one that is always dark, the other that is always hot.

One sister is in charge of Aranth, a frozen city surrounded by a storm-wrecked sea. Her twin lives in the sand-bound Golden City. There is a daughter for each goddess, and each one hides her own secrets about how her sister broke up with her.

Their daughters Odessa and Haidee are called back to the site of the Breaking by dark forces. The two young goddesses, along with a powerful healer from Aranth and a scavenger from the desert, set out on separate journey across dangerous wastelands in order to try to fix their broken world. No matter how much you have to give up.

The Bright and the Pale by Jessica Rubinkowski

These two books are based on Russian folklore, and the Bright God, who brings light, and the Pale God, who brings death, return to the world to choose their mortal champions to keep a long-running war going.

When Valeria was 17, Knnot Mountain unleashed a dark magical hold on her village. Valeria is one of the few people who survived the freeze, which was caused by the dark magic. Everyone, even her family, is stuck in a sheet of ice that can't be broken. When she escaped from the czar, he set out to put anyone who did so in prison. She's been on the run ever since. She finds a place to stay with the Thieves Guild, where she does odd jobs with her best friend, Alik, who is her only home. That is, until he is killed in a brutal way.

At the end of a year, she learns that Alik is alive and being held prisoner. To buy his freedom, she has to lead a group of crooks and thieves on a dangerous trip to the mountain that killed her family. Only a dark thing lurks in the heart of Knnot. And it has been out for a long time now.

Lore by Alexandra Bracken

As if we weren't already crazy about Greek mythology, Alexandra Bracken makes it even better!

The Agon starts every seven years. Because of a rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to live as mortals and are hunted by descendants of ancient bloodlines. They want to kill a god and take their power and immortality, but they don't know how to do it.

Lore Perseous left that cruel world long ago after her family was killed by a rival line. She turned her back on the hunt's promises of eternal glory. For a long time, she hasn't thought about retaliation against the man who killed her and her family. He is now a god.

It turns out that Castor, a childhood friend of Lore who was thought to be dead, is still alive. Athena, one of the last original gods still alive, is also looking for help.

The goddess wants to help the two of them fight their common enemy. Finally, she wants to help Lore leave the Agon behind for good. There will be a price for Lore's decision, though. She will be bound to Athena's fate and will have to join the hunt again, but it might not work to stop the rise of a new god who can bring humanity to its knees, either.

Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar

In this story, there is a main character who is both human and a star. We love it!

Having been born to a star and a human, Sheetal knows how to hide things. The act of pretending to be normal. But when a mistake with her starfire puts her human father in the hospital, Sheetal needs a full star's help to get him better. Like her mother, who came back to the sky a long time ago.

This is where Sheetal will go on her journey. She will have to take the stage as the champion of her family in a competition that will decide which house of heaven will rule next. If she doesn't win, she could never come back to Earth.

Loki: Where Mischief Lies by Mackenzi Lee, Stephanie Hans (Illustrator)

Our favorite superhero from the MCU (super-antihero?) is back with a book of his own. If you like Loki in the movies and can't wait for his TV show on Disney+, you're going to love this Loki story set in 19th-century Britain.

Before Loki fights with the Avengers, a young Loki wants to show that he can be a hero and that he isn't just evil and depraved. Amora is the only person who doesn't think that way about him. Asgard's resident sorceress-in-training is like a friend. She's someone who likes magic and knowledge, and she might even see the best in him.

But when Loki and Amora destroy one of Asgard's most important things, Amora is banished to Earth, where her powers will slowly and agonizingly fade away. Having lost the only person who ever saw Loki's magic as a gift instead of a threat, his pain grows even worse.

When Asgardian magic is linked to a string of mysterious murders on Earth, Odin sends Loki to look into it. Loki goes on a journey that leads him to more than just a murder suspect. It puts him on a path to find out where his power comes from and who he is meant to be.

Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters by Emily Roberson

This is mythology, but try to keep it up to date. It doesn't take long for us to be sucked in to the story of the Minotaur, told through the lens of social media today.

Her whole life is put together and shown to the world. She's 16. The tabloids love her royal family's entertainment business, and it's the hottest thing on TV. The biggest moneymaker is... There is a big TV show called the Labyrinth Contest, in which Ariadne leads 14 teenagers into a maze to fight off a monster. It's better to win than die. Every season, no one has won.

She doesn't expect to fall in love with Thisus when he comes to the competition and asks her to help him win. He might be acting like he likes her just to get more people to watch his show. She can help him stay alive because they have a lot in common. If he wins, the game would be over for good. The monster would have to die if she helped him. And for Ariadne, his life might be the only thing worth saving, as well.

Ariadne's every move is watched by the public and set in stone by the gods. How can she change her own fate and save the people she loves?

The Star-Touched Queen by Roshani Chokshi

This is one of our favorite tropes. Sign us up for this one. We're all in.

Fate and luck. People who have power and who have a lot of passion At seventeen, how do you become the queen of a kingdom?

Maya has been cursed. He and his kingdom only have scorn and fear for her because of her horoscope, which says she'll marry someone who will kill and destroy. Her whole world is shattered when her father, the Raja, arranges a wedding of political convenience in order to stop outside rebellions. She was happy to study more. She will soon be the queen of Akaran and marry Amar. It's not what she thought: As the queen of Akaran, she has a voice and power. For some reason, being married to Amar makes her find a new kind of love, compassion. Protection. Desire…

There are also thousands of locked doors, glass gardens, and a tree that gives out memories instead of fruit in Akaran. Soon, Maya thinks that her life is in danger. Yet, who else can she trust? Maya has to figure out a long-running mystery that goes back through reincarnated lives in order to save the people she cares about the most, including herself.

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