"Daughter of Mythos" is a tale about Nora, a girl who has been moved from one family to the next for years after her birth parents and then her adoptive parents die. The reason she is moved from home to home is this mysterious force that follows her and causes mischief in her life. When she mysteriously gets saved from certain death from new bad boy Zane, Nora gets taken on a ride of a lifetime to her home planet Mythos. She is told by her new foster parents Josie and Kasen that she is the daughter of Mythos and is the savior they have been protecting for years. She is to return to Mythos and close the portals that the evil wizard Sinistrel has opened and is planning to use in order to cause destruction of Mythos and all the good in the world. They along with Zane and a few other quirky characters help Nora figure out the truth about her life and realize her destiny to save Earth and Mythos. At the beginning, I wasn't really into the book. I thought that there were too many holes, and the pace seemed too fast for me. Once the reader figures out who Nora really is then it get's interesting. Melissa Drake creates a world much like earth just with magic and creatures that we all believe to be myths. There are dragons, goblins, elves, demons, angels, and fairies all jammed packed into the world of Mythos. As the novel progresses you get to see Nora's character change from a girl who thinks she doesn't belong anywhere to a young woman who is willing to fight for her friends' lives even if it costs her own life. This is the perfect fast paced novel for young adults and I would definitely use it in my classroom to promote literacy. Though some of the holes are never resolved, Drake does a great job keeping the suspense until the very end when everything is revealed. The ending leaves it open for a second book, and I hope she writes one because I want to know where Nora and Zane end up in their fight against the evil Sinistrel. I would give this a 3.5 out of 5 stars and recommend it to all my 7th grade students for an enjoying read.
