Dioscuri [Kindle Edition]

Chrystalla Thoma (Author)

Book Description

When you are Zeus’ immortal son, you know you can get away with mostly anything. Bringing back the dead is not one of those things. Yet this is what Polydeukes does when his mortal twin, Kastor, dies. According to the dark deal he strikes with one of the gods, the brothers must alternate days in the land of the living, and Kastor cannot be told, or the deal is off. On top of that, If Hades were to find out, all hell would break loose. Literally.
But Kastor begins to put two and two together, and keeping the secret becomes difficult for Polydeukes. Will Kastor break his brother’s deal and save Polydeukes from an eternity of punishment in Tartarus, or will Polydeukes find a way to save them both?

Editorial Reviews

Review

"If you love any story involving the bonds of twins, Greek Myths and good plot twists, read Dioscuri. This definitely gets a thumbs up from me, and I look forward to reading more of Chrystalla's work!"
- Nayu's Reading Corner
(nayusreadingcorner.blogspot.com/2011/03/dioscuri-by-chrystalla-thoma.html)

About the Author

Chrystalla Thoma is permanent resident of fantasy land, complete with angels and demons, elves, vampires and werewolves. A Greek Cypriot, she lives in Cyprus with her husband and her vast herd of books. When not reading or writing, she works as a freelance translator and text editor.

Product Details

• File Size: 245 KB
• Print Length: 60 pages
• Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
• Publisher: MuseItUp Publishing (March 10, 2011)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004RPWV6A
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Not Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #988,973 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Gods Are Not So Far Away March 28, 2011

By Lady Bug Lin

Format:Kindle Edition

This is an amazing book filled almost to overflowing with myths and many immortals. Polydeukes and Kastor are the twin sons born of a mortal mother,and the King of the God's Zeus, but only one may inherit the immortality from his father; the other must remain ignorant of his true parentage and his brother's godly-powers.

Polydeukes inherits Zeus but his love for his brother means more to him than he ever realized, but more than his godhoood? Chrystalla Thoma masterfully brings that question front and center.

Mankind in 21st century earth is busy, busy, busy remodeling the world, but doesn't realize in that remodeling, he is opening portals to things best left in the bowels of the earth's prisons.

Two sons of Zeus join with the lesser immortals, satrys, griffins, forest, wood and water nymphs, to name but a few, to battle the demons rising from their prisons and none of them have love and joy in their darkened hearts. We're talking harpies, Lamias, these god-awful snake women, chimeras, and sirens.

One brother dies in battle, the other, immortal cannot live with the pain of not having his brother to pal with. He's a god, but there is one thing the gods are not allowed to do...bring people back to life. Daddy Zeus and Uncle Hades, Lord of the Underworld would never approve.

He's a god, but a brother first. Seeking out another god behind Daddy and Uncle Hades' backs, Polydeukes signs the deal, he and his dead brother trade places every other day, but it's never wise to make deals with the gods. Poly must find a permanent solution that will allow them both to live all the time, before his brother figures out what Poly has done and before Daddy or Uncle Hades get wind of his deal.

Chrystalla Thoma has brought modern Greece and the capriciousness of the ancient gods together in a way that refuses to let you stop reading until you reach the end.

BRILLIANT. Cannot wait to snatch up this writer's next offering.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Greek mythology in a gritty modern world August 31, 2011

By Matthew Posner

Format:Kindle Edition

Being familiar with the original Greek mythology, I introduced myself to Chrystalla Thoma and asked her to let me read and review Dioscuri, her re-imagining of the tale of Kastor and Polydeukes, two sons of Zeus one of whom is immortal, and one of whom is not. (In the original myth, they are the brothers of the immortal Helen and the mortal Klytemnestra, who were key figures in the Trojan War.) Chrystalla warned me that she had changed a lot -- and she has. Now sharing a body after Kastor's death, the two brothers are engaged in an ongoing war between the Greek gods and mortal men, with beasts from Greek mythology (harpies, lamiae, chimeras) taking the field for the gods, and some lesser immortals (nymphs, dryads, a goat-man called Satyr) on the human side. They have rifles and tanks and are living in essentially a modern world that has Greek gods and monsters in it. But Polydeukes, the immortal one, has made a deal with a mysterious partner to let Kastor continue to live in his own body, alternating days in that body with Polydeukes, whose immortal body lies on the slab. How long can they keep this up before father Zeus takes note and gets really angry?

The story is about 60 pages long and is a very quick read -- essentially half a novella, it can be read in a single sitting. Chrystalla writes very smoothly. Proofreading is excellent, and sentence writing is skillful and efficient. The characters are very well-drawn and distinctive, and the plot moves at a fast clip and has a fully satisfying resolution of the conflict. It is not in any way similar to the Percy Jackson books, which are set in our world -- this is about adults and written for adults, and it is a dark and dangerous world that stimulates the reader with the possibility of other unexplored corners.

I came out of this story feeling that it could have been about five times as long and still held my interest. There was vast potential in this world and in the characters. I would recommend that Chrystalla expand Dioscuri to a full-length novel if she is ever so motivated.

I will definitely read more books by Chrystalla Thoma. I'm also a Kindle author: here's the entry point to my work: School of the Ages: The Ghost in the Crystal

4.0 out of 5 stars A reboot of the tale of the Gemini December 29, 2012

By Michael Offutt

Format:Kindle Edition

In Greek mythology, Castor and Polydeuces are twin brothers (one is mortal and one immortal) known as the Dioscuri. They are the sons of Zeus and their sister is Helen of Troy. They are also referred to as the Gemini (from astrology). Basically, in the myth Castor gets killed and his brother asks Zeus to share his own immortality with his twin to keep them together.

Well this is the story that Chrystalla Thoma has rebooted with some modern flare but nothing that really makes this tale her own. That's why I decided on four stars instead of five because basically, that synopsis I just gave you in the first paragraph, is the entire story in Dioscuri.

Fans of Greek mythology will probably like this. I know I did. But I think it might have been better served given its relative length as a book with illustrations. There are many colorful moments and characters: satyrs, some mythological monsters like lamia, and a descent into the underworld to speak with Zeus and Hermes. Those would all make great full panel pictures (but I know the cost of that would probably prevent the publishing of this book in the first place).

Overall, I think this book is a worthy read and recommend it for anyone who likes reboots of mythology. I just wish that Thoma had decided to extend the story or tell us what happens after Zeus made both of the Dioscuri immortal and what they did with their lives. It seems there's a potential story there that is being ignored.

More About the Author

Chrystalla is Greek Cypriot (hence the strange name) and likes writing about bratty, angsty boys and spunky girls in fantasy and science-fiction worlds. She writes mainly for a young adult public but not only (heed the warnings!)
She's currently preparing a non-fiction book about dragons, because the truth must out, and is juggling two series ("Elei's Chronicles" and "Boreal and John Grey").

Follow Chrystalla on her Fan page on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Author-Chrystalla-Thoma/117863861560579

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