Spotlight: Athena by Eva Pohler

Editor: Alexis Rigoni

Cover Designer: Gabriela of BRoseDesignz

Publication Date: April 25th, 2024

Even the wise can be fools in love . . .

She grows up in the belly of her oppressive father, where she watches her mother build her armor and hatches plans for escape. Once freed, she becomes her father's favorite--a loyal subject, warrior, and advocate who stands by her father even when her favorite is sentenced for treason and chained to a rock, where his liver is eaten daily by Zeus's eagle. Then, her hopes for a reunion with Prometheus are crushed when he disappears, and years of searching prove futile. With a hardened heart, Athena becomes a powerful leader of the Olympians.

But when Prometheus returns from the shadows, her loyalties are challenged, her heart stirs with unquenchable passion, and her immortal life is forever changed.

Excerpt

Warm blood cradled her, though it would be many days before she would have the words to comprehend it.

I am inside my mother’s womb.  

It was cozy, warm, and soft. She stretched her arms, turned, and closed her eyes, but before she had fallen back to sleep with her knees pressed against her cheeks, a deep voice rang out in a threatening roar.

Her mother’s voice, calm and quiet, followed. “I will not destroy the babe.”

“Metis, you must, if you love me.”

That was her mother’s name—Metis.

“I will not.”

A pressure disturbed her cradle, followed by sudden jerks of movement and her mother’s wail. She clenched her tiny fists and uncoiled herself, ready to spring into action. She flattened her feet against her mother’s backbone. 

Her mother’s screams unnerved her. For many hours, she listened to the distressing sounds and felt her mother flailing against her prison.

“Let me out of here!” Metis cried repeatedly.

Once her mother’s cries had subsided and all had gone still, she put her hand against her mother’s belly. It was warm and firm. “Mother? Are you well?”

Her mother flinched with surprise. 

“Mother? Metis?”

Warm hands pressed the belly from the other side. “I am here, child. All is well.”

The sound of something scratching woke her from her slumber. She stretched her tiny fists. “Mother? What are you doing?”

“Tearing splinters from your father’s ribs.”

Her eyes opened wide, warm fluid coating them. “Why? How?”

“Your father, Zeus, is the king of the Olympians. He swallowed me because of a prophecy that I would give him a son who would one day unseat him.”

“I am not a son. I am a daughter, I believe.”

“Yes, I believe it, too. My only concern now is setting you free. I shall weave armor for you from these splinters and find a way to get you out.”

“I like it here.”

“For now,” her mother said. “But you are growing, and soon there will be little room. You will become restless and bored, and you will long for something more than this. I must prepare for that day.”

“Mother?”

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About the Author

Eva Pohler is a USA Today bestselling author of over thirty novels in multiple genres, including mysteries, thrillers, and young adult paranormal romance based on Greek mythology. Her books have been described as "addictive" and "sure to thrill"--Kirkus Reviews.

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