Review: Nobody's Goddess by Amy McNulty

Nobody's Goddess (The Never Veil #1)by Amy McNulty
Published April 21st 2015 by Month9Books

In a village of masked men, magic compels each man to love only one woman and to follow the commands of his “goddess” without question. A woman may reject the only man who will love her if she pleases, but she will be alone forever. And a man must stay masked until his goddess returns his love—and if she can’t or won’t, he remains masked forever. Seventeen-year-old Noll isn't in the mood to celebrate. Her childhood friends have paired off and her closest companion, Jurij, found his goddess in Noll’s own sister. Desperate to find a way to break this ancient spell, Noll instead discovers why no man has ever chosen her. Thus begins a dangerous game between the choice of woman versus the magic of man. And the stakes are no less than freedom and happiness, life and death—and neither is willing to lose. 

My Thoughts

I was immediately intrigued by the premise of this story. How did this world come to be? What happens if a man didn't find "a goddess" in any woman. Did women find it in other woman? So many questions and ALL WERE ANSWERED. I really enjoyed this plot line even though i didn't have a connection with any of the characters. This might review might read as if i didn't like it but i assure you that wasn't the case. It wasn't without a few qualms though.

The beginning starts off terribly confusing. All the men must wear a mask until they find their goddess and she returns his love when she turns 17. Woman who look upon an unmasked men cause him to vanish into thin air. If a woman does not return a mans love then he must wither remain masked or be banished to live in the commune, a sad place where men basically die of broken hearts. If women dare look to the east where the Lord's castle stands the earth rumble and shakes. So strange right? I thought so too. It took me a few chapter to get into this but once i did I really was quite and interesting portrayal of some seriou gender bias, only a bit reversed. The woman had complete power over the men who found the goddess in them, obeying every order they choose to command.

Noll hasn't been found as a goddess yet she does love someone. Unfortunately it is her best friend and her sisters future husband. I didn't mind Noll so much. She was definitely stubborn and defiant and I appreciated it. I really empathized with her until she went and kissed her sister's husband...twice. I lost all respect for her at the first kiss but it was still awesome to see the twists and turns as the plot thickened! While I didn't particularly fall in like with any of the other characters, I still couldnt not stop reading!! This is a strange thing since I am normally a totally character driven person. Noll finds herself able to see a life without men regarding woman as goddess and it's quite a realistically brutal portrayal of a medieval time. I thought how things finally played out were extremely clever.

While this book may seem to start off as one things it really weaves itself into quite another by the end. It is a promising tale about the choices we make and how precious our free will to love whom we choose really is. I will be anxiously awaiting the next book to see what happens to Noll next.

3.5 Snowflakes