On the outside, twelve-year-old Hector seems like he's got it all. He's strong, fast, and rumored to be the favorite to win this year's Zeus Cup at the Mt. Olympus Spartan Race, the highest honor in his small Midwestern town. Hector's parents and his five siblings trained to win gold in their twelfth year, but all fell short. Now, Hector is their last chance to bring glory to the family and he's starting to feel the pressure. After a mysterious (and extremely talented) girl named Mae obliterates him at the practice run, Hector is desperate to do whatever it takes to win and make his family proud. Cue a certain god of the Underworld who has a mighty proposition for Hector: Hades will give him godlike strength and speed in exchange for the trophy at the end of the race. Seems like a pretty good trade-off. But as Hector soon discovers, no deal with Hades is as straightforward as it seems and he's going to have to go the distance or risk going from hero to zero. Grab your nightlight, dear reader, and prepare to be CHILL-ed!
Jennifer Brody (writing as Vera Strange) is a graduate of Harvard University and a creative writing instructor. She began her career working in Hollywood on many films, including The Lord of the Rings and The Golden Compass. She lives and writes in LA, where she's hard at work on her next book. You can find her on Twitter @JenniferBrody, and Instagram and Facebook @JenniferBrodyWriter.
View titles by Vera Strange
On the outside, twelve-year-old Hector seems like he's got it all. He's strong, fast, and rumored to be the favorite to win this year's Zeus Cup at the Mt. Olympus Spartan Race, the highest honor in his small Midwestern town. Hector's parents and his five siblings trained to win gold in their twelfth year, but all fell short. Now, Hector is their last chance to bring glory to the family and he's starting to feel the pressure. After a mysterious (and extremely talented) girl named Mae obliterates him at the practice run, Hector is desperate to do whatever it takes to win and make his family proud. Cue a certain god of the Underworld who has a mighty proposition for Hector: Hades will give him godlike strength and speed in exchange for the trophy at the end of the race. Seems like a pretty good trade-off. But as Hector soon discovers, no deal with Hades is as straightforward as it seems and he's going to have to go the distance or risk going from hero to zero. Grab your nightlight, dear reader, and prepare to be CHILL-ed!
Author
Jennifer Brody (writing as Vera Strange) is a graduate of Harvard University and a creative writing instructor. She began her career working in Hollywood on many films, including The Lord of the Rings and The Golden Compass. She lives and writes in LA, where she's hard at work on her next book. You can find her on Twitter @JenniferBrody, and Instagram and Facebook @JenniferBrodyWriter.
View titles by Vera Strange