Review: The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

I am late to the game, but I recently read The Goddess Test by Aimee Carter. And I spent the first 2/3rds making snarky comments in my head as I read. Unexpectedly, however, I ended up liking this book. (See the Harry Potter grade for why).

Every girl who had taken the test has died. Now it's Kate's turn. It's always been just Kate and her mom - and her mother is dying. Her last wish? To move back to her childhood home. So Kate's going to start at a new school with no friends, no other family and the fear that her mother won't live past the fall. 

Then she meets Henry. Dark. Tortured. And mesmerizing. He claims to be Hades, god of the Underworld - and if she accepts his bargain, he'll keep her mother alive while Kate tries to pass seven tests. Kate is sure he's crazy - until she sees him bring a girl back from the dead. Now saving her mother seems crazily possible. If she succeeds, she'll become Henry's future bride and a goddess. (GoodReads).

Originality: 4. Oh man. A young girl doesn't know her own awesomeness and immortal boy with impeccable manners is  totally devoted to her safety sand happiness..... Bella and Edward alert! I have not read a lot of Greek myth spin offs, so at least some of this felt new, but I am not convinced it is original.
Absurdity: 9 Oh man (this is a second in a row, I know, but I said this out loud a lot while I was reading). I had fun poking holes in this story. From the "you have to dress like a princess, no jeans" moment on, I was skeptical.
Level of Paranormal Romance: 8. I kept thinking of Hades from Disney's Hercules . Not sexy.  Also Beauty and the Beast, since Kate moves to the castle to save a parental unit. Hades as blue and a slimeball --I can't get behind it. Beauty and the Beast I love. Even if Henry is perfectly nice and not beastly.....but on the topic of Henry, I couldn't see why Kate felt that she was sooooo infatuated with him...
Level of Harry Potterness: 3. This is a very basic read, but points go to the good twist at the end surprised me. I like when nothing is as it seems, and I didn't realize this book had it in it.