diaryofthebookdragon's review against another edition
4.0
The retelling of a Greek myth about Persephone and Hades. Nice one. :)
sleeveless_heart's review against another edition
3.0
This was a solid three-star read, with the ending being a warm,comforting hug. There were plenty of parts that made me roll my eyes (Batman? The constant apology for the puns?), but this story had plenty of heart. Bonus for a very sweet friendship between Lina and Eurydice as well <3
rosetyper9's review against another edition
5.0
I really wish I had more articulate words to share with you my love for this book. The only thing I can really say is that I truly love this book, it is my second favorite book in the world. The characters are real, beautiful, and amazing. Ms. Cast has a true talent for re-imagining and retold the tale of Hades and Persephone with an emotional, fun, and sexy twist. I have read and re-read this book so many times I have lost count, and if you haven't read it, you need to.
The one thing about this book is...it makes me want to bake....
The one thing about this book is...it makes me want to bake....
marissacelina's review against another edition
4.0
For more reviews, check out Keep Calm and Love Books
Like I said in my previous review for, Goddess of the Sea, Cast's writing style is just so intriguing that I had to read what else she had written in this series. I honestly loved the idea of a Greek mythology romance! In this book we follow Lina and her quest as Persephone in the Underworld with Hades. I mean, yes, technically this was pretty far off considering Hades was supposedly a hateful man that literally stole Persephone from a garden and raped her. So, clearly the accuracy and adaptation was far off but I still loved this nonetheless. I found it interesting how easy it was for me to fall in love with Hades. Cast did an amazing job with her characters and fleshing them out so vulnerably so that we can really see their true intentions. The whole novel was just so magnificent, I will probably read it again haha.
Lina was a delight to read. She was caring, smart and thought with her head. Her connection with animals was perfect for this role she had to play considering there is the famous three headed beast in Hell, Cerberus. I really did think it would be difficult to read from the point of view of a 43 year old women, considering I'm only 18 myself but I found myself forgetting the matureness of her as she embraced Persephone's youth. Maybe since she was an older, matured women, I found her so smart and level headed. That being said, when it came to Hades, she was just all love and lust. WHICH IS A GOOD THING. I enjoyed the romantic portion of the book and instead of, Goddess of the Sea, romance seemed to encompass the novel entirely and the main plot was getting to unravel Hades while keeping the Underworld a better place with a women's touch.
“Ultimately, the body is just a shell; it is the soul which defines the man or woman, god or goddess.”
Hades was delicious. I really like the men in P.C. Cast's books. She makes them sound so juicy and I found myself liking Hades fairly quickly. Having read and know about Greek mythology myself, I usually (like said in my other review) detest false depictions of mythology but I was actually okay with this. Everything despite Hades nature and personality, was actually quite accurate. We got to see Demeter, Apollo and even have mention of Athena, Aphrodite, Hermes etc. I liked that connection when we would see into Persephone's own mind and see the grand feasts the Goddess of Spring would host.
"Soul mates will always find each other. Do not weep on their behalf...they will be together again."
All in all, I really do see myself loving and reading all of P.C. Cast's novels in this series. Rest assured, after this review gets posted I will move onto the next novel in the series, Goddess of the Light, following Artemis and Apollo, YAY. As usual, I loved this novel and this author especially!! A great book if you love Greek mythology and interaction with some of the famous Gods and Goddesses.
Like I said in my previous review for, Goddess of the Sea, Cast's writing style is just so intriguing that I had to read what else she had written in this series. I honestly loved the idea of a Greek mythology romance! In this book we follow Lina and her quest as Persephone in the Underworld with Hades. I mean, yes, technically this was pretty far off considering Hades was supposedly a hateful man that literally stole Persephone from a garden and raped her. So, clearly the accuracy and adaptation was far off but I still loved this nonetheless. I found it interesting how easy it was for me to fall in love with Hades. Cast did an amazing job with her characters and fleshing them out so vulnerably so that we can really see their true intentions. The whole novel was just so magnificent, I will probably read it again haha.
Lina was a delight to read. She was caring, smart and thought with her head. Her connection with animals was perfect for this role she had to play considering there is the famous three headed beast in Hell, Cerberus. I really did think it would be difficult to read from the point of view of a 43 year old women, considering I'm only 18 myself but I found myself forgetting the matureness of her as she embraced Persephone's youth. Maybe since she was an older, matured women, I found her so smart and level headed. That being said, when it came to Hades, she was just all love and lust. WHICH IS A GOOD THING. I enjoyed the romantic portion of the book and instead of, Goddess of the Sea, romance seemed to encompass the novel entirely and the main plot was getting to unravel Hades while keeping the Underworld a better place with a women's touch.
“Ultimately, the body is just a shell; it is the soul which defines the man or woman, god or goddess.”
Hades was delicious. I really like the men in P.C. Cast's books. She makes them sound so juicy and I found myself liking Hades fairly quickly. Having read and know about Greek mythology myself, I usually (like said in my other review) detest false depictions of mythology but I was actually okay with this. Everything despite Hades nature and personality, was actually quite accurate. We got to see Demeter, Apollo and even have mention of Athena, Aphrodite, Hermes etc. I liked that connection when we would see into Persephone's own mind and see the grand feasts the Goddess of Spring would host.
"Soul mates will always find each other. Do not weep on their behalf...they will be together again."
All in all, I really do see myself loving and reading all of P.C. Cast's novels in this series. Rest assured, after this review gets posted I will move onto the next novel in the series, Goddess of the Light, following Artemis and Apollo, YAY. As usual, I loved this novel and this author especially!! A great book if you love Greek mythology and interaction with some of the famous Gods and Goddesses.
diadiscovers's review against another edition
It is a story about a mortal who exchanges bodies with a goddess due to a spell she read while baking in order to save her bakery. It is my first Hades Persephone retelling and I really wanted to like it as the premise seemed interesting but I just can't make myself finish it. Lina is supposed to be a woman in her 40s but she just came across as unpleasant and childish and if the protagonist is hard to like, it is hard to read a book. I also didn't enjoy the writing, I feel like the POVs are also inconsistent. Maybe this author is just not for me.
lottieemoore's review against another edition
5.0
Probably my favourite book of the year... I realise this is only Feb. HOWEVER I have read over 20 books this year.. So still a compliment. Also FINALLY a character that isn't 18 years old. Lina is 43 and I'm ABOUT IT.
You will laugh, you will cry and you will get a warm fuzzy feeling. Absolutely recommend this book.
You will laugh, you will cry and you will get a warm fuzzy feeling. Absolutely recommend this book.
momogajo's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
sookie458's review against another edition
5.0
I cannot describe how much i liked this book. It made me smile. It made me cry. It angered me so much I had to shout. And I loved every page of it. I added a new character to my Favorite smoking hot, lick your fingers, drool all night studs.:)
blackarrow16's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
disconightwing's review against another edition
1.0
This book downright offended me. Once again we have the same cut-and-dry story about a middle age midlife crisis woman who has an awesome grandma and parents that never really get mentioned because the grandma is Just So Awesome, who lives in Oklahoma, yadda yadda.
This woman, Lina, is the only protagonist in a book by Ms. Cast that I have read that doesn't have a Cherokee awesome grandma, so I guess I should take what I can get.
But anyway, boo-hoo, she picked an accountant without making sure he was worth it and expected him to take care of all of her problems and he doesn't. So she makes her own business decisions for once in her life and, while researching recipes to save her failing bakery, she comes across what anyone with half a brain cell would recognize as a ritual to Demeter. She, without any real knowledge of Demeter (seriously didn't even stop to look up any basic myths or stop and refresh her memory--no indication at all she even knew who Demeter was), without any thought of "hey maybe I should stop and consider what I'm doing" DOES THE RITUAL and is surprised when she ACTUALLY GETS A RESPONSE.
That right there was enough to make me want to stop reading, but I pressed on.
Lina is so shocked to realize that her ritual has been answered and that Demeter actually exists that she in fact repeatedly insults that goddess but all of the gods and goddesses in that pantheon. Demeter suggests that she exhange places with Persephone for six months. Persephone will run Lina's bakery and Lina will go to the Underworld and flirt with Hades.
Seriously.
Throughout the entire book, Lina whines constantly about how hard it is to impersonate a goddess and how hard it is for her and how it sucks because she gave her word to Demeter that she'd keep a secret and all she wants to do is break it.
And her insistence that the Underworld was really Hell throughout the entire book, even though she was supposedly "learning differently," just made it worse. We're expected to just accept that Lina finds what is clearly a witchcraft ritual in a cookbook and performs it but then can't seem to wrap her head around the fact that what the Underworld was to the Greeks is not the same thing that Hell is to Christians.
If I had to hear Lina compare Hades to Batman one more time I probably would have burned this book. Seriously.
And then when Hades and Lina/"Persephone" actually fall in love with one another, everyone, including Demeter, who came up with this whole idea, mind you, was shocked and dismayed to see the plan working.
Lina then blatantly usurps a goddess's title (Queen of the Underworld/Queen of the Dead) and everyone is okay with that. Despite all of the evidence in mythology about what a huge no-no stuff like that is.
I don't know why I'm surprised, though; this book shoves mythology in our faces when it's convenient but then disregards it when something needs to be "different."
Lastsly, despite the fact that everyone including Demeter kind of seems to think of Persephone as a giant bitch, the end of the book when Persephone actually shows up was the most enjoyable for me. I would have rather read about her trying to adjust in the mortal world than 300 pages of Lina whining about how hard it was to be pampered and loved.
So basically, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone and clearly this author is not for me. I probably won't pick up any more of this series or any other. It's beginning to come off as blatant self insertion which downright bastardizes any and all parts of mythology that the author doesn't think is pretty enough. The Hades and Persephone myths are lovely enough on their own without this kind of ill treatment.
This woman, Lina, is the only protagonist in a book by Ms. Cast that I have read that doesn't have a Cherokee awesome grandma, so I guess I should take what I can get.
But anyway, boo-hoo, she picked an accountant without making sure he was worth it and expected him to take care of all of her problems and he doesn't. So she makes her own business decisions for once in her life and, while researching recipes to save her failing bakery, she comes across what anyone with half a brain cell would recognize as a ritual to Demeter. She, without any real knowledge of Demeter (seriously didn't even stop to look up any basic myths or stop and refresh her memory--no indication at all she even knew who Demeter was), without any thought of "hey maybe I should stop and consider what I'm doing" DOES THE RITUAL and is surprised when she ACTUALLY GETS A RESPONSE.
That right there was enough to make me want to stop reading, but I pressed on.
Lina is so shocked to realize that her ritual has been answered and that Demeter actually exists that she in fact repeatedly insults that goddess but all of the gods and goddesses in that pantheon. Demeter suggests that she exhange places with Persephone for six months. Persephone will run Lina's bakery and Lina will go to the Underworld and flirt with Hades.
Seriously.
Throughout the entire book, Lina whines constantly about how hard it is to impersonate a goddess and how hard it is for her and how it sucks because she gave her word to Demeter that she'd keep a secret and all she wants to do is break it.
And her insistence that the Underworld was really Hell throughout the entire book, even though she was supposedly "learning differently," just made it worse. We're expected to just accept that Lina finds what is clearly a witchcraft ritual in a cookbook and performs it but then can't seem to wrap her head around the fact that what the Underworld was to the Greeks is not the same thing that Hell is to Christians.
If I had to hear Lina compare Hades to Batman one more time I probably would have burned this book. Seriously.
And then when Hades and Lina/"Persephone" actually fall in love with one another, everyone, including Demeter, who came up with this whole idea, mind you, was shocked and dismayed to see the plan working.
Lina then blatantly usurps a goddess's title (Queen of the Underworld/Queen of the Dead) and everyone is okay with that. Despite all of the evidence in mythology about what a huge no-no stuff like that is.
I don't know why I'm surprised, though; this book shoves mythology in our faces when it's convenient but then disregards it when something needs to be "different."
Lastsly, despite the fact that everyone including Demeter kind of seems to think of Persephone as a giant bitch, the end of the book when Persephone actually shows up was the most enjoyable for me. I would have rather read about her trying to adjust in the mortal world than 300 pages of Lina whining about how hard it was to be pampered and loved.
So basically, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone and clearly this author is not for me. I probably won't pick up any more of this series or any other. It's beginning to come off as blatant self insertion which downright bastardizes any and all parts of mythology that the author doesn't think is pretty enough. The Hades and Persephone myths are lovely enough on their own without this kind of ill treatment.