For Review: Persephone (Daughters of Zeus) (Kaitlin Bevis)

 

(Goodreads Summary/Link)

There are worse things than death, worse people too

The “talk” was bad enough, but how many teens get told that they’re a goddess? When her mom tells her, Persephone is sure her mother has lost her mind. It isn’t until Boreas, the god of winter, tries to abduct her that she realizes her mother was telling the truth. Hades rescues her, and in order to safely bring Persephone to the Underworld he marks her as his bride. But Boreas will stop at nothing to get Persephone. Despite her growing feelings for Hades, Persephone wants to return to the living realm. Persephone must find a way to defeat Boreas and reclaim her life.





Source: E-copy from Musa Publishing
Genre: Young Adult

Why I wanted to read it: Greek mythology retelling

My Thoughts:

This is the 3rd Persephone and Hades retelling I've read. Let's face it, the others sucked royally and I had all but given up hope for this particular myth retelling.  BUT I've heard that the third time's the charm..right???

RIGHT! FINALLY! A myth retelling done well. Very well. I loved it. I read it in a couple hours. You should read it too. 

Like I already said, this is a retelling of the Greek myth of Persephone and Hades. The author did a fantastic job of putting her own unique spin on a classic story.

I found the characters easy to connect to and they have a clear voice. Persephone as a main character is independent and brave and strong-willed. I LOVE that she talked back to Hades and didn't just accept things without question.  Hades. Oh man. I likey mucho. He's definitely a strong male character. He shows his care for Persephone but also makes it very clear that he has a dark side.  I mean, he is the God of the Underworld after all. And he's all sorts of hot.

Speaking of...the Underworld was explained and described so well that I had no problem imagining it. I also liked the uniqueness and the details of the different areas of the afterlife.  A vivid picture was very well painted and just helped pull me into the story more.

As I was reading this book I was thinking to myself...ahhhhh. How refreshing. For once I have a retelling that is not fully based around an insta-love crappy romance. I love romance as much as the next person but I've read a lot of books recently where this was its downfall.  Don't get me wrong, there is a romance aspect in this story (it IS based on the Persephone & Hades myth afterall) and I foresee it coming more in to play in the next book. The difference is, in this case it was done WELL. The romance didn't take over and it wasn't overdone which made it all the more believable and accepting.

The writing is well-paced, developed and flows. There's also a lot of humor infused into this story which I LOVED.  Humor shows that the characters and story doesn't take itself too seriously and only helped add to its awesomeness.

Persephone is a must read for fans of Greek mythology retellings done right.


Favorite Quotes:
"People fear death, but in reality what they fear is the uncertainty of their afterlife."

"Reality has teeth and claws. It's rarely pretty and never fair."

Bottom Line: What else can I say? I was impressed. Well done! 4/5
I can't wait to read the second book!