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Gods, not Hera as an example again. How is my step-mother the shining hope of marriage? My father forced her into it and they’re both miserable. None of that today, Kore,’ Mother sighs again, a sound that has become so common that my name feels odd without it. Of course. I’m going to find you a good match, and with an Olympian you’ll still be a part of this court. Besides, I don’t trust anyone under the rule of Poseidon to be the sort of man you marry.’
Well,’ I feign consideration, the naïve little girl role I slip into for self-preservation. ‘If they did then no one would want to marry me. Maybe I would like that freedom.’ I wanted to turn to my mother, to see if I’d answered correctly, but her hands held me in place, though her nails were less piercing. There's so many things wright and wrong about this book. I didn't have the heart to hate it as I had loved some aspects of the story, but I also can't say that I fully loved it either. I'm maybe the minority in this one, but the one thing that I could say is that, this book can be half of its volume, and it will still be good. However, since its a debut novel, I do feel that the author has loads more potential for her next work so, I'm definitely going to be a look out for it. I think that's why it took me a while to actually put my thoughts into writing, as I had mixed feelings for this book. Hence, for those who really loved it, you can definitely skip my review. I know you’re scared,’ she says, anger cooling with the opportunity for a lecture. ‘I know if you had your way you’d go off exploring the world, planting flowers, probably wearing a vastly inappropriate outfit and no shoes. But you can’t. The world is too dangerous.’ Fitzgerald’s story retells the myth of Persephone and Hades, in which Hades ensnares Persephone in the Underworld by making the ground split beneath her feet. In Fitzgerald’s version, our heroine is less easily fooled. We meet her as a young child: “When they asked me what I wanted, I said: ‘The world.’” But her father, Zeus, decides instead that she should be ‘Goddess of the flowers’, and she senses “all my hopes, all my lofty ambitions crumbling away… This felt like a punishment.”What I found most intriguing was the author’s choices in regards to her world building. Firstly, she refers to the Underworld consistently as ‘Hell,’ which is unusual, considering that the terminology is more common within Abrahamic religions and its etymological roots can be found in Norse mythology (Hel was the goddess of the Norse underworld, Niflheim), not Greek. Persephone's hang-up over sex = rape might be slightly justified (thanks Demeter etc) but it's boring as hell to read. What a fresh take on the Hades and Persephone myth. Gone is the dark, broody, night-club-owner/gambler Hades, and here is the new and artistically inclined god of the dead. I adored how fearless Fitzgerald was in creating a whole new profile for Hades and think she succeeded in bringing him to life in such a believable way. As for Persephone, we really saw a woman find her footing in HER realm - the fact the underworld also belonged to her in key to that statement. Where we are used to seeing Persephone fill in the gaps of the Underworld for Hades, THIS Persephone created new lands, reorganised her court and stepped into her public facing political role with effortless flair. You know I don’t like you spending time with those girls,’ she says, gnawing on her lip before finally giving in. ‘Oh very well, I can hardly say no, not with... everything else.’ Persephone and Hades felt too much like friends in this story so when a romance does finally develop, it felt weird like they shouldn't be doing this. The romance felt forced and didn't sit right with me - their relationship didn't feel natural and it was quite cringey at times.
Since I don't want to sound too ranty, I would divide my thoughts into two parts to make it not as long. Bring[s] to life timeless gods, the complex intimacy of family bonds, a fierce protagonist, and a passionate slow-burn romance." Sue Lynn Tan, Sunday Times bestselling author of Daughter of the Moon Goddess.
Overall, this is one of the few books I've read this year that I can truly say I didn't want it to end and I cannot wait to read whatever Bea Fitzgerald writes next. I know my mother will never understand because what it comes down to is this: safety isn’t enough for me. I’d rather perish, rather be another tragic tale for a mother to use in warning than become a long drawn out sigh in a hymn, an immortal life spent in misery. So in a reversal of the traditional myth, she goes to the Underworld of her own accord, seeing it as the only place to escape from marriage: “Mother owns the land. Father the sky. I do not trust my chances with a court full of grasping gods.” On arrival, she must win over the slightly startled Hades and convince him to support her plan to wreak havoc with the chauvinist gods. Then 'blooming' (get it 😉) into the Queen she was destined to be, growing into her power and owning her desires and needs unapologetically.
Marriage is protection, Kore. A ring on your finger binds you to one man and that’s all the gods respect.’ Kore. I’m only going to say this once and you need to listen to me.’ she steps towards me again and strokes my cheek. ‘I love you, my dear, but you are not powerful. There are gods out there with untold powers and Zeus gave you flowers. How do you plan on keeping yourself safe with petals? Our lives are not the same. I’m one of the first gods, goddess of sacred law, nature, the harvest – all powerful domains. Even then it’s not powerful enough to protect you, because Zeus gave all the more powerful things to men. By the Fates, when the war ended he awarded whole realms to the boys and one of them was ten years old.’ Girl, Goddess, Queen is a thoroughly modern retelling that turns the story of Hades and Persephone completely on its head, breathing new life into the classic mythos. Fun side characters and a hopeful coming-of-age heart make this one of the most entertaining reimaginings in an ever growing list of them. Readers were expecting wonderful things from Bea Fitzgerald’s debut, and it doesn’t disappoint in the slightest. To escape an arranged, and possibly incestuous, marriage, Kore - repressed daughter of Zeus - escapes to the pits of hell. But seeking sanctuary with Hades - God of the Underworld - has unforeseen consequences and Kore discovers not only an unlikely alliance, but becomes the great Persephone, chaos bringer. Persephone discovering her power and literally just being power hungry and finding love along the wayWith a title like that, expectations were high, and fortunately, Bea Fitzgerald didn't disappoint. Also, this retelling gives new meaning to the expression : Hot as Hades ;) Bea Fitzgerald’s YA Fantasy Rom-Com debut is a swoon-worthy and utterly feminist take on Greek mythology (and the Hades & Persephone myth) that lured me in with it’s bold and refreshingly assertive approach to Persephone’s tale —which sees her take on the might of Olympus (and her own mother) for the right to RULE HELL … by marrying Hades of course. And I can genuinely say, I didn’t want it to end! That was before the goddess of marriage became queen of the gods. Rivers of Hell, I might not like Hera but at least she gained power somehow, made marriage mean something to bind even her own husband.’
Much of that filler is just repetitive and appalling dialogue. Ie exposition heavy, circular, not really communicating anything, clearly there because the author wants to use a certain line. It was also clunky with phrases you'd expect to see on a modern teen drama or TikTok which considering the context was very jarring. You really can say more and far more meaningfully with less dialogue. I tug at the ridiculous dress Mother has forced me into: a monstrosity of lilac silk, draped and twisted again and again, hinting at the body on offer while obscuring it enough to keep my modesty intact. It’s less an outfit than gift-wrapping. Funny how this story has a main romance sub-plot, but good lord was it so DRAGGY AND BORING. I was bored to death. Literally. There were parts where Persephone and Hades was just sweet but the slow-burn that I feel the author was aiming for... didn't work well in this story. It felt anticlimatic, and when they finally got together... I somehow ended up being super annoyed with Persephone when she was with Hades. Like I get it ... but I do want to slap you so there's that. I feel that whilst their friendship was explored well, the pining didn't really work out for me, which really made me dissapointed as I wanted to love it so much but I just couldn't. I seem to be in the minority with this review but I didn’t really enjoy this book and I at times, found it quite dull. I adore a Hades and Persephone retelling and I have read my fair share of them in my time but this just felt a bit flat. I think the premise was there but the execution just didn’t work for me. Gods forbid my hair looks a mess – the universe might end. Or curse shame upon my household at the very least.I also don’t think there was much chemistry between Hades and Kore. Hades basically warmed up to Kore at around 35% of the book and after that he was just boring. The God of Death and the King of the Underworld is meant to have some kind of bite to him and this guy was the equivalent to a fluffy rabbit. I wanted more from him and from Kore. There was little banter, tension or even believability. Oh Mother, they corrupted me long ago. And a good thing too, or I’d be heading off to my wedding night with no idea of what goes where. I am keeping this spoiler-free, but all I'm saying is: this book is AMAZING! From the side characters such as Styx, to the other inhabitants of the Underworld, to Persephone herself. She is the perfect example of strength! I loved this version of Hades, and I will forever love these two and their three-headed dog. This book is my top favourite of Hades & Persephone retellings and nothing else comes close to it. This is the perfect book for a YA lover like me to share with my teenage daughter. The YA genre has really enabled the parent-child reading crossover and I am so grateful for books such as this one, which spark conversation and create common ground between two utterly different generations! I am on the edge with anticipation for the second book as this ending was somewhat of a cliffhanger. The ending is bittersweet, but I won't be spoiling it ;) I read this book as part of a readalong and had so much fun discussing each chapter and sharing quotes. We received a plantable bookmark with this book and I'm excited to see which plant will grow. :)
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