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Gunmetal Olympus #1
The Hades Calculus
Decadent cyberpunk cities. Greek mythology and giant mechs. Hades and Persephone as never seen before.
For centuries, colossi have besieged the gates of Elysium. Each day, the city’s fall looms closer.
As one of Elysium’s rulers, Hades has long sought to break this stalemate. In Persephone, a cyborg tailor-made to kill, she finds the key to victory and the perfect pilot for her war machine. She will acquire Persephone at any cost.
Born to wield violence and with the bloodthirst to match, Persephone chafes under her mother’s control. At the first opportunity, she brutally breaks free and seeks sanctuary with the unlikeliest of the Lord of the Machine Dead, the Master of the Underworld.
All Hades and Persephone have to do to realize their goals is to navigate the city’s treacherous politics—and survive the coming war.
For centuries, colossi have besieged the gates of Elysium. Each day, the city’s fall looms closer.
As one of Elysium’s rulers, Hades has long sought to break this stalemate. In Persephone, a cyborg tailor-made to kill, she finds the key to victory and the perfect pilot for her war machine. She will acquire Persephone at any cost.
Born to wield violence and with the bloodthirst to match, Persephone chafes under her mother’s control. At the first opportunity, she brutally breaks free and seeks sanctuary with the unlikeliest of the Lord of the Machine Dead, the Master of the Underworld.
All Hades and Persephone have to do to realize their goals is to navigate the city’s treacherous politics—and survive the coming war.
418 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 2, 2024
103 people are currently reading
1979 people want to read
About the author
Maria Ying
11 books65 followersMaria Ying is both a fictional character and the joint pseudonym of Devi Lacroix and Benjanun Sriduangkaew, who have challenged themselves to write fiction with no speculative elements for once.
Devi Lacroix can be found at
Website: devilacroix.com
Twitter: twitter.com/DeviLacroix
Benjanun Sriduangkaew can be found at
Website: beekian.wordpress.com
Twitter: twitter.com/benjanun_s
Devi Lacroix can be found at
Website: devilacroix.com
Twitter: twitter.com/DeviLacroix
Benjanun Sriduangkaew can be found at
Website: beekian.wordpress.com
Twitter: twitter.com/benjanun_s
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 53 reviews
July 13, 2024
G-Witch meets Love Lies Bleeding: a lesbian sci-fi retelling of the Hades-Persephone story featuring the complete pantheon of Greek gods, with only one named male character.
This is an ambitious project that succeeds in or exceeds most of its ambitions. The author duo called Maria Ying pull together numerous threads to weave a unique story tapestry that merits considerable study. But let's look at how it fares in its primary goals: as an action-adventure sci-fi story, as a messy, complicated love story, and as a re-imagining of Greek myths.
As a sci-fi story, it's got all the goods: mecha battles, artificial intelligence and associated shenanigans, a unique ecosystem with interesting monsters to battle, and a philosophical bent that never overtakes the story but never gets lost either. I will freely admit that I'm not the biggest fan of the mecha genre, not having read or watched a lot of the content that clearly inspired this, but in the hands of these storytellers, honestly, it didn't matter. Did my eyes glaze over a few times with the technical descriptions of mecha weapons and armaments? Maybe. But I know a fan of the genre will go apeshit for them. And the action/adventure/creature feature stuff was fun and exciting! For me, the philosophical aspect relative to Persephone's (and other characters') personhood relative to humanity and godhood was the most interesting part. And that's what good SFF does: makes us think about the human condition in novel ways. A+ on that front.
As a love story, it was a solid, if not spectacular result for me. I did enjoy the main pairing (Persephone-Hades), and the formation of a throuple was interesting. The best part about it, and which I might have liked more of, was the examination of what love and lust mean for a cybernetic main character. The relationship between the gods and their pilots is intriguing, and how that plays into the love story was fascinating, but I wasn't feral for this part of the story as I have been for some of the other Maria Ying couples. Perhaps that will grow with time and further books in the series, which I'll assuredly be reading.
If the love story wasn't the standout for me, the sisterly relationships, for lack of a better word, more than made up for it. None of the gods are men, but there are a variety of pronouns and neopronouns among them. Their complicated and fraught relationships were really the highlight of the book for me, though I will admit that the rather large cast may have diluted the overall effect somewhat. I mentioned earlier that I wasn't feral for the romantic pairing, but I absolutely was over the relationship between Persephone and her sister Khrysiothemis. I can't say more, but it was, for me, the most interesting part of the book.
As for the Greek myth retelling aspect, it diverges considerably from the source material, not only in the fact that all the characters are lesbians (based), but in the very nature of the romantic relationship between Hades and Persephone, and the role of Demeter (hiss hiss). It engages with the original myths in an entirely novel way, which was very satisfying to me, though I imagine some purists might find it strays too far from the source. This book is not for them, but it opens up a new way of looking at classical literature, which is exactly what a retelling (this might better be termed a re-imagining) should do. The nature of godhood, machinehood, and personhood are intriguingly and freshly examined, with hints that the next book will reveal hidden depths that will enrich the picture even more.
One final note, which I could say about any of the Maria Ying books, is that the writing is always a highlight, both in terms of prosecraft (impeccable) and the ability to convey emotions and thoughts, both explicitly and implicitly in the smallest of gestures. Whether it's urban fantasy, mecha sci-fi, or something else, I'll be reading each Maria Ying book as they come out, for the writing as much as anything else.
This is an ambitious project that succeeds in or exceeds most of its ambitions. The author duo called Maria Ying pull together numerous threads to weave a unique story tapestry that merits considerable study. But let's look at how it fares in its primary goals: as an action-adventure sci-fi story, as a messy, complicated love story, and as a re-imagining of Greek myths.
As a sci-fi story, it's got all the goods: mecha battles, artificial intelligence and associated shenanigans, a unique ecosystem with interesting monsters to battle, and a philosophical bent that never overtakes the story but never gets lost either. I will freely admit that I'm not the biggest fan of the mecha genre, not having read or watched a lot of the content that clearly inspired this, but in the hands of these storytellers, honestly, it didn't matter. Did my eyes glaze over a few times with the technical descriptions of mecha weapons and armaments? Maybe. But I know a fan of the genre will go apeshit for them. And the action/adventure/creature feature stuff was fun and exciting! For me, the philosophical aspect relative to Persephone's (and other characters') personhood relative to humanity and godhood was the most interesting part. And that's what good SFF does: makes us think about the human condition in novel ways. A+ on that front.
As a love story, it was a solid, if not spectacular result for me. I did enjoy the main pairing (Persephone-Hades), and the formation of a throuple was interesting. The best part about it, and which I might have liked more of, was the examination of what love and lust mean for a cybernetic main character. The relationship between the gods and their pilots is intriguing, and how that plays into the love story was fascinating, but I wasn't feral for this part of the story as I have been for some of the other Maria Ying couples. Perhaps that will grow with time and further books in the series, which I'll assuredly be reading.
If the love story wasn't the standout for me, the sisterly relationships, for lack of a better word, more than made up for it. None of the gods are men, but there are a variety of pronouns and neopronouns among them. Their complicated and fraught relationships were really the highlight of the book for me, though I will admit that the rather large cast may have diluted the overall effect somewhat. I mentioned earlier that I wasn't feral for the romantic pairing, but I absolutely was over the relationship between Persephone and her sister Khrysiothemis. I can't say more, but it was, for me, the most interesting part of the book.
As for the Greek myth retelling aspect, it diverges considerably from the source material, not only in the fact that all the characters are lesbians (based), but in the very nature of the romantic relationship between Hades and Persephone, and the role of Demeter (hiss hiss). It engages with the original myths in an entirely novel way, which was very satisfying to me, though I imagine some purists might find it strays too far from the source. This book is not for them, but it opens up a new way of looking at classical literature, which is exactly what a retelling (this might better be termed a re-imagining) should do. The nature of godhood, machinehood, and personhood are intriguingly and freshly examined, with hints that the next book will reveal hidden depths that will enrich the picture even more.
One final note, which I could say about any of the Maria Ying books, is that the writing is always a highlight, both in terms of prosecraft (impeccable) and the ability to convey emotions and thoughts, both explicitly and implicitly in the smallest of gestures. Whether it's urban fantasy, mecha sci-fi, or something else, I'll be reading each Maria Ying book as they come out, for the writing as much as anything else.
August 21, 2024
Hades Calculus A Puppys Honest Review
Hades Calculus is a fun syfy retelling of Hades and Persephone, with a health mix of action, intrigue and appropriately greek sexual liaisons. Mechs take a starring role in the action, and they fight against Kaiju appropriately named Collossi in keeping with the Greek themes of the story.
The depictions of the God's keeps with Greek mythology while also meshing with the axiom 'any significantly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'. They're also all genderbent in some way, either into women or into unspecified genders that use a variety of neo pronouns that made my screen reader cry.
The sex scenes are probably pretty good, I personally didn't get a thrill from them. Except.... the one scene with Demeter. I will not be fielding questions on this matter. Generally, the prose remains consistent through them, though there are some critiques that could be made I'd rather not get into that here.
The divine intrigue was well written, though not overly complicated or deep. The characters motivations and their actions map well, and though some elements are predictable or plainly stated, ultimately the book handles the backstabbing, conniving and ultimately familial nature of the greek gods well.
The prose isn't overly flowery, but it's very good and has moments that are quite poetic or vivid. This also aids the syfy reimagining of mythology quite well, such as Kaiju being Collossi & Mecha being Eidolons. Not unique terms on their own but a fun and creative way to reimagine and intertwine these two types of story.
Overall, i enjoyed the book and would recommend it if you enjoy lesbians, trans characters, a suspiciously Greek amount of cannibalism, mech fights and divine intrigue.
Hades Calculus is a fun syfy retelling of Hades and Persephone, with a health mix of action, intrigue and appropriately greek sexual liaisons. Mechs take a starring role in the action, and they fight against Kaiju appropriately named Collossi in keeping with the Greek themes of the story.
The depictions of the God's keeps with Greek mythology while also meshing with the axiom 'any significantly advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic'. They're also all genderbent in some way, either into women or into unspecified genders that use a variety of neo pronouns that made my screen reader cry.
The sex scenes are probably pretty good, I personally didn't get a thrill from them. Except.... the one scene with Demeter. I will not be fielding questions on this matter. Generally, the prose remains consistent through them, though there are some critiques that could be made I'd rather not get into that here.
The divine intrigue was well written, though not overly complicated or deep. The characters motivations and their actions map well, and though some elements are predictable or plainly stated, ultimately the book handles the backstabbing, conniving and ultimately familial nature of the greek gods well.
The prose isn't overly flowery, but it's very good and has moments that are quite poetic or vivid. This also aids the syfy reimagining of mythology quite well, such as Kaiju being Collossi & Mecha being Eidolons. Not unique terms on their own but a fun and creative way to reimagine and intertwine these two types of story.
Overall, i enjoyed the book and would recommend it if you enjoy lesbians, trans characters, a suspiciously Greek amount of cannibalism, mech fights and divine intrigue.
Read
April 2, 2025EDIT: Actually, this book is remarkably good. I just needed to let it soak in for a few months and give it time.
Original Review:
I don't know how to rate this one, so for now I think I'll leave that blank. A few things before I get into the review proper:
1) I don't think this book is for me. I can appreciate what it is, but I think I wanted something quite a bit different from it.
2) I've read a few of the Those Who Break Chains series, which I quite liked.
The Hades Calculus opens with quite the 1-2 punch. It's visceral. It's brutal. It feels like this book is going to be an action-packed ride from start to finish, perhaps in the same style as something like Sundered Moon.
It however, is very different than other transfemme mecha books. In a sense, the Hades Calculus eschews action unless it's necessary. Most of the book is focused on interactions between characters in a kind of slow, methodical way. I didn't quite get this. Why make a book with mechs only to spend most of the book not in or around the mechs?
Then there's the spice. The spice that's there is quick and rough. I can't think of much foreplay, and often it's over in a couple pages, which for me is much too fast to really enjoy it. It feels like the spice adds punctuation rather than, say, *spice*.
There are moments of action throughout the book, but they too tend to be over rather quickly. Longer action sequences may be split into parts, almost as if the authors were afraid of an action scene going too long. I found this baffling.
There are touching moments, shocking moments, moments that will stick with you all mixed in. There are sensual moments and emotive ones. They're there to be found.
Perhaps it's a bit of my own mistake coming to this book expecting something that's high action, or high spice, and instead finding something far more intellectual and brooding. This book is more about the tradeoffs the gods of myth would have to make, what a loss feels like over many lifetimes, and how mortals are so temporary in this experience, drawn on by wills stronger than their own. It's a meditation rather than an adventure.
I would have loved an adventure.
Original Review:
I don't know how to rate this one, so for now I think I'll leave that blank. A few things before I get into the review proper:
1) I don't think this book is for me. I can appreciate what it is, but I think I wanted something quite a bit different from it.
2) I've read a few of the Those Who Break Chains series, which I quite liked.
The Hades Calculus opens with quite the 1-2 punch. It's visceral. It's brutal. It feels like this book is going to be an action-packed ride from start to finish, perhaps in the same style as something like Sundered Moon.
It however, is very different than other transfemme mecha books. In a sense, the Hades Calculus eschews action unless it's necessary. Most of the book is focused on interactions between characters in a kind of slow, methodical way. I didn't quite get this. Why make a book with mechs only to spend most of the book not in or around the mechs?
Then there's the spice. The spice that's there is quick and rough. I can't think of much foreplay, and often it's over in a couple pages, which for me is much too fast to really enjoy it. It feels like the spice adds punctuation rather than, say, *spice*.
There are moments of action throughout the book, but they too tend to be over rather quickly. Longer action sequences may be split into parts, almost as if the authors were afraid of an action scene going too long. I found this baffling.
There are touching moments, shocking moments, moments that will stick with you all mixed in. There are sensual moments and emotive ones. They're there to be found.
Perhaps it's a bit of my own mistake coming to this book expecting something that's high action, or high spice, and instead finding something far more intellectual and brooding. This book is more about the tradeoffs the gods of myth would have to make, what a loss feels like over many lifetimes, and how mortals are so temporary in this experience, drawn on by wills stronger than their own. It's a meditation rather than an adventure.
I would have loved an adventure.
March 4, 2025
Hades, my most beloved, brightest among the stars: you are better than that."
Do not let the time from start to finish fool you; I really enjoyed this. This may be my first retelling, and I am so glad I went with this sci-fi-inspired retelling. I loved Hades and Hephaestus and the portrayal of the gods I grew up learning about. The writing was great; the only thing is that it felt like it dragged at times.
Also, I am obsessed with the cover.
Do not let the time from start to finish fool you; I really enjoyed this. This may be my first retelling, and I am so glad I went with this sci-fi-inspired retelling. I loved Hades and Hephaestus and the portrayal of the gods I grew up learning about. The writing was great; the only thing is that it felt like it dragged at times.
Also, I am obsessed with the cover.
May 9, 2025
this book says, mechs are sexy actually and you know what, yeah
great for fans of the locked tomb series esp if youre down for simply so many lesbians, balls to the wall insanity, and complex familial relationships !!
great for fans of the locked tomb series esp if youre down for simply so many lesbians, balls to the wall insanity, and complex familial relationships !!
May 5, 2025
I can't explain the itch this scratched but im OBSESSED and I need more!! Gideon the Ninth meets Mobile Suit Gundam with a dash of Cyberpunk 😍 I need the prequel and sequel IMMEDIATELY!!!
August 17, 2024
Okay, so the elevator pitch of this book had me hook, line, and sinker. A queer retelling of Hades and Persephone with giant mecha. I mean, if that doesn't catch your attention then this book isn't for you, and if you're not shouting 'GET IN THE EVA, PERSEPHONE!' somewhere down the line then this book probably wasn't meant for you. I mean, if you smashed Neon Genesis Evangelion and Gideon the Ninth together, you'd get this book, though it is missing Gideon's humor.
And when I say that the book is queer, it is queer. With a capital Q. And maybe all the other letters capitalized as well. I know I joked about how many neoporonouns were being used, but seriously, there were some that I hadn't encountered before, and I view myself pretty hip to the scene. All of the Pantheon are either female or non binary of some flavor as is all of the cast save for one minor character. Which I found weird, you know? It's like I felt that there needed to be more male identifying characters to have some contrast to the femmes and non binaries. I'm not complaining. I wish more works would be so bold to do this. It just felt weird.
The only other thing that could be a little off putting is that the tone is very stiff and formal. It lacks a looseness that I enjoy with my books, and the author is very familiar with a thesaurus. There are few books where I have to look up the definition of a word, and I found myself doing that here. The only other book that consistently challenged my vocabulary was the aforementioned Gideon. That doesn't really detract from the story however because...
OMG. The worldbuilding in this is excellent. It's rich and deep and well thought out. You're only seeing part of the greater story being told, and unlike a lot of books, you can feel that the history and lore just seeping through the cracks giving you glimpses of the greater picture. You have complete history here that you're only getting glimpses of, but you understand the shape of it, without giving you the details. How some things work is still a mystery, but it's not a Mystery Box like Lost was, where opening it would just get you another box inside. This isn't to say that you're left wondering what's going on. What you need to know gets revealed, but at the same time you know that there's more to it, and as the series promises answers.
Right now there's a prequel of short stories that (hopefully) answers some of those mysteries that I've been talking about. I can't wait to read it, but it's a bit further down on my reading list, and there will be at least one sequel to this because the book ends on a cliffhanger, so I'm definitely waiting for that. All in all I heartily recommend this book. Five stars.
And when I say that the book is queer, it is queer. With a capital Q. And maybe all the other letters capitalized as well. I know I joked about how many neoporonouns were being used, but seriously, there were some that I hadn't encountered before, and I view myself pretty hip to the scene. All of the Pantheon are either female or non binary of some flavor as is all of the cast save for one minor character. Which I found weird, you know? It's like I felt that there needed to be more male identifying characters to have some contrast to the femmes and non binaries. I'm not complaining. I wish more works would be so bold to do this. It just felt weird.
The only other thing that could be a little off putting is that the tone is very stiff and formal. It lacks a looseness that I enjoy with my books, and the author is very familiar with a thesaurus. There are few books where I have to look up the definition of a word, and I found myself doing that here. The only other book that consistently challenged my vocabulary was the aforementioned Gideon. That doesn't really detract from the story however because...
OMG. The worldbuilding in this is excellent. It's rich and deep and well thought out. You're only seeing part of the greater story being told, and unlike a lot of books, you can feel that the history and lore just seeping through the cracks giving you glimpses of the greater picture. You have complete history here that you're only getting glimpses of, but you understand the shape of it, without giving you the details. How some things work is still a mystery, but it's not a Mystery Box like Lost was, where opening it would just get you another box inside. This isn't to say that you're left wondering what's going on. What you need to know gets revealed, but at the same time you know that there's more to it, and as the series promises answers.
Right now there's a prequel of short stories that (hopefully) answers some of those mysteries that I've been talking about. I can't wait to read it, but it's a bit further down on my reading list, and there will be at least one sequel to this because the book ends on a cliffhanger, so I'm definitely waiting for that. All in all I heartily recommend this book. Five stars.
November 11, 2024
The Hades Calculus presents a bold and captivating retelling of the myth of Persephone and Hades. Angry, sexy, and deeply queer, it re-imagines Persephone as a cyborg doll, a killing machine, the latest in a long line of artificial creations, and Hades – the God of the Machine Dead – as one of the 12 Gods of Elysium, a city on the desolate world of Olympus. Fleeing her creator, her mother Demeter, Persephone seeks refuge in Hades’ court. The price of her freedom? Becoming Hades’ champion: her mech pilot.
Author’s note: whilst I do have a surface-level familiarity with the original myth, I am by no means knowledgeable enough to review this book in comparison with the story it is adapting. Thus, all observations outlined in this review are of The Hades Calculus in its own right, with no commentary drawn from the context of the original myth it is adapting.
But first, I must start this review with a question: why do trans lesbian mecha stories have the hottest sex scenes out of all the books I read? There’s Fae’rynn’s Sundered Moon, which had me blushing furiously in the prologue, and maintains that heat throughout. Ela Bambust’s Nexus Alpha is genuinely a transcendent experience, profoundly unlike anything I have ever read (and honestly awakened a few things in me, too…). And now we have Maria Ying’s The Hades Calculus. Ying, the nom de plume of collaborators Devi Lacroix and Benjanun Sriduangkaew, managed to craft an extraordinarily captivating experience of enrapturing sex in a setting where sexuality is deeply rooted in the fabric of the world. From sacred orgies, to the liberal consumption of holy erotica, to twincest knife play, to outrageously bold public sex, this book saturates its setting in queer sexual joy in an incredible variety of forms and positions.
The Hades Calculus, however, is not merely defined by sex and sexuality. It also presents a profound and timely articulation of the divinity of feminine rage. Persephone’s anger is a poignant driving force throughout the book. She rages against her very existence, a creation so fundamentally bound to the designs of its maker, her agency diminished by her very nature. Reading this book, in this moment, was a deeply invigorating and cathartic experience. In a time where women – particularly queer women – have much to be angry about, it was a soul cleansing experience reading the journey of a powerful, angry woman, who is loved and revered not in spite of, but because of her rage.
Such deep fury being such a defining element of a story like this could very easily veer from being cathartic to overpowering. Ying, however, manages thread the needle, and weaves a delicate and incredible balance to create a work that is a triumphant celebration of the humanity of its characters.
Another element to that balance that Ying excels at crafting is the fundamental queerness of The Hades Calculus. The majority of the cast of characters use a neopronoun of some kind – which is cool as fuck. However the two main characters, Persephone and Hades, both use she/her pronouns. That’s not to dismiss the queerness of our two leads. Hades is explicitly depicted as trans – something that the book and its characters treat as a fact of life, something unremarkable given the nature of this universe.
If after everything I’ve said so far, you laughed in my face if I said that The Hades Calculus features a monogamous relationship between Hades and Persephone, you’d be having the correct reaction, because I would be telling a very amusing joke. The book centres on the triad of the two main characters, and Hephaestus, the God of the Forge. The romance and relationships between the three of them – individually and as a triad – are captivating. Hades and Hephaestus’ relationship is built on such reverence of each other, such trust and care and compassion, that it feels intoxicating. The way the Gods entangle themselves with Persephone brings great delight, with Persephone able to demonstrate that for all her bark, she has a delightful bite, too.
Another aspect of the book that I greatly enjoyed is how Ying plays with power, its dynamics, and the associated agency that power entails. Ying frames events as occurring one way, or describe certain characters as weak or foolish, with such a subtlety that, when countered later on by the events of the narrative, it feels quite striking. Almost as if you, the reader, have underestimated these characters.
This – and so many other elements of the book that if I touch on, we’ll be here all day – all coalesce into to what was, for me, a near peerless reading experience. Ying demonstrates an extraordinary lexical prowess throughout. I felt like I couldn’t go two pages without encountering a word I had never seen before – which is extremely rare for me!
The Hades Calculus is truly an accomplishment, and easily one of the best books I have read this year. It is not often that an author (or in this case, authors) leaves me genuinely impressed with the calibre of their work and the talent with which it took to make manifest. The Hades Calculus is invigorating, cathartic, and joyous, and it handles its potentially overpowering themes and subjects with a grace and craftsmanship that makes it something truly special.
Author’s note: whilst I do have a surface-level familiarity with the original myth, I am by no means knowledgeable enough to review this book in comparison with the story it is adapting. Thus, all observations outlined in this review are of The Hades Calculus in its own right, with no commentary drawn from the context of the original myth it is adapting.
But first, I must start this review with a question: why do trans lesbian mecha stories have the hottest sex scenes out of all the books I read? There’s Fae’rynn’s Sundered Moon, which had me blushing furiously in the prologue, and maintains that heat throughout. Ela Bambust’s Nexus Alpha is genuinely a transcendent experience, profoundly unlike anything I have ever read (and honestly awakened a few things in me, too…). And now we have Maria Ying’s The Hades Calculus. Ying, the nom de plume of collaborators Devi Lacroix and Benjanun Sriduangkaew, managed to craft an extraordinarily captivating experience of enrapturing sex in a setting where sexuality is deeply rooted in the fabric of the world. From sacred orgies, to the liberal consumption of holy erotica, to twincest knife play, to outrageously bold public sex, this book saturates its setting in queer sexual joy in an incredible variety of forms and positions.
The Hades Calculus, however, is not merely defined by sex and sexuality. It also presents a profound and timely articulation of the divinity of feminine rage. Persephone’s anger is a poignant driving force throughout the book. She rages against her very existence, a creation so fundamentally bound to the designs of its maker, her agency diminished by her very nature. Reading this book, in this moment, was a deeply invigorating and cathartic experience. In a time where women – particularly queer women – have much to be angry about, it was a soul cleansing experience reading the journey of a powerful, angry woman, who is loved and revered not in spite of, but because of her rage.
Such deep fury being such a defining element of a story like this could very easily veer from being cathartic to overpowering. Ying, however, manages thread the needle, and weaves a delicate and incredible balance to create a work that is a triumphant celebration of the humanity of its characters.
Another element to that balance that Ying excels at crafting is the fundamental queerness of The Hades Calculus. The majority of the cast of characters use a neopronoun of some kind – which is cool as fuck. However the two main characters, Persephone and Hades, both use she/her pronouns. That’s not to dismiss the queerness of our two leads. Hades is explicitly depicted as trans – something that the book and its characters treat as a fact of life, something unremarkable given the nature of this universe.
If after everything I’ve said so far, you laughed in my face if I said that The Hades Calculus features a monogamous relationship between Hades and Persephone, you’d be having the correct reaction, because I would be telling a very amusing joke. The book centres on the triad of the two main characters, and Hephaestus, the God of the Forge. The romance and relationships between the three of them – individually and as a triad – are captivating. Hades and Hephaestus’ relationship is built on such reverence of each other, such trust and care and compassion, that it feels intoxicating. The way the Gods entangle themselves with Persephone brings great delight, with Persephone able to demonstrate that for all her bark, she has a delightful bite, too.
Another aspect of the book that I greatly enjoyed is how Ying plays with power, its dynamics, and the associated agency that power entails. Ying frames events as occurring one way, or describe certain characters as weak or foolish, with such a subtlety that, when countered later on by the events of the narrative, it feels quite striking. Almost as if you, the reader, have underestimated these characters.
This – and so many other elements of the book that if I touch on, we’ll be here all day – all coalesce into to what was, for me, a near peerless reading experience. Ying demonstrates an extraordinary lexical prowess throughout. I felt like I couldn’t go two pages without encountering a word I had never seen before – which is extremely rare for me!
The Hades Calculus is truly an accomplishment, and easily one of the best books I have read this year. It is not often that an author (or in this case, authors) leaves me genuinely impressed with the calibre of their work and the talent with which it took to make manifest. The Hades Calculus is invigorating, cathartic, and joyous, and it handles its potentially overpowering themes and subjects with a grace and craftsmanship that makes it something truly special.
December 24, 2024
"The expansion of the self, the mind, is the logical conclusion of how I have been built. But we don't have infinite time." We are mech! "Carved into my soul and bred into my bones is the single, immutable truth that every interaction is a test, that living is a struggle that one must always triumph over." On the Transfeminine Review's 2024 award shortlist.
March 17, 2025
Well written, but left a lot of questions about the world unanswered and I'm more of a big sci-fi questions type of girl.
March 20, 2025
Dark, strange, and so, so compelling. Review to follow after I catch my breath!
June 2, 2025
Superb read. This author team is quickly becoming a favorite. Everything was perfect. The pacing, action, horror-adjacent elements. It could have been a little spicier, but I like lots of spice. What scenes there were were excellent.
I wasn’t expecting the throuple/found-family dynamic between Persephone, Hades, and Hephaestus but I absolutely loved it! If you’re a fan of genderbent Greek retellings with a cast entirely composed of Sapphic and genderqueer characters and sci-fi elements, you’ll love this.
I wasn’t expecting the throuple/found-family dynamic between Persephone, Hades, and Hephaestus but I absolutely loved it! If you’re a fan of genderbent Greek retellings with a cast entirely composed of Sapphic and genderqueer characters and sci-fi elements, you’ll love this.
February 14, 2025
This was a dense story of free love, Greek mythos, tragedy, mech action, and so much more. It was a steady read that took me a while, but I enjoyed every single step in the journey.
I cried more than I thought I would during the epilogue. Each character in this story has so much to offer. Their stories seem both timeless and new as you read them.
And now I need Memory of Olympus. June can't come fast enough.
I cried more than I thought I would during the epilogue. Each character in this story has so much to offer. Their stories seem both timeless and new as you read them.
And now I need Memory of Olympus. June can't come fast enough.
September 24, 2024
A truly original take on not only Hades and Persephone but the Olympians themselves. This was only able to be achieved by changing the traditional setting to a futuristic biodome in which all humans and gods live. The authors seamlessly blend the traditional powers of the gods with advanced technology to create a rich world. I have only minor criticisms regarding the writing and plot execution (the foreshadowing is on occasion, too obvious). The prose is beautiful and rich, allowing for a greater progression of the story without sacrificing development.
Persephone - a clone created by Demeter is one who struggles to break free from her mother’s control and fights to differentiate her own wants and her programming. Even though Demeter rarely gets her own point of views, her presence is inescapable.
The ending makes me wonder if Persephone was ever truly free from Demeter. I look forward to the next instalment in this series to continue to read about Persephone’s journey.
Persephone - a clone created by Demeter is one who struggles to break free from her mother’s control and fights to differentiate her own wants and her programming. Even though Demeter rarely gets her own point of views, her presence is inescapable.
The ending makes me wonder if Persephone was ever truly free from Demeter. I look forward to the next instalment in this series to continue to read about Persephone’s journey.
July 15, 2024
A future re-telling of the Hades and Persephone myth which thankfully takes the idea and moves somewhere with it rather than slapping on a new coat of paint. The re-imagining of Olympus as populated by trans and non-binary goddesses definitely piques my interest, and the pacing and development are excellent.
The blend of body and psychological horror elements are delightful alongside VERY steamy relationships, and all of it feeds into to unraveling the characters rather than just as aside. Love it. Add in huge mechs and cyborg Persephone and we got a stew going.
This is also the only book I've read where two different characters with neopronouns have a conversation. Devi and Benjanun are doing the Lord's work.
Be warned (and excited!), there's a lot of sex in here.
Strongly, strongly recommend as long as you're up for some spice.
The blend of body and psychological horror elements are delightful alongside VERY steamy relationships, and all of it feeds into to unraveling the characters rather than just as aside. Love it. Add in huge mechs and cyborg Persephone and we got a stew going.
This is also the only book I've read where two different characters with neopronouns have a conversation. Devi and Benjanun are doing the Lord's work.
Be warned (and excited!), there's a lot of sex in here.
Strongly, strongly recommend as long as you're up for some spice.
July 3, 2024
excellent retelling of the hades/persephone myth with mecha, tightly plotted and dripping with style
cannot wait for more
cannot wait for more
August 26, 2024
One of the best reads of 2024! I love a good Hades/Persephone retelling. Especially when it’s sapphic and has polyamory. That’s what got me to read it, but what made me keep reading what the amazing world building and how the authors covered topics like immortality and consciousness. This story ended up being my favorite twist on Greek mythology in general. Every plot twist in this book was timed so well, and I kept getting surprised and sucked into this story mode and more. This book was so amazing with mech battles, cyborg heroes and monsters, and tons of steamy scenes. I definitely will recommend this book to more people.
August 30, 2024
An electric combination of mythology and sci-fi, the pantheon of gods as rulers of a planet, defending it with blurred technology/magic and mech suits. And yet, a lot of it turned out to be about mothers and daughters and getting away from the grip of a controlling parent.
*Aggressively* queer as you might expect from these authors if you've read their other works, but if not, you're in for a treat. I think there was a single character who uses he/him pronouns. Loads of neopronouns and alternative body configurations.
*Aggressively* queer as you might expect from these authors if you've read their other works, but if not, you're in for a treat. I think there was a single character who uses he/him pronouns. Loads of neopronouns and alternative body configurations.
July 13, 2024
There is an argument to be made that the true horror underlying Cronus’ devourment of his progeny is not in the viscerality of the act, but the inversion inherent to it. Children, after all, are destined to supplant their elders, to imbibe the best of their forerunners while rectifying their mistakes in a natural cycle of growth, of evolution. The atrocity Cronus commits is one of stagnation, hubristically believing that he can stymie this forward march, that he can break the cycle of succession and reign eternal. His demise, alongside his fellow Titans’, is a foundational lesson in the futility of railing against one’s obsolescence.
In The Hades Calculus, this lesson remains forefront in Demeter’s mind; it might, in fact, be her singular obsession, her animating drive. Most stories that retell the myth of Hades and Persephone tend to sideline Demeter, often in uncomfortable ways, despite the tale in many ways being about the grief of mothers with little say over their daughter’s destinies in harshly patriarchal cultures. Demeter’s anguish at having her daughter stolen away, her righteous fury at the agency denied to both her and her child, is frequently recast as envy or bitterness, highlighted as the impotent wailing of a haggard crone jealous of her maiden daughter’s fortunes. Somehow, even retellings that are dubbed ‘feminist’ merely for being from a woman’s perspective fail to center the agency of women as much as an ancient Greek tale, villainizing Demeter so that she may be humiliated by the men who claim her daughter as a prize.
Hades Calculus seems to wink and nod at this context, given how its opening carefully primes the reader to expect a similarly constructed version of the goddess of harvest. Her possessiveness over Persephone is both evident and unsettling, with her confining Persephone to the gilded edges of her estate. There is, however, much more to Demeter’s behavior and to the intricacies of her hidden machinations than meets the eye. While it is through Persephone that we experience much of the world and narrative, it is Demeter’s presence that hangs over it most prominently, like a shroud; even in moments of triumph, of Persephone seemingly clawing her freedom back with bloody nails, we cannot help but wonder if we are simply seeing another seed planted or another plan coming to fruition that ultimately tilts the calculus in the Mother of Wheat’s favor.
For that is inevitability that Hades Calculus grapples with most viscerally of all, the singular question that haunts every character and is likely to resonate with nearly every reader: can we escape our programming? The genre trappings of science fiction, its familiar devices of robotics and AI and algorithmic attunement are expertly repurposed into metaphors for abuse, parenting, and the outsize influence our progenitors hold over our very psyches. Echoes of the Titanomachy reverberate across every page, with every god’s characterization and behavior informed by the toll this rebellion against their creator exacted. Zeus’ fixation on opulence in defiance of her predecessors’ sterility, Hades’ fixation on being a memorial for the ones they’ve lost, and yes, even Demeter’s fixation on being in control, on lasting eternal when the Titans could not—all of it reflects how the war personally scarred them, and does a great deal to make every god distinct, memorable, and ironically humanized.
Persephone’s relationship with Demeter thus stands in harsh relief against Demeter’s relationship to the Titans, an approach that the Hades Calculus may well be unique in taking up. She is a cyborg, a killer, an incarnate weapon made flesh, her mother’s pride and joy. The book here makes the truly brilliant choice to cast Persephone’s struggles in a remarkably resonant light by depicting how Demeter views Persephone as an extension of herself, as a tool to be purposed to her own ends. Few of us could relate to awakening, fully-conscious, in a tank of synthetic amniotic fluid and having to fight for our very survival, but we can much more readily grapple with the existential agony of struggling to be more than what our creators wish us to be, to grow and evolve and exceed their vision of us. In that sense, Hades Calculus leaves many contemporary retellings in the dust by texturing the fraught relationship between Demeter and Persephone rather than filling it with androcentric cliches and a fixation on marriage and desirability. That Persephone’s ambitions are so directly tied to questions of agency, to whether she can be something other than what those who have historically penned her fate wish her to be, is a deliciously clever bit of subversion making this story all the meatier.
It is a gambit that enables Persephone to truly shine and take center stage, giving the readers much to sink their teeth into. Persephone fights in arenas both bloody and cerebral, buffeted as much by the turbulent politics of Elysium as she is by colossi and clones, fighting as viciously as she is able to carve out a place for herself in an endlessly hostile clime. She proves as hardy as she is savage and truly captivates the reader’s attention, placing her at the center of the tale in a way few stories even attempt to. Hades Calculus knows that Dread Persephone is a goddess of death whose existence even predates Hades’ and was the subject of a fair few mystery cults, a chthonic figure whose true name was spoken in whispers, and it more than gives the goddess her due.
All the same, the shadow that Demeter casts is long, even without a direct point-of-view chapter. We find ourselves asking, as Persephone does whether her victories are truly her own. We find ourselves wondering, as many who have been subject to the narcissism and abuse of parents, whether children can ever be free of their parents’ toxicity, or whether the poisons will forever lurk underneath the surface, germinating and burrowing deep within us, to inevitably sprout and prove that however much we may try, we all eventually become our makers.
That primal fear may well be the true horror at the core of Hades Calculus. While the book does not lack intimacy, it does remind the reader at every turn that it is first and foremost a body horror, a story whose most inflamed passages still drip ruddy. A primal, feral hunger runs through the entire ordeal, animating the pages with a verve that brings to mind Monique Wittig’s The Lesbian Body. The love between lesbians is ferocious, untamed, and much more than skin-deep, penetrating to the entrails, gripping with a madness that is only comprehensible to those who have wanted to devour as they are devoured. Hades Calculus is a truly lesbian book in text and theme, in every plot beat and minor motif, and is all the more brilliant for it.
In many ways, it is a transcendental experience, a work whose inspirations reach as far back a preclassical Greece and see as far in the future as some of our most moving transhumanist tales. Readers will find themselves gripped by Dionysian madness one moment and chafing against their own embodied limitations, as Motoko Kusanagi did, the next. Often, the way the book amalgamates these various sources seamlessly seems impossible; it stands nonetheless, a flawless alchemical achievement, a testament to the endless creativity—and possibility—of lesbian literature.
Do not ask if you need to read The Hades Calculus. Ask why you’re still reading this instead of ordering it.
In The Hades Calculus, this lesson remains forefront in Demeter’s mind; it might, in fact, be her singular obsession, her animating drive. Most stories that retell the myth of Hades and Persephone tend to sideline Demeter, often in uncomfortable ways, despite the tale in many ways being about the grief of mothers with little say over their daughter’s destinies in harshly patriarchal cultures. Demeter’s anguish at having her daughter stolen away, her righteous fury at the agency denied to both her and her child, is frequently recast as envy or bitterness, highlighted as the impotent wailing of a haggard crone jealous of her maiden daughter’s fortunes. Somehow, even retellings that are dubbed ‘feminist’ merely for being from a woman’s perspective fail to center the agency of women as much as an ancient Greek tale, villainizing Demeter so that she may be humiliated by the men who claim her daughter as a prize.
Hades Calculus seems to wink and nod at this context, given how its opening carefully primes the reader to expect a similarly constructed version of the goddess of harvest. Her possessiveness over Persephone is both evident and unsettling, with her confining Persephone to the gilded edges of her estate. There is, however, much more to Demeter’s behavior and to the intricacies of her hidden machinations than meets the eye. While it is through Persephone that we experience much of the world and narrative, it is Demeter’s presence that hangs over it most prominently, like a shroud; even in moments of triumph, of Persephone seemingly clawing her freedom back with bloody nails, we cannot help but wonder if we are simply seeing another seed planted or another plan coming to fruition that ultimately tilts the calculus in the Mother of Wheat’s favor.
For that is inevitability that Hades Calculus grapples with most viscerally of all, the singular question that haunts every character and is likely to resonate with nearly every reader: can we escape our programming? The genre trappings of science fiction, its familiar devices of robotics and AI and algorithmic attunement are expertly repurposed into metaphors for abuse, parenting, and the outsize influence our progenitors hold over our very psyches. Echoes of the Titanomachy reverberate across every page, with every god’s characterization and behavior informed by the toll this rebellion against their creator exacted. Zeus’ fixation on opulence in defiance of her predecessors’ sterility, Hades’ fixation on being a memorial for the ones they’ve lost, and yes, even Demeter’s fixation on being in control, on lasting eternal when the Titans could not—all of it reflects how the war personally scarred them, and does a great deal to make every god distinct, memorable, and ironically humanized.
Persephone’s relationship with Demeter thus stands in harsh relief against Demeter’s relationship to the Titans, an approach that the Hades Calculus may well be unique in taking up. She is a cyborg, a killer, an incarnate weapon made flesh, her mother’s pride and joy. The book here makes the truly brilliant choice to cast Persephone’s struggles in a remarkably resonant light by depicting how Demeter views Persephone as an extension of herself, as a tool to be purposed to her own ends. Few of us could relate to awakening, fully-conscious, in a tank of synthetic amniotic fluid and having to fight for our very survival, but we can much more readily grapple with the existential agony of struggling to be more than what our creators wish us to be, to grow and evolve and exceed their vision of us. In that sense, Hades Calculus leaves many contemporary retellings in the dust by texturing the fraught relationship between Demeter and Persephone rather than filling it with androcentric cliches and a fixation on marriage and desirability. That Persephone’s ambitions are so directly tied to questions of agency, to whether she can be something other than what those who have historically penned her fate wish her to be, is a deliciously clever bit of subversion making this story all the meatier.
It is a gambit that enables Persephone to truly shine and take center stage, giving the readers much to sink their teeth into. Persephone fights in arenas both bloody and cerebral, buffeted as much by the turbulent politics of Elysium as she is by colossi and clones, fighting as viciously as she is able to carve out a place for herself in an endlessly hostile clime. She proves as hardy as she is savage and truly captivates the reader’s attention, placing her at the center of the tale in a way few stories even attempt to. Hades Calculus knows that Dread Persephone is a goddess of death whose existence even predates Hades’ and was the subject of a fair few mystery cults, a chthonic figure whose true name was spoken in whispers, and it more than gives the goddess her due.
All the same, the shadow that Demeter casts is long, even without a direct point-of-view chapter. We find ourselves asking, as Persephone does whether her victories are truly her own. We find ourselves wondering, as many who have been subject to the narcissism and abuse of parents, whether children can ever be free of their parents’ toxicity, or whether the poisons will forever lurk underneath the surface, germinating and burrowing deep within us, to inevitably sprout and prove that however much we may try, we all eventually become our makers.
That primal fear may well be the true horror at the core of Hades Calculus. While the book does not lack intimacy, it does remind the reader at every turn that it is first and foremost a body horror, a story whose most inflamed passages still drip ruddy. A primal, feral hunger runs through the entire ordeal, animating the pages with a verve that brings to mind Monique Wittig’s The Lesbian Body. The love between lesbians is ferocious, untamed, and much more than skin-deep, penetrating to the entrails, gripping with a madness that is only comprehensible to those who have wanted to devour as they are devoured. Hades Calculus is a truly lesbian book in text and theme, in every plot beat and minor motif, and is all the more brilliant for it.
In many ways, it is a transcendental experience, a work whose inspirations reach as far back a preclassical Greece and see as far in the future as some of our most moving transhumanist tales. Readers will find themselves gripped by Dionysian madness one moment and chafing against their own embodied limitations, as Motoko Kusanagi did, the next. Often, the way the book amalgamates these various sources seamlessly seems impossible; it stands nonetheless, a flawless alchemical achievement, a testament to the endless creativity—and possibility—of lesbian literature.
Do not ask if you need to read The Hades Calculus. Ask why you’re still reading this instead of ordering it.
May 20, 2025
The Hades Calculus is a story about grief, trauma and love, and one of the best books I’ve ever read. Rarely have I seen a book that knows so clearly what it wants to be and steers toward it with every single word. The prose is perfectly crafted, a mix between divine austerity and casual conversation—like even the narration lives and breathes worship of the gods and order of Elysium and makes a concerted effort to do justice to them, while still remaining at its core fluent, grounded and earnest.
I love words. I like to think about strange things like “why this word, why here?” and in the case of The Hades Calculus the answer is always “because it was the most fitting word, in meaning, strangeness or familiarity, and cadence.” This probably doesn’t mean much to the average person who’s happy to just read whatever, but I find that pretty dang impressive.
The plot moves at a breakneck pace, ever moving onward. It’s a very rewarding reading experience, to see so much characterisation woven into the happenings of The Hades Calculus and the relationships of its gods and protectors. It’s a long book, and despite that I devoured it at a break-neck pace.
Speaking of devouring, there are a number of twists and turns that I was told would come. I didn’t find any of them surprising. Instead, I can only reiterate just how perfectly crafted each scene is. The twists are not so much twists, as they are perfectly set-up conclusions, foreshadowed from the beginning, a dark and vicious throughline that lingers beneath the words and scenes.
The characters are visceral and beautiful, hardly saints, but humanised by their many flaws and the ways in which they support each other. It is an almost entirely lesbian cast (which is wonderful, by the way) that is absolutely unapologetic about its existence. This is a book by and for lesbians, and furthermore trans lesbians of colour.
Something that often happens in fiction by marginalised authors is a subconscious “justification” of people like us existing there. We live in a world where the majority of all things caters to a white, cis-het audience, and as such we need to explain, even in our own stories, why we deserve to be there, how we function. Because we’re not expected to be the primary readership. That feeling is hard to shake.
The Hades Calculus says “fuck that” and goes ahead and just shows lesbians in all their beauty. There is a collection of neopronouns that you just have to use your pattern recognition skills to understand (something intrinsic to any human, I assure you), and I struggle to think of a single White character in this book.
In fact, The Hades Calculus loves lesbians. The sex scenes focus on a variety of different bodies that would be unheard of in any traditional piece of fiction.
Back to the characters and their very human flaws. This is where we’ll get into spoiler territory. I’m going to most talk about Hades and Hephaestus, because as a fellow polyamorous butch lesbian, that’s my area of expertise.
Persephone is a killer cyborg built to destroy. She is hyper competent, capable of a great many things, but she still crumbles under the trauma placed upon her by her upbringing. She has no sympathy for the mortals of Elysium, but is willing to take their safety into account for the people she forms connections with, and even grows to like a select few of them. Her relationship with her mother is complicated to say the least. And it’s easy to write any one of the characters off as villains, but I find more fulfillment in the deeper reading. These gods have battled for centuries against an oppressive force that wants to kill them, and now Demeter demands the same of her daughter. They are as broken as the mortals they use, and it’s not hard to see real world parallels for those of us with exacting parents. There is a particular kind of grief and anger that comes from being hurt by someone you expected to love you, and to me, a lot of Persephone’s callousness toward her own upbringing looks like armour.
This incidentally is the both the origin of her brother Adrastus’ hate for her, and the point of commonality that eventually lets them build kinship, if nothing else.
Hades is wonderful. There aren’t many transfem butches in publishing, and most are in self-publishing. That a trans woman would want to own masculinity, make it hers, be big and take up space, let alone be strong, is a foreign concept to far too many people. Hades is described with a kind of love that is rarely seen for transfem butches. She is gentle, but deeply flawed. She is self-sacrificing, down to how she fights, letting herself get injured to overwhelm her opponents before they can harm others. She is self-centred, taking her sister Zeus’ own mask before the people of Elysium as callousness, and even when she is proven completely wrong, she is not monstered or made unworthy of love. She grieves and loves in a deeply flawed and human way. She is not flawless, and that makes her perfect.
Her relationship with Hephaestus is especially heartwarming. A bond forged through companionship that goes so deep that one would die for the other. When Persephone interrupts their familiar dynamic, Hephaestus is the first to play the villain, assuming a plot from Demeter to weaken Hades. But even when ze acts harsh, there is an intrinsic care ze holds for Persephone, despite all suspicion. Most of what Hephaestus does to help her is to serve Hades’ needs and get her the pilot she desires, but zer relationship to Persephone quickly grows in ways that aren’t entirely attached to Hades.
Their eventual polyamorous arrangement is intentional and mutual from all sides, not a matter of mere convenience. In fact, one of the things I like best about it is the jealousy between Hades and Hephaestus. Persephone has her own, a kind of insecurity over her place between two gods, one she doesn’t even originally intend to be romantic, but Hades and Hephaestus are equals. They try to—in a very human way—convince each other and themselves that there is no jealousy over the other engaging with Persephone. Then they have to admit that, no, they are in fact jealous, and this is an issue.
Now, as anybody even glancingly familiar with polyamory is aware, jealousy is normal and healthy. The same is true here. Even though they’re robbed of the time and opportunity to “smooth over” their dynamic, it’s not needlessly dramatised. It doesn’t break them apart, because jealousy is like any other hunger. We can hold it despite our love. This is another point where the complexity of people is showcased in The Hades Calculus. It is, in fact, one of the main things I love about it.
The Hades Calculus is complicated. It’s not neat and tidy, it’s not clean by any means. It is a messy, complex, dirty affair fraught with the flaws of humanity and the yokes of divinity. It’s not a book I would recommend to everyone. But if you’re someone who relishes the complexity in humans, someone who likes dark fantasy that actually asks them to think, analyse, and weigh up characters and morality, it is perfect. Its characters are never quite glorified, and never quite monsters.
The Hades Calculus is a book for those with a taste for vicious divinity, visceral humanity, and virtuous monstrosity.
I love words. I like to think about strange things like “why this word, why here?” and in the case of The Hades Calculus the answer is always “because it was the most fitting word, in meaning, strangeness or familiarity, and cadence.” This probably doesn’t mean much to the average person who’s happy to just read whatever, but I find that pretty dang impressive.
The plot moves at a breakneck pace, ever moving onward. It’s a very rewarding reading experience, to see so much characterisation woven into the happenings of The Hades Calculus and the relationships of its gods and protectors. It’s a long book, and despite that I devoured it at a break-neck pace.
Speaking of devouring, there are a number of twists and turns that I was told would come. I didn’t find any of them surprising. Instead, I can only reiterate just how perfectly crafted each scene is. The twists are not so much twists, as they are perfectly set-up conclusions, foreshadowed from the beginning, a dark and vicious throughline that lingers beneath the words and scenes.
The characters are visceral and beautiful, hardly saints, but humanised by their many flaws and the ways in which they support each other. It is an almost entirely lesbian cast (which is wonderful, by the way) that is absolutely unapologetic about its existence. This is a book by and for lesbians, and furthermore trans lesbians of colour.
Something that often happens in fiction by marginalised authors is a subconscious “justification” of people like us existing there. We live in a world where the majority of all things caters to a white, cis-het audience, and as such we need to explain, even in our own stories, why we deserve to be there, how we function. Because we’re not expected to be the primary readership. That feeling is hard to shake.
The Hades Calculus says “fuck that” and goes ahead and just shows lesbians in all their beauty. There is a collection of neopronouns that you just have to use your pattern recognition skills to understand (something intrinsic to any human, I assure you), and I struggle to think of a single White character in this book.
In fact, The Hades Calculus loves lesbians. The sex scenes focus on a variety of different bodies that would be unheard of in any traditional piece of fiction.
Back to the characters and their very human flaws. This is where we’ll get into spoiler territory. I’m going to most talk about Hades and Hephaestus, because as a fellow polyamorous butch lesbian, that’s my area of expertise.
Persephone is a killer cyborg built to destroy. She is hyper competent, capable of a great many things, but she still crumbles under the trauma placed upon her by her upbringing. She has no sympathy for the mortals of Elysium, but is willing to take their safety into account for the people she forms connections with, and even grows to like a select few of them. Her relationship with her mother is complicated to say the least. And it’s easy to write any one of the characters off as villains, but I find more fulfillment in the deeper reading. These gods have battled for centuries against an oppressive force that wants to kill them, and now Demeter demands the same of her daughter. They are as broken as the mortals they use, and it’s not hard to see real world parallels for those of us with exacting parents. There is a particular kind of grief and anger that comes from being hurt by someone you expected to love you, and to me, a lot of Persephone’s callousness toward her own upbringing looks like armour.
This incidentally is the both the origin of her brother Adrastus’ hate for her, and the point of commonality that eventually lets them build kinship, if nothing else.
Hades is wonderful. There aren’t many transfem butches in publishing, and most are in self-publishing. That a trans woman would want to own masculinity, make it hers, be big and take up space, let alone be strong, is a foreign concept to far too many people. Hades is described with a kind of love that is rarely seen for transfem butches. She is gentle, but deeply flawed. She is self-sacrificing, down to how she fights, letting herself get injured to overwhelm her opponents before they can harm others. She is self-centred, taking her sister Zeus’ own mask before the people of Elysium as callousness, and even when she is proven completely wrong, she is not monstered or made unworthy of love. She grieves and loves in a deeply flawed and human way. She is not flawless, and that makes her perfect.
Her relationship with Hephaestus is especially heartwarming. A bond forged through companionship that goes so deep that one would die for the other. When Persephone interrupts their familiar dynamic, Hephaestus is the first to play the villain, assuming a plot from Demeter to weaken Hades. But even when ze acts harsh, there is an intrinsic care ze holds for Persephone, despite all suspicion. Most of what Hephaestus does to help her is to serve Hades’ needs and get her the pilot she desires, but zer relationship to Persephone quickly grows in ways that aren’t entirely attached to Hades.
Their eventual polyamorous arrangement is intentional and mutual from all sides, not a matter of mere convenience. In fact, one of the things I like best about it is the jealousy between Hades and Hephaestus. Persephone has her own, a kind of insecurity over her place between two gods, one she doesn’t even originally intend to be romantic, but Hades and Hephaestus are equals. They try to—in a very human way—convince each other and themselves that there is no jealousy over the other engaging with Persephone. Then they have to admit that, no, they are in fact jealous, and this is an issue.
Now, as anybody even glancingly familiar with polyamory is aware, jealousy is normal and healthy. The same is true here. Even though they’re robbed of the time and opportunity to “smooth over” their dynamic, it’s not needlessly dramatised. It doesn’t break them apart, because jealousy is like any other hunger. We can hold it despite our love. This is another point where the complexity of people is showcased in The Hades Calculus. It is, in fact, one of the main things I love about it.
The Hades Calculus is complicated. It’s not neat and tidy, it’s not clean by any means. It is a messy, complex, dirty affair fraught with the flaws of humanity and the yokes of divinity. It’s not a book I would recommend to everyone. But if you’re someone who relishes the complexity in humans, someone who likes dark fantasy that actually asks them to think, analyse, and weigh up characters and morality, it is perfect. Its characters are never quite glorified, and never quite monsters.
The Hades Calculus is a book for those with a taste for vicious divinity, visceral humanity, and virtuous monstrosity.
December 13, 2024
So this may be the best thing I have read all year, and that's coming from a woman who had read a LOT of retellings of Hades and Persephone.
The illustrative prose that makes up the way Persephone and Hades process the events and world around them is beautiful. The dense information we are fed that really shapes the world that they inhabit makes the setting feel lived in and weighty. It's very visceral when it gets down to how things feel for our protagonists, and I could not be more excited to read more when the authors release more.
This portrayal of the Greek gods and their interactions is very engaging, and makes me want to know more about them all. This also applies to the cast of non-divine characters(I need more Hippolyta), and I feel deeply for them as major plot events unfold.
The spicy scenes are also very *very* good.
The illustrative prose that makes up the way Persephone and Hades process the events and world around them is beautiful. The dense information we are fed that really shapes the world that they inhabit makes the setting feel lived in and weighty. It's very visceral when it gets down to how things feel for our protagonists, and I could not be more excited to read more when the authors release more.
This portrayal of the Greek gods and their interactions is very engaging, and makes me want to know more about them all. This also applies to the cast of non-divine characters(I need more Hippolyta), and I feel deeply for them as major plot events unfold.
The spicy scenes are also very *very* good.
January 15, 2025
Absolutely amazing book, the prose was excelent and the worldbuilding brillaint, loved teh relationships build between the characters both the familial and romantic, love some good tragic siblings. Persephone was an AMAZING protagonist, one of my favourites ever i think, it would be so easy to mess up a murder happy character and make her just another edgelord, but she has so much character, so much soul, her internal conflicts are captivating to read.
Aside from her Demeter is my second favourite, what an amazing antagonist? the word doesnt feel right to describe her, she feels so much more than that, its such a good take on the figure of the God of Wheat, a powerful and terrifying force, the one who holds most power over others, and who also is an immoral scientist, shes so interesting.
The ending absolutely threw me for a loop, i need the sequel asap
Aside from her Demeter is my second favourite, what an amazing antagonist? the word doesnt feel right to describe her, she feels so much more than that, its such a good take on the figure of the God of Wheat, a powerful and terrifying force, the one who holds most power over others, and who also is an immoral scientist, shes so interesting.
The ending absolutely threw me for a loop, i need the sequel asap
December 28, 2024
Hades Calculus is phenomenal: a brutal and brilliant re-telling of the myth of Persephone and Hades and the Titanomachy. I did not go in expecting Maria Ying could make me love a book more than their tightly written and action-packed urban fantasy Grace of Sorcerers, but by the Olympian gods they did it. The mech combat scenes make me feel like I am playing Armored Core in the best possible way, the sex scenes are ridiculously hot, and the politicking between Demeter and the gods is full of bloody twists and horrifying turns. I can hardly wait for the second book.
January 6, 2025
this fucks severely and also i am going insane @ the ending
February 6, 2025
It hurts to see a book with so many great ideas fall so short. Also had some... odd vibes at times.
December 29, 2025
This story has a lot of things going for it: Mecha, lesbians, neopronouns, greek myth, but make it sci-fi, dealing with a traumatic upbringing and a struggle for survival all combined masterfully, narrated in gorgeous prose and with well fleshed out characters (especially Persephone). I liked it quite a lot.
It manages to strike the balance between character-building moments, sci-fi warfare and the sexual tension and relationships between the characters quite well and the sex scenes were fun to read (although mostly rather short and fade to black, so if you’re looking for extended erotica, you won’t find that here). I also really liked how lesbian and trans everything was (there is one singular cis man) and that bodies, which aren’t normally depicted in media (such as trans and genderqueer/genderfluid bodies) played a major role. And again: so many neopronouns! And nobody has a boring “Btw I use these pronouns because I am a dyke with a weird gender” type of explanation included. They/Xe/Ze/Zhe/Ey just uses those pronouns, which was a really refreshing read (Ngl, as a dyke with a weird gender, xe pronouns are tempting).
Persephone was a fascinating main character, desperate to reclaim herself from her abusive childhood and to grow her own autonomy, while never apologizing for the rage that allows her to tear through her enemies. The other characters, especially Hades, Hephaestus, Zeus and Khrysothemis also receive quite a lot of page time and were also really interesting to get to know. I hope that we will get to learn more about the other characters in the upcoming books, but with a cast this large it was a necessity to ensure the other characters received a bit less time in the spotlight.
I also really enjoyed how messy the characters (especially Persephone) were allowed to be! A woman, who is a weapon, and hates her mother and doesn’t feel empathy the same way as others and thrives on bloodlust is always fun. She cares very little for most people, but the few she does care for, she fights for fiercely. I loved her interactions with Khrysothemis and especially the scenes that showed how her upbringing had warped her interactions with her despite caring for her, were incredibly interesting. Her relationship with Hephaestus was sweet and hot and I loved how they grew together. And while her relationship with Hades seemed to fall a bit to the side with everything else going on, I still enjoyed it (also the transfem butch rep was very cool to see!). Hades’ own connections were really intriguing, in particular her deeply messy connection with Zeus was fascinating.
The last part I really want to highlight is the prose, which I absolutely enjoyed. It manages to be beautiful, without being overbearing. Descriptions of architecture and scenery were lush, without going overboard. It was a joy to read, in particular since it introduced me to some new words (as an ESL speaker, who mainly engages with English language media, this was a surprise, but a positive one!).
As somebody who rarely cares for Greek Mythology retellings, this was a really interesting story for me. It is far removed from its roots, while still engaging with the characters as they are described in myth. Another review refers to this more as a reimagining of classical literature and I could not agree more. I really enjoyed how the story took ideas of human-like gods, flawed and powerful and how this could look like on a terraformed planet.
I really enjoyed reading this book and am very excited for the upcoming sequel. My only small criticism is that I wish there had been more world building and more explanation of how the gods came to be on this planet in space and what the Titans left behind, but I hope we will discover that in the next book.
All in all, an incredibly interesting sci-fi story, that dives deep into explorations of personhood and trauma, and if you like fucked up queer women, cannibalism, giant robots kicking ass and a deep-dive into cyborg identity/personhood, you will enjoy this story.
For me it’s now time to dive into the many, many other stories set in this universe by other authors until the sequel comes out. I’ve heard the lesbians only get messier.
TW: cannibalism, child abuse, gore, incest between siblings (in multiple forms: heavily implied between side characters, kinda there as vibes between the main character and her sister and their strange possessiveness over each other and somewhat detailed descriptions in the form of in-universe fanfiction), murder
It manages to strike the balance between character-building moments, sci-fi warfare and the sexual tension and relationships between the characters quite well and the sex scenes were fun to read (although mostly rather short and fade to black, so if you’re looking for extended erotica, you won’t find that here). I also really liked how lesbian and trans everything was (there is one singular cis man) and that bodies, which aren’t normally depicted in media (such as trans and genderqueer/genderfluid bodies) played a major role. And again: so many neopronouns! And nobody has a boring “Btw I use these pronouns because I am a dyke with a weird gender” type of explanation included. They/Xe/Ze/Zhe/Ey just uses those pronouns, which was a really refreshing read (Ngl, as a dyke with a weird gender, xe pronouns are tempting).
Persephone was a fascinating main character, desperate to reclaim herself from her abusive childhood and to grow her own autonomy, while never apologizing for the rage that allows her to tear through her enemies. The other characters, especially Hades, Hephaestus, Zeus and Khrysothemis also receive quite a lot of page time and were also really interesting to get to know. I hope that we will get to learn more about the other characters in the upcoming books, but with a cast this large it was a necessity to ensure the other characters received a bit less time in the spotlight.
I also really enjoyed how messy the characters (especially Persephone) were allowed to be! A woman, who is a weapon, and hates her mother and doesn’t feel empathy the same way as others and thrives on bloodlust is always fun. She cares very little for most people, but the few she does care for, she fights for fiercely. I loved her interactions with Khrysothemis and especially the scenes that showed how her upbringing had warped her interactions with her despite caring for her, were incredibly interesting. Her relationship with Hephaestus was sweet and hot and I loved how they grew together. And while her relationship with Hades seemed to fall a bit to the side with everything else going on, I still enjoyed it (also the transfem butch rep was very cool to see!). Hades’ own connections were really intriguing, in particular her deeply messy connection with Zeus was fascinating.
The last part I really want to highlight is the prose, which I absolutely enjoyed. It manages to be beautiful, without being overbearing. Descriptions of architecture and scenery were lush, without going overboard. It was a joy to read, in particular since it introduced me to some new words (as an ESL speaker, who mainly engages with English language media, this was a surprise, but a positive one!).
As somebody who rarely cares for Greek Mythology retellings, this was a really interesting story for me. It is far removed from its roots, while still engaging with the characters as they are described in myth. Another review refers to this more as a reimagining of classical literature and I could not agree more. I really enjoyed how the story took ideas of human-like gods, flawed and powerful and how this could look like on a terraformed planet.
I really enjoyed reading this book and am very excited for the upcoming sequel. My only small criticism is that I wish there had been more world building and more explanation of how the gods came to be on this planet in space and what the Titans left behind, but I hope we will discover that in the next book.
All in all, an incredibly interesting sci-fi story, that dives deep into explorations of personhood and trauma, and if you like fucked up queer women, cannibalism, giant robots kicking ass and a deep-dive into cyborg identity/personhood, you will enjoy this story.
For me it’s now time to dive into the many, many other stories set in this universe by other authors until the sequel comes out. I’ve heard the lesbians only get messier.
TW: cannibalism, child abuse, gore, incest between siblings (in multiple forms: heavily implied between side characters, kinda there as vibes between the main character and her sister and their strange possessiveness over each other and somewhat detailed descriptions in the form of in-universe fanfiction), murder
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August 11, 2025"mais tout le monde est lesbienne, Marina" - the book
I loved this!! this was really fun and really creative - I loved how it dared to play with the source material and actually create something (unlike many soulless greek myth retellings or other stuff using the greek mythology skin). There were, here and there, some technical imperfections in the writing, the plot (some stuff that didn't feel like Gods would do), or the pacing, but not all that much, and I do not think I care at all. the final twist is really really interesting, and I'll be reading the next ones, as I do not have all the keys to understand it truly: what happens when she eats Demeter? like, truly, what the fuck? and this is something I like with this universe's lore: you're not told a lot of things, it never feels too exposition-exposition-y, you just have to accept, or guess, or marvel at the worldbuilding. maybe the one true criticism I have is a common one: many books would benefit from having more characters that are not developed but whose existence is mentioned to strengthen the reality of it all - there's a lack of powerful mortals and of mortals in general, aside from like, the pilots - and strategically as a god I'd want more pilots, like come on. but I really liked this overall. great twists, never once expected Zeus to like, fucking die, cause I was just so sure that a god could not be killed - well, it can, it's just that no one dares - but this book does, this book dares, this book kills Demeter (?), gender-swaps all the gods to get rid of all men, makes mostly everyone a lesbian or non-binary, and it introduces really sick mechs into greek mythology stuff, without giving away too much of why space, why an alien planet, how all of it works, in an atmosphere of latent mystery that perfectly suits the fun, daring, really fucking stylé concepts. a good read.
I loved this!! this was really fun and really creative - I loved how it dared to play with the source material and actually create something (unlike many soulless greek myth retellings or other stuff using the greek mythology skin). There were, here and there, some technical imperfections in the writing, the plot (some stuff that didn't feel like Gods would do), or the pacing, but not all that much, and I do not think I care at all. the final twist is really really interesting, and I'll be reading the next ones, as I do not have all the keys to understand it truly: what happens when she eats Demeter? like, truly, what the fuck? and this is something I like with this universe's lore: you're not told a lot of things, it never feels too exposition-exposition-y, you just have to accept, or guess, or marvel at the worldbuilding. maybe the one true criticism I have is a common one: many books would benefit from having more characters that are not developed but whose existence is mentioned to strengthen the reality of it all - there's a lack of powerful mortals and of mortals in general, aside from like, the pilots - and strategically as a god I'd want more pilots, like come on. but I really liked this overall. great twists, never once expected Zeus to like, fucking die, cause I was just so sure that a god could not be killed - well, it can, it's just that no one dares - but this book does, this book dares, this book kills Demeter (?), gender-swaps all the gods to get rid of all men, makes mostly everyone a lesbian or non-binary, and it introduces really sick mechs into greek mythology stuff, without giving away too much of why space, why an alien planet, how all of it works, in an atmosphere of latent mystery that perfectly suits the fun, daring, really fucking stylé concepts. a good read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 3, 2024
4/5
In this queer sci-fi mecha retelling of the Underworld myth, Persephone, also known as Mark Four, is the latest in her mother Demeter's line of biological clones.
Demeter is coded as manipulative and abusive, a scourge that Persephone—in her anger and violence—willingly chooses to escape into the realm of the Underworld, where she becomes Hades’ chosen pilot.
Unlike the rest of Maria Ying's catalog, The Hades Calculus cannot be read as a standalone within an anthology series. Instead, the novel is clearly meant to act as the catalyst for a grander narrative about the fate of Olympus and Elysium, to which Hades and Persephone are integral.
You won't reach a satisfying ending to the main characters’ emotional arcs here, and the conclusion leaves several plot threads up in the air—as well as opening a few more for good measure.
In addition, the romance is not between Hades and Persephone, as one might imagine, but instead a polyamory between Hades, Persephone, and Hephaestus, who is here Hades’ long-time lover and confidant.
Like Hades, Hephaestus eschews zer typical masculine imagery and male pronouns for a more androgynous appearance, and it works...surprisingly well.
These two points caught me by surprise, rearranging my expectations for The Hades Calculus .
Once I did, I found the sprawling narrative and lore to be much more ambitious than it claims on the cover, and myself enraptured by these mythological characters all over again (including, surprisingly, the often disreputed Zeus, here the female twin to Hades).
If I can’t get a standalone, then give me a part two, dammit.
In this queer sci-fi mecha retelling of the Underworld myth, Persephone, also known as Mark Four, is the latest in her mother Demeter's line of biological clones.
Demeter is coded as manipulative and abusive, a scourge that Persephone—in her anger and violence—willingly chooses to escape into the realm of the Underworld, where she becomes Hades’ chosen pilot.
Unlike the rest of Maria Ying's catalog, The Hades Calculus cannot be read as a standalone within an anthology series. Instead, the novel is clearly meant to act as the catalyst for a grander narrative about the fate of Olympus and Elysium, to which Hades and Persephone are integral.
You won't reach a satisfying ending to the main characters’ emotional arcs here, and the conclusion leaves several plot threads up in the air—as well as opening a few more for good measure.
In addition, the romance is not between Hades and Persephone, as one might imagine, but instead a polyamory between Hades, Persephone, and Hephaestus, who is here Hades’ long-time lover and confidant.
Like Hades, Hephaestus eschews zer typical masculine imagery and male pronouns for a more androgynous appearance, and it works...surprisingly well.
These two points caught me by surprise, rearranging my expectations for The Hades Calculus .
Once I did, I found the sprawling narrative and lore to be much more ambitious than it claims on the cover, and myself enraptured by these mythological characters all over again (including, surprisingly, the often disreputed Zeus, here the female twin to Hades).
If I can’t get a standalone, then give me a part two, dammit.
May 15, 2025
Persephone is a fun protagonist. She’s deeply unempathetic and thinks nothing of human lives despite her position as an eidolon pilot making her a protector and champion of the citizenry. (Her hunger for violence and disregard for the lives she protects are contrasted even with the inhuman and oft uncaring gods.) She’s an abused child who has eschewed any compassion even for (most) of her siblings suffering the same abuse and found strength in embracing and excelling at her role as a weapon. This fundamental aspect of her character is allowed to persist without being “fixed” by the lovers or friends who are at odds with her mindset. But she still grows as a character, the simplicity of her worldview beginning to show as childish and born of isolation and abuse as she has a chance to grow beyond her mother's control.
As strong as she is as a character, many of the relationships and side characters on her side of things didn't feel developed nearly enough. The lack of depth to Persephone’s relationship to Khrysothemis, which stuck out to me any time her sister was brought up, got an explanation in the end at least. But her quick and intense attachment to her godly suitors also wasn't as fleshed out or enmeshed with the rest of her character as I hoped would be and that got no further explanation.
On the other hand, Hades' relationship to her sister was rich with (often kind of fucked up) detail and had the history to support it all.
The world of Olympus was a fascinating place. Elysium, huddled behind its defensive walls, ruled over by capricious, inhuman gods, and still feeling the reverberations of the Titans' rule and overthrow, creates a strange, tenuous society equal parts ancient and futuristic. Seeing how these adaptations of the gods straddle that line, in many ways becoming unrecognizable, but still carrying enough of the original myths to make them who they are was one of the pleasures of this book. I enjoyed even the hint of the gods that did not feature prominently.
I don’t have a clear understanding of the limitations of the gods’ powers, though. In fighting the colossi, they are nearly powerless except to give life to their eidolons. But otherwise, they demonstrate abilities that seem like they could turn the tides of these fights with ease, or if nothing else, at least save their pilots. Their teleportation and ability to exist in multiple places, as well as the ability to create their own little realities around themselves, especially stand out as underutilized. The colossi interfere with the functioning of the eidolon and other technology, but did they restrict the gods themselves as well? I was always being surprised when the gods showed off a powerful ability because much of the time they seemed less actually divine and more superpowered humans only venerated as gods.
As strong as she is as a character, many of the relationships and side characters on her side of things didn't feel developed nearly enough. The lack of depth to Persephone’s relationship to Khrysothemis, which stuck out to me any time her sister was brought up, got an explanation in the end at least. But her quick and intense attachment to her godly suitors also wasn't as fleshed out or enmeshed with the rest of her character as I hoped would be and that got no further explanation.
On the other hand, Hades' relationship to her sister was rich with (often kind of fucked up) detail and had the history to support it all.
The world of Olympus was a fascinating place. Elysium, huddled behind its defensive walls, ruled over by capricious, inhuman gods, and still feeling the reverberations of the Titans' rule and overthrow, creates a strange, tenuous society equal parts ancient and futuristic. Seeing how these adaptations of the gods straddle that line, in many ways becoming unrecognizable, but still carrying enough of the original myths to make them who they are was one of the pleasures of this book. I enjoyed even the hint of the gods that did not feature prominently.
I don’t have a clear understanding of the limitations of the gods’ powers, though. In fighting the colossi, they are nearly powerless except to give life to their eidolons. But otherwise, they demonstrate abilities that seem like they could turn the tides of these fights with ease, or if nothing else, at least save their pilots. Their teleportation and ability to exist in multiple places, as well as the ability to create their own little realities around themselves, especially stand out as underutilized. The colossi interfere with the functioning of the eidolon and other technology, but did they restrict the gods themselves as well? I was always being surprised when the gods showed off a powerful ability because much of the time they seemed less actually divine and more superpowered humans only venerated as gods.
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