Jump to ratings and reviews
Rate this book

Monstrously Mythic #1

The 12 Hunks of Herculeia

Rate this book
I thought I was living the dream—until the fateful day I found my boyfriend in bed with my boss.

As a professional copywriter, it was the tired cliche that hurt me the most. What’s a big city girl to do but pack my bags and go solo on that Grecian cruise I’d booked with my ex? Who needs a man when you have tropical breezes, stunning vistas, and free cocktails with frilly umbrellas?

But thanks to a freak storm, I find myself washed ashore on a mysterious Greek Isle inhabited by 12 hotties determined to help me in any way they can.

What in the rom-com setup is this?

Somehow, I’ve ended up inside a famous Greek myth, tasked with conquering the very men I find myself unable to resist—despite their fur, fangs, tentacles, extra appendages, and extremely large…secrets of their own.

Danger lurks around every crumbling ancient ruin, but the longer I stay, the more I wonder if I want to return to my old life at all.

Here, I get to be the heroine of my own story, and it might just be time to rewrite history.

The 12 Hunks of Herculeia is a medium-dark rom-com loosely based on the 12 Labors of Heracles, with many ridiculous liberties taken. The series contains MM relationships arcs, swearing, very spicy extracurricular activities, an overly possessive, slightly unhinged group of men, and depictions of violence. Listener discretion is advised.

Audible Audio

First published May 14, 2022

574 people are currently reading
2459 people want to read

About the author

C. Rochelle

34 books1,647 followers
Laugh, Cry & Clench Your Thighs!

Stay connected by joining my Clubhouse of Smut on Patreon, my Little Sinners FB Group, subscribing to my newsletter, and lovingly st@lking me in all the places: https://c-rochelle.com/

C. Rochelle here! I’m a naughty but sweet, introverted, Aquarius weirdo who believes a sharp sense of humor is the sexiest trait, loves shaking my booty to Prince, and have never met a cheese I didn’t like. Oh, and I write spicy Paranormal/Sci-Fi/Monster Why Choose + MM, MFF & MMF romance with dark, naughty humor and a #loveislove mentality.

Ratings & Reviews

What do you think?
Rate this book

Friends & Following

Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!

Community Reviews

5 stars
1,128 (43%)
4 stars
819 (31%)
3 stars
470 (18%)
2 stars
130 (4%)
1 star
57 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 371 reviews
Profile Image for Inés  Molina.
511 reviews76 followers
June 3, 2022
I love it!!!

Oh my gawd. I've never read a book with so much monster peen. It was a great read. Warning: it ended with a cliffhanger. I'm excited to read the next book.
Profile Image for Michelle #michellebookishmeltdowns.
182 reviews115 followers
May 24, 2022
Okkkkkk whhyyyy did I love all this monster peen so much?!!. 😂😂😂 cause let me tell you - I was here for this adventure! 😈🥵🥵

This book is a riot of freaking fun and loaded with fab smut. Leia’s snark, humour and sass makes this such a great Fun read. She has great character growth becoming more and more self confident as the story goes on. I can’t wait to see what happens in book 2.

The smut. Let’s pause and take a moment to appreciate the monster smut in this book 🤤 Ummm Julius ?! MINE! Ok but Kyros, but also Ambrose… I want them all 😅
but for real..
the mf, mm and MMF ⚔️ is absolutely unreal.

Fucckkkkkkkkk the mmf scenes. 🥵🥵🤤
Just fuxk 🥵☠️

And while it’s funny, witty, and smutty as heck… it has a great story with mystery and intrigue that left me wanting to know more! I need to know what is really going on and what’s gonna happen next because those last few chapters .. 🤯

Great book! Delicious monster peen 🙌🏻
Profile Image for Cat H.
1,972 reviews219 followers
August 31, 2022
4.9 stars.
Yes yes, all the fucking Yes.
But also, what the hell was that ending?🥺 That was just cruel.

This was better than I had even hoped for.
I can’t wait to see all her other men and what sort of..’things’ they bring to the relationship.
Also, I’m really enjoying the relationships that the men have between them. And the different dynamics.
It’s all very fun. Very entertaining.
VERY HOT.

So fucking good!
Profile Image for Poppy || Monster Lover.
1,803 reviews500 followers
June 13, 2024
4.5 ⭐️
Talk about a cliffy!
I really enjoyed the first half of this duology and the complex characters in it. I promise I’ll write a more meaningful review after I read part 2.

Spice: 5/5

Triggers: author lists extensively
Profile Image for Shelby | Spicy.booknook.
448 reviews71 followers
i-m-ok-stopping-here
December 3, 2023
I probably won’t move on with this one, but I will still recommend it for others. It’s really really funny, and there are lots of interesting characters. A wide variety of MMc for you to like 😂 it’s just a little too insta lust for me, totally a me thing.

If this is on your TBR I’d def give it a go though, very entertaining and 🥵🥵
Profile Image for Amy Imogene Reads.
1,215 reviews1,146 followers
Read
July 12, 2024
Not rating, it was a DNF for me. I couldn't jive with the humorous writing style and couldn't get invested in the concept (despite loving a why-choose romance setup). Others seem to love this one, though, so try it out if you're into Greek myths!
Profile Image for Arenia.
353 reviews26 followers
June 18, 2023
A+ Monster Smut, Rest is “Meh”

Like the title says, any monster lovers will definitely enjoy the variety of beastly appendages in the story. The spicy scenes are certainly spicy and there’s maybe 5 full open-door scenes in this first installment.

Beyond the smut, however, I didn’t love it. Leia is not my kind of FMC as she’s basically a doormat, even when she’s supposed to have her “wow you’re so special” moments. I’ll read the next book but I’m hoping she actually grows a little and becomes a more interesting character.

I’m also not a fan of most of the humor in the book. I mean to extent I like the occasional meta comment, like Leia being all, “Am I the TSTL heroine?”, but her screaming, “I’m the main character!” is just so cringey to me. Iola is also a very unimaginative BFF who’s all, “B i s h I can’t believe you” and again, the way she talks is just so cringey for me personally. I saw she has her own book and I literally couldn’t care less about reading about her.

The men are ok. They have the bare minimum characterization but sorry, I don’t believe you could ever have great character depth by trying to cram a 12-man RH into two relatively short books. It’s all very insta-love and none of the men have really been given the time to feel like real individual characters. Don’t get me wrong—they’re fine, they get the job done and I like them for the most part, but they aren’t all that complicated.

Plot wise, not a whole lot happens. First 15% is some action of her getting to the island, then the next 80% is basically her being a very lucky monster lover, and then it picks up just a little in the end. It’s intriguing, but definitely verges on smut > plot territory.
Profile Image for D.L. Howe.
Author 25 books600 followers
August 23, 2023
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
🎧🎧🎧🎧

BR with my girl Cass!

Well wasn’t this just the funnest, smuttiest, adventure. Straight from Greek odysseys, we’ll if they were written as erotica. And really, based on some of those stories, they so totally should have.

Herculeia has had enough of her life in the big city so she goes on a Grecian cruise she’s originally planned with her cheating boyfriend. Much like Gilligan, she finds herself shipwrecked. But instead of the Skipper, Mary Ann and the Professor she meets twelve hunky men. And wouldn’t you know those men are actually mythological beasts?!

If you’re interested in the smuttiest mythical tale and you love a variety of monster peen, what the heck are you waiting for?!

Profile Image for Karolína.
97 reviews33 followers
August 14, 2022
4,5 ⭐

Well, this was fun. And if you're thinking - wait, isn't 12 monsters/creatures too much? Friend, I was there and let me tell you - no 😀. Truth be told you only get to meet six of them and five personally but I can't wait for the rest of the gang.

It ends on a big cliffhanger which will leave you needing the second book. Oh, how I wish I could start reading it right away 😭.
Profile Image for Aislinn.
379 reviews7 followers
June 19, 2022
Had to stop reading because the MCs said things like “bish” and “hoebaggler”. So tacky
Profile Image for Miakoda.
100 reviews1 follower
September 26, 2022
This book became an addiction 😂.

Before continuing, this book does end on a cliffhanger with questions still needing to be answered so beware.

***FANGIRL ACTIVATED***

The story follows our funny, traumatized, dickmatized, curvy and overall amazing FMC, Herculeia, or Leia for short. Our heroine is living a fairly mundane overworked life when her boyfriend cheats and her niece, Iola helps her go on a cruise ship to relax. On this cruise ship though, she meets a pretty shady guy, and ends up being sent to an island with not 1 but 12 mates all in need of being brought back together.

Now first off, Leia is so relatable 🤣🤣, from the way she has her inner thoughts and talks to herself, to the way she's so open and headstrong. Her character was really well written and I couldn't help but laugh and talk along with her.

Her niece was also funny and relatable, the way they spoke to each other reminded me of me and my own best friends.

" “𝐈𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐋𝐞𝐢𝐚'𝐬 𝐤𝐢𝐝𝐧𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐨𝐦 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲, 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐩 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐞, 𝐦𝐲 𝐝𝐮𝐝𝐞.” "

^^^ Only a ride or die would say something like this 🤣

The FMC was definitely well written, but the first six men we met in this book were also beautiful. Ugh I was swooning the entire book, AND NOT JUST BECAUSE OF THEIR BOMB SMUT. No, these men were also, possessive, confident, caring and did the bare minimum and more. Anyone would fall in love with, Kitty Ambrose, Golden Retriever Timyn, Sassy Krysos, Grumpy Bear Julius, Vampire Zephyr and Aloof Cold Boyo Vann. They were all so adorable and I fell in love with them, I also wasn't prepared for how over protective they were of Leia while still allowing her to protect herself and make her own decisions.

There is also the fact that each monster gives her their own nickname, by the end of the book she was:
A Siren,
A Water Lily,
A Fawn,
A Truffle,
A Strategos
A Aelfmaer/ Mystical Nymph

I will not put anything more but the book is worth the read and it's rating and I would recommend it to anyone.

[𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐬 ❤]
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Florence ..
926 reviews294 followers
May 25, 2022
Wow just wow.

I had the best of time reading this one. A mythology themed reverse harem book with monsters sounds like something my dreams are made of and this book did not dissapont me, at all. I just loved everything about this book. It was funny, it was super enjoyable to read, it was very diversified in terms of plot and it was always super entertaining to read, the mythology elements were super fun to read about, the characters were built super well and they felt like they were floating out of the pages, it was very very hot and I loved how all of the monsters had different elements that made them unique, that just made both their characters and the smut to me.

This book just had my attention from the start and it never wavered. I was just so invested in this one and i’m so excited to continue on with this series.

**I received a copy of this book, and this is my honest opinion
Profile Image for B_inkworthy.
150 reviews25 followers
May 18, 2022
I thought I was ready for this book and, well I was not prepared. C's writing is always epic to read, the badass and hilarious females to the wide array of male personalities is always such an enjoyable read. This book took it to a whole new level!

Leia is hilarious but also smart and savvy. I loved her drunken thoughts and how she wasn't afraid to be herself. Now for the guys 🥵 oh my God they're all deliciously edible. They have such a wide variety of personalities that it's hilarious to watch them interact with each other, especially to watch their friendships and other relationships grow. Timyn was by FAR my favorite, but how can you really choose a favorite when they all have such....fun appendages 😉

Smut aside, I really liked the story and how it progressed. I was devastated by the cliffy but it was so worth it to read this treat! The plot twists and surprises along the way kept me reading, and yes of course the smut, but it didn't take away from the story at all. I found myself enjoying the plot equally as much as the spicy stuff. Right?! Who am I?!
Profile Image for ♡ Rosella Swan ♡.
484 reviews
September 8, 2022
OMG!!! F*cking perfection. I love Greek Mythology and this book with the possessive monster men and monster peen is sooo addictive.

« “I can’t die before I reach 1 million followers!” » I instantly knew when it started that it was gonna be hilarious 😂

« “When in Greece, be a slut in the sheets. But don’t let ‘em forget, you came from the streets!” » Iola is the best 😘

« Daddy? Sorry, Daddy? » 🥵

« It was slightly unsettling how comforted I felt by such a psychotic declaration.
If my romance novels had taught me anything, however, the ‘touch her and you die trope’ was popular for a reason.
Sexy psychopaths for the win! » YASSS!! 😍😍😍

« “Definitely a good idea.” -Sincerely, Leia’s pussy. » All the monster peen scenes are off the charts 🔥🥵

A smutty, funny, with a great plot and mystery. All the men are HOT! and perfect 🥵🥰 And I'm looking forward to the ones remaining 😁

And that CLIFFHANGER?!!?! 🤯😭 I'm starting the 2nd book right now.
Profile Image for Elle Drew.
Author 12 books414 followers
May 25, 2022
You know how sometimes you walk into a book and you think you know what you're getting and you know the author and you know the plot and you just know what you're about to read?

Holy... shit...

I was not prepared.

This was so freaking funny, and honestly, it was like reading my own inner monologue. And grabbing all of the, uhhhh, collection... Like, this is every Monster Romance reader's DREAM. Like, Leia is out here LIVING THE DREAM.

And girl GOT IT AS SHE GOT IT AND I WAS JUST.

I laughed, I cried, I need the next book today. Thank you.
Profile Image for Eliza.
580 reviews9 followers
May 17, 2022
This was something i couldn't stop reading. I'm not a huge monster slut but this had me in a choke hold. I am never ready for C's humor and characters as they make me fall in love. C's writing is witty and her story telling is always entertaining and unique. I absolutely LOVED this story of Heracles with a twist...like Leia is BAE. She has 12 hunks to tame and we only got the beginning in this monster romance. I absolutely loved this Greek mythology twist and the amount of ups and downs and holes (winks). The hunks she meets along her way to escape the wraths of the gods and island was just so entertaining. I honestly had no idea what i was getting into with this one, but I have no regrets.

I cannot wait to get my tentacles on the next installment because that cliffy gave me a stiffy.
610 reviews2 followers
June 29, 2022
Fascinating take on Greek mythology and it's "monsters". Loved it and need the next one asap!
Profile Image for Courtney.
374 reviews8 followers
March 27, 2024
“I always thought love was a finite resource, because I only received it from a couple of people in my life. The way you all love each other—not just romantically, but as friends—and how you’ve shown me the same level of care… Well, it’s filled that emptiness inside me, to where I can’t imagine needing anything else.”

The Monstrously Mythic series is a sinfully spicy loose retelling of The Labors of Hercules. If you’re looking for a free for all RH with lots of unique characters then this collection is for you! I give these ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️!

I loved this take on classic Greek history and how it was turned into an adventurous monster fucker story. Herculeia, aka Leia, was such a great FMC! Her growth over the duet into a literal warrior and savior had me rooting for her! She’s been through a lot in life and takes on these challenges without faltering, so when she ends up on this island she just rolls with it. As she meets her mates, all 12 of them, she falls more in love with them. She wants the best for them and does everything in her power to give them what they deserve.

Her mates are all fantastic! Not only are they all super unique with their personalities (and 🍆), they’re utterly devoted to Leia. They immediately know she’s their mate and want to share her. I also loved the relationships these men had with each other. Leia helped heal some of the cracks between them and brought everyone back together. There’s no jealousy between anyone and everyone is happy 😊!

**this review is for the omnibus edition!***
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Kristen's Fantasy Nook.
221 reviews37 followers
June 24, 2023
Monster ❤ers can I have your attention please?!

The 12 Hunks of Herculeia is the first in a duet.
This monster romance book is a fun and 🥵 spin on the 12 Labors of Hercules.
There is a mysterious curse and looming sense of fate that leave Leia trapped on a island with the 12 legendary monsters she will meet there.

I love that the main character is a New Yorker and the slang. I really related to her. The inner monologues gave me life and I just love the writing style. The unique humor that the author weaves into the story really pops on the page and made this such an entertaining read.

All of the characters are well developed.
All the monster men made me love them quickly and not just because they all have special anatomy. 😉

We meet 5 of the monsters in this book.
I'm particularly obsessed with my "dragon" love (he's really a hydra), part cinamonroll/ part alpha, Timyn with his biting sense of humor and many magical tongues. He knows how much we monster ❤ers love dragons in our romance books. And if he brings along a certain Kraken that really knows how to use his appendages, so much the better.

But, let's be honest, I wouldn't send any of these monsters away.

The plot is actually just as interesting as the spice. And, *ahem* that's saying something.
I wasn't ready for this book to end. The cliffhanger ending has me excited for the rest of Leia's story. I can't wait to see where the fates lead Leia.
Profile Image for Isabela Rojas.
39 reviews
June 17, 2025
This are my general impression es if this book;

1) Overall, I like it the FMC thought she was kind of smart and cautious, which is not common in a lot of stories, but I think it’s not realistic for her to not have any type of reservation towards the monster physics in any moment (only when she thought she was going to get eaten) and she also doesn’t stop to think that maybe her birth control won’t work with honest to God monsters which I think is kind of stupid of her.

2). I’m all for large harems, and in this case I feel it can even be too much even though that we’ve only been presented with half of them this far. Nonetheless I don’t particularly like the relationship between two of them, because it feels as though sometimes FMC is just secondary thought to one of them after they made up and I didn’t like another one of them because I didn’t feel he was respectful of her boundaries n R was he mature enough.

3) Info regarding Greek mythology was executed súper matter of fact and not enough as if you were learning new, so it was kind of distracting because you have to put a lot of thought into thinking all of that you may know, all that was presented to you and how is portrayed inside story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for cher.
240 reviews1 follower
May 26, 2023
horrible horrendous loathe hate hate hate bad tomato tomato
Profile Image for Gabrielle.
285 reviews34 followers
May 23, 2024
Sooooo cringe. From saying a prayer to Lady Gaga to going on about her love for Magnolia cupcakes, this screams 2010 humor in all the wrong ways.
Profile Image for ☾⋆⁺ Nurse After Dark.
1,033 reviews15 followers
March 12, 2023
2023 Buddy Read with CatLady

"Safe travels, little wanderer..."

Let me be real here. The trendy language used in the first 15% just about killed me. I follow this author on IG and it reads exactly like they speak - but if I had to read another 'bish' or any more inane trendy mental commentary I was ready to DNF this 'bish'. But finally - finally - we get and I knew the fun ride was finally beginning!

We'd tried countless times to escape this cursed island - especially in the early days. A punishing storm would always blow in, tossing out ship to the waves and spitting us back onto the shore. Some of us successfully made it to the edge of the fog, only to discover it was as impenetrable as my armor. That was the moment we discovered we were truly trapped here by forces greater than ourselves.

The premise was fun -a RH loosely based on the 12 Labors of Hercules, with a promise of monster spice? It was a creative idea and I do think the author executed this book well to manufacture the fun, frolicking ride I'd imagine they hoped it would be.

"Oh, I don't see you as unwanted, Siren," he murmured, his voice vibrating so deeply I felt it in my core. "More like, incredibly unexpected. This entire situation is simply..." He gestured vaguely. "Unexpected."

I liked the way the 'Hunks' fell into the story - I think I would have been totally lost if which helped keep the reader engaged and guessing what was next. Something I also really enjoyed was the tangled history between the monsters on the island. Some of the connections were different than others, and I found them super sweet.

"So you lured me into your bed under false pretenses with your magic tongue and that spiky dick of yours that's probably scarred my vagina for life?"
"Oh calm down, monster-fucker," Timyn chuckled from the doorway.

There were some definite 'LOL' moments, and each of the we meet in this book had a nice 'niche' that helped keep them separate from each other. I definitely had my favorites (-ahem- Timyn) but I was pleasantly surprised with them all. The super were fun to discover too.

There was still some irregularities that niggled at me while I read, like , but that was easily overlooked in favor of being in the moment.

"There are twelve of us, Herculeia." He swept an assessing gaze down my body. "You should... prepare yourself."
TWELVE?!

I plan to dive right into Herculeia the Hero, we've got Hunks to meet and monsters to cuddle! Of course, there's the ultimate quest and unanswered questions spurring us on as well - like who is
Profile Image for SmuttyBuddy.
631 reviews165 followers
July 4, 2023
12 Hunks of HercuLEIA
PoV: First person, present, Multi pov
ToN (Type of Narration): Kylie Stewart, Gregory Salinas
Audio book length: 7h 43m
Genre and Sub genre: Fantasy, RomCom, RH, Paranormal
Location: New York and an obscure Greece island
Time(s): Current/contemporary
Tropes: Reverse Harem, RomCom, PNR, Fated Mates, Forced Proximity, Greek Mythology, mm, mfm
TW/CW's:
Language Rating: 5/5
Sex Rating: 5/5 graphic sex warning:
Representation: LGBTQ+

The most hilarious, delightful, loose interpretation of Greek Mythology I have read. I absolutely loved everything in this book! I think for those who are “put off” by the slang in this book, I actually enjoyed listening to the audio of it much better than reading it because of Kylie Stewart’s amazing interpretation of the scrappy younger New York/New Jersey character. If you still dislike it after that? Well, then this really is just not the book for you!

Summary: Leia thought she was on top of the world. She was working towards becoming an influencer with a million followers, she had a great job (well, an ok job where she did her boss’ work better than her boss did), and a boyfriend.

But one afternoon, things started to quickly change- Leia had a strange dream about being on a cruise ship that was sinking. Waking up at work and feeling unsettled, she left and went over to her boyfriend’s house to pick up her jewelry that she had left there. Needless to say, that didn’t end well. Her niece Iola took her out to drown her sorrows in a bottle of Jack. When Leia awoke, she found that Iola had sold Leia’s second ticket, packed her bag, and made arrangements for her to travel on the cruise alone. Out of excuses, Leia could do nothing but leave.

When on the cruise, it seems her crazy dream hadn’t been so crazy after all, and a freak storm came in and took out the ship, and Leia was sent hurtling into the water, preparing herself to die, but hearing a chilling voice call out,

Safe travels, little wanderer…”

Ambrose didn’t know how long he had been on the island for. He didn’t know how long he had been away from the cave. He didn’t know how long it had been since he had indulged in the thrill of the hunt and fresh spilled blood. He didn’t know how long it had been since he had seen anyone new. But then out on the horizon, coming in from the thick fog that surrounded the island, came a ship on the waves. When the fierce waves receded, taking the boat along with them, they left in their wake a human woman.

When Leia awoke, she found Ambrose by her side. After further investigation, she realized that he didn’t quite know where or when he was, and that he was quite certain there was no way off the island. They decided they would set off the next day to get Timyn and make a plan. That night, after a growly, rough round of sex, Leia was quite sure she was enamored with Ambrose.

They set off on their journey and collected Timyn, the Hydra from the Lake of Lerna, Krysos the Golden Hind from the Ceryneian Valley, then Julias the Boar from Mount Erymanthos. Deciding the best way to appeal to the Gods was to repeat the fifth Labor, hopefully earning the God’s attention and favor, and amass a small army of man-monsters to foil Eury’s plans once again.


Comments: When I read this book, I very much see C. Rochelle reading it. A lot of her comes out in the characters personalities. Now, I have never met Miss Rochelle, and have just seen her videos posted online, but her mannerisms are things I can see Leia doing!! This isn’t a bad thing either, just an observation.

I also enjoyed the details given to each Human Form and True Form for each character. It really brought a visual to everyone as I read. I wrote down this info below because I am absolute crap at remembering stuff, and I know I won’t remember anything when it comes to book 2.

Audio book review: Gregory Salinas and Kylie Stewart were amazing at narrating this book. I am blown away by both of their skills. Kylie Stewart did a fantastic job with the slang and the accent and the age of the character. She was believable and entertaining, and quickly drew me into the book!

I was stunned to find out that Gregory was the only male voice narrator, and maybe I hadn’t paid close attention? Each voice was distinct and unique, and he did an incredible job with all of the voices he did! I was entranced by his acting.

Both narrators were amazing, and both narrators had very clean recordings with no issues with sibalance or plosives or mouth sounds. There was also no background noise, no equipment sounds, and the volume between characters/chapters was uniform. Excellent job all around!

**Audio book notes do not change my GR book rating, it is only here for reference. This entire review is also cross posted to Amazon and Audible** Title and auth

Character Summaries (may contain some spoilers, continue at your own risk, none are blurred out)
Leia: Honey brown eyes, tattoos, face piercings, dyed green hair, works for Auracle
Iola: Leia’s niece, her ride or die.

Ambrose: The big cuddly daddy, calls Leia “Siren”
True form- Nemean Lion, spiky dick
Human form- Naturally highlighted strawberry blond hair with perfect waves that fall over his broad shoulders. Aquiline nose like a Greek God’s. Sharp cheek bones. Chiseled chest and abs, tan, amber eyes.

Timyn: Calls Leia “Water Lily”, struts around, very blunt, has big dick energy, from the Lake of Lerna
True form- Hydra: 9 heads, forked tongues, jagged fangs, ability to talk and lull others into complacency with mind control. Multiple tails. Pescatarian.
Human Form- Jet black hair, green eyes that glowed like luminescent algae, olive skin, full lips. Strong swimmers body

Julius: Calls Leia “Truffle” (because pigs can scent truffles) Always scheming. His lair was on Mount Erymanthos. Grumpy, broody, Eury took his eye.
True Form- Wild boar with a heightened sense of smell, tusks. One thick c0ck, and a smaller c0ck underneath, ribbed like a chain of an@l beads, and it moves sometimes to spiral around his larger c0ck to add texture and girth. Both have the ability to ej@culate.
Human form- Thick eyebrows, cascading black hair, beard, sepia toned skin, one eye

Krysos: Calls Leia “Fawn”, had a falling out with Ambrose, his source of power is the Ceryneian Valley
True Form- Golden Hind, the Stag with golden antlers, breathes fire when angered,
Human Form-leaner than Ambrose and Timyn, with paler skin, mop of blond hair, pretty gray eyes. Very pretty to the point of being androgynous.

Vann: In a fight with Timyn over cheating in a game of knucklebones. Calles Leia “Aelfmaer”. Saw the Fates weaving on the beach
True Form- Kraken with tentacles. His tentacle peen had tentacles that hooked into the mate’s inner walls while breeding.
Human Form- White-blond hair, swimmers built

Pholus the Centaur: Owned the vineyard, gray haired man, granted them a place to stay for the night. Has a beef with Timyn. Hosted the Centaur party. One of the centaurs gave her a vile of poison after the party as they left.

Eurystheus: Gave the Obol to Herculeia and wished her safe travels. He is the reason they are all on the island for eternity.

Alcmene: Herculeia’s mom. Greek historian.
Profile Image for Charlie.
155 reviews7 followers
September 23, 2022
You know, when I started reading again there were some tropes and subgenres of romance I thought never read.

A monster romance was one of them. In this book, you don’t get just one but a different variety of monsters 12 of them!

So to say I popped my cherry on this one it damn well exploded.

I didn’t read the blurb I went and read this without knowing what it was about. I will be honest I'm an RH girl at heart. So only seeing two words RH and 12 men. Let’s go.

In this book, we only meet half of the twelve men Ambrose, Timyn, Krysos, Julius, Vann, and Zephyr.

This is based on the Greek Mythology of the 12 labours of Hercules which I loved the concept. The setting, names, and the fact the author added a whole glossary at the back were awesome.

Multiple POV
We are introduced by Herculetia. Leia for short. A modern-day woman is smart, funny and confident.

This book was funny and engaging and there was a lot of monster smut which I was amazed and maybe traumatised seeing as this was my first monster read. The spice was hot and heavy between the FMC and one of the monster or MM action that I was not mad at and wanted to see more of.

So, I need to brain-dump my thoughts.
Monster men do have big equipment and lots of attachments that could not wrap my head around sometimes. Winced especially the spiky peen.
Leia cannot be human as she was Yes girl all the way through, I was here for it but those tenacles and two peen dude. The girl needs a break.
The men are hot and love how they are protective and good to Leia as their mate activating that Breeding kink in full force.
All I can think about is variety like wow I mean I did say to myself no way I am reading about tentacle porn but here we are reading about the FMC having a three-way with a squid and water snake. I was opened-mouthed through this book

This was a wild ride people! The cliff-hanger left me on the edge of my seat. I need to know what happens next. Also, I swear if they have group sex with all twelve, I swear she gonna die like don't think her body can handle all twelve seriously!!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Cas ✨.
803 reviews7 followers
May 16, 2022
How to even write a review that'll do this book the justice it deserves... 🤔

First I should say that I won a spot on the ARC team for this book and am reading it ahead of its release (May 24th!) so I don't want to spoil anything because y’all are in for a TREAT.

This is by far the funniest smut (said affectionately) I have ever read and I never thought I would ever say this but it absolutely turned me into a proud Weird-ho. 😂 I was laughing from the freakin "warnings and triggers" section in the very front of the book all the way to the end! The pop-culture references, Leia's mannerisms and the things that come out of her mouth, the guy's playful banter... I don’t think I've ever gotten so many questioning glances from my family (the dog included) while I'm chortling away reading in my own little world.

Phenomenal humor aside there were incredibly sweet and tender moments that made my heart ache in longing and the steamy scenes? Off. The. Charts. HOT. 🔥 The M/M? The praise? The primal ? *swoon* The taboo of it all? 🥵 There were things that made me question everything if I'm being totally honest.

The mythology aspect was really fun for me as a former "mythology kid" but I think folks that aren't formerly-obsessed-neurodivergent-adults-now will enjoy it too. It's clearly written with nods to people that know but with enough background information laid out within the story that you're not going to miss anything important ... other than maybe some of the sneaky foreshadowing 😉

I'm running out of things to say that don't involve completely gushing about the details I'm trying so hard not to spoil, so I'm going to wrap it up by saying if you're a monsterf*cker, RH fan, or just love spicy takes on mythology, don't pass this one by! It was amazing and I cannot wait until Part Two!! 🥰

Profile Image for Book Life With Jen.
1,250 reviews23 followers
May 24, 2022
The 12 Hunks of Herculeia: A Monstrously Mythic Romance by C. Rochelle is a fabulous reinvention of a classic Greek myth that will leave you hysterically laughing, raptly enthralled and begging for more because damn does Rochelle know how to rock your world!!! 🥵

When a freak storm washes our fabulously fearless heroine Leia up on a mysterious Greek Isle that just happens to be inhabitants by twelve gorgeously unique smoking hot “men” you just know it’s going to be a deliciously hot and fun ride! Especially if you’re a fan of possessive, dominant monstrous men that come in every shape and form—such as with fur, fangs, tentacles and even some extra (large) appendages 😏

The dialogue was perfection, the character development phenomenal, the plot beyond intriguing, the humorous tones were on point and the overall storyline was epic!!! Full of steam and tons of spice this medium dark slightly slow burn romcom is the perfect combination to totally enthrall you as a reader! 
And can I just say the amount of research that Rochelle put into this book was absolutely fan-freaking-tastic!!! Mind blown!

Overall if you’re a fan of medium-dark slow burn RH romances, including some delicious MM interactions and relationships, that are loosely based on the retellings of the 12 Labors of Heracles then buckle up my friend because this is one heck of a ride! And that ending?!? Utter perfection! If you love a good cliffhanger that is ;)
Profile Image for Claire Letnic.
474 reviews13 followers
March 6, 2023
4.5-ish⭐️’s - give or take…

I really enjoyed the plot as a whole due to the duality of learning about Greek mythology along with the juxtaposition between the FMC’s love interests… not to mention trying to solve the puzzle of how all of this came about in the first place.

I’m a bit conflicted in my rating for a few reasons. I love a FMC that’s got this ‘eff what you think’ attitude towards sex and sexuality, but I feel like this stemmed out of revenge… from someone who’d never care she was missing in the first place. And her mom… yuck! I certainly hope it’s revealed why she sucks. And the FMC’s actions seem to revolve around the “I’ll show you” mindset when realistically it doesn’t seem to matter to those people as much as it does to her.

There were a lot of unknowns that weren’t addressed, but that’s standard, which I hope are cleared up in upcoming books. However, i am unsure if this is a series I’d want to proceed with outside of Audible. I really liked how everything came together in that format with the voice actors, so I’d almost feel like I’d be doing the book/series a disservice by continuing on in a non-audio format. That says a lot about the voice actors, that’s for sure!
Profile Image for Hailee Flaherty.
180 reviews5 followers
December 2, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️.5/5

- MMMMMF
- Greek mythology
- Trapped on a mysterious cursed island
- Monster romance
- Fated mates
- Unique monster 🍆
- Breeding kink
- Primal play

5 of the 12 men we meet in this book:
- Ambrose: Nemean Lion, has fangs, his dick has barbs
- Timyn: Hydra, has nine tongues and scales. Can create self lubrication and has spurs that lock for breeding
- Krysos: The Golden Hind with the golden dick. Always has antlers
- Julius: The Erymanthian Boar who is a grumpy teddy bear. He has tufts and two dicks
- Vann: Kraken, had tentacles and a tentacle dick that also has a hook for breeding and can create self lubrication

Honestly I ate this book up. The author always writes in such an unserious way it’s so fun to read. My only negative is that it is super fast paced and I wish it was longer so we could get so much more in-depth with everything happening.

“It was slightly unsettling how comforted I felt by such a psychotic declaration. If my romance novels had taught me anything, however, the ‘touch her and you die trope’ was popular for a reason. Sexy psychopaths for the win!”
Displaying 1 - 30 of 371 reviews

Can't find what you're looking for?

Get help and learn more about the design.