Court of Asphodels

by Elisa E. Enzo

Persephone has been hiding herself since she was born. Shielded by her mother’s embrace, she doesn’t know who she is, but she knows this isn’t the life she wanted.
She is stronger than her mother’s fears, stronger than the maiden Olympus thinks her to be. She was chosen by Gaia herself, and deep inside of her she knows it.
Maybe the grieving king of the Underworld can be her chance to prove her value.

«I was born the destroyer, not the destroyed.»

Genres: Mythology, Greek Mythology, Fantasy, Romance, Retellings, Fantasy Romance, Fiction

321 pages, Kindle Edition

First published August 2, 2015

Reviews

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author Elisa Enzo said she has stopped posting this novel on Amazon because she doesn’t want to sell what she believes is a mediocre book. But she still has plans of rewriting it in the future. Well, I hope she truly does, because this book shows a lot of potential (although it needs a good editor, the story’s perspective is indeed promising). Largely based on the Homeric Hymn to Demeter, Enzo has given her own fresh twist to the myth of Hades and Persephone that makes up for a wonderful read.

I'd say I was never a fan of Hades and Persephone's story. For me, there's nothing interesting in Hades's world other than Charon and the River Lethe. I also find Persephone a crybaby and was even exasperated by Demeter’s overbearing ways when I first read about her. Plus, there is absolutely nothing particularly charming about a lovestruck god tricking and even abducting her beloved so that they could be together. But I liked how this particular Greek myth has developed in the story, and how each character in the book—even the minor ones—is skillfully fleshed out. The interaction between the characters is not dull, Hades is portrayed as fair and likeable, and the many important events that highlight the book—from the Titan War to the goddess Demeter scourging the earth for nine years in search of Persephone—are well-written in my opinion. Though I had to look over the family tree of these Greek deities from time to time, and also shrink a little from a few but very graphic romantic scenes between Hades and Persephone (as if the incestuous relationships and fathers regurgitating their children in the story aren’t enough), this is a stirring novel nonetheless. My first good read for 2018.

[Shari · Rating 5 out of 5]

The thing I love the most about the Greek mythology is that it's immortal, and yet never the same. You can read dozen of books about greek gods, and if they're good books it will never be the same story. Even when you already know their myths by heart, even when you already have your own idea about each and everyone of them, it's still fun to see them through someone else's eyes. I think there's some kind of magic in how they belong to us in such a personal way, and yet to everyone else too. I just love it.
That said, the rat of Persephone is probably one of the best known greek myths, and rightly so, because it's also one of the most intriguing, the relationship between Hades and Persephone being very peculiar and fascinating. Here, in 'Court of Asphodels', they find a new voice - Elisa's voice - and the story they tell is beautiful and sweet and heartbreaking, just as it should be. I loved them and I ached for them and I was completely awe-struck by them, but I'm not gonna lie: the one that truly stole my heart was Persephone.
It was such a great feeling, watching her grow one page after the other, the little girl who became queen, the daughter who became wife, the spring bringer who's also the destroyer of light.
Following her through her journey of self-discovery was the most interesting thing for me, and apart from her romance with Hades, I also loved her relationship with Demeter, her mother, which in a way was the most tragic thing in the entire book.
The ending left me wanting for more, and - lucky me - I know there's more coming, and I simply cannot wait for the chance to immerse myself again into the amazing world Elisa has recreated.
Thank you so much for writing it.

[Susi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Recensione presente anche sul Blog Bookish Advisor http://bookishadvisor.blogspot.it/

Ci sono momenti in cui la TBR non conta e parti di getto a leggere un libro perché ti ispira la storia che ha portato alla realizzazione di un libro.

Quando una mia cara amica mi ha raccontato di Elisa e del suo libro scritto direttamente in Inglese sono rimasta senza parole e non ho potuto fare a meno di correre su Goodreads e leggere le recensioni e tutto il possibile riguardo il libro nell'attesa di poter parlare con questa giovanissima autrice dal gran talento.

Court of Asphodels è un retelling del famoso mito di Persefone e Ade: il Re degli Inferi incantato dalla bellezza della figlia di Demetra rapisce la giovane Dea per possederla e trattenerla nel suo Regno. Ma a seguito dell'ira di Demetra Zeus stabilisce che Persefone debba dividere la sua residenza tra la Terra e il Mondo dei Morti in quando non si è cibata completamente del frutto di melagrana ma solo di sei chicchi e per questo legata al Regno di Ade per solo sei mesi l'anno.

Pur seguendo in parte la trama conosciuta del Mito Elisa rielabora il tutto corredandolo di miti aggiuntivi, reinterpretazioni personali e caratteri dettati dal suo gusto personale che portano alla realizzazione di un romanzo unico e particolare, un Fantasy “storico” per quanto lo possa essere quello legato alle divinità di origini Greche, che pone al centro del romanzo la donna, nella fattispecie Persephone.

Persephone è una ragazza da cuore puro e innocente che è sempre vissuta sotto l'ala protettiva della madre Demeter. Preoccupata solo dell'aiutare la madre nel suo compito legato alla fertilità della Madre Terra Gaia la sua vita cambia inesorabilmente il giorno in cui Hades rimane incantato dalla sua personalità forte e indomita. Pronto a corteggiarla e averla con sé nel suo mondo non si ferma davanti la ritrosità della sorella e chiede a Zeus la mano della ragazza che con inganno viene condotta nel Regno dei Morti.
Come ho detto il libro pone al proprio fulcro la figura femminile della giovane divinità in un mondo dove la donna viene bistrattata ed emarginata: Persephone è una giovane donna coraggiosa pronta a tutto per dimostrare la sua forza e il suo valore davanti la madre che la ritiene la sua piccola indifesa Kore e un uomo forte, silenzioso ed ermetico che lei è degna di sedere al suo fianco, che la sua decisione di rimanere al suo fianco è solo sua e non influenzata da niente e nessuno.

Hades è il nostro coprotagonista maschile, uomo solitario, introverso e tormentato da un passato che purtroppo non è riuscito ad evitare, pronto a tutto per ricominciare al fianco di Persephone anche se questo lo pone in contrasto con tutti gli dei dell'Olimpo.

Molti personaggi secondari, tutti legato a vari miti: Hera e Zeuz, i fratelli Apollo e Arthemis, Aphrodites, Hecate, per seguire una lunga lista di ninfe più o meno conosciute.
Il PoV è alterno, passa dai due protagonisti Hades e Persephone ai vari personaggi secondari permettendoci di avere una visione d'insieme globale di cosa accade nel mondo narrato dall'autrice.

Court of Asphodels non è solo un fantasy ma anche una incantevole romance che non disdegna una buona quantità di scene intime tra i protagonisti che fa cresce vertiginosamente l'attenzione per la storia e le aspettative legate allo sviluppo della trama portandoti a divorare le pagine per arrivare alla fine, una inevitabile (sia pur sempre di fronte ad un retelling e per quanti cambiamenti ci siano la storia rimane quella originale) che ci porta a desiderare di poter leggere il seguito.

Un romanzo capace di trattare numerose tematiche dietro la maschera di una storia ben conosciuta: la lotta per l'indipendenza, l'amore vero e indistruttibile, la voglia di rivalsa, l'accettazione di se stessi e la possibilità di potersi liberare dal peso di questioni passate senza rimpianti e ripensamenti.

Un ottimo romanzo di apertura per una serie che è solo all'inizio! Non vedo l'ora di scoprire cosa ci riserva il prossimo libro, chi saranno i protagonisti e soprattutto cominciare a capire i collegamenti della trama principale della serie.

4 Stelle per un ottimo retelling, un ottimo romance, e per un libro scritto egregiamente in Inglese.

PS: presto il libro arriverà anche nella sua versione Italiana!

[Abibliophobia-the fear of running out of things to read 🥺 · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

[crispylicious juicylicious · Rating 3 out of 5]

3/5
If you’re looking for a true to the roots Hade and Persephone adaptation which is written beautifully then look no further. This is it. This is your book. READ THIS NOW!

But if you’re stumbling upon this book because you have a mighty thirst for the ‘Beauty and the Beast trope’ unquenched by all that Dramione and Zutara fics so now you have to rely on Greek mythology,I think you can pass on this one.

I think this one is for the hardened, time tested Greek mythology fans. I know my fair share but the author just sprinkled a bit too many here and there and though it’s true that she has a whole glossary at the back, I’m reading the ebook and I don’t wanna risk a spoiler by looking at the back, you know.

Some points that I had trouble with:

- calling a character by another name in the same paragraph. Like I get it the god’s have their old names and their middles names and so on but atleast let me get used to this one first??

-too many characters with too many titles. Like who are these people again?

I think that’s about it.

Characters: I like her version of Hades and Persephone enough. Hades fulfilled his part of the brooding, sexy yet conflicted dark hero and really, so far, so good. Persephone’s character growth was empowering, yes, but maybe if it was compacted in a third of the length that it actually took then maybe it wouldn’t have taken me two months to read this book. I mean, I flew through the first half of this book and then crawled my way, fighting sleep, to the end.

Plot: We all knew the story. It can’t be helped that there’s incest and the age gap cause Greek mythology. I just want the condensed version without all the titles but still with her prose cause I really find her writing style beautiful though in need of much editing. Just too much information that I can’t be bothered to learn cause she’s kindda implying that some of these characters will not impact Persephone anymore anyway so what’s the point? Really, the last half was such a drag.

And the ending. Oh, Zeus. She could have at least ended it in a light note. We endured all that and you gave us that? Wow.

[Melody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love reading different versions of Hades and Persephone. But I think Court of Asphodels is one of my favorites of all retold versions that I've ever gazed upon.

I have to warn you that if you like those retelling of Greek mythologies where they don't touch the weird family history of the gods and goddesses aka incestry (is that a word? hahhaa!), I don't think you'd like this one. I mean most authors that I read created a different world about Persephone and Hades to mask that these two are related by blood:
1. Persephone time traveled
2. Hades was another entity (not Zeus', Demeter's, etc brother)
3. Persephone was another entity
4. and other...

Elisa Enzo was never afraid to write those words (brother is the husband, wife is the sister, blah blah). I can say that she stayed true to the Greek gods&goddesses familial and blood-line. As I read her words, she never hesitated to even say that Apollo & Artemis had done foreplay *wink wink*

It's as if I was reading E.Hamilton's Greek Mythology but in intricate and detailed sexual plays and interactions between the immortals. I mean, I love E. Hamilton because she was the first who introduced me to Greek mythology, but Elisa showed me how these characters talked, thought, etc etc.

It's raw and somehow vulgar because of the incest thingy and if this was not any world mythology, I might have puked a lot. But reading mythologies, I usually conditioned my mind that marrying your own brother/sister was normal so I survived haha.

And what I liked about this one also was, the author did not just focus on Hades and Persephone. She maximized the wonderful characters that involved in the couple's story. One might say that the ending was a little bit off and hanging but I liked it. Remember: the story of Hades & Persephone was sweet at the same time sad. I always wondered maybe the reason why they remained faithful to each other was because they valued the short time they had to be together.

For me this was wonderfully created and I am interested to read more of her works :-)

[Aya Lawliet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Avrei voluto lasciare questa recensione in inglese, in omaggio al lavoro di Elisa che è tutto da stimare; ma temo di non essere brava come lei. E quindi, spero che questo commento in madrelingua serva ad attirare magari l'attenzione di altri compaesani.
Parto col dire che con me Eli gioca facile, perché come lei anch'io sono cresciuta a pane e mitologia greca, e se c'era una cosa che volevo - un retelling moderno sulle maggiori divinità dell'Olimpo e non solo - lei me l'ha data come mi avesse letto nel pensiero. Ciò che più mi ha scaldato il cuore però è che quell'aura di modernità che volevo, appunto, qui semplicemente esplode, rendendo la storia di Persefone non solo il ri-raccontarsi di una fiaba classica, ma una vera e propria icona di crescita: non mi ero mai soffermata moltissimo su di lei, ma leggendo 'Court of Asphodels' ho percepito l'evolversi di una ragazza vera, non una dea, non un'eroina, bensì una persona cui rapportarmi, con le sue prese di consapevolezza circa la sua vita e le reazioni di chi la circonda (una figlia che è molto più di quanto sua madre vede e vuole, e giunge a capirlo, ad accettarlo e a combattere per affermarlo: ho l'impressione che suonerà familiare a molti lettori). Oltre a ciò, non conoscevo la metà degli aneddoti che Elisa ha incastonato come piccole gemme luminose in questo primo volume di quella che, spero, sarà una lunga serie; alcune figure generalmente dimenticate, ne sono sicura, le devono molto. È un altro punto a suo favore, e io di cuore la ringrazio di aver reso quel mondo mitico così sfaccettato e completo oltre che così accessibile, così reale.
Il mito greco è esattamente questo, è compenetrazione di divinità e umanità, di fascino ed erotismo, di un oltretomba che lascia spazio alla speranza, e di simboli. Mi auguro che in molti lo riscoprano grazie proprio a 'Greek Tales'.

[Nuria Andrea · Rating 5 out of 5]

Questo libro è semplicemente bellissimo.
L'ho amato da cima a fondo, ogni sua parola e frase. Il registro linguistico utilizzato è perfetto, è impossibile non vedere l'attenzione e la cura nei dettagli da parte della scrittrice che sa decisamente il fatto suo in quanto a mitologia greca. Inoltre la caratterizzazione dei personaggi, da Persephone ad Hades, passando per Hecate, Helios, Nemesis e tutte le divinità incontrate nel corso del romanzo, è ben definita, ben studiata e rende ancora più soddisfacente la lettura.
Ho finito ora di leggere il libro e ho il cuore a pezzi per Persephone, mi sento così impotente e indignata perché per colpa della madre lei non può avere la vita che desidera, non può avere figli, non può vedere l'uomo che ama, non può essere Regina come vorrebbe. Ho osservato la crescita di Persephone passo passo, divorando le pagine, curiosa di vedere come sarebbe divenuta, come avrebbe affrontato il suo destino e sviluppato il suo vero potenziale. Persephone diventa donna, dea e regina, abbandonando le vesti di Kore, ormai fin troppo strette. E Demeter è cieca e le tarpa le ali e le impedisce di essere se stessa e odio, odio questa cosa. Mi lascia l'amaro in bocca.
Una cosa che mi ha sorpresa ed è decisamente degna di nota, è la ripresa del personaggio di Leuce e il ruolo che ha nella storia, come ha aiutato Persephone nel suo percorso di crescita.
E tutto questo indica quanto il libro sia un ottimo prodotto, se è riuscito a farmi provare così tanto e, davvero, non riesco a mettere a parole quanto mi sia piaciuto. Tutto mi sembra riduttivo e scontato.
Attendo con ansia il seguito, sperando che giunga presto ♥ E consiglio il libro a chiunque sia appassionato al mito di Hades e Persephone, questo romanzo lo mostra sotto una luce che vale davvero la pena di vedere.

[Olivia Waters · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the best retelling of Hades and Persephone. Many have complained that the book cannot be found anymore. So here is a link to the book.
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B0Z...

[beesp · Rating 4 out of 5]

So.
Just finished this book.
I have so many things to say about it. I'm just gonna try and write them all as best as I can, while I ache deeply about that last page in the epilogue of the book.

"Court of Asphodels" is a little jem.
Let's begin with saying that I could sometimes sense that there were some descriptions or just some phrases which would have sounded better in Italian. There were some typos, there were a few errors -- but it seemed to me that they had been caused by the fact that Elisa wrote and published this book in two months, which is incredible. This was Elisa's first attempt at publishing a book (if I'm correct). And she wrote it in a foreign language. It's impressive. Apart from some minor flaws -- and you can find those in books printed in large amounts, too, anyway -- her book is great. The plot is harmonic, the narration is never boring, the characters are so intriguing, it's a pleasure to read (I never put down the book while I was reading it). Elisa basically had three jobs to perform on her book at the same time and she did it in two months. In a language which wasn't her first language.
I'm VERY impressed.

"Court of Asphodels" is a book that just gets you. I wanted to read it because I know Elisa, and also because I saw how passionate she was about writing it and also because I study (and I love it, of course) Greek history and poetry, so of course I would read something about it. It didn't disappoint me. "Court of Asphodels" gave me a sense of satisfaction. You know, sometimes you read a review or something about a work of fiction and you think "great! That is exactly my kind of thing" and most of the times you read or watch or whatever that work and you think "meh, this isn't what I had expected and though I still like it-- it just isn't what I wanted". Well, I had been waiting for something that would bring me back to Greek gods and times in the most sincere way possible for quite some time. It finally happened. "Court of Asphodels" surprised me, but it is exactly what I want when I read "greek mythology retelling". Elisa stayed true to atmospheres and places and characters, but she took in everything and she made it her own. The final product is GREAT.

(Also best sex scenes EVER).

[Benedetta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reazione a fine libro: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH, STUPIDADEMETRADEMENTEPERVENDETTANONMANGERòMAIPIùITUOISTUPIDICEREALIANCHESEVADOMATTAPERIMUESLIFALOSTESSOIOSETIBECCOTIPRENDOASBERLEFALOSTESSOSESEIUNADEACOMEPUOIFAREQUESTOAPERSEFONETUODIOSADEADELLAVERDURA"

No sinceramente, perché questo libro non è cartaceo? Perché non c'è anche in italiano? Voglio regalarlo a tutti, così finalmente potranno capire perché io ho sempre amato questa coppia, e guardate hanno pure scritto un libro su di loro!
Sinceramente, io recensioni non ne scrivo perché non sono in grado, mi agito troppo (non si nota?) e quindi spiegare perché mi piace un libro diventa più o meno io che comincio a fare versi disumani, a strapparmi i capelli, a baciare il kobo o il libro e dire no guarda leggilo ok? La mia coinquilina mi odia per questo.
Ciononostante ci provo. Questa ragazza ha scritto questo libro durante i suoi esami, io sto finendo giurisprudenza e durante i miei ultimi esami a parte piangere non riuscivo a fare altro, quindi solo per questo a lei va tutto il mio rispetto.
Secondo, l'ha scritto in inglese e adesso lo traduce in italiano, beh complimenti insomma! L'ha scritto benissimo e con un tenore linguistico che va dal lirico a quello di tutti i giorni, con delle perle di Apollo come "bite me" o e adesso non mi ricordo più chi lo diceva Fuck my life.
Dopo questo libro io voglio avere il sequel, Persefone che ha un bimbo, perché se non ricordo male dalle rimembranze del liceo ha un figlio, e soprattutto voglio vedere Ade che incenera sua sorella che sinceramente mi ha rotto le balle dall'inizio. Stupida dea della verdura (fu così che Benedetta venne incenerita per la sua hybris).
E voglio venire adottata da Ade e Persefone, no sinceramente io gioco a palla con cerbero se volete, o dopo anni di giurisprudenza se volete vi dò una mano con le pratiche.

LEGGETEQUESTOLIBRO

[thereadernthebeast · Rating 2 out of 5]

2☆

Elegí este libro por puro amor a la mitología griega.
Que el romance de Hades y Persephone, sea una de las historias de amor, que más me gusta desde siempre, obviamente fue un factor decisivo.

No fue difícil encariñarme con Hades... de la imagen de dios cruel que lo acosa y del corazón torturado que esconde, que anhela el amor pero no se considera digno de este. Su relación con Hécate me gustó desde el principio, y cómo pese a su vínculo rey-consejero, es la segunda quien suele tratar al primero con condescendencia, reprendiéndolo y cuidando de él como a un niño, si bien, por lo general, prima el respeto entre ellos. Ese fue otro aspecto positivo de la historia: cómo Hades le permite a su corte mayor confianza de la protocolarmente aceptada, manteniendo un vínculo real con su gente, opuesto a los falsos modales del Olimpo... y por cierto, el Olimpo, ¡me encantaron los lazos familiares! La rivalidad, el desprecio, la envidia, el resentimiento, la lujuria... fue muy divertido ver representados a los dioses de una forma casi mundana, porque la verdad, es que estas relaciones entre ellos, captan su identidad de forma bastante justa, como una familia poderosa, numerosa y disfuncional.

Pero no todo en esta historia merece aplausos...
Perséfone por momentos se me hizo muy aburrida, los monólogos en su cabeza pueden ser terriblemente repetitivos e insulsos... casi tanto como los de Démeter, a quien ni una vez disfruté leer. Hades tampoco libra, en el afán de rebelar la nobleza de sus verdaderos sentimientos y la vulnerabilidad de su corazón, principalmente en la primera mitad del libro, hay momentos en los que de forma muy extrema casi lo pintan de inútil, al fin y al cabo, es Hécate, el cerebro funcional resolviendo sus problemas. Mi mayor pena, fueron los diálogos románticos, los que disfruté muy poco, ya que mayormente me parecieron forzados...

En fin, lo mejor del libro, es la construcción del mundo... que refleja de una forma simple, pero hermosa, a los dioses del Olimpo, su genealogía, epítetos, relaciones familiares, conflictos, criaturas que los servían. Eso, sí lo disfruté conpletamente... pero, tristemente, solo eso.

[Denielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is surprising. I really didn't think that I would fly through this book the way that I did but I enjoyed it.

I love Hades and Persephone and I loved the way the author portrayed them in this story. The way that things ended I can tell there is about to be a lot more to come and I am looking forward to see what's about to happen.

[Karlsdottir · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Court of Asphodels" is really a great book. I must admit it took me a couple of chapters to love it, but it was mainly because I've been more into Norse gods and tales lately, so the Greek ones and everything I knew about them was pushed back in some remote corner of my mind.
What I really liked is the modern retelling of the old myth of Persephone, especially since the author was able to turn a well known myth, about a girl who's abducted against her will, into a romantic lovestory (I know it's not just that, but right now I can't think of a better word) that was literally growing and developing page after page. I'm not sure I've ever read a book where a romantic relationship between two character has been developed as good as the one between Persephone and Hades. I also loved how Persephone herself has grown throughout the book: how she went from being the old, but naïve, little Kore, to being Persephone, the queen of the Underworld.

The only issue for me were typos, which, although minor, they were often present. I read somewhere (maybe Amazon?) that the author was sending a revised version to whoever bought this 1st edition and asked for the revised copy (obviously with proof of payment), but I didn't bother asking because I decided that I'm going to buy the paperback if/when it will be available (I want to support the author, yes because the book is good, but mainly because I want to know what happens next, what myth will be retold in the 2nd chapter of this series... I'm so curious!)

[Sorangel Bisonó · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decent enough

The book was well written and you can tell the author did her research. Loved how Hades and Persephone relationship grew gradually and their relationship with other characters as well, however I can help feeling the ending was rushed and unsatisfactory.

[Maya De toro · Rating 5 out of 5]

Court of Asphodels is a story about the Greek gods and goddesses. The main focus is on Persephone and Hades and their struggle with life. A story where remorse and romance coincides.

This story was completed because of the other Gods and Goddesses that we have known. From Artemis, Athena, Morpheus, Hecate, Thanatos and much more. Their own roles paved the way to many voices that one cannot see in other books. Everything this book is utter perfection. The magic of myths and the author's twist is what made this book mind blowing.

I applaud Elisa Enzo's rendition on the story of Hades & Persephone. Her work 'Court of Asphodels' spoke volumes on what may have really happened in the earlier times. Although despite the great work- she made me want more. The need to see a happy ending for the star-crossed lovers came like a tidal wave. The annoyance for both Zeus and Demeter: his idea to bend the laws of the Underworld at will and her nonsensical blindness was unnerving. Enzo told the story in her own light but stuck with the origins of what we know. The love between Persephone and Hades is painful, heartbreaking, and yet sweetly beautiful. I loved them before and more now because of this awesome work. Dear Hades caught my attention for his bravery, courage and his sheer vulnerability at acceptance. The will power he used to stop himself from pouncing on Persephone because of Eros arrow was his best moment for me.

I hope and wish the sequel will come fast because I can't wait to read more of this brilliant piece. Enzo's work spoke wonders for my love for this pair. I highly recommend it for people who love this Greek pair.

[Cissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this!

I love reading retellings of Hades’ and Persephone’s story, but most of them are not well written and end up like a fanfic written by a thirteen year old who just discovered Wattpad. So, when I find a retelling that has a compelling story and is well written I’m overjoyed.

That’s why I was so surprised to find that the author herself doesn’t like this book. Obviously there are some things that could’ve been better and that maybe an editor would’ve changed, but I thought the story was pretty good as it is.

I’ve seen the author commenting here that she has plans to re-write it and I really hope she does it, because I would love to read what she considers to be the better version of this book, ‘cause it’s already pretty great to begin with.

[Alessandra · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don’t know what I was expecting but this wasn’t good. I hated Persephone, usually my favourite character in the myth, because she was incredibly dull and passive. Hades was basically just a caricature of himself.

The story was boring and it skipped all the most important parts.

The only good thing was the accuracy of the numerous gods’ names and appellatives.

Also, I wasn’t expecting the sexual scenes and they definitely didn’t help. They were boring and repetitive and quite unnecessary.

[Marijana☕✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Autorka je povukla ovu knjigu jer je shvatila da ima dosta pravopisnih grešaka i typosa, pa bi da je sredi i lektoriše (što se možda nikad neće ni desiti).
Nije mi bilo jasno čemu to "spaljivanje" rukopisa tokom prvih 70 strana zato što je priča krenula idealno i jako su mi se dopali likovi, ali ubrzo je sve otišlo dođavola.
Da, Elisa, definitivno treba da je napišeš ispočetka, ne zbog pravopisa, već zato što si upropastila sve što si mogla.

[Thu Nguyen · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very straightforward retelling of the original myth, with hardly any adaptation except the story of Leuce and a good improvisation around the picking of the narcissus flower. I don't feel any personal connection to both Persephone or Hades, while their story was moving, their characters didn't leave any impression. Hades was just a good guy with a broken heart, and Persephone was just too nice to leave him. There was no chemistry between the two.

[Sabahat · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a solid Hades and Persephone retelling that I enjoyed. There's not really a whole load for me to say other than I liked the characters of the gods and I liked the romance. Wish it would have ended on a happier note but oh well.

[Bianca Fields · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still on my Hades/Persephone kick lol. I am surprised to say how much I enjoyed this book! I would definitely recommend it, the author has done much research and it shows.

[SueZ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a nice take on the myth. Like the author herself said in her blog, there is still some need for editing, but I think for a first work this was quite good.

[Midnight719]

Would love to read this but can’t find it anywhere. Does anyone have a link?

[Lilou82 · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the best retelling of the myth of hades and Persephone I have read. Loved the writing and storytelling. The end calls for a follow up. Hope we will have one someday!

[Prachi]

Had to dnf, boring

[Brianna · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Characterization and relationship building was rushed or nonexistent.

[supercoolgirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kinda bummed there aren’t any other books in this series!!

[Francesca Tripiedi · Rating 3 out of 5]

La premessa è che ho adorato la storia e, a seconda delle circostanze, amato e odiato i personaggi. Aspetterò con impazienza il seguito e leggerò con interesse la traduzione italiana del romanzo. E, in definitiva, consiglio vivamente la lettura a tutti gli appassionati di mitologia classica.
Ora, detto questo, ho dovuto penalizzare il romanzo con una valutazione non piena, perché purtroppo abbonda di errori grammaticali. In un primo momento, considerando che la scrittrice è italiana e non madrelingua inglese, avevo intenzione di essere più indulgente. D'altra parte, sebbene apprezzi moltissimo lo sforzo compiuto da Elisa Enzo, non capisco le ragioni dietro l'uso specifico della lingua inglese. Perché non scrivere nella propria lingua, se non si è certi di poter produrre un lavoro ineccepibile con un'altra? Magari sarebbe bastato far revisionare lo scritto da qualcuno un po' più autorevole in materia. Sia come sia, gli errori hanno guastato la lettura.
Citerò soltanto un esempio di errore, ripetuto continuamente, così se mai l'autrice si troverà a leggere la mia recensione, potrà riguardare alla parte formale del romanzo con occhio diverso.
"He would have simply indulged himself for a little time more. Then he would have turned away, and for good. Yes, he would have."
Questo è una forma scorretta di future in the past. La forma corretta è "He would simply indulge himself for a little time more. Then he would turn away, and for good. Yes, he would."
Per la stessa regola, "The memory of her naked body would have taunted him" è invece "The memory of her naked body would taunt him"; "She would have grown them" è "She would grow them"; "She would have talked to Athena later" è "She would talk to Athena later." E così via.

[Klaudisz · Rating 2 out of 5]

It wasn't a bad reading, but it lacked something in my opinion. It seemed quite interesting at the beginning, but then I just got bored. I felt like nothing really happened in this book.
Might be that reading stories based on myths is just not my cup of tea.