I’m a hero, she’s a villain. A demigod and a monster.
Years of venomous lies and untold favors catch up to us when the Fates intervene. The woman that I’ve secretly loved for centuries is in danger. I’d do anything to keep her safe, anything to make her mine.
The gods have forsaken us. The Fates plot to end us. But even if our world burns to the ground, it’s her I will fight to the end for.
This novel has the following:
Two women that have been secretly pining for centuries Demigods, monsters, and gods SPICE Sapphic monster romance and SO much more Queens & Monsters is a sapphic monster mafia romance. It is the third book in the Three Fates Mafia Series and can be read as a standalone.
the smut was good but everything else was boring also i thought medusa came off corny and so did the mafia stuff but also im not into the mafia plot anymore so maybe thats why
3.7 ⭐️ a great sapphic monster mafia romance (that’s packed with very spicy spice)
Clio Evans is yet to write a book that I dislike and is one of the few authors on my auto buy list.
This was another great romance but just personally not one I enjoyed as much (however you might if you’re fond of the pet names ‘kitten’ and ‘daddy’.) This is all down to personal taste but wasn’t my favourite read because of the frequent use of both. If that’s your thing, you will most likely love this one.
The spice as always was immaculately written and this may be one of the spiciest (published) books I’ve read. Great for fans of Katee Robert etc.
Rep: Sapphic MC Demi-god, sapphic MC gorgon. Central romance is WLW / Sapphic.
Spice level: BSDM / Kink (monster romance) Sex TW’s listed at the bottom of this review.
Tws listed below, please skip if you don’t want vague spoilers.
Tw//murder, death, bodies, mafia themes, knives and stabbing, harm, torture, graphic violence, mentions of assault and sexual assault (brief), blackmail, war, drugging.
Sex Tws // BDSM Dom/sub dynamics, flogging, spanking, sex toys, stabbing. electricity play, face sitting, breath play, Consensual Non Consent, chasing/primal hunting, fisting, intense degradation, Shibari, humiliation, toy use, use of pet names (kitten, daddy), praise kink.
“We have a lot to make up for. I’m not hiding anymore. I will not pretend I don’t want you.”
3.5 stars. Some good old sapphic monster fucking and an uncomplicatedly good time. Well, "uncomplicated". This is the third book in a series about demigods and monsters based on the Greek pantheon mixed up in a mafia business, and the world-building is a little involved, and there are hints at events from previous books that sorta come into play? But it reads perfectly well as a standalone, and I had fun with it. We're following Perseus and Medusa, who have been frenemies for thousands of years, and but never more, because of the animosity between demigods and monsters. Now that they're finally taking things further, trouble starts brewing with the Fates and other players on the scene.
I love friends to lovers, but it's a little bit of a hard sell when two people have been friends for THIS long and have so much chemistry and tension, but somehow never explored it? But the book manages to make me believe that, give a sense of the gravity between them, while keeping the growing relationship fresh and intense. In this iteration, both women are mafia bosses (with Medusa/Madeline also doing some sculpting on the side, hah) and they're badass and take charge and fearless in a way that I absolutely ate up. I enjoy stories where women struggle and fight for power, but I also love seeing them just be uncomplicatedly in charge. Especially Percy. Swoon. This is heavy on the smut, but it's good, and also managed to feel emotionally impactful, even for something this short. I love D/s when it's dirty but also emotional. The scene with the notes!! The only thing I couldn't really get behind was . And it didn't negatively impact the experience; this was still sexy as hell. Bitches were blushing. (I'm bitches.)
The plot was action packed and a little twisty, though it didn't really take much to figure out who was responsible. I did like all the little worldbuilding touches, and details about the city. The fight scenes were fun, especially when Percy's lightning bolt and Madeline's hair came into play. There were a few too many flashbacks, and they could have stood to be more seamless, but I liked the insight they gave into Percy and Madeline through the years.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Susannah Rivers and Lucy Rivers, and I really loved it. I'm pretty sure one of them is another narrator I like under a pseudonym, perhaps? It's always great when two narrators have different voices, but still manage to complement each other a lot. The narration never sounded off when they were doing each other's voices. This was a fun time, and I'll def read from the author again. If not in this series, then another one of her books.
Content warnings:
She was my god. And I would trust her to the very end.
The romance in this is actually so beautiful, I absolutely adored this. It’s a love that spans centuries and they didn’t even realize it?? Like come onnnn. Yes the smut was super hot too, but wow was this good!
A Demi-god and a Monster. I really enjoyed this. I’m a sucker for Greek mythology and make it Sapphic?? Even better. I love any kind of Medusa retelling! And this one is super spicy! I loved it 😍 Book three in the Three Fates Mafia series. But this can be read as a standalone.
Written in first person with 2x POV’s. Narrated by Savannah Rivers and Lucy Rivers. Sapphic Monster Romance, Medusa/Percy, Mafia, Touch her and die, Dom/Sub Dynamic, Fated mates. 7x Spicy scenes.
Yeah.... I don't know... first up the good things:
the smut was good especially bc it had a lot of variety. I just personally didn't like the daddy stuff (nothing against the kink but.. I just like it more when women call themselves the female equivalent of daddy. So this is just personal preference) but the rest of the smut was really good!
I did like the idea of Perseus and Medusa meeting like Crowley and Aziraphale and the parallels to that.
HOWEVER
What the fuck was that Mafia shit. It was SO fuuuucking cooorrrrrrnnyyy oh my GO D
Also Im convinced this author either doesn't kmow that the minoan bull and the minotaur are not the same thing OR they don't know that minotaur is not.. like a race. There is ONE minotaur in greek mythology. Perhaps they were a bit too stuck in their monsterfucker bubble but eh. ALSO WHY WAS HIS NAME RYAN???
The story was also... super annoying I did not care for it AT ALL i skipped most of it... LMAO
So yeah 2 stars for the smut (love seeing some good CNC) but... the rest... naaaaja
3 stars. This was bonkers. I didn’t like the writing style, the plot was extremely thin, the characters personalities were inconsistent and a lot of the dialogue physically hurt me. However, I came for the smut and I got it in tenfold. Once I read in Laura’s review that there was daddy kink in this I damn near sprained my ankle running to amazon to get this on my kindle immediately. Sold. The sex scenes were fantastic and plentiful. Madeline (Medusa) likes to submit to Percy in the bedroom and Percy likes to be called daddy. Like, excuse me? I was here for all of it. I liked their chemistry a lot and it’s really their romance that’s keeping me from giving this less stars. They were great together and so hot. The ending was a bit sloppy and all over the place but whatever this was fun in a trashy way and I mean that in the best way possible.
This was the best Medusa retelling I’ve read! Well written. Interesting plot. Lots of twists. Action. Spice (lots of awesome spice). And thru it all a beautiful love story for the ages. Will Medusa get her happy ending? Definitely recommend reading to find out!
… this book is literally so boring. How is it so boring?
Like even the smut is boring. 🥱
Like are they enemies to lovers? No. Are they friends to lovers? No.
They’re more like 2 people who are naturally on opposing sides yet never did anything to oppose the other except be born a Demigod or a god making them a monster. Just 2 people who have lived a fucking long time and have crossed paths many a time in their long lives.
They tell me about this out of this world chemistry they have but I don’t see it. Classic symptom of telling and not showing here.
If anything I can kinda see Percy’s feelings for Mads more than I can see Mads feelings for Percy. Mads says she “gives in” to Percy’s wants. But it read more of like a resignation and not like “finally letting myself have what I want” kind of giving in you know?
I found myself putting this book down more than picking it up. It just didn’t have enough going on to keep my attention or interest. 1.5 stars rounded down.
Out of the 3 books in this series so far this one was kinda the most boring tbh. This is meant to just be pure filthy smut and frankly I thought it could have used more. Still finished it in a day though lol.
Dedication promised so much, yet this book did not deliver.
Smut was so bad, I'll even dare to say the worst Clio Evans has ever written. I've been in her arc team for a while now and I've been reading all her works before I was an ARC reader... so trust me when I say I've read every single book she has ever written. This book was by far the worst. Smut was so disengaging and dry. There was absolutely no connection and tension between the two FMCs. I guess I'm in the era where I can't read smut if the connection between characters is forced. The plot was absolutely atrocious.
It pains me to leave a review like this because I absolutely love Clio's works and I never thought there'd be a book by her that I would hate. But I hate this one with such passion, I cannot get myself to read the leftover 24%.
Sapphic Perseus and Medusa retelling with spice and fates mates???
The history books said we were enemies, but they had it all wrong. It had never been me against her; it had always been us against the world.
🐍Fated mates with claiming ⚡️Sapphic spice 🐍one of them has a hot man after them ⚡️BSSM with spanking and a Str@p-On 🐍”call me daddy” ⚡️Sub/Dom 🐍burn the world for her ⚡️morally grey MCs 🐍spice in monster and human form ⚡️tail action
Gahhhh the way Percy could look at Mads in her Medusa form bc they were mates 🫠
I loved that this book really focused on Madeline’s self image and helping her overcome her insecurities. Percy was such a simp for Mads and praised her at every turn which i lived bc Percy was also the Dom. Their HEA was so perfect too
Greek mythology but make it mafia and sapphic. Medusa and Perseus are mates but only have one month left before Medusa dies.
So this is supposed to be a standalone in a series but I definitely felt like I was missing pieces of the puzzle and I was left feeling confused by the plot outside of the love story. I also did not like the mafia story because mafia is not my jam but this has the best sapphic smut I’ve ever read so there’s that.
Fast burn with strap, impact, rope bondage, biting, daddy kink, toys, choking, electricity, primal play, cnc, blood play, and fisting.
Holy macaroon! This is my favourite in the series so far 💕 the spice was off the charts as always! I wasn’t prepared for the emotional rollercoaster though!
Shatter me. Break me. Force me to do whatever you want me to do, even if I don’t want to, I belong to you, right? Isn’t that what you want? -Madeline
Queens and Monsters Three Fates Mafia Book 3 A Sapphic Monster Mafia Romance By Clio Evans 267 pages Currently on Kindle Unlimited in the USA. Publication date October 10, 2023 clioevansauthor.com
I received a copy of this book from the author, and this is my review. Please, watch out for possible spoilers, including but not limited to, TW/CN/Etc.
If you enjoy Sapphic love stories through the ages Touch her and die vibes Sapphic Fated Mates DemiGods LGBTQAI+ Rep Gorgons Mystery SPICE Then you HAVE to read this one.
Queens and Monsters, is the third book in the Three Fates Mafia series by Clio Evans. And let me tell you, the spice was AMAZING. The kink, the consent, the submission, the checking in, and trying to protect each other, all the while kinda fumbling at it.
I loved Madeline, and Percy from the moment we met them in the other books. I was so excited when Clio posted about them getting their own book. And hopefully a HEA.
I loved the way that they secretly pined for each other. Loved each other. And kinda dating each other since the moment they met. This fated mates, touch her and die story is amazing and y’all definitely gotta give it a read.
I would suggest reading the books in order, but if that is not your jam, you can still understand what is going without.
Clio is one of my top ten authors, and once again they hit it out of the park with this one,.
5 / 5 stars Destynnee
Possible TW, Tropes, and Genres Mature, Sexually Explicit Scenes, Kink, BDSM, Bondage, Dubcon, Noncon, CNC, Primal Chasing, Bonding, Fated Mates, FF, Sapphic, Sex Toys, Fully Shifted Sex, Call me Daddy, Good Kitten, Violence, Torture, Magic, Gods, Goddesses, Monsters, Mafia, Work Place Romance, Mystery, Death, Murder, and possibly more.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
(This is a genuinely filthy smutty story with a lot of CWs and TWs-the author includes them at the beginning of the book, so I highly suggest not skipping them over before starting this book).
The stories are all wrong. Perseus isn't a man-she's a woman, fierce with the power of lightning at her disposal, but somehow unwilling to tear off the head of the Gorgon Medusa when confronted all those years ago. Now, thousands of years later, both Percy and Medusa still live. Medusa is now known as Madeline, an accomplished artist with a penchant for sculpture, in a stunning human disguise. And Percy works with the Three Fates Mafia.
The years of fighting between Madeline and Percy have been hiding a giant secret-one the Fates have kept close to their chest for decades, despite Percy knowing it within her own heart all this time. And Madeline and Percy are about to finally take a step toward one another...just as another hidden force seeks to end Medusa's immortal life forever...
I saw another review say that this starts as a monster romance that leaves you in tears and cheering as loud as you did in the Barbie movie, and my god, if that isn't the most accurate description of this smutty little masterpiece I've ever seen. I picked this book up on a friend's reccomendation, not realizing that a) this was part of a series (although it can be read as a standalone), and b) that this stunning little book would leave me sobbing multiple times by the ending, and that there were enough twists in this to make up all the golden snakes that make up Medusa's hair.
I love feminist sexy smutty retellings, and this ticks all those boxes. This was sexy, empowering, dark, dirty, and absolutely breathtaking. I am going back to the beginning now and starting this series from the top-because this author has pulled me in hook, line, and bloody sinker.
DNF at 95%. I saw a lot of hype about Clio Evans, and I was keen to try one of her titles. I also felt I should try to read more sapphic stories, being A Bisexual™ myself. Unfortunately, I didn't enjoy this book. On paper (no pun intended), it sounded good. Gender swapped Perseus in an entanglement with Medusa; an enemies to lovers story - but all of that fell apart pretty quickly. Both characters were inconsistent, the plot was unnecessarily convoluted - especially for being under 300 words - and I was annoyed by the sudden introduction of a new villain in the 3rd act, with no seed dropped earlier in the piece. It was a SJM-esque Deus ex Machina that felt lazy and convenient and contributed to the over feeling that the writer just had a few tropes they wanted to cross off a checklist and wrote without editing or critiquing their own work. Some lazy typos added to this. My biggest gripe was the scene where Percy tied Medusa to chair in front of their tortured captives for a bit of shame-kink BDSM in an attempt to force her to see that she was worthy by force feeding her strips of paper after reading out the epithets written on them. Wow, what a self esteem booster. Additionally, the power dynamic between demigod and monster - the latter of which are definitively portrayed as a kind of underclass - was not explored. What I tend to love about MM romances is the elimination of inequality caused by gender (there are certainly other intersections to explore beyond the one, of course). Changing Perseus to a woman did not remove that dynamic, because she still held a higher place in their community by being the offspring of Zeus, and Medusa being a monster (and therefore, lesser). There were some promising ideas here, and sadly, they were all executed with the aim of a stormtrooper.
Book: Queens & Monsters Author: Clio Evans Cover Art By: C Jemlin Series: Three Fates Mafia Release Date: 10/10/23 Rating: One Million Stars
Highlights: •Sapphic (and 🥵🥵🥵) •Mutual secret pining •Bad ass mafia bosses •CNC •Fisting •Shock play
I was going to wait until tomorrow to do my review but I cannot wait to tell you how much I fucking loved this book. Clio consistently knocks my socks off but this story is literally perfect. Percy and Mads are incredibly complex characters. They are strong and bad ass and wild and fierce and passionate and stubborn and tender and soft and fragile and broken. They have waited centuries to be together and now that everything is out in the open the world seems like it’s against them. Will they be able to overcome these challenges or will their tumultuous history derail their happiness?
Clio gives until it hurts. And this story does hurt. If you have ever felt less than or other in any way you will find yourself in the pages of this book. I cried through most of it and when a story can make me emote like that I know it’s a good one.
It is also spicy as hell. This is the level of sapphic romance we need more of. This shouldn’t be a surprise as Clio has always given us diverse representation in her books but it is still refreshing to read scenes between two women that are this hot.
This whole series is amazing. Please, please, PLEASE if you haven’t started it yet start it now so that when 10/10 comes around you are ready for this one.
The history books are all wrong. Perseus is actually a woman, and she never had the courage (or the will) to rip Medusa's head off.
For millennia, Percy and Medusa have maintained a certain peculiar friendship forged on favors and complicity, despite the fact that, in theory, they are rivals. Percy is a demigoddess, the heroine daughter of Zeus, and Medusa is a monster, a villain. But this friendship has always hidden their true feelings for each other, two women longing to be something more.
When Medusa, Madeline, is attacked during an exhibition of her statues (👀), Percy finally gives a big " fuck it" to all those rules and decides it's time for them to experience this love. But some hidden enemy is going to do everything to try and stop them from being happy and they will have to race against time.
Not that I've read many retellings of Medusa, but this is definitely the best. I loved the way Clio brought these characters to life. Percy, a powerful, brave and somewhat short-tempered woman. Madeline, a creature marked by a very old trauma, which she has always used to help other women.
I love their attitude towards the men around them, I love that they are powerful and tough, but at the same time very vulnerable with each other.
This book managed to be enemies to lovers and friends to lovers at the same time. Genius. 😅
The 🌶️ is the kind you already know from Clio: respectful bdsm, full of affection and love. It never disappoints.
Listen. This book changed my life in the smallest.. but no less significant way. Sometimes you just read a book that you then carry a piece of for the rest of your days.
If you've read Clio, you already know she delivers on the spice and plot, along with diverse and amazing characters.
This was no different, but it also.. was. The healing and love- the emotional CLEANSE I got from one very.. very soul-searing chapter. The affirmations tore into my heart and I just. I'm pretty sure I scared my SO because I'm usually reading sexy smut books. And while this IS that, I was also a sobbing mess and he was just ?? CONFUSED
Please. Please. This is one of my favorite books of all time. I'll be re-reading this until the day I die TBH. Others warned my that the cry would be good.. and I waited until I had a hot bath and snacks ready to dive in. And it was perfection. Treat yourself... and treat yourself kindly.
I would have had this review up on day 1 if my household hadn't caught a cold.
This couple is my favorite from the series so far, but that miscommunication trope almost derailed the story for me. I really hate it when characters don't tell people important things, especially when it's life or death. Madeline pissed me off so much in the third act! The conflict still could have come to pass with both Madeline and Percy facing the enemy together. Madeline didn't have to go off on her own to deal with things. It cheapened the scene that just came before where it seemed like a breakthrough on her low self-esteem had occurred.
Despite my annoyance, I did like the declarations of love and the sex scenes between the two. Percy was so hot, and I would fall over myself to call her Daddy. The epilogue was really sweet and perfect for everything these two characters had gone through. I hope they continue to pop up in the series, but they deserve to ride off into the sunset.
📖 Queens and Monsters by Clio Evans Star Rating: 4/5 ★★★★ Spice Rating: 4/5 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ Spice Frequency: 4/5 🔥🔥🔥🔥 POV: Dual/1st Available on KU ✅
• m0nster romance • sapphic romance (FF romance) • d@ddy k!nk • fated mates • BD$M, imp@ct play • prim@l play • HEA
This was my first ever sapphic romance novel and it did not disappoint. It had the perfect plot to spice ratio for me and I actually loved both characters so much! Plus the ties to the first two books were fun pieces and I just did really enjoy this. The Medusa x Perseus story was beautifully done and Clio never lets me down in the smexyyy scene department. Overall, super fun read with the perfect amount of tension, spice and twists in the plot.
When you go into a monster romance thinking you'll read a fun story with hot af spice and you end up crying five different times, feeling empowered and walk out with the same feelings you had after watching the Barbie movie.
Clio Evans wrote a love letter to all the girls who never felt like they were enough, to the girls who were told by society they weren't pretty enough, meek enough, good enough, docile enough. To all the girls who told they were too loud, too opinionated, too much. And she did it while tearing down the lie that we need to be saved by a man in order to feel enough. This is her magnum opus. I will read this again and again when I need to be reminded that I am worthy of love, desire, admiration, and respect.
Also Percy and Meduse f*** and it's so dang hot my panties burst into flames.
Queens & Monsters: Three Fates Mafia Series, Book 3 is Madeline (aka Medusa) and Percy (aka Perseus) *super spicy* story. 😏 And when I say *super spicy* - I mean your kindle is going to burn up with everything that is done... 🔥🥵🔥🥵
Definitely read Cleo's TWs - they are listed for a reason. Queens & Monsters shows us more of the very interesting, very sexy Three Fates Mafia World they have created & continue to add to with each new book. Madeline & Percy have a very long, complex history together. They both have longed for each for such a long time...when they finally come together (and smash thru the barriers holding them apart) - truly beautiful & emotional in all the best ways. Cleo added in some twists & turns I did not see coming. This mafia world they created is so engaging & exciting to read. As always, I look forward to their next book.
I love this series. Each book focuses about a mythological monster and hero. This one you have Percy and Medusa but made sapphic. I love that this is taking well known ‘facts’ about these stories and making them fall in love in different ways. The throw in the mafia aspect and you have just the best sapphic romance. Time for a quick recap of the basics for this story: You have Percy(female in this book obviously) and she is sent CENTURIES ago to deal with Medusa and then doesn’t. Then Medusa is sent to deal with Percy centuries later again doesn’t…then the fates decided to make the mafia and Medusa tells Percy to get on it too somehow and she does.
The fates tell Percy her mate is in GRAVE danger and will be dead in a short time and she works to stop it. The journey in which she tries to accomplish this is full of twists and turns. To find out who is after Medusa and how they stop is definitely give this a read. OH and the spice is SPICY!!!
Pre-Read Review: First, we had the doggies, then we had the dragon, and now we have these two COMPLICATED women! I'm just trying to get to the Minoan Bull in Book 4! MOVE OVER LADIES!
Read this if you like: ✦ Monster Romance ✦ Forbidden Love ✦ Mafia Romance ✦ Enemies-to-Lovers ✦ F/F Romance ✦ Fated Mates
┈ OVERVIEW ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ Emojis: ⚡🐍🌆💋🗡🌊 Pacing: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 Characters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 Spice: ⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 Overall:⭐️⭐️⭐️.5/5 Format: eBook POV: Dual 👭 Would I Recommend? 👍 Read Again? 👎 Setting: Moirai (Fictional City) Heroine: Perseus aka "Percy" Heroine: Medusa aka "Madeline" H/h virgin? No First kiss💋: 20% First time they sleep together: 30% First time they say "I Love You": P: 69%, M: 74% OW/OM Drama? No H/h cheat? No Time apart? No Did I cry? No Ending: HEA 🥰 Standalone/Series? Yes to both Epilogue? Yes