Girl, Goddess, Queen: A Hades and Persephone fantasy romance from a growing TikTok superstar

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stars. I have mixed feelings about this book. While I enjoyed the setting and the idea of the reimagining of the greek gods, the execution left me feeling disappointed. I felt frustrated with the storyline itself and its characters. Hades and Persephone just felt too different from what we associate them with, and the main focus of the story revolved around marriage for some ungodly reason. Portrayed as a romance with a sexy love interest, this book was supposed to be romantic with dreamy characters but my god was it slow and none of the characters riveting. Never mind a slow burn, more like trying to coax a fire to life during a rainstorm. But regardless of my age, it was my Amphidromia, the day a child received their name. And as I was a goddess, I would also receive my domain – the aspect of the world that I would be responsible for.

Fitzgerald’s story retells the myth of Persephone and Hades, in which Hades ensnares Persephone in the Underworld by making the ground split beneath her feet. In Fitzgerald’s version, our heroine is less easily fooled. We meet her as a young child: “When they asked me what I wanted, I said: ‘The world.’” But her father, Zeus, decides instead that she should be ‘Goddess of the flowers’, and she senses “all my hopes, all my lofty ambitions crumbling away… This felt like a punishment.” I am on the edge with anticipation for the second book as this ending was somewhat of a cliffhanger. The ending is bittersweet, but I won't be spoiling it ;) I read this book as part of a readalong and had so much fun discussing each chapter and sharing quotes. We received a plantable bookmark with this book and I'm excited to see which plant will grow. :) Talking of these two MCs, they were a delight in their slow dance towards friendship and the even slower dance to more. Styx and Tempest were feisty side characters and I enjoyed the development of the underworld at the hands of Persephone and Hades. I feel like we got a lot of story but equally, there's so much potential here for more. I'm excited to see this will be a series. Demeter, are you sure you wish for such a tightly coiled look? The fashion now is much looser,’ Cyane asks from the doorway, the only space left with mother and I both crammed into my tiny bedroom. She is the nymph ordinarily entrusted with the important and arduous task of combing my hair and from the way she’s worrying at the edges of her own tightly-coiled curls, I assume she’s quietly livid mother has decided to interfere on such an important day as this. The mythological aspects were so much fun and I loved the direction Bea took the story and the way she explored and unravelled so much of the awfulness of the original stories and individuals, whilst still holding onto their essence and inspiration.Next was the problem many authors find the most difficult to explain when retelling Greek mythology…the rather incestuous family tree. The author’s chosen explanation was that Kronos’ only child was Zeus. The other Kronids — Hestia, Demeter, Hera, Hades and Poseidon — were the stolen children of other titans, which then creates so many more questions. Why did Kronos eat his own siblings’ children? What then happened to his siblings…or were they not siblings either? Where do the Olympians stand, or what is their relationship with these titans’ other children? Are Hecate, Helios and Selene, for example, siblings of the Olympians now? Also, where does Chiron fall in this? He was also a son of Kronos. I wonder if her lessons will ever sink in or if they’ll forever ring through my mind in her voice, oil on water, condemning my actions without ever helping me stop doing the things that so annoy her. That apparently make me undesirable. The reason this book works so well is because Persephone feels so real, her thoughts and feelings are genuinely relatable, you feel her anger at the world that is unjust and her hunger for power to be able to change things.

Persephone discovering her power and literally just being power hungry and finding love along the wayThousands of years ago, the gods told a lie: how Persephone was a pawn in the politics of other gods. How Hades kidnapped Persephone to be his bride. How her mother, Demeter, was so distraught she caused the Earth to start dying. The real story is much more interesting. I literally find it impossible to choose just one quote to share, so [insert 100 favourite and memorable quotes] here. But in recent years the focus has shifted onto the Greek myths, with books such as Medusa: The Girl Behind the Myth (Jessie Burton) and Greek Myths: A New Retelling (Charlotte Higgins), and defiant female characters who ride roughshod over patriarchal norms. Girl, Goddess, Queen, the debut novel by TikTok star Bea Fitzgerald, is the latest example – and in a crowded market, it reads like a breath of fresh air. Sometimes the discussion on political aspects of real life thinly veiled in the narrative are thrust forward a bit too much and interrupt the flow of the story. (Although still a million times more deftly than Babel by R F Kuang manages it.)

Then my father laughed. Long. Loud. The kind of noise that had me shrinking into my chair. The assembled gods joined in a split second too late. To hell with love, to hell with being the perfect little girl. the little girl is gone. Persephone is ready to cause chaos. Het is een heerlijk vlot geschreven verhaal met personages die je in je hart sluit, met ze meelacht en huilt. Een geweldige slowburn romance waar je vlinders van krijgt! Loose?’ Mother sneers, as expected. ‘What would that imply about her? No, a traditional look is best. She will look beautiful but still virginal, precisely what is needed.’This is story first, political issues second which is the way it always ought to be done. However it's also a pretty intelligent look at power, the desire for it and what it costs to be truly free. I can't say enough how much I love this book, I tabbed so many quotes and moments which I want to relive daily. There is only one book you must start with when wanting to try out Hades & Persephone retellings and it's this one. This is your introduction to the Underworld! Okay,’ I say, not wanting to continue this conversation and cursing myself for even bringing it up. ‘Can I go see my friends now? Before Father gets here?’ I love a good Hades & Persephone retelling, but Girl, Goddess, Queen exceeded my expectations in every way and made me see these two characters in a new and unique way. Without smut, without pretences, these are the raw personalities of Hades & Persephone and Fitzgerald wrote them in such a beautiful way. Different topics are dealt with which makes the reader connect to the characters on a deeper and emotional level. With a title like that, expectations were high, and fortunately, Bea Fitzgerald didn't disappoint. Also, this retelling gives new meaning to the expression : Hot as Hades ;)

Yes,’ she snaps, mirroring the vitriol in my own voice. ‘By the Fates, Kore, I didn’t design this system, so stop blaming me for it. If I have to arrange a marriage to keep you safe then I will.’ I also LOVED the personification of the goddess Styx - what a gift! I haven't seen a single other author in recent years take on the river gods of the ancient world and spin them into their own characters. The addition of completely new characters like Tempest offered a strong supporting cast that made this book stand out in creativity from the rest. A fierce, fresh and enormously fun YA fantasy re-imagining from a growing TikTok superstar. About This Edition ISBN:In addition, Demeter was much older than Hades (as they were regurgitated at different times), which meant that he didn’t really know Demeter (nor was related to her) and was thus, much closer in age to Persephone. This was definitely one way to solve the age-gap issue and a unique take on the timeless story of the birth of the Olympians. Pure joy and fun in book form. Girl, Goddess, Queen takes Hades and Persephone's tale and creates the ultimate rom-com drama with Persephone's growth and journey at its heart. Of course. I’m going to find you a good match, and with an Olympian you’ll still be a part of this court. Besides, I don’t trust anyone under the rule of Poseidon to be the sort of man you marry.’ There were way more things that rubbed me the wrong way at certain points but the overall gist is despite some goods there were way more critical bads that prevented me from loving this book Bea Fitzgerald’s YA Fantasy Rom-Com debut is a swoon-worthy and utterly feminist take on Greek mythology (and the Hades & Persephone myth) that lured me in with it’s bold and refreshingly assertive approach to Persephone’s tale —which sees her take on the might of Olympus (and her own mother) for the right to RULE HELL … by marrying Hades of course. And I can genuinely say, I didn’t want it to end!