It's no secret that I love Greek Mythology. I talk about this all the time. So when I was offered an ARC* of Girl, Goddess, Queen I knew I was super excited.
You guys know that I don't generally read romance novels. And honestly, I usually hate the idea of Hades and Persephone retellings. But I had heard so many good things about Girl, Goddess, Queen! And I've been following Bea Fitzgerald on TikTok for a while now, and I really enjoy her content. Girl, Goddess, Queen was on my most anticipated releases of the year list, so I jumped at the change to read an early copy.
Thank you again to Penguin for sending me an ARC! There will be some spoilers in this review.
.jpg)
What is Girl, Goddess, Queen about?
'To hell with love, this goddess has other plans...
Thousands 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.
Persephone wasn't taken to hell: she jumped. There was no way she was going to be married off to some smug god more in love with himself than her.
Now all she has to do is convince the Underworld's annoyingly sexy, arrogant and frankly rude ruler, Hades, to fall in line with her plan. A plan that will shake Mount Olympus to its very core.
But consequences can be deadly, especially when you're already in hell . . .' (Penguin)
My thoughts
I really enjoyed the dynamic between Persephone and Hades. Their relationship (minus the miscommunication) was one of the most realistic and healthy portrayals I've come across in a popular romance novel. They both respected each other and worked as a couple to ensure they were both happy at every stage of their relationship. I really appreciated the work the author put in to undoing some of the awful relationships we see in popular romance novels, especially on TikTok. I do feel like the miscommunication was a bit forced in some places, and I found myself getting frustrated because certain characters were behaving in a way that just didn't feel natural considering the development of the relationships. But generally, I was very impressed with the way their relationship was handled.
I also loved that we saw a very powerful, strong Persephone, who fought for herself throughout the novel. She was headstrong and confident, and never backed down from advocating for herself. I do think it would have been beneficial if we had seen her come across something she did struggle with, as I feel like it would have made her feel a little more relatable. However, she is a literal Goddess, and her strength and power is kind of the point of the novel.
I think it was really interesting how the author discussed some very heavy, important topics in such an accessible way. Greek Mythology is full of men doing terrible things, and I think this book discusses those topics in a way that is manageable and accessible to young adult readers. Those aspects of the story weren't glossed over or ignored, but they were woven into discussions between the characters very naturally.
The last thing I want to mention is the banter. There were so many moments that had me laughing, and I really appreciated the humour in this book. It worked so well with the characters, especially when other side characters such as Styx and Hermes were brought into the scene.
Overall, I really enjoyed this book. If you're new to Greek Mythology retellings, and you find them intimidating, I'd highly recommend you start with Girl, Goddess, Queen! Or if you're like me and you read a lot of Greek Mythology retellings and you're feeling a little overwhelmed by the intensity of them, this might be a great book to pick up! It was very wholesome and much less intense than the other retellings I have read.
So, have you read Girl, Goddess, Queen? Let me know what you thought in the comments!
* I was kindly sent an ARC in exchange for an honest review