I love Greek mythology, particularly the story of Hades and Persephone, so this book was very appealing to me! There's a lot of sexual content in this (which I didn't expect there to be so much of), and the minimal plot relies a lot on miscommunication. All in all, it wasn't my cup of tea, which is a shame since I was looking so forward to this.

Another hades and Persephone retelling with a ton of smut. I am a sucker for retellings of any kind so I knew I had to read this one! Fated mates as well. Love! If you’re looking for a book that’s mostly smut with a sprinkle of plot this is for you. This is Greek gods in a contemporary setting. The communication and such is very much gen Z like. Be warned it does have a cliff hanger!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me access this book!

This one started off okay, but relied too heavily on miscommunication tropes and characters who acted impulsively and made nonsensical decisions that kept the plot from progressing basically at all. In the end, I didn’t really like this because it felt like watching love is blind or the bachelor without the fun.

I love Greek mythology retellings and I’m particularly fond of the story of Hades & Persephone particularly in a modern light.

I enjoyed reading this for the romance and the spice but the miscommunication trope was quite annoying. The side characters aren’t very developed so the whole book hinges on H & P who are frankly juvenile and annoying when they aren’t having sex. They are very insecure and paranoid about everything. I realise I hate miscommunication tropes - especially when it is drawn out to this extent. I also don’t understand how Hades is “bound” by his fate but still does the one thing he was determined not to do (which didn’t make sense in the first place). My favourite characters were Hekate and Mellie and you see them for all of 5 mins.

There are a number of plot holes and then the cliff hangar ending doesn’t help matters. I can’t help but compare this to other H&P retellings like Scarlet St Clair’s A Touch of Darkness and this sadly falls short.

2.25Stars

To Whom This May Concern:

The couple in this book is Hades and Persephone Prosperina. This is a rendition of the Greek mythology of Hades and Persephone. What I liked about this rendition of the two characters are the shadows and powers that both of the characters have. When Hades was still courting Persephone, there was more passion than after they were a couple.

In this book, the plot was about 60% of the book. However, this book lacks true development in the plot. There are 78 short chapters with dual point of views. The chapters are too short and I was getting whiplash from bouncing between the two main characters. Also, the side characters were more interesting than the two main characters.

The “romance” scenes were drawn out and redundant. I love a good slow burn, but it was not even a slow burn. Every 2 chapters, there was a steamy scenes but they were so short that they were not even realistic. Hades would touch Persephone and she would combust into his arms. It lacked dialogue, passion, and quality. I will never judge on the amount of romance scenes in a book, but more the quality of the scenes.

The ending of the book did leave with a cliff hanger, which I can infer that there could possibly be an additional book.

With that being said, I give the book a 1 out of 5.

With thanks.

Disclaimer: I did get this book for free through Netgalley. However, I did not get paid for a skewed review. This is an honest review with no intentions to sway readers.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book, as this book has already been published, I will not share my review on Netgalley at this time.

"The Maiden & The Unseen" presents a modern twist on the classic tale of Hades and Persephone, placing them in the present world with jobs and responsibilities. Unfortunately, the execution of this concept falls short, resulting in a lackluster narrative that struggles to engage and captivate.

The premise of the gods living among mortals in contemporary society, complete with jobs like being a social media manager, has potential for humor and relevance. However, the novel fails to fully exploit this premise, and the narrative feels disjointed and poorly paced. The transition from the mythic realm to the modern world lacks the seamless integration needed to make the story compelling.

The characterization of Hades as the "Glorified Babysitter" and Persephone as the "Social Media Manager" attempts a humorous approach, but it often feels forced and lacks the depth needed to make the characters resonate. The gods, instead of being vibrant and dynamic, come across as one-dimensional and stereotypical, diminishing the impact of their interactions and conflicts.

The writing style, while serviceable, does not elevate the narrative. The humor occasionally falls flat, and the attempts at modernizing the gods' roles result in an uninspired and predictable storyline. The lack of nuance in the character relationships, particularly between Hades and Persephone, robs the narrative of emotional depth.

The concept of fate and destiny as central themes holds potential for intrigue, but the execution feels formulaic and fails to deliver a fresh perspective on the timeless myth. The threads of destiny that bind the characters lack the complexity needed to make the struggle against fate truly compelling.

The novel's attempt to infuse humor into the mythic narrative may resonate with some readers, but for those seeking a more nuanced and engaging retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth, "The Maiden & The Unseen" may leave them wanting. The lack of depth in both plot and character development hinders the novel from reaching its full potential.

I really liked this book! Definitely would recommend. I liked the world building and related with the mfc! I liked her personality. The ending was just the right amount of cliffhanger without making you need a second book like yesterday.

The Maiden and The Unseen- 2⭐️ 4🌶️

Dual POV
Hades and Persephone
Fantasy realism/New York setting
Grumpy/sunshine
Fated mates
Insta lust
Secrets
Miscommunication
Cliffhanger


I’m starting to think that hades and Persephone retelling an are really hard to make all that different from one another because of the basis of their story. This one being more spice than plot was really not good. The spicy scenes were cringeworthy and too frequent to allow any amount of plot to happen. I was so bored.

The characters were one note and very immature. The only funny thing was Hades inner monologue/self depreciating humor when he had to deal with things that annoyed him.

With some companies, product and separate author character references, I hope the author was legally allowed to use them. It was a lot of pop culture referencing.

Thank you NetGalley and Rose and Star Publishing for an advanced ereader copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I ended up DNFing this book. It just was not for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an e-ARC copy of this book, in exchange for this honest review.

The Maiden & the Unseen was a quick and fun Hades and Persephone retelling.

I have read a few Hades & Persephone retellings and they all have similar themes and characters which is a nice comfort.

I loved many of the secondary characters and thought they brought a lot to the story.

I did have some ick moments while reading which brought down my star rating. While I am fairly new to the subgenre of spicy smut romance, I have read a few. I enjoyed the amount of romance and spice even if I did question it.

I was constantly asking myself why decisions were being made by the main characters and I couldn’t always understand their motivations for those actions.

But overall it was entertaining and does what it is meant to do.

Rating: 3 stars

I was looking forward to this story, and there were things that I liked about it, but it just never fully connected for me. I couldn't connect with the characters and the story just wasn't really for me. I am sure there are lots of people who would enjoy this book, it just wasn't really for me. I ended up DNFing about half-way through.

Hades and Persephone retellings are some of my favorites, but this one left me a teensy bit dissapointed. It wasn't bad per se, there was quite a bit I enjoyed, but there were areas where it just fell flat for me.

The idea of gods living among humans and going about their daily business was such an exciting premise. The first part of the book delivered on that. The second part, however, felt as if everything around Hades and Persephone disappeared apart from their pure lust for eachother. The supporting characters disappeared, the plot dissapeared and we were left with steamy scenes, secrets and bickering. Look, I, like most gals, enjoy my smut a whole lot, but I like it with some plot on the side please.

I was so so soo excited for this one and it did not disappoint!! I’d not heard of it before but loved the writing style and storyline kept me hooked, which helped because it’s one of my fave retellings! Would 100% recommend!

Thank you so much Netgalley for the ARC!

The Maiden and The Unseen is the first and only erotica I requested on Netgalley and my first Hades-Persephone retelling. I have to say I quite liked it. More than my expectations. I absolutely loved the vulnerability in their relationship, how they could be their real selves with each other, how Hades could diminish Persephone's insecurities about her actual appearance. Persephone is such an admirable character. I love that she refused to take shits from Hades. It was an enjoyable read through and through. Recommended!

Holy shit this was insane!!!

Hades spends 6 months of the year amongst the mortals as head of Plutus industries, and the other 6 months guarding the gates of hell. He's grumpy, and a stickler for rules, revering in any chance to punish those unwilling to follow them. So when he finds out that one of the gods or goddesses has been hiding from him, and siphoning his money, he begins an intricate game, determined to find out whose deceived him and make them pay. Persephone has been in the mortal realm for 2 years after pleading with her mother Demeter for 228. She's happy and content, relishing in her freedom and independence, after feeling suffocated on the boringly samey Mount Olympus. However, when her card is declined at three different stores, she storms into Plutus industries, seething, and ready to take on Hades and get her money back no matter what.

Both Hades and Persephone are navigating the corporate world within the same business, trying unsuccessfully to fight their base instincts and urges to tear each others clothes off, especially with their fated destiny pulling them towards each other. With this pull becomes ever more exasperating and difficult to refuse, Hades becomes desperate, trying to put as much space between him and Persephone as he can, determined to protect her from the curse of fate drawing them so fiercely together.

One thing that absolutely melted my heart in this story was the way Persephone and Hades could be themselves authentically, fully embracing their true identities, be open and vulnerable with their insecurities and feel utterly safe, whilst being revered and worshipped by the other. That shit absolutely got me, it's utterly adorable.

Persephone is an absolute bad-ass queen. She's fierce and sassy, and doesn't take Hades' barbs lying down, happily playing him at his own game, and constantly putting him in his place, it was so refreshing to see her not immediately fawning all over him, but actually standing her ground.

Melinoe deserves her own special mention because she's an absolute hero, having sex with a god and then promptly knocking him out, queen shit right there. She is a powerhouse, bad-ass boss bitch, and one of my all time favourite female mc's.

I know the second books out, but I'm still here to say WE NEED MORE MELINOE AND HELIOS INTERACTIONS please and thank you.


This is chock-a-block full of smut, boy they could not keep their hands off each other for more than 5 minutes, I'm surprised they could even walk, let alone in high heels (get it sis).


THE CLUB SCENE my god, prepare yourself because it's fire as fuck.
The sexual tension?

The insane shadow play?

The sass?

phew

Even though this is a hard-core smut story (not that I'm even remotely mad about it) it does also have a twisty plot, and leaves you on a cliff-hanger (luckily book two is now out but I'm not hopeful it won't end on a cliff-hanger too)that prepares you nicely for the next instalment. I hope we get to learn more about Persephone and Hades as individuals, and their stories and backgrounds a bit more in the second book, but overall, I am BUZZING for book 2.

Hades and Persephone retellings are always such a good time and this was so steamy and fun. I read it really fast and couldn't put it down.

I haven't been addicted to a book like this one in a while. I absolutely loved it. I loved the reimaging of Hades and Persephone's story and I can't wait to read book two to see what happens next! I was starting to get a little tired of the romance, but then the storyline took over and we are now left with a cliffhanger wanting more!

Thank you to NetGalley for the eARC of The Maiden & The Unseen by Jeanette Rose and Alexis Rune.

I'm a big old fan of Greek mythology so I'm always picking up a gods retelling. What made it even more intriguing is our center characters are Hades and Persephone.

This book was fast paced, very smutty, and easy to read.

I loved this book and thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The twists and turns and the whole story captivated me. I couldn’t read it fast enough!