I literally find it impossible to choose just one quote to share, so [insert 100 favourite and memorable quotes] here.

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐫 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐇𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 & 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠! 🤩 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐩 5 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫!

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.

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!

I am keeping this spoiler-free, but all I'm saying is: this book is AMAZING! From the side characters such as Styx, to the other inhabitants of the Underworld, to Persephone herself. She is the perfect example of strength! I loved this version of Hades, and I will forever love these two and their three-headed dog. This book is my top favourite of Hades & Persephone retellings and nothing else comes close to it.

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 𝐡𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤!

I’m greatly appreciating the ongoing crop of Greek mythology adaptations, especially the books that put a feminist slant on the stories without completely rewriting the basic premise. This one particularly appealed, since the story of Persephone and Hades is one that particularly intrigues me. Daughter of Demeter and Zeus, young Persephone – or Kore as her father names her – is granted dominion over flowers by her father, after she asks for the world. Isolated by her mother on the island of Sicily, away from the other gods and goddesses, Persephone grows up with only nymphs for company and receives a very skewed view of relationships and sexuality from her mother’s fears of rape on one side and the nymphs’ liberated attitudes on the other. When Demeter decides that it’s time for her daughter to be married off to one of the gods of Olympus or Oceanus, in order to protect her from the predations of all the others, Persephone rebels and runs away to the third of the kingdoms ruled over by the gods: Hades.

Once there, she requests Xenia – Hestia’s bond of hospitality – from Hades himself, meaning that he has to protect her and keep her presence secret from the other gods. Hades reluctantly agrees to her terms and sends the rest of his court away for the duration of Persephone’s stay.

Persephone explores Hades’ palace and quickly realises that it is almost a direct copy of Zeus’ palace, but with some notable missing rooms. She also meets the palace staff: equivalents of the nymphs she knew before, who feed her on food brought from the other kingdom. So she will not eat the fruits of Hades and be forced to stay there forever. As time passes, Persephone learns more about both her new home and her powers, which have seemingly increased since her arrival. She also learns more about Hades himself, who has been traumatised by his time as a boy soldier and seeks solace in creative pursuits among hobbies normally considered to be womanly crafts.

A friendship slowly develops between Persephone and Hades, but eventually Zeus discovers his daughter’s whereabouts and demands she return and marry the god her parents have chosen for her. Persephone, obviously, has other ideas, especially now that she has started reforming Hades’ kingdom to make separate areas for the souls of those who have been wronged and those who did them harm while they were alive. Hades is impressed by Persephone’s improvements to his kingdom and relishes the additional time he has to devote to his crafts now that Persephone has started to take over some of the day-to-day admin. The pair decide to marry, in order to thwart Zeus and Demeter’s plans, which is probably not the best idea ever, but it all works out in the end. And, yes, pomegranates are involved, but I’ll leave the how and why of that for potential readers to discover for themselves.

I loved this book. The central characters felt very real and lots of the gods were very queer, as they should be. I’m looking forward to reading more from the author, especially as it looks like she’s diving into more mythology soon.

An absolute triumph and an ode to feminity! This new take on the Persephone myth is imaginative and enticing. Once all the patriarchal barriers are challenged , the story becomes the evolution from young sheltered girl to audacious passionate woman, and what a goddess!
If you love mythology you will devour this book, if you don’t know anything about mythology or don’t care much for it, I can guarantee you will become obsessed after this book.
I adored it and hope to read some more Bea Fitzgerald soon.

This book was incredible!

I was expecting to enjoy it but loving it came as a pleasant surprise. This is my first foray into a retelling of Greek mythology and now I'm well and truly hooked. It was such an easy read but was full of depth, character and *so much* longing.

I laughed out loud more times than I'd care to admit and although the story was fairly predictable, I enjoyed every moment.

Thanks so much to Penguin UK for the e-ARC of "Girl, Goddess, Queen"! This is a thoroughly enjoyable YA debut. Though I've aged out of the target audience for this, I think it's exactly what I wanted from mythology retellings when I was a teen!

It's no secret that, among adults and teens alike, the story of Hades and Persephone is one of the most demanded retellings – and Bea Fitzgerald uses her expertise in Greek mythology to make it her own in a way that feels both modern and rooted in Ancient Greek culture. I particularly enjoyed her portrayal of the two leads – she turns the Persephone I knew from being a passive victim of trickery who's passed around by those who want her into an ambitious young woman, exploring the extents of godly power and determined to forge her own future. And Hades, no longer a surly, power-hungry kidnapper, is an introverted, artistic man who is awed by Persephone. Their chemistry was immediately believable, and their journey from being reluctant allies to loving partners was a joy to follow. One of the most commendable aspects about their portrayal, given that the target audience is teens, is the way that Fitzgerald portrays them developing healthy ways of communicating, including around complex topics such as gender roles and sexuality.

Other themes that were tackled well were the patriarchy (and what freedom might mean within and without it) and the complexity of mother–daughter relationships. Fitzgerald even manages to touch on the ways in which mythology around death and punishment has shaped cultures' moral codes in a way that is thought-provoking without drawing away from the main action of the plot.

I could tell this was a debut, mainly because the structure felt a tad top-heavy (slow start, quick ending). But to be fair, I've seen cases of writers with years of experience doing this!

I think Bea Fitzgerald has tremendous potential, not least because it's clear that she takes her intended audience seriously regardless of their youth. I'm excited for her next book (which just got announced!) and in a year or two, I'll definitely be giving a copy of this one to my niece!

It took me a couple of days to really get into the story as I’ve read so many Hades and Persephone retellings over the years but this one was different. The character of Hades was inherently softer than any I have read before with him being empowered to enjoy the creative arts and not the warmongering we’ve grown accustom. Persephone is a strong goddess of a woman who eventually ends up getting the ultimate power of becoming a successful Queen, a badge she wears with pride. I’m looking forward to seeing how the series progresses.

To begin with, I've read many popular Hades x Persephone retelling books, and while this book gave us a refreshing take on the dynamic between the two characters, there were definite plot points that fell flat for me. I'm certainly not an expert.

First of all, I'd like to shout out the author for that great author's note at the beginning of the book, highlighting all the content warnings for the story. Bea does a great job at handling the important topics of this book in a thoughtful yet entertaining way.
My biggest love for this book is how Bea has given the main characters a unique and fresh identity. Bea shows that in these modern times, you don't have to be that alpha-hole, morally grey, possessive jerk who trains and trains constantly to be a man, or you don't have to be the meek and quiet girl who sews and sings to be a woman. These traits and activities aren't inherently male or female; they relate nothing to your gender. If there is a sequel to this book, I hope this character narrative gets revealed in the open and not kept as a secret.

The portrayal of love and consent and the conversations regarding sex, virginity and sexuality is another excellent aspect of this story that doesn't get shown much in these types of stories. It was very heartwarming and sweet to see the characters fall for each other in their own way without the immediate love-to-sex storyline or even the 'now I have my independence, I'm going to immediately go to bone town' - not that there's anything wrong with wanting that or doing that, but everyone experiences sex in their own way and gaining your freedom doesn't always mean everyone is ready for that. Persephone being a now powerful ass-kicking Queen doesn't make her impervious to those worries or feelings about her virginity. I thought that was a really cool portrayal, especially for younger adults to see.

Now, this is where I become a villain to many readers.
My main problems stem from the plot needing to be more cohesive. I felt that each chapter jumped and felt skippy and left out important details, although confusingly, the chapters themselves dragged on for things that didn't need to be dragged out. There was also a slight confusion about what this story wanted to be: either a cute, wholesome short read or the possibility of becoming a more profound fantasy. For me, this disjointed the narrative and made it hard to focus on the storyline - did I need to get myself ready for a cute love story, or did I need to get my head around a wider fantasy world?
There was also nothing too worrisome or tense about the story for you to really get into it. This might be because of the writing style or what I wrote above, or even because I'm used to the original story of Hades x Persephone. Still, I wasn't too worried for the characters, although the basis for a new refreshing tale with the new character dynamics was there to introduce us to something new, this part of the story fell flat and made it predictable.

Ultimately, this is Bea's first book, proving she knows her audience and can write fantastic characters. Hopefully, for my book tastes, her following books will grow as she will as a writer, and I can enjoy them more.

Rating: 3.5 *Rounded to 4

Due to a busy summer my plan to read this kept being delayed but then, when I did pick it up I read the whole thing in 48hrs. A witty take on the Greek myth of Persephone & Hades addressing issues of equality, the patriarchy, toxic masculinity and chucking in a dollop of good, old fashioned romcom. A great debut from Bea Fitzgerald, I look forward to the next one. (Copy received via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review)

Girl , Goddess , Queen is the version of this story we all deserve. A modern retelling that reclaims a story of a stolen girl and reframes her as the powerful heroine she truly is. Bea captures this story so beautifully when I shut my eyes I am on Sicilly and I can hear and smell everything. A truly transformational story of love , power and jealously. There is nothing more that strikes fear into the hearts of men than a powerful woman this book had it all and left me only wanting more! I cannot wait to see what Bea writes in future , loved this one!

Wow this was super fun and such an amazing take on Hades and Persephone!!

It was such a joy to read- a mixture between a romcom, fantasy and geek mythology, i couldn’t put it down!!

I’m sure fans of Romantasy will adore this book, and I can’t wait to see what the author releases next!!

An utterly compelling reimagining of the Persephone myth, firmly focusing on Persephone's agency and attempts to escape the patriarchal confines of her world. The author has subverted the accepted narrative and incisively critiqued current societal issues. She has not only explored how the patriarchy affects women but how it's also toxic to men. Concepts such as masculinity, rape culture, parental abuse and PTSD are also sensitively approached. Whilst that may seem like the book would be very heavy, it's actually pure escapism and such fun. The banter between Persephone and Hades was brilliant and I loved Persephone's journey to claiming her power. Highly recommended.

3.5 stars
This was a great holiday read. Really easy to get lost in and I love the feminist retelling of Persephone’s story. It took a bit of a while for me to get into because I found Persephone’s narrative voice too young for me. I felt like I was being clubbed over the head with the gender inequalities between male and female expectations - it was irritatingly obvious that I was turned off. However, by the time the ‘will they / won’t they’ vibe kicked in, it became super easy to read and I flew through to the end. I’ve always loved Greek mythology so all the references were cool (but again slightly obvious).

Thanks to NetGalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unapologetically feminist, this book was fun, daring and imaginative. It takes the toxic qualities shown by certain Greek gods and shows what it might be like to try and be a women in a time when just anyone can kidnap you and take you for their own. Running away from all that, Persephone acts boldly and goes to the underworld hoping for a better life.

This was a really interesting take on Hades. Artistic, sensitive and caring for many people he would be the perfect man, though best look elsewhere if you're looking for a bit of dark romance, this novel is about stereotypes that are cast on people and how there might be something different hiding underneath the surface.

There were just two things that held me up about this book. One was that the slow burn romance was a little two slow for me in some places and everything would have been solved so easily if the characters had just hurried up and talked to each other. The other was that the Greek god of life was Phanes and the god of illusions was Dolos (a quick google search told me this much) and not the characters these things were attributed to in the book.

Overall though, this was a good read, great for teenage feminists looking for a bit of girlbossing.

Wow! what a game changer this Book is, even if you have never read any Greek Mythology you will be captivated by the God, Demi Gods, Nymphs etc that give this Book it's colourful & exciting read which I will be recommending to lots of friends & family .It has also inspired me to re-read some of my Greek Mythology . So for a debut book this is truly fantastic #NetGalley, #GoodReads, #Amazon.co.uk, #FB, #Instagram,#<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/8a5b541512e66ae64954bdaab137035a5b2a89d2" width="80" height="80" alt="200 Book Reviews" title="200 Book Reviews"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/ef856e6ce35e6d2d729539aa1808a5fb4326a415" width="80" height="80" alt="Reviews Published" title="Reviews Published"/>, #<img src="https://www.netgalley.com/badge/aa60c7e77cc330186f26ea1f647542df8af8326a" width="80" height="80" alt="Professional Reader" title="Professional Reader"/>.

Hades and Persephone are extremely my jam so I was always going to like this. Hades was a gem, Persephone finding herself (and her name!) was a delight, and the whole thing was fun to read. However it felt like there should have been MORE. More what I don't know, I just found it slightly dissatisfying by the end, which I hope means there's going to be a sequel!?

(Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review)

I need to read more Greek mythology retellings as I am obsessed, and partly because of this book. The writing and world-building were fantastic and made for such an enjoyable read. The plot, whilst interesting, was more of a background aspect of the book with the relationship taking the main stage. This wasn’t necessarily a bad thing as I loved the relationship between Persephone and Hades but did mean that whenever something happened plot-wise it made me go ‘Oh yeah, I forgot this was a thing’. Though, the relationship between Persephone and Hades was one of the best I’ve read and their banter was just top-tier. I had such a good time reading this book and would definitely recommend it!

A great retelling in the tradition of Jennifer Saint and Natalie Haynes - an interesting and nuanced look at the myth of Persephone, and I loved how much I learned in the process. The great romance certainly adds to the appeal - I can't think of a book that ticked more of my boxes.

GGQ is a YA Greek mythological feminist retelling of the goddess Persephone. Thousands of years ago it was rumoured that Hades kidnapped Persephone to be his bride in the underworld, but this book tells a different story. Persephone chose to go to the underworld herself as part of her own cunning plan to escape her mothers wishes of being married off. Unfortunately her plan does have a few tricky steps, including trying to convince the notoriously rude and arrogant God of the underworld Hades to help her, but soon Persephone realises she’s in love with him.

I quite enjoy books Greek mythology, so when I heard about this one I was certainly intrigued. As someone who doesn’t usually get on well with YA books I was pleasantly surprised by GGQ. A lot of greek mythology books can be quite complex and difficult to read if you’re not a super fan of the genre, and there aren’t many books that kind of ‘ease you in’, but GGQ is a great place to start if you’re new GM. You don’t need to know the real story of Hades and Persephone to enjoy this book - in fact it’s probably better you don’t because it’s obviously been changed and watered down in this instance to appeal to a younger audience.
Of course as I die hard feminist I am a huge support of feminist retellings, however I’m not sure that this one completely sold it. The entire point of the novel is to give Persephone her own voice and own power, and there’s a huge point made about her not wanting to marry or fall in love, yet she still ends up pining after a grumpy Hades (maybe this is me being quite sceptical, after all it is YA and I shouldn’t expect YA books to delve into complex feminist issues). Also I didn’t believe there was any chemistry between Hades and Kore/Persephone, there was some bits of witty banter which I appreciated, but their relationship felt very odd, and more of a platonic friends vibe than a romantic one.

Anyway, still a nice easy read, and I’m glad GM is being made accessible to younger readers.

Headlines:
Hades stan in all his forms
Feminist threads
Slow burn

While Girl Goddess Queen had a bit of a pacey start for me, it all ironed out by a quarter of the way in. By half way, I couldn't put this read down. This book cleverly gives a contemporary feel on the low-down without shredding today's vocab into the mix and still keeping a historical Greek mythology feel. For sure, this is a fun re-enactment, lots of joy and laughs but with serious undertones.

All fans of Greek mythology, originals and retelling, experience the patriarchal and misogynistic frustration of these men and their rule. This story gives us authenticity but with feminism that grows and spreads. Hades was one of the best feminists of all and I loved him for it. I especially loved what was revealed about Hades talents and loves; take that, toxic masculinity!

Talking of these two MCs, they were a delight in their slow dance towards friendship and the even slower dance to more. Styz 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.

Thank you to Penguin for the eARC.

Thank you to @netgalley and @penguinrandomhouse for gifting me this review copy. This debut absolutely blew me away!

My first Greek mythology read and I’m now obsessed and need to read everything, also hoping Bea brings out another soonish. Her writing is easy to read, funny and lighthearted but impactful at the same time.

Girl, Goddess, Queen is a retelling of Persephone and Hades that flips the myth on its head and asks what if Persephone chose Hades and the underworld, rather than being abducted and forced to marry. It touches on so many topics, misogyny being the main one and how far the suppression of women goes back.

That’s alongside a gorgeous, not too cheesy, will they/won’t they, fake dating romance with a little bit of 🌶 and realistic chats.

I loved it and couldn’t put it down! Plus I’ve ordered the Waterstones copy because who can resist that cover?!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️