This is one of my favorite retellings of Hades & Persephone, even if there are echoes of influence by Lore Olympus. I put it down after reading three chapters, but everyone who has read insisted that it got better so I picked it back up again and I'm glad I did. I tried reading it for the first time a while ago and it didn't quite click with me. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this series. Is it because of her parentage? Is it because of Demeter giving her access to her own powers on top of Persephone holding her own? Why is she more powerful than the God of the Dead in his own realm? I hope the next book answers these questions. She does seem a little Mary Sue-ish, simply because we're never given a reason behind her powers being as strong as they are. She is becoming powerful, but also paranoid, which I suppose could just be a way to mirror how power corrupts and have her on equal footing with the Three. I'd like to see her grow in such a way that she doesn't fear being vulnerable like she was in the first book. You see that a little later on in the third book, but you still get the idea that she's holding a lot back because she's 'independent' but her storyline winds up showing her as more dependent on others than she says.

Her anxiety could be better dealt with if she just spoke with Hades about her worries. My only negative feedback is that Persephone seems to be coming upon personal roadblocks that she creates. Her character is changing in a direction that I feel is natural for the storyline. Her different traumas are explored realistically, and I love that none of it was just swept under the rug afterward. She has real friendships and it's so rare with books like these, especially when the love interest is shown to have power and have control issues. I love that the author shows her relationships with other men aren't saddled with baggage or one of the men crushing on her.

I read the first three thinking it was a completed series, and come to find out, I have to wait a whole year before the next book! I'm really excited to see how much further Persephone's powers grow and how her relationship with Hades continues to bloom.

A Touch of Malice by Scarlett St. Clair