Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.38 AVERAGE
3.38 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Great retelling, while also exploring toxic parental relationships. Listened to the audiobook; wonderful narrator. I would have loved to see more moments between Persephone and Hades, especially ones that showcased their romance outside of the bedroom. Overall a great read, I couldn't put it away!
dark
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Domestic abuse, Rape, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Kidnapping
Moderate: Sexism
*I received this arc in exchange for an honest review.
Reading Captive in the Underworld was a wonderful, immersive experience. The writing was so gorgeous and engrossing I devoured this story in a matter of hours. I really adored the main heroine Persephone, who was so sweet and kind even after the years of abuse she endured living with her narcissistic mother. Their relationship was the most fascinating part of this story for me, as it was so rooted in the realism of having to deal with a parent or loved one who suffers from this particular personality disorder.
Though the ending may seem abrupt and jarring to some, I appreciate that the final scene ended with just a simple conversation between Persephone and her mother, in which she finally becomes empowered and breaks ties with her once and for all, despite her mother's final attempts to gaslight her and make her feel like she must remain with her forever.
Hades... was a bit harder to connect to as a character. Throughout the novel she always seemed way too remote. I believed she was in love with Persephone, but I still could never understand the inner workings of her character or her motivations beyond simply wanting to keep her wife with her in the Underworld.
I also wished that this story had been a little bit darker, but that's just a personal preference. It was briefly non-consensual in the first couple chapters, but quickly became dub-con and I knew that Hades was going to lose some of her stony harshness and become a softer character. I know that Persephone's choice to stay in the Underworld was an important part of the development of her and Hades romance, especially when you consider her past history, but I still was disappointed when the story took a gentler turn.
Though Hades wasn't exactly the unapologetic alpha I wanted her to be in the second half of the story, I'm still just so happy that anyone decided to write a dark f/f romance at all. I've only read one other dark f/f romance, and it was terribly written. It was such a pleasant surprise to pick up this novel and read such a beautifully written, atmospheric story.
I'm conflicted on how to rate this novel, so I'm not going to for right now, but I am definitely a fan of Lianyu Tu's work and am excited to see what she writes next.
Reading Captive in the Underworld was a wonderful, immersive experience. The writing was so gorgeous and engrossing I devoured this story in a matter of hours. I really adored the main heroine Persephone, who was so sweet and kind even after the years of abuse she endured living with her narcissistic mother. Their relationship was the most fascinating part of this story for me, as it was so rooted in the realism of having to deal with a parent or loved one who suffers from this particular personality disorder.
Though the ending may seem abrupt and jarring to some, I appreciate that the final scene ended with just a simple conversation between Persephone and her mother, in which she finally becomes empowered and breaks ties with her once and for all, despite her mother's final attempts to gaslight her and make her feel like she must remain with her forever.
Hades... was a bit harder to connect to as a character. Throughout the novel she always seemed way too remote. I believed she was in love with Persephone, but I still could never understand the inner workings of her character or her motivations beyond simply wanting to keep her wife with her in the Underworld.
I also wished that this story had been a little bit darker, but that's just a personal preference. It was briefly non-consensual in the first couple chapters, but quickly became dub-con and I knew that Hades was going to lose some of her stony harshness and become a softer character. I know that Persephone's choice to stay in the Underworld was an important part of the development of her and Hades romance, especially when you consider her past history, but I still was disappointed when the story took a gentler turn.
Though Hades wasn't exactly the unapologetic alpha I wanted her to be in the second half of the story, I'm still just so happy that anyone decided to write a dark f/f romance at all. I've only read one other dark f/f romance, and it was terribly written. It was such a pleasant surprise to pick up this novel and read such a beautifully written, atmospheric story.
I'm conflicted on how to rate this novel, so I'm not going to for right now, but I am definitely a fan of Lianyu Tu's work and am excited to see what she writes next.
dn'd at 35%. the marriage bed scene made me incredibly uncomfortable and i had to check to see again if this book was in fact written by a man, because it felt so violently far fetched from any sapphic dark romance i've read before.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship
Moderate: Confinement
Minor: Blood