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lexhayz's review against another edition
dark
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Death of parent
Moderate: Gun violence
just_one_more_paige's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Remember a few years ago when I started the Psy-Changeling series while on vacation and the proceeded to read through all 15 books of the first wave of that series/world? Well, the time was again ripe for a steamy, escapist vacation series. Enter Dark Olympus. This one has been on the back burner for this exact situation for a bit now. And since this vacay included a lot of time in Greece, a hot romance series based on Greek mythology seemed *just right.*
As these books are exactly as advertised, I am not going to waste my time (or yours) with long or in-depth reviews. Rather, I’ll just jump right into a couple major notes and thoughts about each and we’ll move along.
This first book, Neon Gods, focused on Hades and Persephone. I have read a couple retellings of this story, it’s currently really popular for romance retellings especially (check out my review for St. Clair’s A Touch of Darkness as well). Anyways, in this one, Persephone escapes from a surprise and deeply unwanted engagement to Zeus and, pursued by his enforcers, flees across the River Styx, where she runs straight into the arms of Hades (who has been so long out of the public eye, everyone thinks he’s just a story). And thus begins their “fake dating to save Persephone and stick it to Zeus” plan that turns into something much deeper and more electric.
This was a very solid retelling, for me (in context of it being a steamy romance situation at base, of course). I liked the set-up of the court of thirteen gods and goddesses that rule the city as a more “real life” situation. Still just as manipulating and dramatic and violent, but without an overabundance of magic or the other paranormal accoutrements of folklore/mythical life. The plot moved steadily and was reasonably complex. The emotions were all there. And the dialogue was solid enough that I didn’t cringe. I also loved some of the side characters (Hermes, in particular, is stellar and Persephone’s family details were nicely done). The overall reworking of relationships and backstories to be something more developed here, not leaning too heavily into popular mythology knowledge to fill gaps (and thus leaving the readers, in this case, annoyed by the lack of depth and/or plot holes).
The main event, the romance, was as steamy as promised. There was so much sex. And it mostly leaned hot, as opposed to cringy, with the language Roberts used, which is a major selling point for me and mostly the reason I will be continuing the series (as the kink, in this case, was mostly exhibitionism and voyeurism based - with some incredibly light nods to BDSM - and I’m not usually have interest in the “watching” vibes, so I’m glad I liked this one anyways; it’s a good sign for the rest). And there were some very sweet moments of connection built in as well, which gave it enough depth to be believable and to get me emotionally invested in the couple (important for me, as a reader).
So yup, this delivered as advertised. And on to the next one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Violence, and Murder
Minor: Death of parent and Fire/Fire injury
mythian's review
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Death of parent
melissaslibraryy's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Death of parent, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
charlee_1895's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Loved this book! It got me out of a 5 year Fanfiction slump. It gets to the conflict from the first chapter and just keeps you hooked throughout the book. It is lacking a bit in diversity with Hermes and Eurydice being the only characters of color mentioned but the book has major LGBTQ+ rep with majority of the characters being queer.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death, Gun violence, and Death of parent
omniscienttaco's review
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I thought this was going to be a more serious, captivating retelling of Hades and Persephone. It ended up reading like a spicy fanfic, which is not what I expected this to be, but I’m still happy nevertheless. 5/5 for capturing my attention and being sexy, minus 1 star for some cheesy plot/writing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Cursing, Violence, Blood, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
theinkdrinkerhouse's review
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent
jj7twin's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
dancers_and_dragons's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
An absolutely wonderful take on the modern-day Olympus. Roberts weaves a story through easy-to-digest prose and a compelling array of cast members that explores the connections and wonder of a completely different world.
Hades and Persephone specifically have excellent tension and a fantastic dynamic. Seeing the growth and opening up to each other (in more ways than one 😉) made my heart flutter for them. I can't wait to explore the next in this series!
Hades and Persephone specifically have excellent tension and a fantastic dynamic. Seeing the growth and opening up to each other (in more ways than one 😉) made my heart flutter for them. I can't wait to explore the next in this series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Classism
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Stalking, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Injury/Injury detail
moodreadmoonchild's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
this book never stops being good. a broody, cinnamon roll Hades, an empowered Persephone, and a really interesting take on greek myth retellings. Katee Robert is an insta-buy author for me for a reason. this was the book that started it all and it was one of the best decisions i ever made.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Misogyny, and Blood
Minor: Death of parent