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A review by amy_inthecatacombs
Radiant Darkness by Emily Whitman
4.0
Radiant Darkness is a retelling of the Greek myth about Hades and Persephone. Persephone’s mother, Demeter, is determined to make sure that Persephone stays a child forever. Every time Persephone wants to go with her mother to a festival or give away her dolls to the temple, her mother gets angry. Persephone never gets to leave her mother’s vale. The most exciting thing that she does is visit her friends at another part of the vale.
One day, Persephone smells a flower that almost seems to beckon her. When she starts to follow the smell, she sees a path in the vale she has never seen before and goes down it. She eventually sees a man. This is the first man she has ever seen. When she tries to ask her mother about her father, Demeter usually says that is men are greedy and pointless, so Persephone decides not to tell her mother about what she saw. She quickly runs away before the man can see her.
She comes back to the part of the vale, but this time the man sees her.
After several meetings she realizes that the man is Hades.
I really liked this book. I would have liked there to have been more of an emphasis on Persephone’s relationship with Hades, but it seemed to focus more on Persephone’s desire to be an effective queen.
One day, Persephone smells a flower that almost seems to beckon her. When she starts to follow the smell, she sees a path in the vale she has never seen before and goes down it. She eventually sees a man. This is the first man she has ever seen. When she tries to ask her mother about her father, Demeter usually says that is men are greedy and pointless, so Persephone decides not to tell her mother about what she saw. She quickly runs away before the man can see her.
She comes back to the part of the vale, but this time the man sees her.
After several meetings she realizes that the man is Hades.
I really liked this book. I would have liked there to have been more of an emphasis on Persephone’s relationship with Hades, but it seemed to focus more on Persephone’s desire to be an effective queen.