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A review by frantically
Midnight Ruin by Katee Robert
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Fun addition to the series!
I'm impressed by how Robert managed to redeem Eurydice and Orpheus' relationship – never would've imagined I'd like them together again. This is a poly relationship with Charon, too, but Charon and Eurydice only start dating at the beginning of the book as well which makes it all a bit too unstable for me, there's a lack of foundation with Charon and Eurydice's relationship which makes it hard to believe that they're the stable couple here, the couple Orpheus yearns to be a part of. This was probably done to not copy the Patroclus x Achilles x Helen relationship but I don't think I would've minded a repeat of that! The latter seemed a lot more natural imo.
I've not been quiet about the fact that I'm primarily here for the romance, not for the politics. I still don't think it was necessary to turn a series that started as "Modern!Hades has a sex club lol" into "Here are the intricate politics and diplomacy involved in trying to run a Modern!Olympus". I love scheming just as much as the next person but please Katee, this isn't ASOIAF. All that to say, I've had my suspicions on who the Big Bad was for some time now and I'm both elated at the reveal and a bit disappointed that this is the route we're going for when this is supposed to be this great feminist retelling. Hope that resonates with someone and I'm not alone!
Loved seeing more of Hades and Persephone again, they remain the best couple in this series for me (with the best book as well) and it's great to see how Persephone's grown into her role as Hades' partner. With Charon as an MC we really return back to Hades' realm and it felt like coming back to my favourite dysfunctional home.
As much as the pet play was advertised for this book, it didn't play that much of a part! Didn't think I'd be into it (and I'm still not really lol) but it was fun and even if the actual play didn't have that many scenes there were loads of dog puns that I chuckled at.
Like other reviewers have said, I'm too far in to stop now – let's see how Roberts manages to fit BDSM into a more and more complex political story next...
I'm impressed by how Robert managed to redeem Eurydice and Orpheus' relationship – never would've imagined I'd like them together again. This is a poly relationship with Charon, too, but Charon and Eurydice only start dating at the beginning of the book as well which makes it all a bit too unstable for me, there's a lack of foundation with Charon and Eurydice's relationship which makes it hard to believe that they're the stable couple here, the couple Orpheus yearns to be a part of. This was probably done to not copy the Patroclus x Achilles x Helen relationship but I don't think I would've minded a repeat of that! The latter seemed a lot more natural imo.
I've not been quiet about the fact that I'm primarily here for the romance, not for the politics. I still don't think it was necessary to turn a series that started as "Modern!Hades has a sex club lol" into "Here are the intricate politics and diplomacy involved in trying to run a Modern!Olympus". I love scheming just as much as the next person but please Katee, this isn't ASOIAF. All that to say, I've had my suspicions on who the Big Bad was for some time now and I'm both elated at the reveal and a bit disappointed that this is the route we're going for when this is supposed to be this great feminist retelling. Hope that resonates with someone and I'm not alone!
Loved seeing more of Hades and Persephone again, they remain the best couple in this series for me (with the best book as well) and it's great to see how Persephone's grown into her role as Hades' partner. With Charon as an MC we really return back to Hades' realm and it felt like coming back to my favourite dysfunctional home.
As much as the pet play was advertised for this book, it didn't play that much of a part! Didn't think I'd be into it (and I'm still not really lol) but it was fun and even if the actual play didn't have that many scenes there were loads of dog puns that I chuckled at.
Like other reviewers have said, I'm too far in to stop now – let's see how Roberts manages to fit BDSM into a more and more complex political story next...
Content Warnings
Graphic: Pregnancy and Sexual content
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Abortion, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Toxic relationship, Gun violence, War, Death, and Medical content