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Goddess Summoning #2
Goddess of Spring
Lina's trendy bakery in Tulsa is proving to be less than lucrative, and she must come up with a plan. When she stumbles upon an Italian Goddess cookbook, Lina can't help but think she's found the answer to her problem—even if it means invoking a goddess to save her business.
Soon enough, Lina finds herself face-to-face with Demeter, who has a plan of her own. She proposes that Lina exchange souls with Persephone, the Goddess of Spring, who will breathe new life into the bakery. In return, Lina must set order to the Underworld.
Before all this, Lina's problems mostly involved sourdough and second dates. Now that she embodies the enchanting Persephone, Lina has weightier things on her mind—like the formidable task of bringing Spring to a world of spirits. But when the handsome, brooding Hades kindles a spark in her heart, Lina wonders if this Lord of the Underworld might be the man of her dreams.
Soon enough, Lina finds herself face-to-face with Demeter, who has a plan of her own. She proposes that Lina exchange souls with Persephone, the Goddess of Spring, who will breathe new life into the bakery. In return, Lina must set order to the Underworld.
Before all this, Lina's problems mostly involved sourdough and second dates. Now that she embodies the enchanting Persephone, Lina has weightier things on her mind—like the formidable task of bringing Spring to a world of spirits. But when the handsome, brooding Hades kindles a spark in her heart, Lina wonders if this Lord of the Underworld might be the man of her dreams.
360 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published August 3, 2004
About the author
P.C. Cast
169 books27.7k followersPC was born in the Midwest, and grew up being shuttled back-and-forth between Illinois and Oklahoma, which is where she fell in love with Quarter Horses and mythology (at about the same time). After high school, she joined the United States Air Force and began public speaking and writing. After her tour in the USAF, she taught high school for 15 years before retiring to write full time. PC is a #1 New York Times and #1 USA Today Best-Selling author and a member of the Oklahoma Writers Hall of Fame. Her novels have been awarded the prestigious: Oklahoma Book Award, YALSA Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers, Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, the Prism, Holt Medallion, Daphne du Maurier, Booksellers’ Best, and the Laurel Wreath. PC is an experienced teacher and talented speaker. Ms. Cast lives in Oregon near her fabulous daughter, her adorable pack of dogs, her crazy Maine Coon, and a bunch of horses. House of Night Other World, book 4, FOUND, releases July 7th, 2020. More info to come soon about the HoN TV series!
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 794 reviews
April 3, 2023
“I asked him for it.
For the blood, for the rust,
for the sin.
I didn’t want the pearls other girls talked about,
or the fine marble of palaces,
or even the roses in the mouth of servants.
I wanted pomegranates—
I wanted darkness,
I wanted him.
So I grabbed my king and ran away
to a land of death,
where I reigned and people whispered
that I’d been dragged.
I’ll tell you I’ve changed. I’ll tell you,
the red on my lips isn’t wine.
I hope you’ve heard of horns,
but that isn’t half of it. Out of an entire kingdom
he kneels only to me,
calls me Queen, calls me Mercy.
Mama, Mama, I hope you get this.
Know the bed is warm and our hearts are cold,
know never have I been better
than when I am here.
Do not send flowers,
we’ll throw them in the river.
‘Flowers are for the dead’, ‘least that’s what
the mortals say.
I’ll come back when he bores me,
but Mama,
not today.”
― Daniella Michalleni
This poem isn't in the book, but it's so beautiful I had to include it. It perfectly sums up the myth of Hades and Persephone.
The dreaded god of the Underworld falls in love with a modern-day baker trapped in Persephone's body. It's kind of like Freaky Friday but with Greek gods.
The River Styx is the River of Hate. Do not drink from it, it will cause no good end.
Hades and Persephone/Lina stole my heart. P.C. Cast's Goddess Summoning series has everything: hot deities, feminist heroines, good female friendships, and memorable romances.
P.S. Credit to whoever made the beautiful artwork
March 27, 2014
~Lina as Persephone~
How wonderful is it to find a book about soul-mates where the coupling is actually focused on two people loving the soul of another person, and not about two people being brought together by some sort of instant connection?
Before I go into what I really liked, two other things :
1. The amount of Batman references were horrible. And annoying. Repetitive gushing - STOP IT. Besides, when is cape wearing a "romance hero thing?"
2. While I did sigh heavily at mentions of the street cats organization, animal affinities with cat/horses, the Tulsa location, and the close-knit relationship between the female lead and her grandmother (all things repeatedly mentioned in other Cast books), outside of those few things, I would have never known this book came from the author of the HoN train wreck. Apparently, there are still some things in this world which can surprise me.
Now, I will commence with the good stuff :
This story is about a 40 something woman named Lina who is running a struggling bakery. She stumbles upon a recipe with a spell attached and (stupidly) does the spell in a plea for help.
Demeter answers the plea and offers a solution : switch bodies for 6 months with her daughter Persephone, Goddess of Spring. Basically - go to the underworld and hook up with Hades, so her daughter didn't have to.
Lina (again, stupidly) goes along with it, and in the process, inherits a youthful, nubile appearance which isn't her own true self.
Yes, stupidly. But this one time, I don't care as much about "stupidly" as I usually do because I loved the multiple messages of this story :
1. Friendship and bonds with other women are something to be celebrated.
2. Kindness can break down walls.
3. People are rarely what they seem on the outside (this went both ways for Persephone and Hades).
4. Real love is about more than physical attraction or outward beauty.
Outside of the first few awkward chapters (I thought I wasn't going to like the book before Lina got to the underworld), the story flowed from one scene to the next, pulling me along in wonder. From Lina bonding with Orion the dreadsteed, to Lina helping Hades make narcissus bloom, I had a happy little smile pasted on my face as I read.
This is the type of adult fairy tale that I love.
There was a little bit of everything. I appreciated the positive messages, I felt a little emotional over the scene with the soul-mate spirits at the river, I relished the steamy scenes, I laughed at a few light-hearted moments, and I even felt a couple of tears leak out as the story came to a close.
Rarely, do I even get excited over hot guy descriptions in romance anymore. Most of them are all the same and nothing new. But even I had a bit of a "hot damn" moment when it came to the scene with Hades working at the forge. My personal notes written in the book at that scene : FFS, I don't usually get worked up like this.
I wasn't sure if this would be a spoiler or not, but since it's not a huge plot point, I'll add it. I loved how Hades wanted to learn how best to please Persephone/Lina. It wasn't that he was inexperienced, but he knew that in order to be the right lover for her, he would need to learn her as she was, and not based on other experiences. It was a refreshing change from romance novel men who cockily think they know how to set every woman on fire. The intimate scenes between Hades and Persephone were tender and sincere, much more so than I've read in many books. Yet, he still had his "shake the ground with anger" type of wicked god moments, so it wasn't all about breaking every stereotype of his persona. The balance was lovely.
I'm not sure if this will be the book for everyone, but if you've been reading a lot of the same types of romance novels over and over, you might consider giving Goddess of the Spring a try. This is one of those books which could appeal to all ages, but I think would be special to women over 30. It really celebrates being a woman and becoming your own unique form of beautiful, even if you're not young and perfect looking. Just speed through the first few weird chapters (and pretend Lina doesn't make 50 Batman fangirl references) and it will get better.
How wonderful is it to find a book about soul-mates where the coupling is actually focused on two people loving the soul of another person, and not about two people being brought together by some sort of instant connection?
Before I go into what I really liked, two other things :
1. The amount of Batman references were horrible. And annoying. Repetitive gushing - STOP IT. Besides, when is cape wearing a "romance hero thing?"
2. While I did sigh heavily at mentions of the street cats organization, animal affinities with cat/horses, the Tulsa location, and the close-knit relationship between the female lead and her grandmother (all things repeatedly mentioned in other Cast books), outside of those few things, I would have never known this book came from the author of the HoN train wreck. Apparently, there are still some things in this world which can surprise me.
Now, I will commence with the good stuff :
This story is about a 40 something woman named Lina who is running a struggling bakery. She stumbles upon a recipe with a spell attached and (stupidly) does the spell in a plea for help.
Demeter answers the plea and offers a solution : switch bodies for 6 months with her daughter Persephone, Goddess of Spring. Basically - go to the underworld and hook up with Hades, so her daughter didn't have to.
Lina (again, stupidly) goes along with it, and in the process, inherits a youthful, nubile appearance which isn't her own true self.
Yes, stupidly. But this one time, I don't care as much about "stupidly" as I usually do because I loved the multiple messages of this story :
1. Friendship and bonds with other women are something to be celebrated.
2. Kindness can break down walls.
3. People are rarely what they seem on the outside (this went both ways for Persephone and Hades).
4. Real love is about more than physical attraction or outward beauty.
Outside of the first few awkward chapters (I thought I wasn't going to like the book before Lina got to the underworld), the story flowed from one scene to the next, pulling me along in wonder. From Lina bonding with Orion the dreadsteed, to Lina helping Hades make narcissus bloom, I had a happy little smile pasted on my face as I read.
This is the type of adult fairy tale that I love.
There was a little bit of everything. I appreciated the positive messages, I felt a little emotional over the scene with the soul-mate spirits at the river, I relished the steamy scenes, I laughed at a few light-hearted moments, and I even felt a couple of tears leak out as the story came to a close.
What would the Lord of the Dead do if he knew he had wooed, not the Goddess of Spring, but a middle-aged baker from the mortal world?
Rarely, do I even get excited over hot guy descriptions in romance anymore. Most of them are all the same and nothing new. But even I had a bit of a "hot damn" moment when it came to the scene with Hades working at the forge. My personal notes written in the book at that scene : FFS, I don't usually get worked up like this.
I wasn't sure if this would be a spoiler or not, but since it's not a huge plot point, I'll add it. I loved how Hades wanted to learn how best to please Persephone/Lina. It wasn't that he was inexperienced, but he knew that in order to be the right lover for her, he would need to learn her as she was, and not based on other experiences. It was a refreshing change from romance novel men who cockily think they know how to set every woman on fire. The intimate scenes between Hades and Persephone were tender and sincere, much more so than I've read in many books. Yet, he still had his "shake the ground with anger" type of wicked god moments, so it wasn't all about breaking every stereotype of his persona. The balance was lovely.
"Teach me how to set you afire, too."
I'm not sure if this will be the book for everyone, but if you've been reading a lot of the same types of romance novels over and over, you might consider giving Goddess of the Spring a try. This is one of those books which could appeal to all ages, but I think would be special to women over 30. It really celebrates being a woman and becoming your own unique form of beautiful, even if you're not young and perfect looking. Just speed through the first few weird chapters (and pretend Lina doesn't make 50 Batman fangirl references) and it will get better.
June 8, 2024
Re-read 6/3/2024
Re-read 5/7/2015
Ahh, Oh Hades. You make me wanna be bad. This is my favorite out of the Goddess Summoning books. Everyone should read it.
I absolutely adored this book! Who would've thought anyone could make Hades sexy?!?
Re-read 5/7/2015
Ahh, Oh Hades. You make me wanna be bad. This is my favorite out of the Goddess Summoning books. Everyone should read it.
I absolutely adored this book! Who would've thought anyone could make Hades sexy?!?
December 18, 2008
Middle aged Carolina Santoro has just discovered that her struggling bakery is heavily in debt to the IRS. Trying to rework her menu to attract more business, she's poring over old cookbooks one night and after several glasses of wine she unknowingly invokes the aid of Demeter, the Goddess of the Harvest. It's perfect timing for Demeter needs a host body to place her daughter, Persephone, the Goddess of Spring. She wants her daughter to grow a little, away from her influence. Demeter promises that Lina will soon have a thriving business if she will go to Hades as Persephone and try and spread a little joy among the souls who bemoan the lack of a goddess. With hardly a moment of preparation, Lina is soon on her way, guided by the soul of Eurydice. When she meets Hades she's dumbfounded to find a magnificent if broody male god. She quickly charms her way past his "dread steeds" and right into his heart. Poor misunderstood Hades soon delights in his feelings of love for Persephone and Lina just as quickly delights in loving Hades, but she's held back by the knowledge that she will be with him only temporarily and by the fact that Hades thinks she's a goddess and she's sure he could never love a middle aged mortal woman from Tulsa, Oklahoma.
This was such a charming story. I absolutely adored it. Hades was a hunky and brooding character and I just loved the way P.C. Cast created him. He's desperate to love and is very different from his fellow gods and goddesses. He's enchanted by the presence of soul mates and whenever he sees them it makes him crave that closeness. A closeness he thinks he'll never have. Until Lina bursts into the Underworld and spreads her own brand of joy among everyone. When he finds out she's not what he thinks, he's upset and when Lina returns to Tulsa he can only hope the promise that soulmates will always find one another will hold true for him, too.
The Underworld was a great character in of itself and P.C. Cast generously peppered it with some great and unique beings. Hades and Lina spend a lot of time touring the Underworld and Lina spends a lot of time learning about her temporary goddess powers. The ending of this book was lovely. I thought it was very sweet and "awwww" worthy. The H/H were great together, the sex was very sensual and loving, and at the end of this book all I wanted to do was frolic. There is a lot of frolicking in this book and it was very cute. Enjoy!
This was such a charming story. I absolutely adored it. Hades was a hunky and brooding character and I just loved the way P.C. Cast created him. He's desperate to love and is very different from his fellow gods and goddesses. He's enchanted by the presence of soul mates and whenever he sees them it makes him crave that closeness. A closeness he thinks he'll never have. Until Lina bursts into the Underworld and spreads her own brand of joy among everyone. When he finds out she's not what he thinks, he's upset and when Lina returns to Tulsa he can only hope the promise that soulmates will always find one another will hold true for him, too.
The Underworld was a great character in of itself and P.C. Cast generously peppered it with some great and unique beings. Hades and Lina spend a lot of time touring the Underworld and Lina spends a lot of time learning about her temporary goddess powers. The ending of this book was lovely. I thought it was very sweet and "awwww" worthy. The H/H were great together, the sex was very sensual and loving, and at the end of this book all I wanted to do was frolic. There is a lot of frolicking in this book and it was very cute. Enjoy!
July 19, 2012
I absolutely loved this book and I've never read a book in one go and so fast! Literally couldn't put it down. P. C. Cast has created a wonderfully enchanting take on the once thought "gloomy" Underworld. It's very refreshing.
I really liked the heroin. Lina was smart, funny, strong and kind. It's so nice to read a fantasy romance novel where the heroin is someone you can admire and even relate to, instead of someone to mock and who you find to be completely stupid. I also thought her friend Eurydice was very sweet and her story, though sad, was interesting and didn't distract from the plot, it enhanced it (if possible). I even liked Persephone, and even though I was expecting her to be more spoilt/shallow, she was cool. Her mum, Demeter... well, let's just say that for a time she was my least favourite character!
Hades. Wow. So many different depictions and stories, you basically get the impression he's the hermit God; that he's old and kind of boring and likes kidnapping pretty young girls who just wanna do some gardening. How wrong was that and how glad I am for it. Safe to say, Hades was my favourite character, and definitely my favourite depiction. He was dark, brooding, emotionally enigmatic - the black sheep of the God's (no pun intended). Not to mention the obvious; he's ridiculously sexy and well built, with great bone structure (taking about his face ;-)), but I loved there was something more to him. He was shy, reluctant and scared of getting hurt, due to past pain. He was also desperately lonely and wanting a deep and meaningful connection, which was unexpected in a God and very sweet. He was also very compassionate and quite understanding, important qualities to have especially with regards to his job. I loved the Christian Bale/Batman references, it helped visualise him.
I very much enjoyed the love that blossoms (again, no pun intended) between Lina and Hades. I thought it was well written and very genuine (I hate it when they just fall in love after one chapter, uh, yeah right). They had chemistry and a deeper connection formed after they got to know each other - this makes it feel more realistic.
Overall I really loved the book and can't find fault. I have read one other Goddess Summoning book (Goddess of Troy), which I enjoyed, so I have no idea why I didn't think to read the others. Think I definitely will now. I would highly recommend this book to another and may even read it again in the near future (if only there were a Hades out there for all us girls! Lol).
I really liked the heroin. Lina was smart, funny, strong and kind. It's so nice to read a fantasy romance novel where the heroin is someone you can admire and even relate to, instead of someone to mock and who you find to be completely stupid. I also thought her friend Eurydice was very sweet and her story, though sad, was interesting and didn't distract from the plot, it enhanced it (if possible). I even liked Persephone, and even though I was expecting her to be more spoilt/shallow, she was cool. Her mum, Demeter... well, let's just say that for a time she was my least favourite character!
Hades. Wow. So many different depictions and stories, you basically get the impression he's the hermit God; that he's old and kind of boring and likes kidnapping pretty young girls who just wanna do some gardening. How wrong was that and how glad I am for it. Safe to say, Hades was my favourite character, and definitely my favourite depiction. He was dark, brooding, emotionally enigmatic - the black sheep of the God's (no pun intended). Not to mention the obvious; he's ridiculously sexy and well built, with great bone structure (taking about his face ;-)), but I loved there was something more to him. He was shy, reluctant and scared of getting hurt, due to past pain. He was also desperately lonely and wanting a deep and meaningful connection, which was unexpected in a God and very sweet. He was also very compassionate and quite understanding, important qualities to have especially with regards to his job. I loved the Christian Bale/Batman references, it helped visualise him.
I very much enjoyed the love that blossoms (again, no pun intended) between Lina and Hades. I thought it was well written and very genuine (I hate it when they just fall in love after one chapter, uh, yeah right). They had chemistry and a deeper connection formed after they got to know each other - this makes it feel more realistic.
Overall I really loved the book and can't find fault. I have read one other Goddess Summoning book (Goddess of Troy), which I enjoyed, so I have no idea why I didn't think to read the others. Think I definitely will now. I would highly recommend this book to another and may even read it again in the near future (if only there were a Hades out there for all us girls! Lol).
July 29, 2012
As always, P.C. Cast never fails to leave me breathless. With this second instalment to her Goddess Summoning series, she did a great job.
Imagine a modern middle aged woman with a bakery business that’ll soon go bankrupt that can only be saved by summoning Demeter, getting a bargain with her and get switched bodies with Demeter’s daughter, Persephone and get plunged to the ancient world where Greek gods and goddesses still believed to be existed and see Olympus yourself? Now, add a really dark and mysterious Lord of the Underworld with mood swings, a vibrant young ghost with the name of Eurydice, a loyal daimon named Iapus, the Underworld itself and the different moods of the story like betrayal, hurt, comfort, pain and romance? You’ll surely get an amazing plot that’ll leave you breathless after reading the ending.
Goddess of Spring is totally better than Goddess of the Sea.
Plot Summary:
Growing up lavished with wealth and eternity of joy, Persephone proved to be a vivacious girl that gives light to others- just like what the lonely and dark-y place like the Underworld needed especially the King.
Demeter was worried that Persephone had grown to be an immature child and couldn't handle the job given to her- to give light to the souls resting in the Underworld. The goddess of harvest thought that maybe she made a mistake and she should fix it soon with a goal in mind- to make Persephone matured enough for the Underworld. And one place could only make her daughter be a wise woman older than her years and that place was too modern that their existence was almost forgotten.
At that same time, Carolina “Lina” Santoro, a forty three year old woman who was currently having problems with her soon-to-be bankrupt bakery business, had a large debt on the government and her bakery business wasn’t going that well.
Buying Old Italian cookbooks on a local book store, she discovered a thin book with an incantation to summon Demeter, the goddess of Harvest. Lina then summoned Demeter to ask for help, and a two feet Narcissus grew out of nowhere and its wonderful smell engulfed Lina.
She then looked at it and saw Persephone on the center of the Narcissus. And before she knew it, the two switched bodies and Lina was plunged into the world of Persephone.
Demeter then explained to a confused Lina what was happening. She accepted Lina’s call and decided the only way the girl could repay her was to switch places with Persephone for six months. Lina was also given a job- to give light in the Underworld, the supposed-to-be job of Persephone.
The middle aged woman, trapped on a beautiful body of the goddess of spring, accepted it and thought of it as another business errand she needed to accomplish soon enough to save her bakery. But she was wrong.
It wasn’t just a simple business errand. Hades, the King of the Underworld, proved to be a dark and handsome god that had mood swings. And she was attracted to him.
After many more problems and obstacles that involves Apollo being also in love with Lina, the problem between Spring and Death, the couple passed them all, but the problems don’t end just there. Lina had fallen in love to Hades, so was the god to her.
Then, the major problem since from the start started to weave its own way through the story. Lina couldn’t be with Hades. She was from the modern world and she wasn’t really the Persephone everyone thought. She desperately wanted to tell Hades the truth, but her oath to Demeter was on the way so she talked to the goddess after making love with Hades.
Demeter didn't agree since she knew that Hades loved Persephone not Lina herself, but her body just like other immortals do. Hades overheard some of their conversation and even saw Apollo hugged Lina and got blinded with jealousy. He turned cold towards Lina and this made her run away on the Underworld, unconsciously going to the path of the Tartarus where she shouldn't be.
On the riverbank of Phytheros, the river of fire, her soul was slowly drifting away from her body. Hades arrived just in time to save her. They make another love but Demeter suddenly appeared and told Lina it was time to leave. Lina told Hades the truth but the god said for them to leave his realm. Lina immediately took this as a sign that Hades rejected her.
Lina, back to her own body and time, managed her booming business thanks to Persephone. She broke up with Scott, a twenty five year old attorney Persephone (in Lina's body) seduced and everything turned back to normal. She was still lonely for she yearned the Underworld and most of all, Hades.
On Persephone, she was yearning for the modern world of Lina. She missed the bakery and the friendly mortals. She heard some rumors that Hades had gone mad and tried countless of times to visit him but she couldn't. This only frustrates her more for she needed to talk to him. She then got an idea and told Demeter how she could fix her mistake about the switch. Demeter agreed.
Lina just gave day off to Dolores, a loyal employer of hers, and was preparing to close the bakery when two customers came. They were Persephone and Demeter. Persephone proposed a barter to Lina that they switch places once again for they both yearn the world of the other. She gave her time up to the first day of Spring before she'll come back with an answer.
Hades was frustrated. He missed Lina, the real Carolina, and couldn't forgive himself for the thing he did. Iapus then came to him and persuaded him to take a bath in exchange of not bothering him for a time. Hades agreed but then when he entered the bathroom, Persephone was there. (It was actually funny when I had read Hades's reaction. LOL.) The goddess talked to him about persuading Lina in agreeing and together, they formed a plan.
Lina was just taking a night rollbladder stroll with Edith Anne, her bulldog pet, when she heard horse hooves. She thought it was just her imagination when she saw Orion, a dread steed of Hades in front of her.
Instinctively, she pet it and she heard the familiar booming voice of the man who broke her heart. "Who dares to touch my dread steed?" (It was so cute when Hades repeated what happened when they first met that involves daring, peting, and curiosity. XD)
Hades then told her the truth that he loves her dearly and the starcrossed lovers reunited. Lina then gave Hades a tour on Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The next day, there was a news about Carolina Santoro's death and her bakery. It was inherited by Persephone Santoro, a distant relative of Carolina from Italy and will divide her time. Just like her namesake, she'll spend six months on Tulsa and the other on Italy. It was a happy ending for Persephone for she could be whoever she was, not being on another's body.
Lina then went inside the too familiar entrance of the Underworld. With a ghost body, she went inside and she saw everyone she loved. Iapus, Eurydice, Orion, Cerberus and most especially Hades. Eurydice was crying with happiness, finally seeing her patroness once again and souls all around them were bowing at Lina in acknowledgement. Hades then approached her and touched her hand. He smiled at her and said, "Welcome home, Lina, Queen of the Underworld." (I cried at this part even when I'm typing this! :') )
What I Love:
-The plot! Always leave me breathless.
-The ending! Yes, it should be separated from the plot for I want to give it significance. It is a happy ending that made me cry! :')
-Characters! They're so adorable especially Eurydice! Such vivacious lady!
-Writing Style. I really love P.C. Cast's writing style. Just pure amazing.
What I Dislike:
-The Rating! Once again, like the first book, this is not, I repeat, NOT for eighteen years below! I just read it for it have a really great plot and I skipped those scenes that are morbid in my eyes.
Conclusion:
This is so better than the first installment! Kudos to P.C. Cast for writing such a masterpiece! Oh, the ending... It is just pure amazing! I love how P.C. Cast always do happy endings and not tragedies! She seems to have always a way to make the two main characters end up together no matter how different they are.
I'm giving Goddess of Spring by P.C. Cast five stars!
A MUST READ!
Imagine a modern middle aged woman with a bakery business that’ll soon go bankrupt that can only be saved by summoning Demeter, getting a bargain with her and get switched bodies with Demeter’s daughter, Persephone and get plunged to the ancient world where Greek gods and goddesses still believed to be existed and see Olympus yourself? Now, add a really dark and mysterious Lord of the Underworld with mood swings, a vibrant young ghost with the name of Eurydice, a loyal daimon named Iapus, the Underworld itself and the different moods of the story like betrayal, hurt, comfort, pain and romance? You’ll surely get an amazing plot that’ll leave you breathless after reading the ending.
Goddess of Spring is totally better than Goddess of the Sea.
Plot Summary:
Growing up lavished with wealth and eternity of joy, Persephone proved to be a vivacious girl that gives light to others- just like what the lonely and dark-y place like the Underworld needed especially the King.
Demeter was worried that Persephone had grown to be an immature child and couldn't handle the job given to her- to give light to the souls resting in the Underworld. The goddess of harvest thought that maybe she made a mistake and she should fix it soon with a goal in mind- to make Persephone matured enough for the Underworld. And one place could only make her daughter be a wise woman older than her years and that place was too modern that their existence was almost forgotten.
At that same time, Carolina “Lina” Santoro, a forty three year old woman who was currently having problems with her soon-to-be bankrupt bakery business, had a large debt on the government and her bakery business wasn’t going that well.
Buying Old Italian cookbooks on a local book store, she discovered a thin book with an incantation to summon Demeter, the goddess of Harvest. Lina then summoned Demeter to ask for help, and a two feet Narcissus grew out of nowhere and its wonderful smell engulfed Lina.
She then looked at it and saw Persephone on the center of the Narcissus. And before she knew it, the two switched bodies and Lina was plunged into the world of Persephone.
Demeter then explained to a confused Lina what was happening. She accepted Lina’s call and decided the only way the girl could repay her was to switch places with Persephone for six months. Lina was also given a job- to give light in the Underworld, the supposed-to-be job of Persephone.
The middle aged woman, trapped on a beautiful body of the goddess of spring, accepted it and thought of it as another business errand she needed to accomplish soon enough to save her bakery. But she was wrong.
It wasn’t just a simple business errand. Hades, the King of the Underworld, proved to be a dark and handsome god that had mood swings. And she was attracted to him.
After many more problems and obstacles that involves Apollo being also in love with Lina, the problem between Spring and Death, the couple passed them all, but the problems don’t end just there. Lina had fallen in love to Hades, so was the god to her.
Then, the major problem since from the start started to weave its own way through the story. Lina couldn’t be with Hades. She was from the modern world and she wasn’t really the Persephone everyone thought. She desperately wanted to tell Hades the truth, but her oath to Demeter was on the way so she talked to the goddess after making love with Hades.
Demeter didn't agree since she knew that Hades loved Persephone not Lina herself, but her body just like other immortals do. Hades overheard some of their conversation and even saw Apollo hugged Lina and got blinded with jealousy. He turned cold towards Lina and this made her run away on the Underworld, unconsciously going to the path of the Tartarus where she shouldn't be.
On the riverbank of Phytheros, the river of fire, her soul was slowly drifting away from her body. Hades arrived just in time to save her. They make another love but Demeter suddenly appeared and told Lina it was time to leave. Lina told Hades the truth but the god said for them to leave his realm. Lina immediately took this as a sign that Hades rejected her.
Lina, back to her own body and time, managed her booming business thanks to Persephone. She broke up with Scott, a twenty five year old attorney Persephone (in Lina's body) seduced and everything turned back to normal. She was still lonely for she yearned the Underworld and most of all, Hades.
On Persephone, she was yearning for the modern world of Lina. She missed the bakery and the friendly mortals. She heard some rumors that Hades had gone mad and tried countless of times to visit him but she couldn't. This only frustrates her more for she needed to talk to him. She then got an idea and told Demeter how she could fix her mistake about the switch. Demeter agreed.
Lina just gave day off to Dolores, a loyal employer of hers, and was preparing to close the bakery when two customers came. They were Persephone and Demeter. Persephone proposed a barter to Lina that they switch places once again for they both yearn the world of the other. She gave her time up to the first day of Spring before she'll come back with an answer.
Hades was frustrated. He missed Lina, the real Carolina, and couldn't forgive himself for the thing he did. Iapus then came to him and persuaded him to take a bath in exchange of not bothering him for a time. Hades agreed but then when he entered the bathroom, Persephone was there. (It was actually funny when I had read Hades's reaction. LOL.) The goddess talked to him about persuading Lina in agreeing and together, they formed a plan.
Lina was just taking a night rollbladder stroll with Edith Anne, her bulldog pet, when she heard horse hooves. She thought it was just her imagination when she saw Orion, a dread steed of Hades in front of her.
Instinctively, she pet it and she heard the familiar booming voice of the man who broke her heart. "Who dares to touch my dread steed?" (It was so cute when Hades repeated what happened when they first met that involves daring, peting, and curiosity. XD)
Hades then told her the truth that he loves her dearly and the starcrossed lovers reunited. Lina then gave Hades a tour on Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The next day, there was a news about Carolina Santoro's death and her bakery. It was inherited by Persephone Santoro, a distant relative of Carolina from Italy and will divide her time. Just like her namesake, she'll spend six months on Tulsa and the other on Italy. It was a happy ending for Persephone for she could be whoever she was, not being on another's body.
Lina then went inside the too familiar entrance of the Underworld. With a ghost body, she went inside and she saw everyone she loved. Iapus, Eurydice, Orion, Cerberus and most especially Hades. Eurydice was crying with happiness, finally seeing her patroness once again and souls all around them were bowing at Lina in acknowledgement. Hades then approached her and touched her hand. He smiled at her and said, "Welcome home, Lina, Queen of the Underworld." (I cried at this part even when I'm typing this! :') )
What I Love:
-The plot! Always leave me breathless.
-The ending! Yes, it should be separated from the plot for I want to give it significance. It is a happy ending that made me cry! :')
-Characters! They're so adorable especially Eurydice! Such vivacious lady!
-Writing Style. I really love P.C. Cast's writing style. Just pure amazing.
What I Dislike:
-The Rating! Once again, like the first book, this is not, I repeat, NOT for eighteen years below! I just read it for it have a really great plot and I skipped those scenes that are morbid in my eyes.
Conclusion:
This is so better than the first installment! Kudos to P.C. Cast for writing such a masterpiece! Oh, the ending... It is just pure amazing! I love how P.C. Cast always do happy endings and not tragedies! She seems to have always a way to make the two main characters end up together no matter how different they are.
I'm giving Goddess of Spring by P.C. Cast five stars!
A MUST READ!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 11, 2012
Goddess of Spring was first book by P.C. Cast that I have read… (curious to know what pc was …so for those of you like me who want to know, it’s Phyllis Christine) , I had no idea if it was going to be a good read or not. Greek gods & goddesses..well I do love Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter Series so I why not read a different take on this genre of mortals and mythical beings get together.
The story has an interesting premise of an older mortal heroine (yes quite a lot older, but more about her later!!) who falls in love with Hades, the god of the Underworld – I wondered how this would evolved....I mean, the lord of hell!!!! Isn’t he suppose to be this dark evil guy with horns!!!!! But turns out he’s a very yummy god!!!!
Carolina (I love that name perhaps because my Dad who I loved and adored was named Carolino!!!) Santoro’s life is in disarray and that’s putting it mildly!!! Owner of the bakery handed down to her by her late grandmother, Pani del Goddess, is on the brink of closing down and all she has in her life are Edith Ann, a bulldog and Patchy Poo the Pud Santoro, a cat living in her cute house.– no kidding …those are there names….she has given up on men after getting divorced from her twit of a husband and feels that life is just passing her by!! Did I mention that she can communicate with animals? Yes, animals just fall in love with her!!!
Before anyone thinks I did not enjoy this book, I have to immediately say that I didn’t enjoy it exactly – I just loved it!!!!!
Yes, there were parts that I went….what? No, this is so far out, farfetched – it is. The world that the author has created from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Mt Olympus and the Underworld is really incredible and so believably gorgeous with dazzling colors, evocative scents of flowers and quirky and unforgettable characters.
Oh the characters – so vivid and endearing that by the end of the book I had a feeling of sadness having to say goodbye to my new friends. They remain in your head and for a while I kept having flashes in my head about what Lina & Hades and the underworld was doing now!!!! Crazy…right…that’s how much they crept into my heart.
I went from…..boring older woman, letting her body go with animals around me….to wow, this woman is actually quite amazing and more interesting that I had thought!! You have to be open-minded to deal with the outcome of her asking for help from the devious and snobbish Demeter, who happens to have answered Lina’s plea for help. Naturally Demeter agrees to help her with her bakery and not because she’s the goddess of kindness but she has an agenda of her own – here’s the perfect opportunity to deal Persephone, her gorgeous and troublesome daughter, who has to be trained for a mission to the Underworld.
Well, the proposition doesn’t sound too bad or difficult! Lina & Persephone get to swap bodies and for six months and all Lina has to do is go the Hades and fill the Underworld with everything that is Spring!!! And she goes as a gorgeous goddess with a body and a wardrobe to die for!!!
The interaction between Demeter and her assistant and Lina is really great and funny.
Poor Hades, so misunderstood by all those spoilt and gorgeous gods, like Apollo – such a fun and naughty guy..and yes beyond beautiful. Hades is nothing like I imagined – he’s gorgeous with long black hair flowing behind his long black cape – I thought he looked more like Heathcliff rather than Batman (no, that’s Lina’s comparison and certainly not mine!!!).
I could understand why Lina would feel such an attraction for this dark, tortured, lonely, sad and misunderstood man, whose world was the way it was because he had no one to share it with, to bring light into his life – she’s such a loving, caring and sweet person who just wants everyone to be happy…and no, that is not “soppy”….they are great qualities I believe in a person. And another thing…..she fights for women’s rights..yes , right there in the Underworld …by this time I was so totally enchanted by this woman and the goodness in her.
Of course Hades is unable to resist this beautiful, wise, kind, caring and so mature goddess that all his subjects have fallen in love with – how was it possible that Persephone, who he believes she really is, be so different from what he thought.
I liked the way that the two got to know each other before falling into bed the first time they met. There are some great seduction scenes which are truly beautiful – helped along by Eurydice and the daimon, Iapis (such a sweet couple). The scene where honey is gathered and made into ambrosia for the gods and Hades watches Lina dancing and singing….wow…and their first time together…tender, loving and as sexy as all hell!!!!!!
I felt a moment of total dislike for Hades, when he finds out how different Lina is and who he’s supposedly in love with – what an idiot!!!! What does he do when the real Lina emerges and is no longer this young and hot looking woman? He ducks, runs off, wants nothing to do with her!!! Just like most people are – the outside of a person is what matters and not what’s inside.
So Lina goes back to her old life, her business is now beyond thriving and in her absence, Persephone had created a new, toned and sexy body after all that gymming!!!! None of these things mattered more than how much she missed Hades and his world and people.
But as we know, this is a fairytale and we cannot have unhappy couples that have been torn apart when all along we knew they were soul mates. Hades discovers that the person inside of Lina is what he loves and not the Persephone look-a-like but there’s nothing he can do to get her back or so he thinks….but Demeter has another trick or two up her sleeve!!!!!
OMG…I absolutely loved the scenes between Demeter and Anton, the fabulously gay waiter at the bakery, who I loved from the start – I just couldn’t stop laughing…HYSTERICAL!!!
“Anton smiled smugly. Before he turned away, he said, “Sweetheart, what is your name? I don’t think I have seen you in here before”.
“You may call me Robin Greentree”.
“Well, Ms Greentree, may I just say that on anyone else in that outfit would look like a silk muumuu, but on you it looks like something a goddess would wear. You are perfectly majestic”.
“Of course I am” Demeter said.
“I’ll have your wine right out”. Anton hurried back into the kitchen. As he passed Lina and Persephone, he said, in sotto voice, “I can’t resist an old queen”.
Love triumphs – Hades gets Lina back in a very unusual way…he loves her just the way she is…new toned body on the outside and her beautiful soul inside. The Underworld will never be the same again as they go into the world filled with shining stars and have a HEA life with each other.
This is such a warm-hearted , sweet and lovely book leaving me with a really uplifting and good feeling – yes believe it or not….so go on…read it and discover if you liked it as much as I did !!! It’s a definite yes that I will be reading the other book in this series…did I forget to mention that there is a Goddess Summoning Series – yay…get to know some more about those other spoilt Greek gods and goddesses.
The story has an interesting premise of an older mortal heroine (yes quite a lot older, but more about her later!!) who falls in love with Hades, the god of the Underworld – I wondered how this would evolved....I mean, the lord of hell!!!! Isn’t he suppose to be this dark evil guy with horns!!!!! But turns out he’s a very yummy god!!!!
Carolina (I love that name perhaps because my Dad who I loved and adored was named Carolino!!!) Santoro’s life is in disarray and that’s putting it mildly!!! Owner of the bakery handed down to her by her late grandmother, Pani del Goddess, is on the brink of closing down and all she has in her life are Edith Ann, a bulldog and Patchy Poo the Pud Santoro, a cat living in her cute house.– no kidding …those are there names….she has given up on men after getting divorced from her twit of a husband and feels that life is just passing her by!! Did I mention that she can communicate with animals? Yes, animals just fall in love with her!!!
Before anyone thinks I did not enjoy this book, I have to immediately say that I didn’t enjoy it exactly – I just loved it!!!!!
Yes, there were parts that I went….what? No, this is so far out, farfetched – it is. The world that the author has created from Tulsa, Oklahoma to Mt Olympus and the Underworld is really incredible and so believably gorgeous with dazzling colors, evocative scents of flowers and quirky and unforgettable characters.
Oh the characters – so vivid and endearing that by the end of the book I had a feeling of sadness having to say goodbye to my new friends. They remain in your head and for a while I kept having flashes in my head about what Lina & Hades and the underworld was doing now!!!! Crazy…right…that’s how much they crept into my heart.
I went from…..boring older woman, letting her body go with animals around me….to wow, this woman is actually quite amazing and more interesting that I had thought!! You have to be open-minded to deal with the outcome of her asking for help from the devious and snobbish Demeter, who happens to have answered Lina’s plea for help. Naturally Demeter agrees to help her with her bakery and not because she’s the goddess of kindness but she has an agenda of her own – here’s the perfect opportunity to deal Persephone, her gorgeous and troublesome daughter, who has to be trained for a mission to the Underworld.
Well, the proposition doesn’t sound too bad or difficult! Lina & Persephone get to swap bodies and for six months and all Lina has to do is go the Hades and fill the Underworld with everything that is Spring!!! And she goes as a gorgeous goddess with a body and a wardrobe to die for!!!
The interaction between Demeter and her assistant and Lina is really great and funny.
Poor Hades, so misunderstood by all those spoilt and gorgeous gods, like Apollo – such a fun and naughty guy..and yes beyond beautiful. Hades is nothing like I imagined – he’s gorgeous with long black hair flowing behind his long black cape – I thought he looked more like Heathcliff rather than Batman (no, that’s Lina’s comparison and certainly not mine!!!).
I could understand why Lina would feel such an attraction for this dark, tortured, lonely, sad and misunderstood man, whose world was the way it was because he had no one to share it with, to bring light into his life – she’s such a loving, caring and sweet person who just wants everyone to be happy…and no, that is not “soppy”….they are great qualities I believe in a person. And another thing…..she fights for women’s rights..yes , right there in the Underworld …by this time I was so totally enchanted by this woman and the goodness in her.
Of course Hades is unable to resist this beautiful, wise, kind, caring and so mature goddess that all his subjects have fallen in love with – how was it possible that Persephone, who he believes she really is, be so different from what he thought.
I liked the way that the two got to know each other before falling into bed the first time they met. There are some great seduction scenes which are truly beautiful – helped along by Eurydice and the daimon, Iapis (such a sweet couple). The scene where honey is gathered and made into ambrosia for the gods and Hades watches Lina dancing and singing….wow…and their first time together…tender, loving and as sexy as all hell!!!!!!
I felt a moment of total dislike for Hades, when he finds out how different Lina is and who he’s supposedly in love with – what an idiot!!!! What does he do when the real Lina emerges and is no longer this young and hot looking woman? He ducks, runs off, wants nothing to do with her!!! Just like most people are – the outside of a person is what matters and not what’s inside.
So Lina goes back to her old life, her business is now beyond thriving and in her absence, Persephone had created a new, toned and sexy body after all that gymming!!!! None of these things mattered more than how much she missed Hades and his world and people.
But as we know, this is a fairytale and we cannot have unhappy couples that have been torn apart when all along we knew they were soul mates. Hades discovers that the person inside of Lina is what he loves and not the Persephone look-a-like but there’s nothing he can do to get her back or so he thinks….but Demeter has another trick or two up her sleeve!!!!!
OMG…I absolutely loved the scenes between Demeter and Anton, the fabulously gay waiter at the bakery, who I loved from the start – I just couldn’t stop laughing…HYSTERICAL!!!
“Anton smiled smugly. Before he turned away, he said, “Sweetheart, what is your name? I don’t think I have seen you in here before”.
“You may call me Robin Greentree”.
“Well, Ms Greentree, may I just say that on anyone else in that outfit would look like a silk muumuu, but on you it looks like something a goddess would wear. You are perfectly majestic”.
“Of course I am” Demeter said.
“I’ll have your wine right out”. Anton hurried back into the kitchen. As he passed Lina and Persephone, he said, in sotto voice, “I can’t resist an old queen”.
Love triumphs – Hades gets Lina back in a very unusual way…he loves her just the way she is…new toned body on the outside and her beautiful soul inside. The Underworld will never be the same again as they go into the world filled with shining stars and have a HEA life with each other.
This is such a warm-hearted , sweet and lovely book leaving me with a really uplifting and good feeling – yes believe it or not….so go on…read it and discover if you liked it as much as I did !!! It’s a definite yes that I will be reading the other book in this series…did I forget to mention that there is a Goddess Summoning Series – yay…get to know some more about those other spoilt Greek gods and goddesses.
October 23, 2011
I have to admit, I was really skeptical when I read that this book would be about Hades because just like Lina, I thought that Hades was just some boring god who had chosen to isolate himself out of total angst and wanting to be different. Actually, the image of Hades that was ingrained into my memory was the one from the Disney cartoon Hercules, which I now know should not have been the case. The depiction of the god here was definitely not boring or asexual. He was actually hot.
I honestly didn't like Demeter's character for majority of the book because of how willing she was to just let her own daughter be sent into the mortal world without any protection. I understand where she was coming from; a mother wanted her daughter to know that life wasn't all about frolicking in gardens and fooling around with gods. But she didn't have to send a total shock to her system by switching her body with another mortal, which is where Lina comes into the plot. Demeter's assignment to Lina was also something that wasn't so favorable in my eyes because honestly, who sent someone to Hell? Granted that it didn't turn out to be Hell, but Paradise, but still!
The progression of the relationship between Hades and Lina/Persephone was definitely the most entertaining to read throughout the story. I already knew that they would fall in love with one another, but the romance between them and generally just how sweet he was to her was definitely something that I didn't expect. I loved what Hades said about how soul mates would always find one another no matter where they were in the world or what lifetime they were living in. It honestly was something that gave me hope for my situations and my life, but that would be steering off topic.
The most heartbreaking moments in this story were the following:
1.) When Lina told Demeter about how she was in love with Hades and Demeter said that he was just toying with her heart because that was what immortals did. That was an outright lie on Demeter's part and the worst part was that she knew that she was lying. That was probably the second coldest and harshest thing she did in the story.
2.) When Lina stepped into Tartarus and the voices around her made her feel guilty about what she'd done. My heart was definitely pounding at this point in the story. I kept wondering about what would happen because of the line about Lina's soul tearing away from Persephone's body.
3.) When Demeter revealed the truth in a rather rude manner to Hades. She purposefully caught him off guard so that she could make Lina believe that he didn't want her, didn't love her, but instead loved who he thought was the Goddess of Spring. And that was the coldest and harshest thing she did in the book.
I admit that the parts after this were difficult for me to read because the events were being narrated through the points of view of two crushed souls that thought would never find each other again. To see what the separation did to both of them was heart-wrenching and honestly really depressing.
But when Orion walked up to Lina again and she and Hades reunited, oh my GOD (pun fully intended), that moment made all the heartbreaking ones worthwhile. The only thing that kept me wondering was how they would stay together, especially since she was a mortal woman. Then I read the article of her death, which strangely brought me sheer and utter delight. Don't get me wrong, I'm no sadist and I definitely don't take pleasure in reading about people dying, but knowing that she died meant that she could actually have a future with her soul mate, as the rightful Queen of the Underworld. The reactions of all the spirits when she returned confirmed the fact that no matter what body she possessed it was her soul that was their Queen, and it was her soul that he fell in love with.
One thing I wished to read more into, though, was the relationship between Eurydice and Iapis. I knew since the moment they met that something would happen between those two and I was honestly disappointed when I didn't get to see their relationship blossom in the story.
Once again, I should have known better than to judge the ending of the book by what was currently happening. I really should learn that any book written by a Cast would end with either chills (the good kind, of course) or tears of joy. I have so many more books to get to, so I certainly hope that by the time I'm done, I'm still as excited to turn the next page as I was when I started reading her books. Truly another remarkable masterpiece. I can't wait to read the next installment of this spectacular series.
I honestly didn't like Demeter's character for majority of the book because of how willing she was to just let her own daughter be sent into the mortal world without any protection. I understand where she was coming from; a mother wanted her daughter to know that life wasn't all about frolicking in gardens and fooling around with gods. But she didn't have to send a total shock to her system by switching her body with another mortal, which is where Lina comes into the plot. Demeter's assignment to Lina was also something that wasn't so favorable in my eyes because honestly, who sent someone to Hell? Granted that it didn't turn out to be Hell, but Paradise, but still!
The progression of the relationship between Hades and Lina/Persephone was definitely the most entertaining to read throughout the story. I already knew that they would fall in love with one another, but the romance between them and generally just how sweet he was to her was definitely something that I didn't expect. I loved what Hades said about how soul mates would always find one another no matter where they were in the world or what lifetime they were living in. It honestly was something that gave me hope for my situations and my life, but that would be steering off topic.
The most heartbreaking moments in this story were the following:
1.) When Lina told Demeter about how she was in love with Hades and Demeter said that he was just toying with her heart because that was what immortals did. That was an outright lie on Demeter's part and the worst part was that she knew that she was lying. That was probably the second coldest and harshest thing she did in the story.
2.) When Lina stepped into Tartarus and the voices around her made her feel guilty about what she'd done. My heart was definitely pounding at this point in the story. I kept wondering about what would happen because of the line about Lina's soul tearing away from Persephone's body.
3.) When Demeter revealed the truth in a rather rude manner to Hades. She purposefully caught him off guard so that she could make Lina believe that he didn't want her, didn't love her, but instead loved who he thought was the Goddess of Spring. And that was the coldest and harshest thing she did in the book.
I admit that the parts after this were difficult for me to read because the events were being narrated through the points of view of two crushed souls that thought would never find each other again. To see what the separation did to both of them was heart-wrenching and honestly really depressing.
But when Orion walked up to Lina again and she and Hades reunited, oh my GOD (pun fully intended), that moment made all the heartbreaking ones worthwhile. The only thing that kept me wondering was how they would stay together, especially since she was a mortal woman. Then I read the article of her death, which strangely brought me sheer and utter delight. Don't get me wrong, I'm no sadist and I definitely don't take pleasure in reading about people dying, but knowing that she died meant that she could actually have a future with her soul mate, as the rightful Queen of the Underworld. The reactions of all the spirits when she returned confirmed the fact that no matter what body she possessed it was her soul that was their Queen, and it was her soul that he fell in love with.
One thing I wished to read more into, though, was the relationship between Eurydice and Iapis. I knew since the moment they met that something would happen between those two and I was honestly disappointed when I didn't get to see their relationship blossom in the story.
Once again, I should have known better than to judge the ending of the book by what was currently happening. I really should learn that any book written by a Cast would end with either chills (the good kind, of course) or tears of joy. I have so many more books to get to, so I certainly hope that by the time I'm done, I'm still as excited to turn the next page as I was when I started reading her books. Truly another remarkable masterpiece. I can't wait to read the next installment of this spectacular series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 23, 2013
I loved this book. I would have to say, it's my most favorite of all the series. I just loved how Hades was portraited. Spent 2 hours reading this and I finished. I was acutally surprised at how Lina came to hell, but it was briliant. Hades was not the bad guy, not like in most stories, instead, he was the myterious, yet kind soul who was just looking for a soul mate. THe part where he said 'One thing humans know better than Gods is how to love.' I just fell in love with him on the spot.
Lina I loved too, she was kind, and a bright young girl. Yet what made this book lovable is the flaws the characters had. Unlike some of the other Goddess summoning, the characters were well rounded, and had flaws. THat is what makes a character enjoyable, that they have flaws like any regular human being. Lina did really touch my soul, she truely made a good goddess of spring.
I read stories of Hades being bad and good, but I have to say, him being good is much better.
All in all, I favorite this book out of all. Grammar might need some polishing, but the plot was spetacular.
Lina I loved too, she was kind, and a bright young girl. Yet what made this book lovable is the flaws the characters had. Unlike some of the other Goddess summoning, the characters were well rounded, and had flaws. THat is what makes a character enjoyable, that they have flaws like any regular human being. Lina did really touch my soul, she truely made a good goddess of spring.
I read stories of Hades being bad and good, but I have to say, him being good is much better.
All in all, I favorite this book out of all. Grammar might need some polishing, but the plot was spetacular.
October 11, 2012
I enjoyed the first book in this series, Goddess of the Sea, but this one was about a million times better (in my opinion). Another great thing about this book is that the series is loosely tied to together by a common theme, so it doesn't matter if you read them all in order or just any single book. The beginning was just a tad slow, but it wasn't too bad and it picked up quickly. This book is Beauty and the Beast with Hades and Persephone, only better. I loved everything about this book. It was completely fantastic and romantic and funny and realistic in the sense of how Hades and "Persephone" reacted to each other. The imagery was amazing as well. I wish it was a movie so I could truly enjoy the scenery of the Underworld. It's a surprisingly beautiful place. I will definitely be reading this book again (which isn't something I do very often anymore). I would recommend this book to anyone who loves romance novels or simply believes in the power of true love.
May 29, 2010
I've never been interested in reading PC Cast books before, but now I've changed my mind. This book changed it. It has such a nice blend of romance and fantasy all rolled into one that you can't stop reading and finding out what happens next.
And I won't probably look at Hades the same way again after reading this book.
He'll forever be the Sexy, Sexy Batman, like what Lina would say.
I love how this book showed Hades not just as a God, but someone who feels, someone who can fall in love and get hurt as well. That touch of humanity in a God, making mistakes and making up for it, PC Cast has successfully shown what it would be like.
I guess that it just goes to show that for mortals and gods, falling in love is the same. It's complicated, sometimes you get hurt, and
And I won't probably look at Hades the same way again after reading this book.
He'll forever be the Sexy, Sexy Batman, like what Lina would say.
I love how this book showed Hades not just as a God, but someone who feels, someone who can fall in love and get hurt as well. That touch of humanity in a God, making mistakes and making up for it, PC Cast has successfully shown what it would be like.
I guess that it just goes to show that for mortals and gods, falling in love is the same. It's complicated, sometimes you get hurt, and
November 30, 2014
I cannot describe how much i liked this book. It made me smile. It made me cry. It angered me so much I had to shout. And I loved every page of it. I added a new character to my Favorite smoking hot, lick your fingers, drool all night studs.:)
December 16, 2011
Hmmm..tek kelimeyle söylemeliyim ki kitaba BA-YIL-DIM..
kısaca özetlemek gerekirse bir fırın işletmekte ve maddi açıdan zor durumda olan Lina,
çözümü ürünlerine yeni eklemeler yapmakta bulur..ve Tanrıça Yemekleri gibi bir isme sahip eski ve bi nevi sihirli bir ritüelle yapılan yemek tarifi kitabı satın alır..daha doğrusu bu kitap aldığı 10 kitaptan sonuncusudur...talimatları biraz ilginç bulsada yerine getiri ve ritüelin son kısmında Hasat Tanrıçası Demeter'den yardım ister..vekabulü mümkün gibi gözükmesede dileğine cevap alır...
Olayların diğer tarafında ise Demeter, Bahar Tanrıçası-Persephone- kızını çok sevse de biraz şımarttığını düşünür.
Kızının gerekli bilgeliğe ve olgunluğa erişmesi için hiç istemese de Lina ile ruhlarını değiştirmeye karar verir..Bunun sonucunda Lina'ya söylenen olacaklar şöyledir..Lina, Persephone kılığına ve bedeninde 6 ay boyunca Ölüler Diyarındaki ruhlarla ilgilenecek ve onları yatıştıracaktır.Persephone ise Lina'nın bedeninde bulunup, fırının maddi sorununa çözüm getirecek ve oraya baharın tazeliğini sunacaktı..
Tabi birde Hades var..Hades yeraltında ölümlülerle zaman geçire geçire kendini diğer ölümsüzlerden uzaklaştırmıştır...Bunun nedeni kibir yada kendini üstün görme değil, sadece kendisinin farklı olduğunu düşünmesidir..Ona göre diğer ölümsüzler biraz ımmm umursamaz ve bizim tabirimizle laylaylom yaşarlar..Hades ölümlüler arasındaki şeyi..Gerçek Aşk'ı-sonsuza kadar olaı- ister..Hatta onu bulurda..
Ama işler çığrından çıkar ve karanlıklar Lordu- böyle hitap etmek hoşuma gidiyor-Hades, şımarık ve kaprisli olarak düşündüğü Persephone'u çok farklı ve sevecen olarak karşısında bulur..Korkunç atları..yeraltı dünyasının koruyucu üç başlı -ve tabi yine korkunç- köpekleri..Yeraltında yaşamakta olan ruhlar...hepsi ondan etkilenmiştir...tabi kendiside..ve en güzelide bu etkilenme, aşk karşılıklıdır.. :)
peki ya 6 ay sonunda ne olacaktır..uzun süren yalnızlığı sonunda bir mutluluğa dönüşmüşken, gerçekleri öğrenen ve aşık olduğunun "beden değilde ruh" olduğunu idida ettikten sonra Lina'yı reddeden Hades sonunda çok sevdiği Lina ile mutlu olacak mıdır??
eee çok merak ettiyseniz okuyun derim..çok güzel masalımsı bir hikayeydi...
.ok beğendim ve öneririm:) keyifli okumalar:)
kısaca özetlemek gerekirse bir fırın işletmekte ve maddi açıdan zor durumda olan Lina,
çözümü ürünlerine yeni eklemeler yapmakta bulur..ve Tanrıça Yemekleri gibi bir isme sahip eski ve bi nevi sihirli bir ritüelle yapılan yemek tarifi kitabı satın alır..daha doğrusu bu kitap aldığı 10 kitaptan sonuncusudur...talimatları biraz ilginç bulsada yerine getiri ve ritüelin son kısmında Hasat Tanrıçası Demeter'den yardım ister..vekabulü mümkün gibi gözükmesede dileğine cevap alır...
Olayların diğer tarafında ise Demeter, Bahar Tanrıçası-Persephone- kızını çok sevse de biraz şımarttığını düşünür.
Kızının gerekli bilgeliğe ve olgunluğa erişmesi için hiç istemese de Lina ile ruhlarını değiştirmeye karar verir..Bunun sonucunda Lina'ya söylenen olacaklar şöyledir..Lina, Persephone kılığına ve bedeninde 6 ay boyunca Ölüler Diyarındaki ruhlarla ilgilenecek ve onları yatıştıracaktır.Persephone ise Lina'nın bedeninde bulunup, fırının maddi sorununa çözüm getirecek ve oraya baharın tazeliğini sunacaktı..
Tabi birde Hades var..Hades yeraltında ölümlülerle zaman geçire geçire kendini diğer ölümsüzlerden uzaklaştırmıştır...Bunun nedeni kibir yada kendini üstün görme değil, sadece kendisinin farklı olduğunu düşünmesidir..Ona göre diğer ölümsüzler biraz ımmm umursamaz ve bizim tabirimizle laylaylom yaşarlar..Hades ölümlüler arasındaki şeyi..Gerçek Aşk'ı-sonsuza kadar olaı- ister..Hatta onu bulurda..
Ama işler çığrından çıkar ve karanlıklar Lordu- böyle hitap etmek hoşuma gidiyor-Hades, şımarık ve kaprisli olarak düşündüğü Persephone'u çok farklı ve sevecen olarak karşısında bulur..Korkunç atları..yeraltı dünyasının koruyucu üç başlı -ve tabi yine korkunç- köpekleri..Yeraltında yaşamakta olan ruhlar...hepsi ondan etkilenmiştir...tabi kendiside..ve en güzelide bu etkilenme, aşk karşılıklıdır.. :)
peki ya 6 ay sonunda ne olacaktır..uzun süren yalnızlığı sonunda bir mutluluğa dönüşmüşken, gerçekleri öğrenen ve aşık olduğunun "beden değilde ruh" olduğunu idida ettikten sonra Lina'yı reddeden Hades sonunda çok sevdiği Lina ile mutlu olacak mıdır??
eee çok merak ettiyseniz okuyun derim..çok güzel masalımsı bir hikayeydi...
.ok beğendim ve öneririm:) keyifli okumalar:)
March 26, 2013
Raise your hand if your wanted this book to never end! *raises both hands*
Seriously, I wish P.C. Cast could have stretched it a little bit longer. Once I read that the novel revolved around Hades & Persephone, whether it was good or terrible, I felt like I shouldn't rush reading it. And I.. I.. Kind of... Did...
Carolina is a middle aged women trying to overcome her bakery's heavy debt to the IRS. Her bakery, Pani Del Godess, meant a lot to her and she would do anything not to lose it, even if it meant an assistance from a goddess. Demeter, goddess of harvest, offers her help but in return Carolina must switch her body with Demeter's daughter, Persephone, to spend 6 months in the Underworld. Trying to adapt the new life Lina breathed, can she still play her role and bring spring to the world of the dead?
♡♡♡
Honestly, reading Goddess of the Sea was interesting, but this one really amazed me! Everything was not as I expected it to be. the Underworld truly is an exquisite place to explore -minus Tartarus, lol-. Persephone was funny and delightful. I found Eurydice to be very sweet. And let's not forget our " sexy Batman ", Hades! OMG, OMG, OMG ! Hades! *fan girling* HE'S SO PERFF-- I CAN'T EVEN! He's what you'd call, The Perfect Man. He's got both the looks and personality. Don't let the idea of him being god of the underworld fool you! Yes, he's powerful, stubborn and mysterious-like, not mention his strong built body. But also.. he's shy, lonely, and holds a great deal of romance inside him! Compassionate with others, as well with the dead.
Overall, The book got to my favorite shelf. I think Goddess Summoning will be my next favorite series.
Seriously, I wish P.C. Cast could have stretched it a little bit longer. Once I read that the novel revolved around Hades & Persephone, whether it was good or terrible, I felt like I shouldn't rush reading it. And I.. I.. Kind of... Did...
Carolina is a middle aged women trying to overcome her bakery's heavy debt to the IRS. Her bakery, Pani Del Godess, meant a lot to her and she would do anything not to lose it, even if it meant an assistance from a goddess. Demeter, goddess of harvest, offers her help but in return Carolina must switch her body with Demeter's daughter, Persephone, to spend 6 months in the Underworld. Trying to adapt the new life Lina breathed, can she still play her role and bring spring to the world of the dead?
♡♡♡
Honestly, reading Goddess of the Sea was interesting, but this one really amazed me! Everything was not as I expected it to be. the Underworld truly is an exquisite place to explore -minus Tartarus, lol-. Persephone was funny and delightful. I found Eurydice to be very sweet. And let's not forget our " sexy Batman ", Hades! OMG, OMG, OMG ! Hades! *fan girling* HE'S SO PERFF-- I CAN'T EVEN! He's what you'd call, The Perfect Man. He's got both the looks and personality. Don't let the idea of him being god of the underworld fool you! Yes, he's powerful, stubborn and mysterious-like, not mention his strong built body. But also.. he's shy, lonely, and holds a great deal of romance inside him! Compassionate with others, as well with the dead.
Overall, The book got to my favorite shelf. I think Goddess Summoning will be my next favorite series.
January 7, 2015
As always, it was amazing.
February 16, 2015
Sabe-se lá porquê, mas sempre tive uma queda pelo senhor dos mortos. Hades sempre me pareceu ser um dos Deuses mais fascinantes da mitologia grega, principalmente porque me pareceu um incompreendido pelos outros. O seu amor por Perséfone sempre me pareceu mostrar que havia mais nele do que transparecia. Não fiquei nada desiludida com este livro. Muito pelo contrário.
Mais uma vez, a história é tratada na terceira pessoa, exceto em algumas partes em que se encontra na primeira. Vemos tudo da perspetiva da Lina, mas vão-nos sendo dadas dicas dos pensamentos e sentimentos de outras personagens. Também há certos momentos da história em que somos colocados nas perspetivas de Hades e de Perséfone, o que é muito interessante. Mais uma vez, a escritora preocupa-se em dar-nos uma visão abrangente.
Lina, ao contrário da maioria das personagens principais femininas, não é uma jovem inexperiente. Tem 43 anos e sofreu bastante com a perda de um amor devido a não poder ter filhos. Além disso é uma mulher frustrada sexualmente, cujos parceiros a levavam para a cama apenas para satisfação própria, sem a satisfazerem também. Isso contribui para a nossa ideia de que ela é uma mulher resistente e poderosa. Uma Deusa de alma!
Hades é um Deus único. A sua vida é para ajudar os mortais depois da morte e através deles conhece o verdadeiro amor. O tipo de amor que não precisa de um corpo, apenas de uma alma. Ele quer desesperadamente encontrar a sua alma gémea e encontra-a dentro do corpo de Perséfone. Presa a verdade acima de tudo e, apesar da ideia de que o deus dos mortos só pode ser mau, revela ser uma excelente pessoa.
Deméter, surge como a Deusa que é, cujo amor imortal é passageiro como uma brisa. Apolo é o esplendor solar. Um Deus belo e um pouco frívolo que, no entanto, se sente tocado pela alma nova de Perséfone e pelo amor que une Lina e Hades. Acaba por ser uma personagem que nos surpreende.
A história é recheada de magia, amor, sensualidade e desejo reprimido. Tem um entrelaçar de mitos que me são conhecidos, mas que são apresentados de forma diferente e original. Adorei a forma como cada um deles surgiu naturalmente e como os reconheci apesar das diferenças.
Mais uma vez, P. C. Cast conseguiu surpreender-me pela sua originalidade. Mais um livro que vai para os meus favoritos e que aconselho a todos para que possam aprender mais sobre o amor verdadeiro e a mitologia grega.
Mais uma vez, a história é tratada na terceira pessoa, exceto em algumas partes em que se encontra na primeira. Vemos tudo da perspetiva da Lina, mas vão-nos sendo dadas dicas dos pensamentos e sentimentos de outras personagens. Também há certos momentos da história em que somos colocados nas perspetivas de Hades e de Perséfone, o que é muito interessante. Mais uma vez, a escritora preocupa-se em dar-nos uma visão abrangente.
Lina, ao contrário da maioria das personagens principais femininas, não é uma jovem inexperiente. Tem 43 anos e sofreu bastante com a perda de um amor devido a não poder ter filhos. Além disso é uma mulher frustrada sexualmente, cujos parceiros a levavam para a cama apenas para satisfação própria, sem a satisfazerem também. Isso contribui para a nossa ideia de que ela é uma mulher resistente e poderosa. Uma Deusa de alma!
Hades é um Deus único. A sua vida é para ajudar os mortais depois da morte e através deles conhece o verdadeiro amor. O tipo de amor que não precisa de um corpo, apenas de uma alma. Ele quer desesperadamente encontrar a sua alma gémea e encontra-a dentro do corpo de Perséfone. Presa a verdade acima de tudo e, apesar da ideia de que o deus dos mortos só pode ser mau, revela ser uma excelente pessoa.
Deméter, surge como a Deusa que é, cujo amor imortal é passageiro como uma brisa. Apolo é o esplendor solar. Um Deus belo e um pouco frívolo que, no entanto, se sente tocado pela alma nova de Perséfone e pelo amor que une Lina e Hades. Acaba por ser uma personagem que nos surpreende.
A história é recheada de magia, amor, sensualidade e desejo reprimido. Tem um entrelaçar de mitos que me são conhecidos, mas que são apresentados de forma diferente e original. Adorei a forma como cada um deles surgiu naturalmente e como os reconheci apesar das diferenças.
Mais uma vez, P. C. Cast conseguiu surpreender-me pela sua originalidade. Mais um livro que vai para os meus favoritos e que aconselho a todos para que possam aprender mais sobre o amor verdadeiro e a mitologia grega.
March 31, 2020
I really liked this take on Hades and Persephone’s myth. Hades and Lina were amazing! I loved the descriptions of the Underworld and how beautiful it was. It was a very magical read.
July 2, 2010
Ahhh this book was SO much better than I was expecting it to be!
I admit, it got off to a bit of a slow start, but once Lina met Demeter, things definitely picked up.
Hades. *fans self* Oh my. *fans self some more*
Hades was delicious! How I adored him! He was absolutely everything a romantic hero should be - dashing, tender, sexy, wealthy, compassionate, and above all, willing to own up to his mistakes, all the while maintaining his powerful aura. He was the perfect blend of alpha male, full of the natural arrogance of a god, and a closet romantic who was compassionate and fair (well, most of the time lol).
I also thoroughly enjoyed the liberties that Cast took with the original myth, including that of Orpheus and Eurydice, Minthe, and of course, Persephone herself (including the bit about the Pomegranate)...
It was also refreshing to have an "older" heroine -- in her early 40's, though obviously for the majority of the story, her outward appearance didn't reflect her mortal age.
The ending was sweet (but left me slightly confused for a moment -- nothing major, just a question of dates really), and throughout the entire story was a nice "chick lit" undertone of loving people for who they are inside and not for their outer appearances. While this theme was pervasive, however, it was definitely subtly done, unlike some other "chick lit" stories where you feel that the author is lecturing you the whole bloody time.
The bathing scene annoyed me.. Granted, it was hot, but I have this.. aversion, I guess you could say, to heroes in romance novels seeing the heroine naked without her knowledge or consent. While she never discovers that this took place, it still irritated the bejesus out of me. Blech.
Other than that, though, it was a thoroughly enjoyable, sweet and romantic story, and I would highly recommend it (and boy did it make me want some authentic Italian pizza lol)
4 1/2 Stars.
I admit, it got off to a bit of a slow start, but once Lina met Demeter, things definitely picked up.
Hades. *fans self* Oh my. *fans self some more*
Hades was delicious! How I adored him! He was absolutely everything a romantic hero should be - dashing, tender, sexy, wealthy, compassionate, and above all, willing to own up to his mistakes, all the while maintaining his powerful aura. He was the perfect blend of alpha male, full of the natural arrogance of a god, and a closet romantic who was compassionate and fair (well, most of the time lol).
I also thoroughly enjoyed the liberties that Cast took with the original myth, including that of Orpheus and Eurydice, Minthe, and of course, Persephone herself (including the bit about the Pomegranate)...
It was also refreshing to have an "older" heroine -- in her early 40's, though obviously for the majority of the story, her outward appearance didn't reflect her mortal age.
The ending was sweet (but left me slightly confused for a moment -- nothing major, just a question of dates really), and throughout the entire story was a nice "chick lit" undertone of loving people for who they are inside and not for their outer appearances. While this theme was pervasive, however, it was definitely subtly done, unlike some other "chick lit" stories where you feel that the author is lecturing you the whole bloody time.
The bathing scene annoyed me.. Granted, it was hot, but I have this.. aversion, I guess you could say, to heroes in romance novels seeing the heroine naked without her knowledge or consent. While she never discovers that this took place, it still irritated the bejesus out of me. Blech.
Other than that, though, it was a thoroughly enjoyable, sweet and romantic story, and I would highly recommend it (and boy did it make me want some authentic Italian pizza lol)
4 1/2 Stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 23, 2012
This book is the second installment of the Goddess Summoning series. It's a twist of the Persephone / Hades story. Recap if you don't know the greek myth: Persephone (the goddess of spring) gets tricked into staying in the underworld by Hades (god of the underworld) by eating six seeds. Demeter (her mother) gets pissed and tattle tales to her brother Zeus (king of the gods). Persephone then must stay in the underworld for six months because she ate six seeds. The end. I recommend reading the longer version of this myth. Almost all Greek gods have some sort of horrible ending to them. Persephone / Hades has a bittersweet ending which is better then every-other myth. Seriously, the stories get depressing.
Let's move onto the book, shall we? This story is a different version of the myth. Lina has to stay in the underworld with Hades and help with the gloomy spirits. She starts getting to know him and likes what she sees. Hades is kind, a little rusty on social skills (which you have to look past), and really wants the best for the souls that live in his realm. The other gods don't like visiting because... well... it's a world full of dead people, so when he tries to lighten up, he sometimes fails. It's cute and charming how he tries his hardest to make Lina feel at home. The whole time he thinks she's Persephone, so Lina has to act like a goddess. Unlike her other Goddess Summoning book Warrior Rising, this has no steamy sex scenes. It's very sweet and PG-13 rated. I would recommend this to a young adult that's looking to take a step up from books that revolve around high school.
Let's move onto the book, shall we? This story is a different version of the myth. Lina has to stay in the underworld with Hades and help with the gloomy spirits. She starts getting to know him and likes what she sees. Hades is kind, a little rusty on social skills (which you have to look past), and really wants the best for the souls that live in his realm. The other gods don't like visiting because... well... it's a world full of dead people, so when he tries to lighten up, he sometimes fails. It's cute and charming how he tries his hardest to make Lina feel at home. The whole time he thinks she's Persephone, so Lina has to act like a goddess. Unlike her other Goddess Summoning book Warrior Rising, this has no steamy sex scenes. It's very sweet and PG-13 rated. I would recommend this to a young adult that's looking to take a step up from books that revolve around high school.
March 8, 2019
This is by far my favourite of the series! This installment of the Goddess Summoning series tells the story of Hades and Persephone - Goddess f Spring - only that Persephone is not really Persephone: Her mother, Demeter, switched her soul with that of a 43-year old mortal woman from mondernday Tulsa (USA) in order for her daughter to mature in the real world. While the sould of the Goddess of Spring rests in Tulsa, the mortal Lina resides within the goddess' body and travels to the underworld in her stead. Wjat nobody expected was that Hades is no boring old god but a passionate, sexy ruler who takes a keen interest in the young goddess who seems so in awe with his domain...and not afraid of him or his moods.
If you want to know more: READ the book! It is amazing and steamy and sexy and Hades is *swoon* and it's the best in the series!
Originally read: September 2011
Re-re-read: September 2015 (and inbetween a million times XD)
Okay, so I re-re-re-read this book now (February 2016) and I still totally stand by my judgment from before: I love this book and I always seem to fly through it! <3
If you want to know more: READ the book! It is amazing and steamy and sexy and Hades is *swoon* and it's the best in the series!
Originally read: September 2011
Re-re-read: September 2015 (and inbetween a million times XD)
Okay, so I re-re-re-read this book now (February 2016) and I still totally stand by my judgment from before: I love this book and I always seem to fly through it! <3
February 2, 2014
I'm in love with this book since I read it and since that happened I've read it 3 more times due to how awesome and well written it is!!! I must give my congratulations to the author because this series it definitely one of my favorites!
It has the heroine that I really like but kinda kept imagining her ugly.... I don't know why! Because she's not! I keep imagining her old! (I'm 18 so...) and then I "see" Hades this handsome God of The Underworld that is.. well immortal. But apart from that I found this book beautiful and well written
The love of two souls and and the concept that twin souls can always find each other it's just well... my type. True Love. What more could a girl want? AWWWWWW..... well I love you both Caroline and Hades (even Persephone that surprise me during the book ^^)
It has the heroine that I really like but kinda kept imagining her ugly.... I don't know why! Because she's not! I keep imagining her old! (I'm 18 so...) and then I "see" Hades this handsome God of The Underworld that is.. well immortal. But apart from that I found this book beautiful and well written
The love of two souls and and the concept that twin souls can always find each other it's just well... my type. True Love. What more could a girl want? AWWWWWW..... well I love you both Caroline and Hades (even Persephone that surprise me during the book ^^)
May 20, 2010
This book was a page turner! I loved it from start to finish! It was my Favorite out of the Goddess Summoning series!
December 21, 2010
OMGSH!! Review to come
July 3, 2011
This book downright offended me. Once again we have the same cut-and-dry story about a middle age midlife crisis woman who has an awesome grandma and parents that never really get mentioned because the grandma is Just So Awesome, who lives in Oklahoma, yadda yadda.
This woman, Lina, is the only protagonist in a book by Ms. Cast that I have read that doesn't have a Cherokee awesome grandma, so I guess I should take what I can get.
But anyway, boo-hoo, she picked an accountant without making sure he was worth it and expected him to take care of all of her problems and he doesn't. So she makes her own business decisions for once in her life and, while researching recipes to save her failing bakery, she comes across what anyone with half a brain cell would recognize as a ritual to Demeter. She, without any real knowledge of Demeter (seriously didn't even stop to look up any basic myths or stop and refresh her memory--no indication at all she even knew who Demeter was), without any thought of "hey maybe I should stop and consider what I'm doing" DOES THE RITUAL and is surprised when she ACTUALLY GETS A RESPONSE.
That right there was enough to make me want to stop reading, but I pressed on.
Lina is so shocked to realize that her ritual has been answered and that Demeter actually exists that she in fact repeatedly insults that goddess but all of the gods and goddesses in that pantheon. Demeter suggests that she exhange places with Persephone for six months. Persephone will run Lina's bakery and Lina will go to the Underworld and flirt with Hades.
Seriously.
Throughout the entire book, Lina whines constantly about how hard it is to impersonate a goddess and how hard it is for her and how it sucks because she gave her word to Demeter that she'd keep a secret and all she wants to do is break it.
And her insistence that the Underworld was really Hell throughout the entire book, even though she was supposedly "learning differently," just made it worse. We're expected to just accept that Lina finds what is clearly a witchcraft ritual in a cookbook and performs it but then can't seem to wrap her head around the fact that what the Underworld was to the Greeks is not the same thing that Hell is to Christians.
If I had to hear Lina compare Hades to Batman one more time I probably would have burned this book. Seriously.
And then when Hades and Lina/"Persephone" actually fall in love with one another, everyone, including Demeter, who came up with this whole idea, mind you, was shocked and dismayed to see the plan working.
Lina then blatantly usurps a goddess's title (Queen of the Underworld/Queen of the Dead) and everyone is okay with that. Despite all of the evidence in mythology about what a huge no-no stuff like that is.
I don't know why I'm surprised, though; this book shoves mythology in our faces when it's convenient but then disregards it when something needs to be "different."
Lastsly, despite the fact that everyone including Demeter kind of seems to think of Persephone as a giant bitch, the end of the book when Persephone actually shows up was the most enjoyable for me. I would have rather read about her trying to adjust in the mortal world than 300 pages of Lina whining about how hard it was to be pampered and loved.
So basically, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone and clearly this author is not for me. I probably won't pick up any more of this series or any other. It's beginning to come off as blatant self insertion which downright bastardizes any and all parts of mythology that the author doesn't think is pretty enough. The Hades and Persephone myths are lovely enough on their own without this kind of ill treatment.
This woman, Lina, is the only protagonist in a book by Ms. Cast that I have read that doesn't have a Cherokee awesome grandma, so I guess I should take what I can get.
But anyway, boo-hoo, she picked an accountant without making sure he was worth it and expected him to take care of all of her problems and he doesn't. So she makes her own business decisions for once in her life and, while researching recipes to save her failing bakery, she comes across what anyone with half a brain cell would recognize as a ritual to Demeter. She, without any real knowledge of Demeter (seriously didn't even stop to look up any basic myths or stop and refresh her memory--no indication at all she even knew who Demeter was), without any thought of "hey maybe I should stop and consider what I'm doing" DOES THE RITUAL and is surprised when she ACTUALLY GETS A RESPONSE.
That right there was enough to make me want to stop reading, but I pressed on.
Lina is so shocked to realize that her ritual has been answered and that Demeter actually exists that she in fact repeatedly insults that goddess but all of the gods and goddesses in that pantheon. Demeter suggests that she exhange places with Persephone for six months. Persephone will run Lina's bakery and Lina will go to the Underworld and flirt with Hades.
Seriously.
Throughout the entire book, Lina whines constantly about how hard it is to impersonate a goddess and how hard it is for her and how it sucks because she gave her word to Demeter that she'd keep a secret and all she wants to do is break it.
And her insistence that the Underworld was really Hell throughout the entire book, even though she was supposedly "learning differently," just made it worse. We're expected to just accept that Lina finds what is clearly a witchcraft ritual in a cookbook and performs it but then can't seem to wrap her head around the fact that what the Underworld was to the Greeks is not the same thing that Hell is to Christians.
If I had to hear Lina compare Hades to Batman one more time I probably would have burned this book. Seriously.
And then when Hades and Lina/"Persephone" actually fall in love with one another, everyone, including Demeter, who came up with this whole idea, mind you, was shocked and dismayed to see the plan working.
Lina then blatantly usurps a goddess's title (Queen of the Underworld/Queen of the Dead) and everyone is okay with that. Despite all of the evidence in mythology about what a huge no-no stuff like that is.
I don't know why I'm surprised, though; this book shoves mythology in our faces when it's convenient but then disregards it when something needs to be "different."
Lastsly, despite the fact that everyone including Demeter kind of seems to think of Persephone as a giant bitch, the end of the book when Persephone actually shows up was the most enjoyable for me. I would have rather read about her trying to adjust in the mortal world than 300 pages of Lina whining about how hard it was to be pampered and loved.
So basically, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone and clearly this author is not for me. I probably won't pick up any more of this series or any other. It's beginning to come off as blatant self insertion which downright bastardizes any and all parts of mythology that the author doesn't think is pretty enough. The Hades and Persephone myths are lovely enough on their own without this kind of ill treatment.
August 18, 2011
I loved this story of Lina and Hades. They were perfect together, and I loved that she got to live out her mortal life and then go back to Hades as the Queen of the Underworld to stay for ever more instead of the 6 months a year as arranged via Demeter and Persephone. I loved Persephone too, she was so much more than an air-head. I loved how the two women made so much difference to their respective new homes and bodies. I loved Eurydice, and the way different myths were woven into the story. I just enjoyed how much care had been taken in crafting the characters. There wasn't over the top slang, which also helped the flow of the story. I thought that had been a unwanted device in some of the other Goddess Summoning books.
Lina's practicality was what really drew me to her. She was a mature woman, she was successful, strong and unafraid to speak her mind without being neurotic or crass. Sometimes being strong is taken to meaning being a smart-mouth, but this was not the case with Lina. She was a lady, even with her cussing in Italian, which I thought was a super cute touch.
Hades as the strong, brooding Batman-esque man was class, sexy, too. I loved how he had spent eons seeing true love in the form of soul-mates and was thus not willing to settle for less and accept a cheap dalliance with a goddess merely because he wanted a taste of love. I therefore enjoyed seeing Lina and Hades' passion and growing attachment for each other. But significantly, the book also brought out the need to give up pride and fear when you fall in love.
Lina's practicality was what really drew me to her. She was a mature woman, she was successful, strong and unafraid to speak her mind without being neurotic or crass. Sometimes being strong is taken to meaning being a smart-mouth, but this was not the case with Lina. She was a lady, even with her cussing in Italian, which I thought was a super cute touch.
Hades as the strong, brooding Batman-esque man was class, sexy, too. I loved how he had spent eons seeing true love in the form of soul-mates and was thus not willing to settle for less and accept a cheap dalliance with a goddess merely because he wanted a taste of love. I therefore enjoyed seeing Lina and Hades' passion and growing attachment for each other. But significantly, the book also brought out the need to give up pride and fear when you fall in love.
January 9, 2011
We all know the story of Hades and Persephone and how she spends six months on the surface with the Gods and Goddesses on land (spring and summer) and the other six months in the Underworld with Hades (autumn and winter). Well this is a new and interesting take on that story.
Meet Lina, the owner of Pani Del Goddess a small bakery in Tulsa Oklahoma. A bakery that is doing less than stellar. Desperate for "divine inspiration" Lina starts searching for new recipes to showcase in her bakery. One cookbook she comes across is "The Italian Goddess Cookbook". In the cookbook she finds a recipe in it for a gourmet pizza that reads more like an invocation than a recipe but what the heck.
Demeter shows up and makes a deal with Lina. Take Persephone's place during the autumn and winter and allow Persephone to take her place back in Tulsa where she will breath new life into the bakery. The catch, besides the obvious six month term, bring spring to the underworld.
The story then starts to get interesting. Lina travels down to the underworld where she meets up with Hades who is well Hades. Ms. Cast plays him off as the handsome God that got the short end of the stick and is stuck in the underworld. He seems to not have any interest in anything. It is a great love story that keeps true to the original myth while still giving a fresh new perspective into the lives of Hades and Persephone.
Meet Lina, the owner of Pani Del Goddess a small bakery in Tulsa Oklahoma. A bakery that is doing less than stellar. Desperate for "divine inspiration" Lina starts searching for new recipes to showcase in her bakery. One cookbook she comes across is "The Italian Goddess Cookbook". In the cookbook she finds a recipe in it for a gourmet pizza that reads more like an invocation than a recipe but what the heck.
Demeter shows up and makes a deal with Lina. Take Persephone's place during the autumn and winter and allow Persephone to take her place back in Tulsa where she will breath new life into the bakery. The catch, besides the obvious six month term, bring spring to the underworld.
The story then starts to get interesting. Lina travels down to the underworld where she meets up with Hades who is well Hades. Ms. Cast plays him off as the handsome God that got the short end of the stick and is stuck in the underworld. He seems to not have any interest in anything. It is a great love story that keeps true to the original myth while still giving a fresh new perspective into the lives of Hades and Persephone.
November 22, 2012
Disclaimer: Snark and gifs. :D
Rating: 2.5
First of all, every time she mentioned batman, all I could think of was this:
This is fierce&fabulous. No snark, I actually love this picture.
Second of all, find another word for sexy. Kthxbai.
Third of all, note to all: if you find a ritual in a random cookbook please do research before doing it. For the love of all the gods. When they whisk you away to another realm please do not be a brat. Show some respect. Thank you. - A practising pagan.
Me. After reading those sections.
Fourth of all, Hades was so out of character I didn't recognize him.
To sum up the love story:
Hades.
Lina.
Me.
Honestly, the writing itself was okay. Much better than the house of night. Just needs better characters in both. :D
Here is an elephant to make me feel better after reading this.
Rating: 2.5
First of all, every time she mentioned batman, all I could think of was this:
This is fierce&fabulous. No snark, I actually love this picture.
Second of all, find another word for sexy. Kthxbai.
Third of all, note to all: if you find a ritual in a random cookbook please do research before doing it. For the love of all the gods. When they whisk you away to another realm please do not be a brat. Show some respect. Thank you. - A practising pagan.
Me. After reading those sections.
Fourth of all, Hades was so out of character I didn't recognize him.
To sum up the love story:
Hades.
Lina.
Me.
Honestly, the writing itself was okay. Much better than the house of night. Just needs better characters in both. :D
Here is an elephant to make me feel better after reading this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 27, 2018
I absolutely loved this!! Lina was such a great character and I related to her on so many levels. She was so mature and it was really refreshing from a lot of immature YA characters. Plus her bakery sounded absolutely amazing!! I loved how Lina talked and interacted with animals. It was so adorable to see "terrifying" animals vie for Lina's attention.
Plus Hades is in this!! Hades is constantly overlooked in other myth stories and I loved seeing this re-imagined version of the Persephone and Hades myth. I don't even know what else to say because I really loved this so much.
Plus Hades is in this!! Hades is constantly overlooked in other myth stories and I loved seeing this re-imagined version of the Persephone and Hades myth. I don't even know what else to say because I really loved this so much.
May 1, 2019
“Is it not better to experience even a small amount of happiness, than none at all?”
The myth of Hades and Persephone is a personal favorite. So I loved this retelling. If you aren’t a fan of Greek mythology retelling however, this one may be lost on you.
Lina is a responsible bakery owner who comes to Demeter’s attention. Her daughter Persephone is immature, and Demeter does a freaky-Friday body swap with them so Persephone can grow up. She didn’t ask for Lina’s opinion.
Greek gods suck.
But Lina finds herself falling for Hades. It’s a sweet story with a little bit of angst.
The myth of Hades and Persephone is a personal favorite. So I loved this retelling. If you aren’t a fan of Greek mythology retelling however, this one may be lost on you.
Lina is a responsible bakery owner who comes to Demeter’s attention. Her daughter Persephone is immature, and Demeter does a freaky-Friday body swap with them so Persephone can grow up. She didn’t ask for Lina’s opinion.
Greek gods suck.
But Lina finds herself falling for Hades. It’s a sweet story with a little bit of angst.
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