(This work was given to me by the publisher, via Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review). This poetry collection explores the way that Aphrodite is represented within ‘western culture. ‘It challenges narratives that seek to depower the goddess. Many of these poems are written from the perspective of Aphrodite. She rails at the way that popular culture has represented her as a sexualised, unintellectual being. In response to these representations, the poet presents the reader with a powerful goddess, who knows her own mind and who is very angry. This collection deconstructs gender and presents the reader with a powerful new narrative. I highly recommend this work.

Beautiful and heartbreaking poetry that I connected with on multiple levels. Not a long read but so impactful and gorgeous. Does go over some harder subjects. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was a little different from Trista's past work that I'd read, but I loved the connection and comparisons between herself and her life today and that of Aphrodite. It was a very short read, but had very powerful points and beautiful artwork throughout.

I very much enjoyed the split structure of the alternating Aphrodite/poet sections, but the latter parts fell a bit flat. The broad metaphors conferred via Aphrodite felt resonant and rich, relatable to women across time and space. A few lines had me pausing to think more deeply on the implications, which is what I want out of poetry. On the other hand, the sections from the poet's perspective were less engaging — they often read like jotted notes to self which, while possibly intentional, didn't work for me. They're written plainly and didn't offer fresh perspective. The illustrations and photos were sometimes distracting and sometimes illuminating. Overall a middling read for me. I would recommend it to a friend if I thought they could really use the message of self-acceptance but probably wouldn't recommend more generally.

Aphrodite Made Me Do It had stunning potential, but failed to keep me engaged long enough to witness its fulfillment. I'm giving it 3 stars because while this collection was not suited for me, it might appeal to other readers! Thank you to the publisher for the early copy!

I absolutely LOVED this poetry collection. It may be my new favorite, to be honest. Between the mythology aspect and the real, raw emotions that felt so close to what I have felt myself, I felt understood and seen in a way that no other collection of poetry has made me feel before. I look forward to delving into more of this author's works as well.

This book was gorgeous. I love Trista Mateer's poetry but I think this is my absolute favorite thing I've ever read of her's. The art is beautiful and it addresses a lot of difficult subjects and it does a damn good job of it.

I really enjoyed this poetry collection, despite being a bit of a patchy history with most modern poetry. The verse is moving and impactful and Mateer intersperses the poems with punchy photography and art and quotes.

I enjoyed the different sections and perspectives of the poet versus Aphrodite. Both are strong women with different journeys but similar goals of helping others accept themselves as who they are. I have noticed that a lot of poetry recently has taken this "self-help" approach and I feel like I am starting to read very similar things, but I like that if I am feeling particularly low, I can pick up something like this and feel a little more empowered when I am through.

First of all I have not read alot of poetry but I am actively trying to do so now. Second I struggle to find a way to review poetry correctly? So! I googled what is poetry?
First answer came back saying put simply expression of feelings using distinctive style and rhythm. In all honesty I dont think this book did have either of those. Alot of it was repetitive but not in a particularly creative way. Some pages were only one liners. In saying that one of the one liners was pretty powerful and definitely stood out to me.
Then furthur down in my google search I got the answer of, Artistic writing that's stirs the readers emotions and imagination. Okay, yes the book definitely did that for me. I highlighted alot of it, which seemed surprising considering alot of the book did have alot of content I couldn't relate to. But there was just enough that in could relate to for me to enjoy it.
For such a small book it covered alot of topics and tough topics at that. I myself connected alot with the family (mostly parent), relationship and self care content in it. It is obviously very fueled by female empowerment which I really enjoyed and the stories of Aphrodite and other godesses took it to another level. Then the art scattered throughout it really added that magic touch to it.
It was a powerful wee book that I'd love to own some day

Thanks to netgalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for a honest review

I loved this collection! It was a wonderful idea to present the poems/prose/story as a dialogue between the author and the goddess Aphrodite. The prose was very relatable and beautifully written, and I really enjoyed the inclusions of the visual art as well. I don't have a ton to say except for that I really recommend this book! I have a hard time with poetry normally so it's great to find something I like. I'll definitely be checking out the author's other work.

I was really interested in Aphrodite Made Me Do It by Trista Mateer because I've loved some previous poetry by the author and one of my reading goals for the year is to pick up more poetry so this seemed like a great place to start. The collection weaves the mythological and the personal together, which at times, is quite powerful and at other times feels pretty forced. Most of the poetry, even when it was nice, didn't feel new and even within the collection could feel a bit repetitive. There's a bit of a mix of media in here; in addition to the poems there are some photos that have text written on them, which were nice but didn't really have much of a lasting impact on me. There are definitely some beautiful lines and moments, and it was enough that I would still continue to pick up books by Mateer in the future, but as a whole Aphrodite Made Me Do It just didn't leave me with the heart-wrenching emotions I hoped for.

Oof. That one hit hard, kids. That was so powerful and moving and I won't lie to y'all, I cried the entire time I was reading it. I don't usually reach for poetry but this was absolutely amazing and I know I will definitely go back and reread sections in the future!

I was super intrigued by the book's conceit of alternating between Aphrodite's point of view and the unnamed narrator's. The poems here explore a lot of tough topics in an accessible, no-bullshit way that lots of readers will undoubtedly love. For me, I wished the poetic language was pushed further; I wanted more figurative language to balance the confessions, more creativity with language and form. Some of the artwork crossed over from profound to trite, but I did adore all the tarot imagery. It's clear that Mateer was working through a lot in these poems, and I have no doubt that many readers will absolutely love this collection.

I'm not usually a person that read poetry but this book is different from the ones I've read before. This poetry collection is about empowerment with a little love and melancholy. the way they mixed poetry with Greek mythology seemed very original to me.
thanks to netgalley and central Avenue publishing for providing me with a free arc in exchange for a a review

Though I've read other collections by this poet, this one stood out to me a lot more. I know I enjoyed Honeybee, but this one really hits you hard. It's a wonderful collection of learning self worth, of saying 'I deserve better', but also speaking about trauma and the fact it's always there even when you want to move past it. As someone who is Pagan, this also hits home with the relationship between the poet and Aphrodite. How they were able to find similarities, how their goddess was there for them, while also setting an example of stepping past expectations. It's personal and lovely and the art in it also helped spread the message. A great short read that I highly recommend.

I received a copy of this collection from the publishers but that in no way affects my review.

TW for rape, abuse, sexual assault, death, eating disorders, gore, blood, queerphobia
I always find it really difficult to rate poetry collections because it is such a personal thing but this is
probably the easiest 5 stars I have ever given. Never before have a felt so seen or had my feelings so
well represented on page. This collection was absolutely beautiful but insanely heartbreaking and I
found myself crying at so many different points. I really can't put into words how much this
collection now means to me but I'm going to buy copies for all of my friends. I truly felt this
collection in my soul and I'm already highly anticipating reading it again.

Trista Mateer's beautiful poetry book is a quick but powerful read. It is filled with dark but empowering poems and illustrations that will help you get started on your healing journey. Thank you for sharing it with me!

Wow, what can I say. What a wonderful book. I think this book is absolutely amazing and has such a nice feel about it. Trista Mateer is a wonderful author. I would recommend this to anyone.

This poetry and prose collection was different than I was expecting but in a good way. It's a storytelling of a loose retelling on greek gods and goddesses that helps you realize and step towards your own healing, and though it's quite different than Nikita Gill's 'Mgreat Goddesses' greek mythological poetry book, fans of that would thoroughly enjoy Aphrodite Made Me Do It. I'd even recommend to people who are not familiar with greek mythology.