The dynamic style and visceral language make Artemis Made Me Do It by Trista Mateer a must read. Whether or not you're a poetry fan, you'll enjoy this collection!

I love this series. It's neat the way the author weaves mythology with her own life story. It jumps from mythology to the real world but ties it all together. I especially love the collage art throughout. I'm guessing the next book in the series will be Persephone. At least I hope so, she's one of my faves! This is a great accompaniment to Aphrodite Made Me Do It. Definitely note the content warnings at the beginning, but nothing is graphic and everything is handled tastefully.

The reason I picked up this book was because I have read the author’s previous collection before - Aphrodite made me do it - and I had really really loved it. So of course it is not a surprise that I pick it up when I see this one as well on NetGalley.
Although I really liked this one as well, I have to say that I preferred the other book more. Nonetheless I recommend that you pick this one and give it a try for yourself.

This was a stunning collection of poetry, it’s deep and extremely gut wrenching to read at times but it is beautiful. As someone who works with Artemis, she would be so proud.

I really liked it! I think modern poetry is very hit or miss but I liked the approach in this collection and the themes discussed. Most of the poems were impactful and some were even a punch to the gut. A lot of difficult topics were included and it was empowering to see how the author emphasizes the ability to still hold onto pain while learning to love your inner wildness. I really liked the design style and the use of tarot cards to break up sections! It felt very journal-esque which made it more relatable to me. I also really enjoyed the analogies to Greek mythology. Overall, this is a cool mix of art and feminist poetry with important messages that is easy to digest but heavy to hold onto.

I don’t often read poetry, but this book tore at my soft spots, just as much as it soothed them. The art and the poetry created beautiful layers of emotion that twined with mythology.

Every page of this book struck me in the chest and I would recommend readers both experienced in poetry and new to the format try reading this.

5⭐️
Trista has such a way with words and these pieces are so beautiful yet saddening and relatable (please check cw). The way photo’s and collages were mixed into the written pieces just added so much to it and I would 100% get some of these as prints. I got Aphrodite made me do it on impulse a while ago and was very excited for this one and it surely didn’t let down, I will be patiently waiting for the continuation of this series!

CW/TW:
Sexual violence, Grief, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Rape, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, and Mental illness

Big thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I wasn't a huge fan of this collection. It honestly just wasn't for me. I don't like giving low reviews for ARC copies but it was a struggle for me to get through the triggering content.

As a fan of Trista Mateer's previous poetry collections, I was excited to pick this up. Sadly, it did not fully live up to my expectations. While there were a couple of poems that hit hard, and could see myself coming back to this collection to read, most were just average, and I found myself speeding through them. It also felt like most of them covered the same themes, but never dove further into the topics, just kept hitting the same notes. The pictures were a good break from the poetry, but none of them were groundbreakingly original.

All in all, I did not hate this book and will still be picking up from Trista Mateer in the future, but I won't be running to purchase my own copy.

I love Trisha Mateer’s writing style, and was excited for this collection after reading Aphrodite Made Me Do It. Trisha doesn’t disappoint in this collection either. She captures so many nuances of simply existing as a woman in the world, and so many pieces are a call-to-arms for the “too much” women among us. An absolute re-read once I can grab a physical copy.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4946525726

3.5⭐️

“The wolf caught me in his jaws
but when I cried out,
others only said:
I have seen the wolf many times
and he has not bitten me.”

“Forgive me if I unlearn pretty
and learn vicious
in its place.”

Several excellent (see above) poems in this collection but I didn’t find it as interesting or impactful as prior Aphrodite collection - which is a shame as Athena is a fantastic mythological figure with lots of warring characteristics and portrayals to draw from.

A lovely set of poems in this book, something which threw me off a bit was the formatting when reading on kindle. There were some letters and spelling mistakes however nothing I couldnt manage to understand. As I said in the beginning the poems were lovely and there were some really powerful ones. I also loved the graphics included in the book. Quite cool

I didn't know that Trista Mateer is a famous poet on social media before I was halfway through the book. I also had no knowledge of the poetry she creates and what she advocates for. Because of this, I have the opportunity to judge her book based purely on its content.

Upon seeing the first few pages, I realized that this is the type of poetry we often see on Instagram, TikTok, and Tumblr. When I was young, I was fascinated by these poems' ability to reach a wider audience and spark conversations. I was even a follower of Amanda Lovelace, and I had this phase where I binge-read her poetry collections. However, now, I want to be challenged to think. I'm craving for poetry that has multiple interpretations and plays with ambiguity. I got tired of poems that aim to empower people but don't give them enough space to explore their creativity and the depths of their emotions.

Despite this change in interests and preference, I still felt the emotions contained in the words Mateer has chosen. Undeniably, there are "slay girl" moments, and I was getting a "fuck them all" energy. Sadly, this presentation of someone's rage and ambition is not enough. The content of the book is not ready for publication. It felt like I'm just reading someone's journal. Some are also better off as tweets or IG posts. It also got worse when I reached the pages which contain "self-help" messages and journal prompts. I hoped it would make sense but after I finished the book, it seemed like they just added those pages to make the collection longer.

Although I was dissatisfied with the book's lack of attempt to showcase Mateer's potential in writing better poems, the retelling of Artemis' story will give readers a glimpse of what the future of Mateer's poetry can be. Her Artemis poems solidify the message her collection wants to convey that her other poems failed to creatively present.

If I'll be given another chance to read a Mateer poetry collection, I'll give it a shot with the hopes of reading something blessed by Apollo.

Thanks to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for the digital ARC in exchange for this honest review.

I don't know why, but this collection was a bit of a miss for me. There were a lot of poems I really enjoyed, but also a fair amount that didn't click with me. I do want to read something else by the author, as I do enjoy her writing style. Also this cover is GORGEOUS.

Mateer returns with a painful it it's poigancy and relevance..
My ebook copy is teeming with bookmarts and highlights and notes.
This is the kind of collection you revisit once in a while to open a wound and face yourself.

5 Stars (I received an e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review)

I got introduced to this author's work a couple years ago when she released the first collection in this goddess made me do it series (Also getting an e-arc from NetGalley). Aphrodite was a great experience but the Artemis is definitely my favourite of the two. It includes various images and graphics laid out like a teen collage.

I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest opinion.
I don't consider myself a poetry person, but Aphrodite Made Me Do it's a favorite of mine so, of course, I wanted to read more of Trista's poetry.

This book is beautifully written. And I loved how the author took inspiration from greek mythology to express so many (female) emotions and situations. Artemis Made Me Do It captures the complexity of being a woman and it's definitely a collection one returns to.

I love anything greek mythology-related, and this was no exception. I love Artemis and the myths surrounding her, and I thought the way this was written was well done. I loved the split between fully written poetry and poetry over pictures. I would highly recommend it, and I plan on picking up her other mythology-related books.

I liked the story and idea of this book more than I liked the execution. The art was an interesting break in pace and the topics covered were engaging; however, they got repetitive towards the end of the poems.

Taking the perspective of Artemis was an interesting idea that naturally led towards an empowering theme towards the end of the book but I feel the poems needed some work. Some poems were enjoyable but ultimately most lacked a point. Also, the decisions to end the poems where the poet chose to often didn't make logical sense or was a bad spot for it.

At the end of the day, I think this book had potential but didn't meet it. It needed more editing and most poems needed to be more purposeful with language. I am, however, interested to see how this poet grows.

I am not a huge poetry reader but Trista Mateer's poetry always amazes me. ı loved her other poetry collection Aphrodite Made Me Do It and when I this collection I immediately requested it. It was really good. I loved how everything (poetry, illustration, and pictures) come together beautifully. I'll definitely want this book in my collection and I can't wait to read her future works.