Member Reviews

Thank you to NetGalley for the free ARC of this book. Trista Mateer continues to be one of my favorite poets/artists of this generation and I've loved this goddess series of poems. This collection so beautifully captured the complexity of female life and the expectations/confines of society. I love the mixed media collages and imagery scattered throughout the book. I think my favorite part of this collection was the way that the poems were arranged in very cohesive themes that both surprised me and increased the flow of the reading experience. I saved several of the poems to reflect on later

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5/5, absolutely phenomenal collection. I loved the interspersed art/collages that really enhanced the messages and themes of the text and brought them all ever more to the forefront. My only complaint is I wish it were longer, but it is an incredible collection of poetry.

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Another fantastic title by Trista Mateer. I was absolutely thrilled to receive this advance copy because I adored her previous books, Honeybee and Aphrodite Made Me Do It. I'm so happy Mateer is continuing the series with Artemis - I'm hoping that we'll see more goddess books in the future as well!

A beautiful mix of poetry and art, this collection is a wonderful dialogue between the goddess and the poet. Reflective, heartbreaking and ultimately hopeful, this is a collection that belongs on every shelf.

Congratulations Mateer on another stellar work!

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I really enjoyed this collection of poetry. It felt deeply personal but also applicable to just about any woman/girl I can think of.

As someone with a complicated sibling ship reading the line about younger brothers, “it’s hard to watch him make the same mistake I curse other men for and still want to defend him.” Felt like a slap. In the best way!

The weaving of mythology into works of poetry was beautiful and striking.

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This is the first collection I’ve read from this poet. As with all poetry collections, there were poems I connected with and others I didn’t. There were lots of explorations of hard-hitting subjects such as rape. I actually found myself preferring the poems that were from the poet’s perspective. Artemis’s poetry leaned towards memories, whereas Trista’s poetry was a lot more relatable.

There were so many emotions expressed within this. You got to see Trista at her most vulnerable, her most angry and also empowered. It made me feel more in tune to Trista as a person as well as a poet, showing herself as a whole and not just one element of her being.

I loved the use of pieces of art, art tarot cards, within this collection and actually found myself searching for and getting excited over these artworks. They tended to include a short quote. One in particular has really stuck with me: “what’s keeping you up at night? fear will eat you alive if you let it”. As a person with anxiety and who has battled insomnia for many years, it was a double whammy of thoughts. I would actually love a collection of pure tarot card/quote artworks.

Thank you to NetGalley, Trista Mateer and Central Avenue Publishing for this DRC in exchange for an honest review.

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It's been awhile since I've found a good poetry! This book deals with some heavy subjects but in a really genius way of doing it from the greek goddess Artemis' perspective. Those poems were my favorite. Then there's like a few lines of poetry over modern-day collages it looks like? It doesn't really fit in with the aesthetic of the book and the cover. It sort of feels like this book is being pul.led in two different directions and it was throwing me off. But I really liked the tarot cards and there was a cute photo of a snail(I love snails). Some of the collages looked like they were thrown together on Pinterest by a child though. I really didn't get that aspect but could see others liking it.

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TW // SA, Rape

Poetry is definitely subjective. I'm not a huge poetry reader, but I understand why these poems would mean a lot to some people.

This book does a great job of explaining what it feels like to be a women. That's the best way I can describe it. The link to Greek mythology is very interesting, especially since the women in these stories are sometimes villainised. There's also an LGBTQ+ element to some of these poems. 


I enjoyed these poems, however I think I would have enjoyed them more if I had read the physical book as I found the formatting to be a little off at points but this has nothing to do with the writing of the poems at all.

I'd recommend this book to people who enjoy feminist poetry.

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3 stars! there are sections that i really like in this newest instalment of trista mateer's series of greek mythology inspired collections. however, some of this comes off to me as relatively juvenile and safe to me - i've seen these poems before in one shape or another. it doesn't make their message less meaningful, but it does make the collection, to me at least, feel less special and emotionally impactful.

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Huge thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book as an ARC!

This book is a beautiful collection of poetry that honestly made me feel alive. We switch back and forth between the author's POV and the goddess Artemis. It shows a "wilder" side to the feminine, and while reading I felt truly immersed. The prose is beautiful, and if anything, I wish it was longer!

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Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this poetry collection in exchange for a honest review!

I have read the author’s work before and quite enjoyed it, and there were moments where I enjoyed this collection as well. What ultimately took me out of getting lost in the story trying to be told was the fact that there were letters missing from a multitude of words, so I was left to infer what the author’s intention was for the entire book because only letters were in place where full words were meant to be.

I completely understand this issue as I was given access to an early e-copy of the poetry collection, so I am not placing blame on anyone at all. I just bring this up because it made it hard to fully connect with the author’s message for this book.

From what I was able to understand, this collection was very well written. I could see myself getting a finished copy to try and really dig into what the intent for this collection was, and I can’t wait to see what the author will release in the future!

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''I felt powerless until the day I realized that hell is a place other people put you, and I could put us both there''

I've recently read ''Aphrodite Made Me Do It'' so that I could devour this one after my request was accepted, and boy, I think I enjoyed it more than the first. This really hit home.

My favorite one of the series so far. I'm looking forward for the next one.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an e-arc in exchange of an honest review.

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Thank you to the publishers for sending me an ARC of this poetry book.
Firstly, this poetry book opens with a lot of trigger warnings, ant it really is full of them, and at times I found this very difficult to read. I nearly contacted the publishers and said I would be unable to finish this. It made me feel quite sad, and upset.
However, I loved the last section of this book, it was a lot more positive. The art throughout is also amazing!
I’m sure there are a lot of people who will love this book just please do take note of the trigger warnings, that are at the beginning of the book.

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Thank you for NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

5 stars!

I have been waiting to read this after I bought myself Aphrodite Made Me Do It. Love it so much I showed it to my friends, who also loved it and wanted more.

Loved this. It’s hard to write a review for poetry as it relates and connects to people differently. But reading this I felt struck with words, in awe of them.

Just stunning. Simply stunning. I loved everything, the work gone into it, the poems, the art. Amazing.

And so excited if this series continues.

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'Artemis Made Me Do It' alternates between poems and anecdotes written from the perspectives of the goddess Artemis and the poet herself, humanising the Greek diety in a way that sheds a relatable light on her. Mateer frames Artemis as a victem who rose up and overcame her abusers and the patriarchal social structure that enabled them. This juxtaposition also creates the effect of elevating the author's own messier emotions to fuel for personal growth and change. While the art and collage pages make this collection read more like a private diary than a body of work, they also punctuate the tone of each piece they accompany very well. A raw and moving collection suited to anyone frustrated with the abundance of both internal and misogyny in the world.

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It was amazing to return to this author and watch her approach with Artemis however it didnt hit home as such as the first one did. Nevertheless it was an amazing experience as always and would totally recommend

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Got email confirmation that I had been sent an e-ARC of this, and immediately dropped what I was doing to read it (jk, I was in the bath, where I remained - but I did immediately start reading it in the tub, which I recommend: poetry + a bath is peak).

Trista Mateer's Aphrodite Made Me Do It is a poetry collection that I have found myself returning to ever since I read it, even though I only first read it a few months ago. In retrospect, it absolutely is one of my favourite poetry collections, and Artemis absolutely continues that legacy, if not surpasses it. Do yourself a favour and pick up Mateer's work.

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I actually really loved this. It was a really quick read, there were some formatting flaws, but I imagine those are worked out in editing.

I haven’t read the first one in the series. But I love poetry collections. I found myself saving many of the pictures within as well as highlighting many parts of poems.

There was a lot of time I felt like I needed some self reflection. And I’ll come back to them again when I’ve had some time to sit on them.

While I felt like there were a good amount of poems with depth and words that captivated me, I felt like it was too short, and that there could have been more to be said. Although I understand the over arching theme to the poems in the book, i did find a few of them to be rather repetitive.

Overall I had kind of a rollercoaster of love and hate in this book. It captivated me and made me think but also at times it bored me. Which is unwanted in such a short book.

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"There are so many versions of me. Not even I recognize all of my faces."

What a truly stunning collection by Trista Mateer. As a follow up to "Aphrodite Made Me Do It," "Artemis Made Me Do It" hits every high point from the first collection and then shoots the bar even higher. I thought I couldn't love her work anymore than I already do (Honeybee is one of my all-time favorite poetry collections), but I think Artemis might have flown past my expectations.

The poem on page 71 gave me chills. I already knew I would buy a copy of this when it was released, but being able to sit down and engross myself in this collection as it navigated trauma and loss while also successfully weaving Artemis' own story and myths into the narrative was a beautiful thing. I truly only have praise, there wasn't a single word, line, or punctuation out of place.

A five star read if I've ever come across one. I can't wait for the next collection after the teaser of Persephone at the end! I was hopeful that this series would turn into something more and now I just have to hope that Trista Mateer decides to keep gracing us with these collections.

Thank you to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for providing me with a copy for an honest review!

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The following review will be posted on Sunday, September 4th, 2 days before publication. The link provided won’t work until said date. This review will be shared on Twitter and Instagram between September 4th and the publication date (Tuesday, September 6th), but the review has already been posted on Goodreads. The blog post includes links to pre-order the books and to its Goodreads page, so readers can add it to their to-be-read books.



“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.”

Genre: Poetry, New Adult
Actual Rating: 5 stars
Spicy Meter: N/A
Content Warnings: As given by the author: blood/gore, body image, death/grief, domestic and emotional abuse, rape, sexual harassment, and probably more.

“Artemis Made Me Do It” is more than just poetry and doodles. Trista Mateer has brought together impressive art that takes countless shapes and forms. Using images and different compositions, a story of hurt and healing is told through beautifully curated words.

“I resent my own resiliency.
I don't want to bounce back.
I don't want to be strong.”

This poetry book is heavy, don’t take those content warnings lightly, but it is worth the read. Although it is somewhat Greek-mythology-based, you don’t need extensive knowledge on every single god or demigod. Trista gave a small summary at the beginning of the book about who was who, and that should be more than enough to understand the poems in this collection.

“Grief makes you feel small, though you are not small. Grief makes you feel weak, though you are not weak.”

For someone who is continuously grieving, such as myself, this book was specifically hard. There is not a day that goes by that I don’t speak to my grandma, even though it’s been almost 3 years from her passing. It does make me feel small, but it doesn’t make me feel weak anymore.

I think Trista Mateer did an excellent job at capturing raw emotions through various forms. I would highly recommend this poetry book. It’s beautiful, yet heartbreaking. It touches on important topics and it breaks their mold. I’ll definitely be reading more of Mateer.

If you click here, you’ll be redirected to Goodreads, so you can add the book to your TBR list.

Or you could click here, and be redirected to Amazon, so you can order the book.

ARC provided by NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing (one of the first publishers that trusted me with their ARCs) in exchange for an honest review.

Publication Date: September 6, 2022

“I don't know why
I keep their names
out of my poetry.
They don't deserve it.

I KEEP THEIR NAMES
OUT OF MY POETRY
BECAUSE I MUST
ALLOW MYSELF
A SAFE PLACE.
I DESERVE THAT.”

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Artemis Made Me Do It is about what it’s like being a woman (or a femme presenting person) in a male-centric, patriarchal world; it discusses the trials and tribulations of our experiences, but also the importance and necessity of fighting back.

Mateer alternates between telling her own story and telling Artemis’s and this choice establishes a sort of sisterhood between them and the reader because all parties understand each other and want the best for the collective. Through these words it’s as though Trista and Artemis will sit and cry with you for as long as you need, but they will also pick you up, dry your tears, and hand you the arrows to take down whatever or whoever made you feel stripped of your power and they will fight alongside you until you get it back.

I loved this collection; the writing and the aesthetic were gorgeous and I felt seen all throughout. Mateer had put into words my anger and my questions and my fears and that showed me that I am not alone in feeling these things. I hope the people who need that, too, find this book.

Thanks to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for sending me a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review. Artemis Made Me Do It is currently available for preorder and will be available for purchase at libraries and major book retailers on September 6th, 2022.

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