firstly, thank you to the publisher for an arc!

i always love a persephone x hades retelling, and i especially enjoyed the characterization/pov of demeter in this particular retelling!

I liked how this wasn’t your standard Persephone/Hades retelling — it centres a lot on mother-daughter relationships instead, and about Demeter’s relationship to her daughter. It’s complex, it’s messy, it’s ugly. I like how the author didn’t shy away from showing that. Overall, I think this was really well written and I recommend it!

The perspectives switching back and forth to give the reader such a diverse and beautiful story was so compelling and engaging. Highly recommend! The interpolitics and various relationship threads keep the action going. The romance alongside the magic and world exploration is dynamic and propulsive. Very fun read!

*Seeds* by Angie Paxton is a captivating retelling of the Persephone and Hades myth, focusing on self-discovery and complex mother-daughter dynamics. The story follows Kore, who embraces her identity as Persephone after being abducted by Hades, while her mother Demeter's relentless search threatens the balance between worlds.

Paxton’s nuanced portrayal of Demeter as both protective and flawed adds emotional depth, while Persephone’s journey from captivity to empowerment is compelling. Though some readers found the pacing slow at times, the fresh perspective and rich character development make *Seeds* a standout in the realm of mythological retellings.

Another wonderful take on the Hades x Persephone myth. I love that the author dived deeper into the relationship between Demeter and Persephone

This was a fine retelling of the myth of Hades and Persephone. I don't think it was the strongest of the many Greek mythology retellings I've read, but I did really like how the complicated relationship between Persephone and her mother Demeter was described. I didn't mind how Hades was characterized, but Persephone did get on my nerves sometimes.

A very sweet and direct retelling of Hades and Persephone, I honestly just wish it would’ve been a bit longer. The author has a very somber poetic way of writing, in all the best ways, and my heart was really tugged and pulled with the characters along the way. Thoroughly enjoyed this read!

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

This was a fantastic take on the myth of Hades & Persephone! I've read manyyy retellings, and honestly love almost all of them, it's just a timeless tale but one thing I find hit or miss is how they portray the kidnapping of Persephone and what Hades is like. I think Angie nailed it though, her Hades is a lonely, lost man who yearns for a companion and love; his actions are not great at the beginning, but you feel his desperation and he genuinely tries to make it up to Persephone and only wants her happy. Now Persephone is lovely, fierce and timid at the same time, which is totally realistic given how she was raised by Demeter, but she didn't super stand out to me compared to other versions I've read. Now Demeter, this was a dual POV book, told by her and her daughter, and I think it was perhaps the most nuanced and original Demeter I've ever read. She's the villain but she's not, she was cruel to Persephone and refused to own her part in her actions, and yet, while I didn't really root for her, I kinda did. She was a broken woman that had no idea how to deal with grief and rage and what she did was not okay but I still felt for her and loved reading her POV. I'd definitely recommend for anyone looking for a different version of this story! Or lovers of Greek Mythology in general!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me this arc! I did really enjoy this book which is why I gave it 3.5 stars, however parts of it were confusing and did not flow how other parts did otherwise it would have gotten a higher rating. I did not expect it to follow the true story of Hades and Persephone, but it did remove some major parts of their story and changed how some parts actually happened. If you love learning about Demeter and Persephone then I highly recommend it, but I would not see myself rereading it for a while.

This one was a bit of a slow start for me but once you get about 10% of the way into the story you quickly fall in love with it and honestly can’t put it down.

As someone who has read so many hades and Persephone retellings this one felt so much more refreshing as it wasn’t a romanticised version of the story and instead felt like more of a truer version of the myth for both Persephone and Demeter’s experiences.

I would definitely recommend this book to other people.

This unfortunately didn’t work for me. I tend to be pretty skeptical of a lot of retellings where Persephone is concerned, but I had hopes that this would be a little better. That said, I ended up DNFing this one. I didn’t feel like it was doing anything particularly new with the myth and, more than that, continued the common trend of mischaracterizing Demeter hopefully.

I hope it lands with people who will love it!

STOP MAKING DEMETER A MONSTER.

Okay, I am sorry to Paxton for being the person who gets my ire, but I am just so over the whole "Demeter is a horrible mother, that's why Persphone ran to Hades". There are books I love that do it well, but when you are working in an OG myth setting, it is frustrating. Demeter is known to be a good mother, and I just want one retelling that keeps Demeter that way and still has Persphone fall in love with Hades.

If you like that retelling style, this book is for you. It as well written and beautiful, but I am just so over the subtle sexism of making the mom bad. I mean, Zeus is RIGHT THERE.

3 ⭐

I am undecided on how I feel about this one.

Initially, I was very intrigued. But as the story continued, I found myself losing interest. I think mostly due to how annoying I found Persephone. That said, I also have not read a Hades & Persephone story before so this may be the norm. It may be a me issue TBH.

Even though I was annoyed with Persephone, I didn't overly mind the story. It was interesting and it didn't bore me at any point. It was more of a character (Persephone) issue for me haha. I did really enjoy Hades character though. He was my favorite.

Overall, it was good and I did enjoy a lot of parts. I look forward to reading more from this author!

Seeds is a different take on the Hades/Persephone mythology, told through the dual POVs of Persephone and Demeter. This retelling explores the complex mother daughter relationships and power dynamics between two abused and flawed characters with themes of identity, self discovery, and forgiveness. I appreciated that this was more than a romance, but a character revelation for Persephone. She starts out as a shunned, irresponsible girl with a lot of growing up to do. Her growth truly starts after she is kidnapped and brought to the underground to be Hades’ wife. I quite enjoyed Hades’ character as well. After the initial meeting, he was quite kind and encouraging. It took me a little while to settle into the pacing of the story. However I really enjoyed all the relationships between the characters (Persephone’s self discovery and bitter Demeter’s mission to retrieve her daughter) and the depiction of the gods and their obsession with power. I would recommend to readers who enjoyed Madeline Miller and Jennifer Saint.

Seeds by Angie Paxton has reignited my Greek retelling obsession. Kore and Hades are a well known couple but I still love seeing a fresh look at the dynamics between them and the Olympian's at large. I'm very excited to snag a physical copy of this soon and will be recommending this title for our local stores.

Seeds is a retelling of the classic Persephone/Hades myth from Greek Mythology and dives deeper into the perspectives of Persephone as she attempts to leave her abusive familial relationship with her mother, and then navigates her kidnapping and new life in the underworld, and Demeter as she attempts to get her daughter back from Hades. This book is told through the POVs of the two different characters, Persephone and Demeter.

Unfortunately, I wasn't really able to get into this book, maybe it just wasn't the right time for me. I usually love retellings of Greek myths, but I found myself growing bored as I kept reading, just waiting for something to happen. Everything was kind of stagnant until more than halfway through the book, and even then, what happened, didn't really leave an impression on me as a reader. There was also not much that really separated it from other retellings that I've read before. Nothing that really made me say "Wow! I love this, it's not what I expected.".

Persephone really did have some potential to be a great character, but instead she didn't really have any layers to her. She remained as an innocent, naïve girl who didn't really have any character progression, except for a little bit at the end. Hades was also an okay character. He came off a bit strong in the beginning and then won Persephone over after a while, but he definitely did take advantage of Persephone at times, which didn't really help his case. Now, Demeter on the other hand, I really didn't care for her chapters at all. At the beginning of the story, we are told that Demeter is abusive towards her daughter and doesn't really like her daughter and then once she goes missing, she goes through great lengths to get her back, which was a complete change up, and gave me whiplash.

The romance in itself was a slow burn, which was nice, but up until the romance actually reached it's peak and something happened, Persephone was constantly trying to get away from him so it just was a bit out of nowhere when it finally happened. It just fell flat and the emotional connection was basically nonexistent.

Thank you to Rising Action Publishing Co., Angie Paxton, and NetGalley for the eARC of this book. This is my honest review.

Thank yo to NetGalley, Rising Action Publishing Co., and Angie Paxton for an Advanced Reader's Copy of this title!

The myth of Hades, Persephone, and the gods above is given a new breath in this Greek myth retelling, with a critical eye to the ways the broken can find solace in each other; the complicated and fraught relationships of children and parents; and the unyielding toll demanded of revenge.

Clumsy and spirit-broken "bringer of destruction" Persephone has lived in the vacillating love and hate of her mother Demeter, at times beloved daughter, but more often-than-not resented responsibility. After a searing rebuttal drives Persephone to run through the fields she has been forbidden from, a chance encounter with the goddesses of Olympus changes her life forever - picking flowers, she is suddenly snatched by a dark and brooding figure in a chariot and spirited away to the Underworld, where she is told she will remain forever as a bride to its master, the god Hades. As Persephone struggles to find an escape, her enraged mother wrecks havoc on the surface world and the home of the Olympians in search of her wayward daughter.

A tale as old as the gods themselves and beloved by readers young and new, this was a fresh and heartbreaking retelling of the myth that has inspired plays, movies, books, and video games, and I adored Angie Paxton's interpretation of events through the alternating perspectives of Demeter and Persephone. There were many more players in this star-crossed lovers (depending on your interpretation) meeting, which we get to see as the story progresses, and which has definitely inspired me to seek out some more Greek mythology for my TBR this year. While very few stories of Olympians have happy endings, I think readers who love the mythos of Hades X Persephone, who love complicated family relationships, and who exploring the choices we make in the name of love - especially if you loved the dynamics of some other recent popular folklore retellings such as "Tangled" (Rapunzel) - will find themselves tempted by this book as Persephone was tempted by those fateful pomegranate seeds.

Seeds is a poignant retelling of the Greek myth of Persephone and her descent into the Underworld. A story familiar to many, Angie Paxton manages to breathe fresh life into the tale. Dual POVs between Persephone and Demeter illuminate the complexities of the bond between mother and daughter. So often Demeter is simply portrayed as the villain in the story of Hades and Persephone, an immovable force that keeps the lovers apart six months of the year. She's strict and demanding, pushing her daughter away even as she smothers her. But there is so much more to the goddess. She's portrayed as a much more sympathetic character than I've seen before.

Persephone is young and innocent, but grows as the story progresses. Much like the traditional story, she's taken by Hades against her will. She must learn how to thrive in the darkness. However, Hades is not cold or cruel master. He is often kind and compassionate as his new bride adjusts. Perhaps at times too forward, he is, nonetheless, gentle. I really appreciated this, because traditional myths describe him as being the most even-tempered of his brothers and yet most contemporary retellings depict him as a dark shadow daddy. He's not. This is not a dark and steamy romance. Instead, we get a very sweet slow-burn where the two truly come to care for each other. I loved that.

There are a lot of great ideas and depictions in Seeds that I absolutely adored. However, something about the writing style itself felt off. It was often clunky. There was a lot of repetition. The book started off slow, but some of the subsequent pacing was awkward in comparison. I enjoyed the story, but I wanted more from it.

Paxton is definitely passionate about the subject matter, and she stays true to the source material. I hope to see her continue to grow as an author.

Thank you to Netgalley, Rising Action Publishing Co., and the author for providing a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Rising Action Publishing Co and Netgalley for the early copy of this book!

Persephone doesn’t have a good relationship with her mother in this book. She and her mother live as mortals, and Persephone longs for her mother’s love. Her attempts at gaining her mother’s favour are in vain as she is left feeling small and useless, not even able to do simple tasks properly. Demeter seems to resent Persephone for the mortal life they have been forced into.

Demeter honestly bothered me a lot in this book, her attitude towards Persephone, the other gods she interacts with, and the mortals who worship her. It’s typical goddess behaviour, but it annoyed me.

When Persephone discovers who she truly is, she gets an inside peak into how the gods and goddesses act. They are selfish and self centred and do not have any empathy for human kind.

Despite the horrors Persephone sees when she arrives in the Underworld, you get the impression that Hades himself is not cruel. He treats his animals with care. But he also has a cold demeanour to the soulless subjects.

It took me a while to get on board with Hades.
But after one moment of weakness, he seems to respect Persephone’s need for space. And he used the name she prefers to go by, even though her goddess name is Kore.
Hades is all alone in the Underworld and desperate for interaction and love. Which doesn’t excuse him forcing himself on Persephone early on, but adds a layer onto his character that I think is essential for us as readers to see.

Demeter gains power from worship, hoping to gain enough power to write the rite to get her daughter back, she casts the mortal realm into a famine that costs thousands of lives.

This book was beautifully written. I can’t count the number of highlights and notes I made. But I loved the narrative of the gods and goddesses and the lengths they will go to for love and worship.

Seeds releases on Jan 7th

Please note the content warnings:
Child abuse, animal death, starvation, forcible confinement