Neon Gods (Dark Olympus Book 1)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars | 21,622 ratings
Price: 8.54
Last update: 07-19-2024
About this item
He was supposed to be a myth. But from the moment I crossed the River Styx and fell under his dark spell...he was, quite simply, mine.
*A scorchingly hot modern retelling of Hades and Persephone that's as sinful as it is sweet.*
Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over far from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all that's ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city's dark facade.
With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil's bargain with a man she once believed a myth...a man who awakens her to a world she never knew existed.
Hades has spent his life in the shadows, and he has no intention of stepping into the light. But when he finds that Persephone can offer a little slice of the revenge he's spent years craving, it's all the excuse he needs to help her—for a price. Yet every breathless night spent tangled together has given Hades a taste for Persephone, and he'll go to war with Olympus itself to keep her close...
"Deliciously inventive...Red-hot."—Publishers Weekly STARRED
"I get shivers just thinking of their interactions. SHIVERS."—Mimi Koehler for The Nerd Daily
The World of Dark Olympus:
Neon Gods (Hades & Persephone)
Electric Idol (Eros & Psyche)
Wicked Beauty (Achilles & Patroclus & Helen)
Radiant Sin (Apollo & Cassandra)
From the Publisher
Neon Gods | Electric Idol | Wicked Beauty | Radiant Sin | Cruel Seduction | Midnight Ruin | |
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Customer Reviews |
4.3 out of 5 stars
21,622
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4.4 out of 5 stars
9,889
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4.4 out of 5 stars
5,774
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4.2 out of 5 stars
4,010
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4.0 out of 5 stars
2,562
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4.0 out of 5 stars
1,793
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Price | $9.07$9.07 | $9.98$9.98 | $12.79$12.79 | $10.37$10.37 | $10.46$10.46 | $9.10$9.10 |
Discover all of Katee Robert’s Standalone Scorchingly Hot Modern Retellings | Hades and Persephone | Psyche and Eros | Helen of Troy, Achilles, and Patroclus | Apollo and Cassandra | Aphrodite and Hephaestus (and Pandora and Adonis) | Eurydice and Orpheus and Charon |
Top reviews from the United States
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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Spice: ????????????????
Tropes: Hades & Persephone retelling, fake dating, voyeurism
Series: Book #1 in the Dark Olympus series
Triggers: Abuse, death of a parent (off page), violence, guns, blood, attempted assault
*As always, please check triggers before reading*
In honor of Electric Idol coming out today (book #2 in the series), I wanted to get my review up for Neon Gods. I started Electric Idol, so I should have an edit soon!
I read Neon Gods in June 2021 and loved it. I completely devoured it in one sitting, which took me by surprise. For me, the biggest surprise was Hades. I did not expect him to be the way he is in this story, so I was completely enthralled. I was hooked on him and Persephone form the moment they met. On top of the romance aspect, the concept of The Thirteen is unique and truly something I haven't read before. The rivalry between Hades and Zeus amped this story up for me, especially the emotional pieces with Persephone.
Hades was my favorite thing about this book. As I mentioned earlier, he took me by total surprise. I expected him to be cold, hard, and emotionless. He was the total opposite of that. He was full of compassion, love, and wanted to help his people. The support he gave Persephone was beautiful and he just wanted her happy. He never once saw her as less than his equal, nor did he want to control her. The way he wanted her to have everything, even if that meant watching her leave, made me love him even more. He refused to let her compromise what she wanted, which is the mark of a great partner.
Persephone surprised me as well. I think it would've been easy for Katee to play her as a "damsel in distress" or make her unlikeable. Katee made her smart, witty, and full of grit. Persephone refused to go down without a fight. She wanted to try everything with Hades and I loved that for her (wish that were me with Hades, but I digress). She provided Hades with the support he needed, especially given his trauma, and it was wonderful to see. They are a wonderful pairing.
The spice in this book is good, but I read Katee's taboo series first (God, I love that series), so it wasn't as spicy as I was hoping it would be. Retrospectively, I think the spice level is just right for this story. This story is focused more on plot and trust me the taboo series isn't (but still a favorite of mine). Also, add being called "little siren" to my list of things I want to be called now ????
I highly recommend this book and look forward to reviewing book 2!
If we go to the characters, Persephone I found was actually decent. I didn’t particularly like this take on Hades. Cause it’s repeatedly trying to give this idea that Hades is big and bad but really he’s too gentle and soft for what I imagine a Hades would be. It just didn’t fit to me. Then not sure if this was just me, maybe I missed something or read too fast, but sometimes it felt like the author was giving knowledge to character that shouldn’t have gained it yet. Like us as the reader was already aware, but Persephone would magically know about it without there being a scene between her and Hades speaking about it. She knew an awful lot about a man that was supposed to be nothing but a myth and not real. And then the promise of a Hades/Persephone spin-off: that is not this. At least not what I think most people would expect. I’m sorry but I was expecting a slow burn, enemies to lovers kind of deal(not necessarily enemies but definitely not this friendly this quick). If anybody was more true to their character, I’d say it was Demeter.
As far as the ‘spicy’ scenes go- they are alright. They aren’t terrible. The only thing that was a real problem was how badly they were taking over the plot of the story. Which I think may be partially my fault. I knew there would be mature scenes but I didn’t realize it would take up more than half the book. It was just unnecessarily too much. SPOILER ALERT: I mean there was one in the epilogue for gods sake. Like when I reached it i couldn’t really believe it. As if trying to extend the story that bit more. Like I mentioned previously- unnecessary.
Now the book wasn’t completely horrendous. There were good points. It’s definitely a very quick read. Easy too. I think the concept and the world this is set in is very cool too. There just wasn’t enough plot because of what was mentioned before this. But other than that, I don’t think I’ll be reading the next one. The childish language is not for me and that’s usually where I draw the line.