3.5 stars rounded up

I love reading about anything to do with Persephone/Hades so obviously this was a must-read, even though the story is not really about their relationship, but more so the mother-daughter relationship of Demeter and Persephone. However, I knew embarrassingly little about Demeter (besides being Persephone's mother) before starting this book, so it was enlightening to read her story (although mourning a mortal she knew for maybe 2 hours for centuries became a bit much for me).

Persephone's POVs were the book's better half and added some new narratives of her life before she was abducted to the underworld.

The book was a little slow to get through (especially Demeter's POV chapters), and the ending felt very rushed. Towards the end, I was actively groaning when a chapter switched from Persephone to Demeter (but I feel this is a common pitfall of any book with multiple POVs). It also didn't hit quite the level of emotional depth that I would expect from such heavy topics.

Overall, this was a fair mythology retelling and is worth the read if you're a Persephone fan.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for providing me with an ARC of this book!

I've read a lot of books that are retellings of Greek myths, I mean a LOT, but this was definitely one of my favorites! I read Hannah Lynn's Athena's Child years ago and loved it so I was really excited to see she had a new book coming out! This is the story of Demeter and Persephone, a story retold a million times, most of which I've read, however, Lynn's stand out amongst them all. The story is broken into three parts, the first from Demeter's, she recounts her time from being stuck in Kronos to rescued by Zeus only to pay the worst price a woman can, we follow her through the years as she leaves Olympus and eventually loses her beloved daughter. Her story is harrowing and moving, the fear she has of the men in her family is so profound and I loved that her rapes were not graphic and more time was spent on the aftermath. We then jump to Persephone's POV, it goes back to when she was a new goddess, then continues throughout her time living on earth with her mother, finding love, and then of course being stolen by Hades. I am forever a Hades lover and I hate reading stories where he's the villain. This book handled him so well, he's reserved and earnest, flawed and powerful, and so fricken devoted to Persephone even as it takes her more time to fall for him. During the third act we see the two POVs merge together as it jumps back and forth as Demeter tries to rescue Persephone and Persephone tries to decide if that's truly what she wants. A very satisfying ending to a beautiful and moving story!

I love the short chapters, but I do feel like some of them could have been combined and had the same effect. Love the way the author uses the passage of time and the lives of the nymphs to call attention to how the gods don't experience time the way humans do. I think having the nymphs be a different kind of being, instead of the least of the lesser goddesses, is an interesting decision. I love how Core chooses her own name, even if it is at the request of Hades, to become Persephone. Really enjoyed reading this book.

I really appreciate the time and attention given to Demeter in this Persephone and Hades retelling. She often gets put on the back burner in these stories. The author took a lot of inspiration from the Eleusinian Mysteries and obviously did a lot of research for this novel. I also like the way they characterized Persephone and Hades. Persephone felt like she had a good amount of agency without straying too far outside of the given canon. Hades was given a unique characterization that didn't defend, but explained, his actions. Overall, a 10/10 Persephone and Hades retelling!

I absolutely LOVED this book. One of my favorite genres is greek retellings and this one might just be my favorite. This version of hades and Persephone was *chef's kiss* Hannah Lynn, you did an amazing job!!

3.5 Rounded down.

I was looking forward to this book. I was excited to have Demeter’s side of the story and for the narrative to be more focused on the mother/daughter dynamic. Sadly, that is not what is in this book.

I almost stopped reading several times throughout the first 40% of the book, which happens to be the majority of Demeter’s POV. I was looking forward to finally seeing her as a mother and seeing the loving mother/daughter relationship. Nope. That is not the story we were given. Instead we are presented with a narcissistic goddess who barely spends time on page with her daughter and instead spends the majority of her POV grieving for her “true love” aka a man she met at a wedding, knew for maybe 12 hours, and Zeus kills because she slept with him. Nothing is ever her fault especially not when she loses her temper and acts out like a toddler. Honestly, her freezing the world and killing most of the humans comes off as a two year old upset that her toy was taken from her. She doesn’t refer to Core has a person. She uses language more akin to demanding her property be returned to her. This is also after centuries of Demeter essentially ignoring Core and Core doing whatever she wanted. So, not exactly the loving mother vibes I was hoping for.

When the narrative switched to Core/Persephone's POV I started to enjoy the story more. Demeter’s section was so incredibly slow with barely anything happening. At least with Persephone’s POV there was more plot. I enjoyed seeing Persephone experience life and love before she was taken to the Underworld. She was starting to become her own her person. I enjoyed the relationship with Hades and how it wasn’t just a sexual relationship. Hades was awkward with her and a bit of a stalker, but he at least came off as wanting the best for her. Demeter on the other hand never seemed to want the best for her daughter. She only wanted her possession returned to her.

Overall, this book was too long and slow. At times the writing was beautiful; however, at others the writing was repetitive. The first half of the book reads as if the author was trying to cram in as many mentions of lore as possible while also constantly saying “but that’s a tale for another time”. The second half was more original and moved the story forward.

While I love the Greek Gods, and the Hades/Demeter/Persephone story, DNF’d this because it wasn’t what i was looking for in this retelling. There was nothing wrong with the writing that i found; this retelling simply wasn’t for me. I can see that it would be very popular for certain audiences, and I hope it does well.

The writing style of this one was absolutely beautiful and kept me immersed in the narrative. I only have a vague knowledge of Greek mythology, but this book, though a retelling, makes me feel like I have a better understanding of it now as much of it is based in the lore. I found myself down a Google rabbit hole like “wait is that really the connection?” and being like “woah, it is”. My knowledge is basically just the movie Hercules. I grasp knowledge when it’s fed to be like this and not through like an encyclopedia.
I’m seeing that people (outside of this book) think Demeter is the worst— though not as bad as Zeus. He ranks top. But I think this book gives a different perspective on Demeter’s life, all the love she’s lost, the grief, and her keeping Core/Persephone close wasn’t as a punishment but just a mother’s love in not wanting to lose the only thing she has left that she loves. The book shows all the sacrifices she has made, and the evil of the gods she has seen that Core knows about but had not witnessed.
When Hades abducts Core/Persephone, it switches from Demeter’s POV to Core’s and how she’s adjusting to the underworld and also how she takes on the name Persephone. Meanwhile, Demeter is wreaking havoc on Earth looking for her daughter and demanding her return, much in the way a mother would when they learn of their child being kidnapped. She’s just being a mom— she just also has infinite power.
The end also touches on the lore of the seasons, with Persephone traveling between the underworld and earth, and therefore the transition of winter and spring and the other seasons.
This book put it in a way that’s easy to understand all the horror and atrocities and just plain cruelty that occurred with the Greek gods in a storytelling way that I think will stick with me than any other way that I have tried.
This was a book I didn’t realize I needed but am so glad to have read.

Thank you Sourcebooks Landmark for the read!

3.5 stars. I really enjoyed this book in the sense of getting Demeter's back story and POV. I feel like we are all so familiar with the persephone and hades storyline but we never get Demeter's side of it all. That alone really drew me to this book. I really enjoyed how this story was told. It was captivating and held my attention. I found all the little details to really shape this into a good book. the only bad thing is that it was so long. I felt like there were times when it was so descriptive and too many inner thoughts. towards the end i was still enjoying the book, but kept checking what percentage i was into it. overall, very happy with this book and will seek out this author again.

This is my year for Greek mythology retellings. In Daughters of Olympus by Hannah M. Lynn we hear Demeter's story and her daughter's. Demeter's daughter, Core (Persephone) is precious to her so she keeps her hidden away. This also prevents Persephone from being able to explore the world as she wants. Demeter suffers greatly - she is sexually assaulted by her brother, Zeus. This results in birth of her daughter and her twin brother. Demeter eventually falls in love with a human, and that cannot end well. Demeter is endlessly self-absorbed, so much so that she does not pay attention to her daughter all day, and only looks for her as the sunsets. One day, Core does not return. Demeter searches the earth for her daughter and the witch goddess, Hecate, helps her discover that Hades has taken her daughter to the underworld. This story is told from two perspectives, first Demeter and then Core. Once in the underworld, Core becomes Persephone. She grows into her power encouraged by Hades. She stands up for herself to her formidable mother, her father and to Hades - all things she had not previously been capable of doing. She is a very interesting goddess and I wish we got to spend more time with Persephone. I want to thank Net Galley #netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for my advance reader copy.

Here is Hannah Lynn’s latest historical fiction title. Fans of retellings of famous Greek stories and myths will want to take a look at this one.

This is the story of Demeter and Persephone and many others. It is a story of the gods with both heroines and villains to be found in these pages. In many ways, this is a tale of parental love. The obstacles that the characters face are not ones that readers will experience but, nonetheless, they can relate to wanting to care for and protect a loved one.

Daughters of Olympus is a novel filled with events, some violence and engaging depictions of its time. The plot is involving and readers will enjoy this new way of looking at a classic story.

I very much enjoyed this title. It will be liked by those who have read books by Natalie Haynes, Jennifer Saint and Clare North among others. I look forward to whatever the author writes next.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks-Landmark for this title. All opinions are my own.

Greek myth retelling?? Persephone retelling??? sign me up. I highly enjoyed reading this, Usually I'm used to the Hades/Persephone being the core (haha pun not intended) focus, but the mother/daughter relationship was so refreshing.

I really enjoyed the story and the overall working style used by this author. I will definitely be reading more from her in the future. Thank you for the ARC!

I love Greek mythology retellings! I especially have a fondness for Persephone and hades retellings and I loved how close this stuck to the original mythology stories! This was so much fun to read from Demeter and Persephone’s POVs and discover another version of the gods and their rule. I feel like I need more Greek myth retelling books now

⭑ ⭑ ⭑ ⭑

Thank you to Sourcebooks Landmark, Hannah Lynn, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book.

Daughters of Olympus retells the story of Demeter, ancient Greek goddess of the harvest, and her daughter Core.

The first half of the book is told from Demeter’s POV, recounting her life and the violence she endures before ultimately deciding to leave Olympus and live a reclusive life in hiding with only her daughter and some faithful nymphs. But when Core is kidnapped by Hades and taken to the Underworld, Demeter must face her fears and leave the safety of her island to get her daughter back.

The second half focuses on Core, daughter of Demeter. She doesn’t share the same fears as her mother and is instead curious to see the world. After centuries of feeling held captive on their island, Core is finally given freedom to leave the island, as long as she’s back by sundown. This freedom ultimately leads to a new captivity when Hades, King of the Underworld takes her as his Queen, and encourages her to take a new name, Persephone.

I love all things Greek mythology and historical retelling, so I couldn’t wait to dive in to this book. The writing is beautiful and descriptive. It was easy to feel like you were right there in the story. The story is also deeply emotional, depicting violence, love, heartbreak, and loss, and I felt moved as the reader by Hannah Lynn’s writing.

The only negatives I found with this book was the slower pacing and the repetition after the POVs switched. I’m usually able to get through these types of books quickly, but this one started slow for me, until a little after the halfway mark.

Overall, I really enjoyed and would recommend this book. This is perfect for fans of Greek/Roman mythology retellings, especially those told from the perspective of women.

*Thank you to NetGalley & Sourcebooks Landmark for sending me a digital copy*

I cannot emphasise how much I loved this book. Daughters of Olympus tells the myth of Demeter & Persephone, who goes by Core through the majority of the book. Demeter is one of the Olympians, who was rescued by Zeus from the belly of her father. Her freedom of being in the world is soon cut when she is assaulted by her brother which results in the birth of Core.

There are three parts to the book. The first is Demeter’s point of view and we see how Zeus’s assault has impacted her life for centuries. She’s lost her sense of freedom and spends all her time with her daughter & nymphs. The only time she tries to stand up to her brother ends in the death of the man she loves and she decides to leave Olympus for good.

The second part of the book is told from Core’s perspective. We see that she yearns to experience the world but is prevented by her mother’s fear. When her mother gives permission she is able to see all the joys and wonders of the world which includes the greatest of all, love. With love also comes loss and we see Core chose a different way to deal with her grief.

The third section of the book covers both mother & daughter and is my favourite in relation to Core’s character development. In the Underworld, she is able to have closure with the one she loved while discovering her own power as a goddess and choosing her own name. The aspect of the story I really loved is showing Persephone as not a young helpless girl but someone who has lived a long time and has experienced loss. While Hades did take her unwillingly I enjoyed how he shows respect for her wishes and pushes her to embrace her new role as Queen and being her own person away from her mother.

4.5 ⭐️

This is a story of 3 parts: Demeters life and how she came to live away from olympus, Core and how she found her freedom and lastly how Core became Persephone. Each part is beautifully written, and at it's core the book is about character development.

Definitely check the content warnings. A big part of the story is the SA that demeter experiences. It's not descriptive, but it's hard to read nonetheless. I do think it was dealt with well, and how it affects her in the aftermath is well written.

Then we have Core, her POV shows us her adventures when she leaves the island and we get to watch her find her freedom. Both parts 1 and 2 deal with love and grief, and we see how each of the goddesses deals with it. You really feel their pain. It was brilliantly done.

Part 3 is my favourite part. Not just because this is one of my favourite renditions of Hades but because I enjoyed seeing core claim her power and become Persephone. Hades in this book is shy and awkward and truly just in love with her. I like that their romance took a back seat to her realising that actually she can be a take charge powerful goddess.

All in all, I enjoyed the book, and the scenes of them reclaiming their power are very strong. The writing is beautiful, and I'll definitely be checking out some of the authors' other works in the future.

I received an advance review copy of this book, and this review represents my honest opinion. Thank you to netgalley, Hannah Lynn, and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book.

This book had a slower start, I found that the first half was harder to get through. Once I got the halfway mark I was way more invested, and found that the characters had really grown on me. The story line/premise was intriguing and captivating, but definitely took more concentration to follow, so I’d say it wasn’t exactly an easy read but it was still great!

This is a very interesting and intense book to read adn one I really enjoyed. Greek Mythology at its best this book is the story and retelling of Persephone and Demeter. And what a story it is. It is emotional, deep, dark at times but is also easy to read and follow which makes a story like this much more enjoyable to read.

Well written and a great retelling this is a book that any Greek Mythology lover would enjoy reading. I would give it 4 -4.5 stars for sure.

Thank you NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Landmark for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

4.5* Rounded Up
I have always loved Greek mythology and I love a good retelling. This book reminded me of one of my favorites, Circe, in that it explores the women goddesses and their existence in this male dominated ancient time. I loved the exploration of immortality, love, grief and humanity that this book provided. I also enjoyed how it was split pretty evenly between Demeter and then Core’s POV’s which made it tie together nicely. I wished it had been a tad bit longer as it was pretty slow in the beginning and then rushed towards the end.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for granting me access in exchange for an honest review.