As a longtime admirer of Nikita Gill’s poetry and storytelling, I was thrilled to see her bring her lyrical voice into a YA reimagining of Hekate. This book did not disappoint.

Gill crafts a hauntingly beautiful retelling of Hekate’s early life, weaving together myth, trauma, resilience, and the slow claiming of divine power. The underworld setting and presence of figures like Styx and Hades gave the story depth and atmosphere, while Hekate herself shone as both vulnerable and strong.

It’s both a coming-of-age tale and an exploration of identity, destiny, and survival in the face of loss. Perfect for fans of Circe and Lore, this first book in a planned trilogy sets the stage for something truly special.

I’ll be eagerly awaiting the next installment.

Unfortunately I couldn't really get into this book. Ivfelt like the plot wasn't really going anywhere and there was something missing

I really wanted to love this book but it just didn't my attention the way I thought it would.

I loved that it took a closer look at Hekate because she's often overlooked but it fell flat to me. The poetry didn't add to the storytelling. I've read snippets to Nikita Gill's poetry before that is absolutely gorgeous but a lot of it read like prose with stylized separation. If that is your style of poetry -- this really might be the book for you.

All in all, this book was okay but just not for me.

Thank you to Nikita Gill, NetGalley and Little, Brown and Company Books for Young Readers for this eArc in exchange for my honest opinions.

I loved this book so much! The story was very well written and it is great for people that grow up loving Percy Jackson.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ 1.75 stars ⊹ ࣪ ˖

A big thank you to Little Brown Books for Young Readers and Netgalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Expected Publication Date: September 16th, 2025

Unfortunately, not my cup of tea 🙁
This book is written almost entirely in verse (there are some sections written as full paragraphs) and I fear I was not able to connect with Hekate or the plot very well because of that. I know now that the author is well known for her poetry so fans of hers most likely will enjoy this book and the writing style, but this was my first read of hers and it was not my taste.
I tend to go 50/50 on books written in verse - sometimes that choice adds to the plot and feel, and sometimes it hinders it. This time, it hindered it. It reads more as a rewrite of Hekate's story instead of a retelling that expands on her backstory (as it was advertised).
I also have a problem with poetry that is literally just a full paragraph randomly split into different lines. If there's no intention behind the lines chosen for each verse, then it's just a paragraph with awkward formatting.

That being said, the writing was beautiful. I can tell that Nikita Gill holds Hekate very dear to her heart and wanted to give her a much deserved moment in the spotlight.

⤷ This low rating is based on my enjoyment and not quality, so if this seems up your alley, I recommend you give it a try!

Honestly, I was going to buy this anyway. I already had the deluxe preordered from Amazon.

This was short, but so good. I did not think I would enjoy the poetry form writing, but I think it added something that other Greek retellings are missing.
This felt like a diary of Hekate.

I didn’t know as much as I thought I knew about her before reading this, and it puts a perspective on the new Olympian gods that most people don’t hear about.

Hekates story is tragic and beautiful. I would love for Nikita Gill to make this into a whole series writing on the Gods.

The story of Hekate is told in epic poetry and with short bursts of prose between. As the Prologue states, it is a tale full of Gods and monsters, though there is much debate about the difference between the two. It is a story of mothers and daughters, but also of grief and courage, joy and friendship.

Hekate is born at the end of the war between the Titans and the Olympians. She is saved from the fate of nearly every other Titan by a cousin, and grows up in the underworld, ruled by Hades. The underworld is a dangerous place for mortals and immortals alike. But it is there that she grows up and learns the secrets of the land of the dead, makes friends, and eventually discovers her own power.

It is a story of the gods’ fear of and control over goddesses and how the goddesses handle the hierarchy they’ve been born into and will ultimately live in forever. Though it is 384 pages, the epic poetry made this story a quick read.

I was primed to love this story. I adore the mythology of all cultures, but it was Greek mythology that I grew up reading. I love stories about women coming into their own power and learning how to navigate the patriarchy or destroy it. This book has been compared to Circe (which I loved), and other reviewers seemed to rave about it. (After I finished, one of my favorite authors also wrote about how much they enjoyed this book.) But when I finished this story, I felt like something was missing, or that things had gotten so twisted around as to be only vaguely recognizable by the names of the gods and goddesses involved.

Some of the poetry was beautiful. The Prologue had me excited! And the first several poems delivered.

But,
at a certain point,
it felt less like poetry
and more like random line breaks
or breaking up the sentence
where the reader might pause
or where officially,
commas might go.

And that broke
my flow of reading
more than if it had simply
been written in prose.

Maybe if I had listened to the audio (which I will consider doing when it is released), then it would have been a better experience. The original poems were all oral histories for many years before they were finally written down.

As for the plot. It seemed to jump all over the place. It felt as though Gill was jumping from source material to source material and trying hard to blend the disparate stories of her origins and deeds together, which I imagine was her intent, but the resulting blend felt confused.

In the end, this story just didn’t hit home like I hoped it would. It wasn’t the book for me. I think this is more of a reader issue than an author issue.

Thank you to NetGalley, author Nikita Gill, and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Unfortunately, this is not actually a book like it purported to be. It was a series of those Instagram-fake-poet "poems" that use so many words and yet say absolutely nothing. The author is very impressed with her ability to write what she thinks are creatively beautiful imagery, but what are actually senseless strings of repetitive, nonsensical words.

Hekate: The Witch by Nikita Gill
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
If you love poetry and Greek mythology this is a book for you!
This is a poetry retelling of the life of the Greek goddess Hekate. It is fast to read and truly fun to learn about the old Gods and the new. There is a lot about other Gods and Goddesses in this book, too, but for people like myself who have always been fascinated by this topic, it’s almost not enough.

Thank you @littlebrownyoungreaders for providing this book for review consideration via @netgalley. All opinions are my own.

#netgalley #bookreview#bookrecommendation #hekatebook

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.

propulsive and interesting story, and Hekate is impeccably written, but at points other characters don't work nearly as well, and the writing style is very "epic poem" but because of this sometimes lags. 4 stars. tysm for the arc.

This book continues to be compared to Circe, but the only similarity is that both are retellings of mythology.
This book was….fine? This is the first I’ve read from the author and I understand the appeal of their work in general but this book didn’t do anything novel. I remained detached throughout, unable to escape fully into the story.

This book was phenomenal, especially considering I knew of some of the tales that were told, but not of Hekate's involvement. Going into this book, I thought Hekate was a dark creature who was portrayed as evil. This story portrays a child whose parents were taken from her, a girl who went through trials, and a woman who made decisions based on kindness and caring rather than greed and self-indulgence. The gods she despises, she helps because it is the right thing to do in order to also help out humans. The gods are portrayed as what our leaders and politicians exude, which is their own self-interest and covetousness. They suppress what and who they fear may rise against them or take power from them. I absolutely am appreciative of this story and cannot wait for more!!!

The prose?!? Oh my god!!
I hadn’t anticipated poetry within this read, but I’m so glad it was there.
I go head over heels for retellings.

The entire thing is so powerful, giving voice to yet another woman of Mythos. Time after time their stories of betrayal and hurt and loss.
I’m so so thankful to have read this

Hekate by Nikita Gill is a retelling of the Hekate myth, describing her origins, upbringing, and ultimate becoming of the goddess.

I don't normally read retellings, but I wanted to give Hekate a try because she is a goddess whose story I am familiar with. Upon reading this book, I was reminded why I don't read retellings. As much as I could appreciate the originality of reframing Hekate's background and origin story, I just couldn't accept it. My understanding of Hekate has always been as an archetypal goddess, a strand of consciousness, so to have her childhood written with all of her emotional angst, just did not work for me, because that it not how we are supposed to know her. I supposes there's a deeper spiritual reason why we don't know about the gods and goddesses background and childhoods, because that is not what their teachings are about. On the other hand, I appreciated the creativity and imagination that went into writing this story, and the amount of research and attention to detail it took to essentially write a "fictional biography" of her.

I tried to approach this book with an open mind, but something about it just felt off for me. However, I do appreciate the concept.

If you love poetry & Greek mythology you are going to absolutely love this book! I had no idea this was written in verse and I think it was such a unique & beautiful way to tell the story of Hekate!

I think Greek mythology retellings can sometimes feel intimidating and like you have to have a lot of background knowledge on the different gods & goddesses, which in some books is true but the way Nikita wrote this was so approachable and easy to follow. This would be a perfect intro to the greek mythology fiction genre.

The story is broken in to 3 parts - childhood, girlhood, and womanhood essentially. I loved that we got to follow Hekate from the tragedy that befell her as a child and see how that shaped the woman she became. I loved Hekate and I also loved the people she met & friendships she made along her journey - there was a real found family vibe which I adore! There was definitely moments of female rage & some great witchy aspects too - I highlighted so many passages and one of my favourites was:

“I was starting to feel as though my entire existence was a threat. Perhaps this was what womanhood was. The dangerous knowledge of who you are and what you could do with that power if pushed.”

This is YA and I would say it appropriately fits in that category! I sometimes struggle with YA books being a bit reserved in some of the topics discussed, I did feel that slightly with this one as well, which isn’t a bad thing, just something to bare in mind when reading!

I paused reading at 30% and picked up my phone to order a hard copy, I can’t wait to annotate & add this to my shelf!

Hekate by @nikita_gill is one of the most beautiful retellings I've ever read. It is told in verse, and paints a picture of a goddess who is a child of war. Hekate has known loss, it is woven deep into her bones, but throughout this novel, she refuses to succumb to the pressure of a world that seems to hate her just because she is powerful.

A daughter, a witch, a threat, she learns to harness her powers in order to wield them to get what she wants. This book weaves myth with poetry like a modern day Homer, and I am utterly in love with it.

Thanks to netgalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for the chance to read this ARC early.

I always love a myth retelling. This book took a bit of time to get up and running but the last 50% or so flew by. I enjoyed the prose and formatting, also love a short "sub chapter" to keep my dopamine high while reading.

Overall an enjoyable read but you have to get through the first half for things to really pick up!

ARC was given by NetGalley and Little, Brown Books for Young Readers


Content/Trigger Warnings: War themes, violence, death, loss of loved ones, grief, loneliness, abandonment, blood depictions, scene of a dead animal, scenes of imprisonment, scene of kidnapping/abduction


The amount of tears I have shed through this entire book should be illegal! How dare this book come for my heart and soul like that! This is hands down my favorite book Nikita Gill has written thus far. This author's books tend to be hit or miss for me, but with this one, oh my heart, it was everything. Hands down an emotional roller coaster of a time for me, personally. I think the author did a beautiful job at retelling Hekate's story and the lyrical way of how all the various emotions were conveyed was so well done. I've heard pleasant things about the audiobook for this. So if you're a big audiobook lover then you may want to pick that up. I know for me, I can't wait to have my physical copy come in to put on my shelves.


All thoughts, feelings, experiences, and opinions are honest and my own.

Rating: 3.5/5

I devoured Greek mythology growing up so requesting this book was a no-brainer. I don't remember a lot about Hekate, so I definitely wanted to read this and refamiliarize myself with her.

Likes:
- The style of writing, a verse novel, was a refreshing new twist on the storytelling. I felt it made it easier and faster to read. (Once I got used to it)
- I really enjoyed about Hekate and other lesser known gods. I feel many books or stories focus on the main gods and leave the others to the edges.

Dislikes:
- While I liked it, the book written in story verse was a bit hard to get used to at first. For the first 20% of the book I felt like I was missing something in the writing.
- It took about until 40% or so for the pace to pick up and the plot to begin moving forward. It took me a few days to get past that but once I did, I finished it in a few hours.

Overall, though I had a hard time getting started with this book, it was a quick and enjoyable read. I enjoyed learning about lesser known Greek figures and also their history. It seems this will be the first of a series, so I'm interested to see who will be next