So, I got Neon Gods by Katee Robert out of the library, mainly because I read the back of the sequel at work, and the premise amused me. What I didn't catch is that it's erotic fiction. Which certainly opened my eyes in a few passages.
The premise here is that Olympus is a fairly large city with mortals filling leadership roles in the city under titles taken from Greek mythology. Most of the 13 are in the Upper City, with Hades living in the Lower City across the River Styx.
We open on Persephone, here again a daughter of Demeter, and her sisters Psyche, Eurydice, and Callisto. They're kind of like Kardassians, with Demeter playing Kris Jenner. Difference being here, Demeter promises Persephone to Zeus for marriage (a bad idea, since this Zeus has been through 3 Hera, all of whom wound up dead by his hand). Persephone flees Zeus and winds up crossing the Styx and being semi rescued by Hades.
Hades and Persephone make a deal, wherein they'll pretend to be in a relationship to get Zeus to back off. Which mainly serves to write some really elaborate adult scenes of Hades deflowering Persephone.
There are some nice allusions to the myths this came out of, like Persephone's safe word being "Pomegranate", and their adoption of 3 puppies (Cerberus, Scylla, and Charybdis). I kind of like the female Hermes and her oddball partnership with Dionysus (I'd love to read a book centered on them.) I enjoyed that Persephone kept her autonomy throughout, not sublimating her identity into Hades. (Indeed, her persona is one of a Brat, which seems to be a rarity in these things.) I enjoyed that there was a plot in there, and the focus wasn't completely on the scenes. (Also a rarity, I've found.) I thoroughly laughed at exactly how ruthless Demeter turned out to be.
I do wish there was more of an exploration of the setting, as to whether or not the 13 are maybe descended from the Gods themselves, or how Olympus came about.
While this is not something I'd normally seek out, it did capture and keep my attention, and leave me wanting to see what happens next.
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