A Touch of Ruin: Hades & Persephone, Book 2

This was the second book to the Hades Persephone saga and OMG I loved it. I thought when I finished the first that it was a shame there wasn't another to follow. Low and behold I then discovered book number 2. Thoroughly as good as the first if not better. I never wanted t to end so now I wait with bated breath for the next. The characters are wonderful, the reading speed is perfect, there's a rollercoaster of events and emotions. It's a series that just keeps giving. Hurry up Scarlett At Clair next one old .

So many plot twists in this book! And that ending was absolutely amazing!! My only negative which is why it got 4 stars and not 5 was because I spend most of the book hating Persephone - she pretty much because the one thing she was trying to hate and punish. I understand her growing into her powers ect but I just personally feel she because very childish in this book and deliberately set out to hurt people she claimed to love all because she couldn’t think of anyone but herself - which is exactly what she has called the gods out for. I do understand the reasoning for this though and was glad to see the character growth by the end of the book.Overall it was a very good storyline.

There's always a good side and a bad side to finding an amazing book. The good, well, another favorite book to add to your list, and the bad... you finish it and then what?After inhaling book one, I immediately started book two, but tried to read it at a slower pace. You know, savor it. The author took Hades' and Persephone's relationship to a whole new level, making this change gradually, in the best possible way. Not too fast, not too slow. It simply happened naturally. Yes, we have some drama and tension - these two are at the beginning of their relationship, plus others are sticking their noses into their business, so it's bound to break your heart, just a little bit.Because yes, this one has much more feels and, as a matter of fact, my favorite scene from both books is in this one. I'll only say one word: Forest. Well, okay, here's another hint: Underworld. The author wrote that scene so damn well, it was so powerful.I truly love how real these characters and dynamic between them feels. Hades' & Persephone's relationship; Hades & Hecate - siblings and BFFs; Persephone & Hecate; Hermes, Apollo etc. You kind of want to hang out with them, you know? Become bosom buddies with them.Anyway, the wait for book three will kill me, I'll for sure reread both books, until then. 5 stars.

I really wanted to enjoy this book but I just didn’t like it as much as the first one. I just felt that the plot was far too contrived and characters were never really utilised fully and were simply there to drive the plot forward by creating an obstacle. I felt everything was just so obvious and blatant where as more subtlety would have worked better. The entirety of the plot was that Hades and Persephone argue and then have sex. And that is repeated over and over and over again. Had it been revealed that Demeter was orchestrating everything to drive a wedge between Hades and Persephone then it would have been more effective and tied in better with the first book. All we had was Demeter awoke Leuce and then Leuce drugged Persephone in a plot that was resolved very quickly. Leuce was just too nice. Had she been manipulating Persephone and sowing seeds of doubt when Persephone thought they were friends then it would have been more subtly done. Had Demeter been releasing information to the press or again deliberately driving a wedge between the couple then it would have been more interesting to read. I found Persephone to be quite unlikable in this book. She is selfish, petulant, self obsessed, self righteous, hypocritical and blames everyone around her for things that aren’t their fault taking no responsibility for her own actions. She moans constantly about the gods and their treatment of mortals. She fights against their injustice yet doesn’t stand up to her own employer when they attempt to manipulate and exploit her. She says all the time that it’s up to her to expose injustice. Why? She’s the goddess of spring, not the goddess of justice. There’s no reason for her to literally stick her nose into every issue that is nothing to do with her. She judges Apollo for his actions yet has no issues with Hades turning his ex into a tree for 2000 years. She has no problem with Hades torturing people because of what they did to her. In fact she even encourages him and wants to participate in it. It’s just so hypocritical that I can’t support her in any of her actions. She says that she doesn’t want people to treat her different because she is with Hades. She doesn’t want Hades to fight her battles for her, yet she says she will go up against Apollo because he won’t touch her as she belongs to Hades. It’s complete double standards and doesn’t make sense. She’s upset when people write about her private life yet when her friend Sybil asks her not to write about what Apollo did to her, she does it anyway. Even Hades asks her not to do it but again she knows best so does what she wants without actually listening to or respecting those around her.Speaking of which she immediately judges Apollo and decides that she needs to expose him. Did she learn nothing from book 1 when she made the same assumptions about Hades and was proved to be incredibly wrong? After being determined to keep her life with Hades private, she is willingly going to sell information about their life together first to keep her job and then in order to save her friend. She then gets mad at Hades for interfering which then leads to an incredibly bizarre proposal. They haven’t had one conversation in this book that hasn’t been an argument yet Hades proposes. It doesn’t make any sense at that point in the story. She acts like a complete child, feeling jealous because Hades who has been alive for a long time has had past relationships. She is jealous of even the idea of him being with someone before her. She hates that his ex Leuce has returned and regularly berates Hades because of this and uses it as a reason not to trust him, yet at one points invites Leuce to live with her and then employs her. If she was so threatened by this woman, if she can’t handle the reminder of this woman being with Hades then stop inviting her into your life. Her friend is dying in hospital yet Persephone still carries on with normal life and goes partying. She is determined to save Lexa from death yet she spends a lot of time in the underworld. She’s actively trying to get people to see the underworld as something not to be feared yet actively stops her friend from having a peaceful death because of her own fears of death when she’s the one fighting against this in the first place. She could have gone to see Lexa in the underworld to talk to her, she could have talked to Hades at any point to find out what was actually happening. She is annoyed at Hades for literally everything he does. She’s annoyed that she doesn’t know about his new charity despite the fact that she broke up with him and has been back with him for only 2 days yet is annoyed with him because of something that she doesn’t know and hasn’t asked about. She quite frankly acts like a spoiled child and I’m surprised Hades puts up with her behaviour never mind repeatedly proposing. I do enjoy the premise and I enjoy the character of Hades, but I think the plot needed to be thought through in a lot more detail. It was as if the author was determined to have them argue as often as possible and was making it up as she went, thinking what can they argue about now. It seemed like lots of plots chucked together instead of working them together seamlessly or exploring them fully. Building up to them, in a satisfying way. For example we have the character Pirithous who is introduced fairly early on who turns out to be a stalker obsessed with Persephone. I appreciate trying to tie in the original myth, but it seemed like an afterthought that serves no purpose to the wider themes of the book. She has two, maybe three brief conversations with him. Persephone recurved some gifts including a rose but isn’t bothered by them and never mentions them again. Then at the end when the main story seems done we have a kidnapping chapter out of no where. Had this character been utilised more effectively, if he had deliberately tried to split Hades and Persephone up like he wants, if he had been a confidant to Persephone, a new friend that Hades feel threatened by then I could understand the point of including him, but his absence wouldn’t have affected the main plot so he serves no purpose. I’ve given this story 3 stars but I should really be a 2.5.

The plot thickens! Darkness, loss, deception & the beginnings of uncharted territory. Mortal life & the underworld is really about to be destroyed. I loved this book however Persephone has such mortal thinkings & absolutely no foresight and I have to remind myself she was a prisoner and a mortal so she’s navigating through the world the best she can. Devoured this book in about 5 hours! Fantastic.

Completely binged this book and the rest of the series for that matter. Decent plot and easy to read. Even with an attention deficit I still managed to complete the whole book in 7 hours! I just didn’t want to put it down!

Such a frustrating but good read! The lack of communication was a little annoying at times but reading both sides of the perspective is so much better and frustrating lol

This is the second installment in this wickedly sexy series of the love affair of Hades and Persephone. (There are book in between that are in Hade’s point of view - I will review as a collective.). Now that Persephone has come to terms that she is in love with Hades, they now must fight for their love - Fates be damned.Persephone is the Goddess of Spring that is fated to be with the God of the Dead, Hades. An unlikely pairing, they feel like everything is fighting against their union, even themselves. Persephone is trying to make her way in New Greece as a reporter with only her dear friends knowing that she is a Godess. She is determined to make her own name with her talent. With her doctor pushing for exclusives on her love life with a God, Persephone struggles with handling her own battles and not wanting to have her scary boyfriend to save her.When tragedy happens in Persephone’s life, she doesn’t know how to cope and seeks help in the most unwanted places from unwanted people. Hades struggles with letting Persephone find her way to making sure she doesn’t endanger herself or their union.With Persephone feeling desperate and untrusting of her lover, she strikes up a bargain with an unlikely ally. Now she has crossed a line that even Hades can’t save his love from and she has cause unrevokable pain to one of her dearest friends, the one she was trying to save.Amazing read! The sex scenes are steamy and erotic but the story it self is awesome. Scarlett St. Clair is superb. I couldn’t put this down till I was done - stopping is for quitters.

El libro llegó bien y a tiempoEl libro empezó bien los nuevos personajes me sorprendieron con cada pagina, otra vez perspehone siento que es algo inmadura y me desespera eso ya que si no obtiene lo que quiere lo busca y lo consigue de una forma o otra sin medir las consecuencias pero creo que es lo que balancia la relación ella siendo inmadura y hades siendo ya más mayor y con experiencia es maduro pero también con sus fallas. Hades como siempre me encanta pero puede ser por que soy muy fan de él lol

I tought it wouldn’t be possible, but Scarlett managed to write the perfect book one more time. I totally recommend it.

Ich liebe liebe liebe diese Reihe. Die Beziehung der beiden aiaiii. Man will ständig weiteres erfahren und ist gefesselt, weiter zu lesen. Ich habe die Reihe bislang sehr verschlungen und bin Dank dieser wieder zum Lesen gekommen. Freue mich sehr auf den kommenden Teil.

Scarlett St. Clair has done it again! The next book in this series is packed with drama, steam, twists, and dark character arcs. I couldn’t get enough!Persephone’s arc takes a truly dark turn in this book, which I did not expect but enjoyed. Her snapping reactions surprised me, yet I always understood and sympathized with her. Hades struggled under the weight of his secrets. I wished they’d just talk it out, though if they’d done that there wouldn’t be so much awesome drama!The story had some great surprises and twists, many including familiar and unfamiliar characters from Greek lore. I was surprised by how many of them went, and hope to see more of these characters in the future.The romance between Hades and Persephone was not as smooth as one might have expected from previous books. Secrets and miscommunication gave them some rocky moments but equally steamy makeup scenes.I loved the subplots and tension created by them. This series keeps getting better and more intriguing, and I’m excited about what Hades and Persephone will face next!