A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair.

Hello, Ruminative Fam! Hope you all are good? I have been reading a lot of books and have not reviewed them. So, I have decided not to procrastinate and write their reviews for your recommendations🥲 Starting with A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair, I’ll be posting some of the pending reviews of the books that I have previously read..

I had so many expectations from this book because (1) – It is a Hades × Persephone storytelling and I was very intrigued, and (2) Just look at that cover😍 I mean, how gorgeous it is!!!! I had to pick this one up even if not for the plot but for the cover!

But, to be honest, this was a disappointment for me. The plot was chaos, the writing was unoriginal and the characters were annoying, especially the female protagonist! So, let’s dive into the detailed review now, shall we?

Persephone is the Goddess of Spring by title only. The truth is, since she was a little girl, flowers have shrivelled at her touch. After moving to New Athens, she hopes to lead an unassuming life disguised as a mortal journalist.

Hades, God of the Dead, has built a gambling empire in the mortal world and his favourite bets are rumoured to be impossible.

After a chance encounter with Hades, Persephone finds herself in a contract with the God of the Dead and the terms are impossible: Persephone must create life in the Underworld or lose her freedom forever.

The bet does more than expose Persephone’s failure as a goddess, however. As she struggles to sow the seeds of her freedom, love for the God of the Dead grows—and it’s forbidden.

Name: A Touch of Darkness
Author: Scarlett St. Clair
Type: Book 1 in Series
Genre: Fantasy Fiction, Romantic Fantasy
Publish Date: 23rd May, 2019

Trigger Warnings: Sexual Assault, Death of a child/spouse, Addiction.

This book follows Persephone, the Goddess of Spring, by title only, because her powers are the opposite of her name. She just wants to live her life disguised as a mortal journalist, but a chance encounter with Hades changes everything for her. As she finds herself in a contract with the God of the Dead, she finds herself attracted to him and wanting him.. but she knows what she wants is forbidden…

TL;DR - A chaotic plot with unoriginal writing, and frustrating and bland female and male protagonists, respectively. It is full of smut but there's no chemistry between the main characters and fails to give anything valuable.

To start with, the cover again is just🤩 and I loved the intensity of the attraction Persephone and Hades had. As their lives intertwine, the sexual tension had me feeling🥵 I enjoyed the introduction phase of the plot and that’s it. That’s the only part I enjoyed..

The writing was very frustrating as there was so much chaos in the plot, pure chaos. It felt so forced and there was no chemistry between the protagonists. It was instant lust and there was no deeper connection between the MCs. There were just two things that were happening with Persephone – being horny looking at Hades and being angry for the stupidest of things.

One moment they were all over each other and the next they are fighting and saying unacceptable things. Plus, when did they get into a relationship? I have no idea. There was smut, too much smut (not that there’s any problem with it) and all the signs from Hades showing the intimacy between them and still, Persephone will say, I don’t think we are in a relationship😐

I have never seen such a bad female protagonist in a book. She was so entitled and annoying and frustrating. Just after two days of meeting Hades, she started DEMANDING he explain to her things that don’t relate to her.. And these “demands” don’t stop at Hades, for every person she meets, she demands they tell her what she asks. Why, Persephone? Why are they obliged to answer your questions?

After some time the side characters and even Hades had enough of her entitlement in the book, and it was really funny to see them tell her the truth bombs💥💣Plus, the fact that she had profound conversations about Hades with the side characters and not with him is just stupid.

Moreover, the plot just made everything so convenient for Persephone, like, Hades at the first meeting gave her all access to his club and even the Underworld. Everyone around Hades just accepted her and put her in the topmost position when she hasn’t done a single thing to be there. Just a few days into her internship, she writes an article about Hades (by mistake) and becomes a worldwide sensation🤦🏻‍♀️.. just pure convenience..

And my rant about how bad of a character Persephone is ended here😂 Let’s have a few words about Hades. The book tried so hard to make him that brooding-sexy-toned abs-dark haired-handsome-that-every-girl-drools-over… but he was just flat😐 I couldn’t connect to him and his actions. Plus, him being the God of the Dead, and being so powerful was very underwhelming.

And that plot twist and the story around her powers were so stupid and uninteresting respectively. And, I had no interest in whatsoever that was happening with Persephone and Hades or any other person..

Overall, it is an insta-lust that focused solely on the smut and put other things in the background. The characters were very written poorly and the female protagonist is too annoying and entitled to read a story about someone just whining and making a scene around her, and bringing others into her drama. Super disappointed with this one!

Do you like Fantasy Romance? Which book would you recommend in this genre?

Scarlett St. Clair is the author of the HADES X PERSEPHONE SAGA, the HADES SAGA, and WHEN STARS COME OUT. She has a Master’s degree in Library Science and Information Studies and a Bachelors in English Writing. She is obsessed with Greek Mythology, murder mysteries, and the afterlife. If you are obsessed with these things, then you’ll like her books.

Thank you for reading, Ruminative Fam!