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Dead Beautiful

by Melanie Dugan (Goodreads Author)

3.46 of 5 stars 3.46 · rating details · 24 ratings · 12 reviews

Dead Beautiful is a contemporary retelling of the classic Greek myth of Persephone. This was the myth the Greeks used to explain how we came to have the change of seasons. In the traditional version of the myth, Persephone – the daughter of Demeter, Goddess of agriculture and fertility, and Zeus, the top god on Olympus – is abducted one day by Hades, God of the Underworld...more

Paperback, 165 pages

Published May 2012 by Upstart Press

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Jun 22, 2012 Jessica rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult

Melanie Dugan's Dead Beautiful is a fresh take on a Greek myth that we all know and love. Mythology tells us that Persephone was conned into spending half the year with Hades, and thus the seasons were born. What if that wasn't the case though? What if, instead, Persephone went willingly to her new part-time home. Dugan's book explores the possibility that perhaps, rather than stealing her soul, Hades actually stole Persephone's heart.

Dead Beautiful is unique in that it is told in very short bur...more Melanie Dugan's Dead Beautiful is a fresh take on a Greek myth that we all know and love. Mythology tells us that Persephone was conned into spending half the year with Hades, and thus the seasons were born. What if that wasn't the case though? What if, instead, Persephone went willingly to her new part-time home. Dugan's book explores the possibility that perhaps, rather than stealing her soul, Hades actually stole Persephone's heart.

Dead Beautiful is unique in that it is told in very short bursts. Each chapter is essentially a miniature interview with a different god or goddess who is related somehow to Persephone. Dugan' sets up a world where the gods are the head honchos. They are responsible to keep the earth running smoothly and, wouldn't you know it, some of them are just overworked. Who has time to pay attention to flighty teenagers (18 millennia is rather young) when you've got a whole world to run? This is the perfect set up for Persephone and Hades to build their story, and it works really well as a whole.

The one downside to telling the story this way is that it is all dialogue. Settings, events, and everything in between are built entirely through the words of the different entities being interviewed. In some cases, like for Persphone and Hades, this works great! These two have very distinct voices. Especially Persephone, as she's portrayed as the petulant teen most of the time. For others though, it gets really difficult to figure out who is speaking. If you're not a fan of reading the title of each chapter to know who is going to be telling the story, this might drive you crazy. Fair warning! What I loved most of all though was the new take on the relationship between Persephone and Hades. Who knew that Hades was actually such a sweet guy? Dead Beautiful shows that sometimes things are misconstrued.

As a whole this book is definitely a different, but intriguing, way of reworking mythology that has been around for centuries. Let's be honest, readers who are purists are most likely not going to like what Dugan has done with the myth. However if you're willing to go in as a blank slate, I think you'll find something to enjoy in Dead Beautiful. From Persephone's ranting, to Hades' scheming, there truly is a brand new story here to fall for.
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May 22, 2012 Suz rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-read-2012

Melanie Dugan has penned a beautiful mondern contemporary re-telling of the Greek myth, Persephone. For those who aren't familiar with Greek mythology, this particular myth explains how we came to have the change of the seasons. It's a refreshing take on a wonderful myth filled with originality all its own. The writing is gorgeous and flows wonderfully well, the characters are likable yet still possessing realistic flaws of their own, and the sense of plot is quite captivating. Readers will find...more Melanie Dugan has penned a beautiful mondern contemporary re-telling of the Greek myth, Persephone. For those who aren't familiar with Greek mythology, this particular myth explains how we came to have the change of the seasons. It's a refreshing take on a wonderful myth filled with originality all its own. The writing is gorgeous and flows wonderfully well, the characters are likable yet still possessing realistic flaws of their own, and the sense of plot is quite captivating. Readers will find themselves lost within the pages of this beautiful compelling new look at a classic Greek myth that Melanie Dugan has breathed fresh new life into.

Persephone is the daughter of Demeter, who is the goddess of agriculture and fertility and Zeus who is the highest god on mount Olympus. When told in its original form, Persephone is said to have been abducted by Hades the god of the Underworld against her will. While in the Underworld she eats six pomegranate seeds and because of that is forced to spend six months in the Underworld with Hades and six months with her mother, Demeter. During the time that she lives with her mother, spring and summer are in full bloom. When she's living down below in the Underworld with Hades, fall and winter are in full swing.

Melanie Dugan takes this story and explores it in such a different way, making Persephone into a normal young teenage girl, who might not have told her mother the entire truth. What if Persephone wasn't abducted, but was somehow seduced or became enamored with Hades and fell in love with him choosing to go to the Underworld with him? It was intriguing to see the way she took this story and to get to see another side or possibility to such a wonderful classic Greek myth. I've always wondered myself, personally, what if. Those kinds of scenarios are always churning over in my mind and Melanie wrote such a gorgeous contemporary re-telling that is filled with amazing humor, smart witty characters, and fast paced action all packed into a short novel sure to blow the socks off of anyone who enjoys the exploration of Greek myths.

I enjoyed seeing Persephone portrayed as a willful almost rebellious teenage girl who is tired of being overprotected by her mother. Hades was mysteriously swoon worthy and incredibly sexy and alluring, who wouldn't fall head over feet for him the way that Persephone did when she caught him looking her way?! Despite the fact that she deliberately and willfully did whatever she pleased when it came to Hades and choosing to be with him, she was still a very likable presence in the book. It was interesting to see the consequences that came about, along with the dynamics between the mother and daughter bond.

Dead Beautiful is a must read for any fan of Greek mythology.(less)

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May 24, 2012 Heidi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Dead Beautiful is a modern version of the story of Hades and Persephone. The author presents the book in first person and each chapter is another characters view point of the events that happened.
Persephone is a head strong teenager who enjoys living on earth more than living with the Gods on Olympus. She tires very hard to fit into the lifestyle her mom has given her but she finds she is looking for something different and that is when she meets Hades. Persephone is attractive to his darker sid...more Dead Beautiful is a modern version of the story of Hades and Persephone. The author presents the book in first person and each chapter is another characters view point of the events that happened.
Persephone is a head strong teenager who enjoys living on earth more than living with the Gods on Olympus. She tires very hard to fit into the lifestyle her mom has given her but she finds she is looking for something different and that is when she meets Hades. Persephone is attractive to his darker side and feel a connection to Hades. The story revolves around Persephone desire to with Hades but there is a catch he will not be with her until she knows what she wants. Demeter Persephone's mother is a bit controlling but its only because she wants her Daughter to become a lever 1 Goddess and fulfill her duties. Cyane is Persephone's best friend and the only witness to the "abduction" of Persephone. I found the author portrayal of Cyane a bit sad and annoying. She creates Cyane a teenager who is annoying and seems to only be Persephone friend because Persephone is popular. The story of Cyane is one of true friendship because she was Persephone childhood friend and she tires everything to keep Hades from taking Persephone to the point she loses her life. I don't think the author needed to go as far to kill off a character but the author had opportunity to bring a little more to the character Cyane than making her a ditzy friend who wanted to date Persephone potential boyfriends.

The Author humanizes the Gods. Zeus is the head God who is tired of dealing with everyone's problems on earth and Olympia and just wants some time alone with his wife Hara. The stress of life as a Head God have gotten to him and that is why he is unaware of what Hades has done. The author write Hades as a people person someone who is looking for a lasting relationship even though he is the God of the underworld. I applaud the authors decision on writing Hades as a caring, overworked people person and not the revengefully God that he is known to be. The authors modern tone made it difficult for me to enjoy the story. I would have enjoyed the story more had the author left out references to Jesus, stocks, retirement plans, Beckham, Ugg books and S&M. I feel since the story is about why we have seasons the modern languages takes away from the simplicity of the story.

The authors writing was well written and the author kept true to her writing style from the beginning of the book to the end. Which I feel is difficult to do when writing in first person when you have several different characters and each with their own version of the "abdication". Dead Beautiful is a decent young adult novel that is appropriate for the age. There is no sex or language in the book and it gives the young read enough romance without going into detail.

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May 16, 2012 Carrie Ardoin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: i-own-this, tour, posted-on-blog, gods-and-demigods, funny

If you have even a passing knowledge of Greek mythology, then you know the legend of the forbidden love between Hades and Persephone. Dead Beautiful is a refreshing retelling of that story, with points of view from several other people affected, including Zeus, Demeter, and Hades himself.

This was such a cool and fun story! I am a huge mythology geek and I love when authors put a new spin on a timeless tale. In this book, Persephone is more like a willful teenager who is tired of living under her...more

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Jun 19, 2012 Christina (A Reader of Fictions) rated it 3 of 5 stars

Originally posted here and there's a giveaway open until July 3 if you follow that link.

Mythology, particularly Greek, has been one of my favorite subjects to read about since I was a child. When I was really young, I had a picture book full of myths. Then I graduated to chapter books. My love for the Greek gods and goddesses has never diminished. They call to my imagination so strongly, Zeus with his wandering eyes, understandably jealous Hera, clever and brutal Athena, terrifying Hades, and na...more Originally posted here and there's a giveaway open until July 3 if you follow that link.

Mythology, particularly Greek, has been one of my favorite subjects to read about since I was a child. When I was really young, I had a picture book full of myths. Then I graduated to chapter books. My love for the Greek gods and goddesses has never diminished. They call to my imagination so strongly, Zeus with his wandering eyes, understandably jealous Hera, clever and brutal Athena, terrifying Hades, and naive Persephone.

I especially love when an author can put a new spin on one of these old tales. Dugan definitely has her own distinct take on the myth of Hades and Persephone, and on Mount Olympus itself. Dead Beautiful is funny and well-written, as well. What I like most is that Dugan imbues Persephone with a bit more intelligence than most adaptations; this Persephone makes her own choices and is actually powerful and intelligent. This made a lovely change from the thoughtless girl kidnapped by the God of the Dead.

The style of Dead Beautiful is very interesting. The story is told from many points of view: Demeter, Zeus, Persephone, Hades, and more. Each section, generally quite short, reminded me most of those confession cameras on reality shows. It was kind of like The Real World: Mount Olympus. The characters snipe at one another in their internal monologues, commenting on what the others are saying and how sick they are of being treated a certain way. This worked pretty well for the most part, and very much fit with her view of the gods.

Dugan's gods run Mount Olympus like a corporation, concerned with market share and that upstart Jesus who is trying to overthrow them with his peaceful mumbo-jumbo. This, too, was funny, although I wasn't a huge fan of the repetition of it throughout the book. The first time the point was made, I chuckled, but I wasn't invested enough in it to want more details.

My main issue with Dead Beautiful was the awkwardness of the setting. What time are they in? They seem to be in Roman times, during Jesus' lifetime. However, Zeus says at one point of something that 'it's along the lines of how radio frequency will function in eighteen, nineteen centuries' (92). Does this mean that the gods, or Zeus at the very least, can see the future, that they live, in essence, in all times? I would be okay with that, only, if that's the case, shouldn't they know that Jesus' religion will eclipse theirs? Shouldn't they know they will become solely fodder for fiction? Because they do not seem to know that. I found the whole thing disconcerting, with references to drachmas as the monetary system mentioned in the same breath as one character's possibly having ADD/ADHD. The book would have been much stronger with a bit more consideration of these points.

Although Dead Beautiful had some large issues, I definitely enjoyed reading it. There were enough new and amusing things that I was entertained all the way through.(less)

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May 27, 2012 Jael rated it 3 of 5 stars

I don't know much about Greek mythology, but when the opportunity came to learn more I couldn't resist. Dead Beautiful by Melanie Dugan is a retelling of the Greek myth of Persephone. I have never heard of the story. All I know about Greek mythology is that Zeus was the top God and he was married to Hera. In a nutshell, Persephone is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, who was the goddess of agriculture and fertility. Persephone is later abducted by Hades, god of the underworld. So many ways to go...more I don't know much about Greek mythology, but when the opportunity came to learn more I couldn't resist. Dead Beautiful by Melanie Dugan is a retelling of the Greek myth of Persephone. I have never heard of the story. All I know about Greek mythology is that Zeus was the top God and he was married to Hera. In a nutshell, Persephone is the daughter of Zeus and Demeter, who was the goddess of agriculture and fertility. Persephone is later abducted by Hades, god of the underworld. So many ways to go with this story.

Dead Beautiful aims to humanize this story and make it more relatable to a modern audience. Take away the Greek elements and this was your typical family drama. The book takes a good look at the close bond between mothers and daughters.

Persephone wants to create her own path, but her mother has other ideas. Demeter wants Persephone to marry Darryl, the god of home repairs. Then and now, Darryl is a "good catch." Darryl is the type of man you can bring home to mom and dad, even if they happen to be powerful Gods. Demeter wants to be involved in every aspect of Persephone's life, while Zeus is more concerned with his marriage to Hera and someone named Jesus trying to steal his thunder. Persephone's needs and wants are Demeter's problem not Zeus. Living on Mount Olympus, he is far removed from Demeter and Persephone's problems on earth.

Persephone feels no attraction to Darryl. Hades has piqued her interest. Being the god of the underworld, Hades has developed a bad reputation. But is it all true? Does anyone really want to know Hades? Persephone does, she sees beyond all the gossip. She is attracted to Hades, but Persephone has to want to go with him. Hades won't force Persephone against her will. When Persephone chooses Hades, no one wants to believe that. Why would she abandon her family? What can Hades offer Persephone that Darryl can't? Love.

Reading this book, I saw it as a mother who couldn't let go. Persephone is no longer a child but a young woman, something her parents, especially Demeter, refuse to see. She has opinions independent of her mother and father. She won't hate Hades simply because they do. Demeter just isn't ready to let go, like most parents. Give this one a try, I'm sure you'll see your family members in a lot of these characters.

Rating: Give it a try

Note: I received a copy of the book from the author as part of a tour with TLC Book Tours.(less)

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May 30, 2012 Audra (Unabridged Chick) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: goddesses, heroine-unlikable, heroine-unusually-attractive, mood-too-inspirational, places-fictional-places, secret-identities, teenage-heroine-but-not-ya, yawn

This book elicited some pretty strong feelings in me (I can't help it; I'm an all or nothing girl.) At moments, I really enjoyed this book; at moments, I kind of wanted to lob it against the wall. I think my biggest challenge with this book is that I just couldn't tell what it was: a YA novel? A YA spoof? A feminist retelling of a Greek myth? A contemporary re-envisioning of a Greek myth? Not being sure of what the novel was aiming for made it tough for me to evaluate how well Dugan achieved her...more This book elicited some pretty strong feelings in me (I can't help it; I'm an all or nothing girl.) At moments, I really enjoyed this book; at moments, I kind of wanted to lob it against the wall. I think my biggest challenge with this book is that I just couldn't tell what it was: a YA novel? A YA spoof? A feminist retelling of a Greek myth? A contemporary re-envisioning of a Greek myth? Not being sure of what the novel was aiming for made it tough for me to evaluate how well Dugan achieved her goal.

Told in various voices, the story articulates the relationship between Hades and Persephone. Everyone has a chance to share their side of the story, and Dugan's angle is to embrace the modern era. Zeus is obsessed with market shares; Hades is balancing his budget so he can improve the underworld. Persephone is a smothered teenager with an overprotective mother who does her best to shield Persephone from Hera's attentions (lest Zeus' wife get into a jealous rage or something like that.).

The novel has a bit of a spoof feel to it, someone exaggerating what teenagers in YA novels sound like. At times, it's a bit funny; at times, a little tiresome. As with so much about this book, I couldn't tell if Dugan was being wryly ironic or just didn't notice what she was doing. More than halfway through the book, Persephone gripes about how all her friends talk about just boys, and clothes and music, and yet, all Persephone has groused about was Hades, other boys, the rest of the Gods, her mother. She was hardly the nuanced conversationalist but she judged her friends for being like her. I couldn't tell if Dugan was being sly here, making a nudge about someone who can't see past her own wangst, or was Dugan so enamored of her character that she didn't notice her creation's flaws?

I'm not mythology or ethnographer, so I haven't spent huge amounts of time pondering the philosophical, social, and emotional implications of myths like the Persephone, but I do know there's a great deal of debate about the rape/kidnapping of Persephone. Some feminists have tried to reclaim the tale as one of deliberate choice on the part of Persephone, and I don't mind that. However, Dugan's Persephone was emphatically teenaged and I really just couldn't shake the squick of this teenager (however millenia she's lived, her behavior has made it clear she's not making choices like an adult) with the ambigu-adult Hades. (Who was rather a dreamboat, and he needed an adult woman, not a teen, no matter what Dugan tried to say.)

Reclaiming the Greek pantheon for romantic purposes is hardly new, but Dugan's unique spin was the delightfully meta feel to her story: characters responded to each other in their respective chapters -- when Hades observes something about Zeus, Zeus snaps a comeback -- and popular culture icons like David Beckham as well as other religious icons, like Jesus, are glibly mentioned. Like this riff between Hera and Zeus:

"That's sweet," says Hera in a voice that indicates it's not sweet. "What he's really advocating is the overthrow of the status quo: the first shall be the last and the last shall be the first, or some such, and he's not talking about standing in line for Aristophanes' latest."

"Yeah, well, the system isn't perfect. It needs some adjusting."

"We are the system, you big dolt." (p74-75)

So, I'm torn: what worked really worked for me, and what didn't work, really didn't work for me. To each their own; there are tons of positive reviews about this one so don't take just my word for it!(less)

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Jun 14, 2012 Kelly Houser rated it 3 of 5 stars

I love the retelling of a classic, particularly when that classic is from mythology. When I saw this novel was being offered by TLC Book Tours, I volunteered for the tour. I was intrigued by the retelling aspect, that it was a mythological retelling, and that it focused on my favorite myth - Persephone and Hades.

I found this novel to be very interesting. The story is told in many narrative voices, which is a device I am quite fond of in books. At different points throughout Dead Beautiful, Perse...more

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Jun 05, 2012 Caitlin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

Dead Beautiful has an excellent premise: What if Persephone ran off with the bad boy (instead of being kidnapped by him)? I've always wondered that myself. What teenaged girl doesn't long for bad boys of whatever type appropriate to their time? In many ways, Hades is (like Lucifer) the ultimate bad boy.

Ms. Dugan takes this premise and runs with it in this short novel made up of journal entries written by various players in the mythology. She has a nice metaphor at the center - that the gods are...more

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May 06, 2013 Katie/Doing Dewey rated it 4 of 5 stars

For those of you who don’t know the Persephone myth, a quick recap: Persephone, daughter of the Greek goddess of of the harvest, is abducted by Hades, the Greek god of the dead. Before she is rescued by her mother Demeter, she eats six pomegranate seeds. As a result, she is required to spend six months of every year with Hades and her mother is so distraught during those times that she neglects her job as goddess of the harvest and we have fall and winter. In Dead Beautiful, Melanie Dugan consid...more For those of you who don’t know the Persephone myth, a quick recap: Persephone, daughter of the Greek goddess of of the harvest, is abducted by Hades, the Greek god of the dead. Before she is rescued by her mother Demeter, she eats six pomegranate seeds. As a result, she is required to spend six months of every year with Hades and her mother is so distraught during those times that she neglects her job as goddess of the harvest and we have fall and winter. In Dead Beautiful, Melanie Dugan considers the possibility that Persephone wasn’t abducted after all but was just a rebellious teen who fell in love with Hades and didn’t have the courage to tell her mom.

At first, I wasn’t sure how I felt about the journal entry style in which this story is told. It made it a little harder to get into the story and the writing was a bit choppy at first. However, once I got into the story and events started to flow, the breaks between entries were no longer disruptive. At that point I ended up enjoying hearing everyone’s side of the story and I really liked that each of the characters had a unique voice.

I was also initially worried that the casual feel of the journal entries would be an excuse for poor writing, in large part because the first long entry was from the perspective of a rather ditzy character. I was wrong. While that particular character was not my favorite, I did like that she was distinctive, I thought the rest of the writing was superb, and I think it got stronger as the book progressed.

Although this could be categorized as a teen romance, it’s completely avoids some of the common short comings of the genre. Sure, Persephone is in love with Hades, but she doesn’t gush or act stupidly as a result. She very seriously considers her decision to go live with him. Their attraction to each other is physical, but they both also mention loving the intelligent conversations they share. Although the story only mentions their earlier conversations, it’s enough that this doesn’t feel like insta-love. There are a few weird little things, like them jumping so quickly to discussing marriage and Persephone (generally a strong character) almost fading away when she misses her mother, but I think those are acceptable artifacts of the starting myth.

Unlike the Percy Jackson series, which mostly uses Greek mythology to provide characters, Dead Beautiful borrows a lot more. Because of that and the journal-entry format, there isn’t much world building; this is definitely a character driven story. I appreciate good world building a lot, but the characters in this book were enough fun that the focus didn’t bother me. I would highly recommend this to anyone who likes Greek mythology or re-tellings in general, as this one was very well done.

This review first published on Doing Dewey.(less)

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May 31, 2012 Proud Book Nerd rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: blog-tours, mythology, tlc-tours

A unique and very interesting telling of Persephone's myth. I enjoyed the multiple viewpoints and the fresh take on the story.

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May 06, 2013 Sheri Robinson rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is a great little book. What a fun spin on a Greek mythological story.

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About Melanie Dugan

I was born in the U.S. and now live with my family in Canada. My third novel, Dead Beautiful, has just been published by UpStart Press.

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