Rachel Alexander's Blog, page 428
March 8, 2016
enveniya:
Persephone SatedWhat started out as a way to...
Persephone Sated
What started out as a way to decompress at work turned into this. I haven’t celebrated the erotica part of Receiver of Many, so here’s my contribution to it. Here’s Persephone reclined and relaxing after a busy night with Aidon.
Receiver of Many is a erotic retelling of the Persephone and Hades myth by @kata-chthonia. Persephone has a great deal of agency in her retelling, which is one of the many things I love about her book. I spent a whole year just doing fanart of this book because I love it SO MUCH. I’ve had the honor to meet her in person too, and she’s super awesome.
She has a giveaway going on now for the second part of RoM, Destroyer of Light, so if you’re interested, go enter!
tanya-katoch:
Today on this International Women’s day, I want to pay tribute to my favourite Hades...
Today on this International Women’s day, I want to pay tribute to my favourite Hades and Persephone story – Receiver of Many By Kata Chthonia. It is the most accurate rendition of the famous Greek myth.
What I love the most about this story is its portrayal of women. Persephone has been shown as the Goddess of flowers in the beginning. Her transition from a simple, innocent Goddess into a powerful Queen of the Underworld is outstanding. The way she handles her tough situation when kidnapped, her realization that she was betrothed to the King of the Underworld even before she was born and her stance to become her husband’s equal ruling partner of the vast Underworld is truly commendable. Not only this, she travels down the dangerous Tartarus and meets the deadly Titans and their tyrant king Cronus. Furthermore, she hands out apt punishment to Sisyphus. Persephone in this story is shown who she truly was.
And we have many other strong female characters in the book as well. The Grain Goddess Demeter, who was refused any sort of help and assistance from every corner including her own siblings, manages to bend the king of gods, Zeus. Then there is Goddess Nyx who is wise and commands respect. Hecate, the goddess of Crossroads and Witchcraft, you may call her Miss No-Nonsense. She is a goddess of her own power and is a true friend, philosopher, guide to the king and Queen. There is mighty Aphrodite whose charms and attitude is unparalleled. Merope who was abused, beaten and burnt alive by her sorcerer husband Sisyphus. She survived the cruel Tartarus and which damaged her emotionally. But she gradually overcame her fears and became stable. Her emotional courage is remarkable. And Voleta, an Underworld nymph, who despite being vulnerable, fights bravely with Sisyphus. Eris, the goddess of Discord, who loves to challenge men.
And ultimately the Fates, who create and control the destinies of everyone present in the entire cosmos.
Not to forget the master brain behind this epic story – Rachel Alexander, a strong and independent woman herself.
“Here’s to strong women. May we know them. May we be them. May we raise them.”
Destroyer of Light
A few of you might remember a few
months ago when I took to Tumblr to sing the praises of Rachel Alexander’s
retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth in her debut novel Receiver of Many. At that time I
mentioned that the sequel Destroyer of
Light would be due out in March of this year.
The official release date is March 20 (which is just seventeen short days away!), however, it is
currently available for preorder. It will be offered in both paperback (at
Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and Createspace) and as an ebook (on Kindle, iBooks,
Nook, and Smashwords).
In my previous review I mentioned
that Greek mythology has a very tender spot in my heart, and that I tend to be
rather snobbish when it comes to a lot of the retellings that have flooded the
market. I’m particularly this way with the myth of Hades and Persephone, which
has so many iterations it can be almost impossible to determine which ones
deserve the time and effort it takes to read them.
Ms. Alexander’s are definitely
worth that time and effort.
She has meticulously woven an enthralling
tale of love, loss, struggle, and triumph that makes for an epic that does full
credit to the original myths. Her research is, simply put, awe-inspiring, and
combined with creative details that bring life to not only the setting, but the
characters themselves. All the characters are fully formed with their own woes
and motivations, leaving no one pigeon-holed into the tired tropes that so
frequently occurs with these sort of retellings. The characterizations of the
divine entities we’re so familiar with is probably my favorite aspect of Ms.
Alexander’s work.
From her beginning as the shy,
sweet maid Kore, to her zenith as the Dread Queen, Persephone’s growth and
development are natural and captivating. She gradually learns who she is, and
accepts her life and fate by taking control of it. It is such a refreshing
change of pace from so many heroines.
This carries over into other
characters as well. Hades is not a Mr. Darcy figure just sulking about in the shadows of
the Underworld, and neither is he some power-hungry villain waiting for an
opportunity to get revenge on the Olympians. Demeter is portrayed as the
grieving, panicked mother she was in original sources, and not some callous harridan
with control issues. Even more minor characters, like many of the mortals, are
given their own narratives that further flesh out the world found in Receiver of Many and Destroyer of Light.
So if you’re looking for a novel
with a genuinely strong female lead, a historical setting with fantasy threaded
through it, intricate relationships amongst all the characters, and an intense plot with some truly
scintillating erotic scenes peppered throughout (all of which is written in
some immaculate prose); Destroyer of
Light is for you.
Remember though, it is a sequel. So
if you want to know the full story you need to get your hands on a copy of Receiver of Many (available at Amazon, iBooks, Smashwords, and Barnes&Noble). This saga will continue in The Good Counselor which is currently in production.
the-exception-to-the-rules:Do you remember when I posted about...
Do you remember when I posted about Receiver of Many? Well, Rachel Alexander has written a sequel! Destroyer of Light, an erotic romance about Hades and Persephone and the sequel to Receiver of Many, debuts on March 20, 2016. Available for Preorder in Paperback and eBook
mellonmate:
Hi all! There’s a new book that’s available for...
Hi all! There’s a new book that’s available for pre-order that looks really good. If you’re interested in Greek mythology, then take a look at Destroyer of Light by Rachel Alexander. Her story follows the story of Hades and Persephone, and the events that they go through.
Mme Alexander is hosting a giveaway for a signed copy of Destroyer of Light, and so I’m posting my composition “Pirithous and Pluto” as an entry for it! I actually have a measure by measure breakdown of the entire piece as to what it symbolizes, but since the total thing is a little over 4 pages single spaced, I’m just going to post the summary of the myth that helped inspire this piece.
“Pirithous and Theseus are both grieving over the deaths of their wives. They get the idea to kidnap daughters of Zeus and make them into their wives. Theseus ends up kidnapping Helen (aka Helen of Troy). Pirithous decides to go capture Persephone. In a dream that both of these men had, Zeus told them to go to the Underworld and ask Hades for Persephone. The two men, following dream Zeus’s advice, did just that. Hades had already known what their intentions were before they arrived in the Underworld, so when Pirithous and Theseus appeared before him, Hades was prepared. Hades invited them to a feast, which the men accepted, only to find themselves permanently bound to the chairs they sat down in. Hercules coincidentally was in the Underworld at that time (he was there to fetch Cerberus) and he saw the two men trapped. He immediately was able to free Theseus. However, when they tried to free Pirithous, the earth violently shook. Hades didn’t want the man who tried to steal his queen to walk free of punishment. Ultimately, Hercules and Theseus left Pirithous behind.”
chococate1:
Hey you out there! You want to read a book? A new book? Do you like Greek mythology...
Hey you out there! You want to read a book? A new book? Do you like Greek mythology and/or want to know more about it? Well, I have the perfect recommendation for you!
Destroyer of Light is coming! It’s the sequel of Receiver of many, a incredibly beautiful story about Hades and Persephone, with many beautiful characters, an intricate plot, pages and pages of well written erotica, complex characters, and more!
Give these books a chance. The amount of research behind them is unbelievable, and you’ll learn a lot more than you could think. (I did!)
Love, myth, history, intrigue, are just a book away!
For my Italian friends: if you feel you can’t read an entire book in English, do not worry. While I didn’t know some words (and Google translate easily solves that problem), I didn’t find any difficulties at following the plot.
(Ne vale davvero la pena. Leggerete un bellissimo libro e imparerete anche l'inglese!)
Please, buy and read Receiver of Many and Destroyer of Light! All the information are on @kata-chthonia (the incredibly talented author) ’s blog. Please please read them, I need someone who can fangirl about it with me.
(I think everyone who knows me personally has already heard about RoM, I couldn’t help but talk about it over and over. I love good books.)
March 7, 2016
kata-chthonia:
Receiver of Many is in the top 6% of ALL BOOKS...
Receiver of Many is in the top 6% of ALL BOOKS being sold on Kindle, and ranked at #370 in Romance>Erotica, according to Pronoun, the new self-publishing and analytics tracker.
And this has been an average-ass week for sales too!! This means that YOU GUYS have been buying my book and buying it consistently enough that it caught Pronoun’s attention.
So thank you! (And woo hoo!)
And let’s hope Destroyer of Light does just as well.
coloricioso:
Wondrous and bright,
it gave a sense of holy awe...
Wondrous and bright,
it gave a sense of holy awe
to deathless gods and mortal men.
Marvellous and radiant,
a flower of sweet fragance,
which Earth as a trick grew for
Her, the flower faced maiden.
It was a favour for Him, who
Receives so Many…
The Narcissus
Receiver of Many is in the top 6% of ALL BOOKS being sold on...
Receiver of Many is in the top 6% of ALL BOOKS being sold on Kindle, and ranked at #370 in Romance>Erotica, according to Pronoun, the new self-publishing and analytics tracker.
And this has been an average-ass week for sales too!! This means that YOU GUYS have been buying my book and buying it consistently enough that it caught Pronoun’s attention.
So thank you! (And woo hoo!)
And let’s hope Destroyer of Light does just as well.
Destroyer of Light
A few of you might remember a few
months ago when I took to Tumblr to sing the praises of Rachel Alexander’s
retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth in her debut novel Receiver of Many. At that time I
mentioned that the sequel Destroyer of
Light would be due out in March of this year.
The official release date is March 20 (which is just seventeen short days away!), however, it is
currently available for preorder. It will be offered in both paperback (at
Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and Createspace) and as an ebook (on Kindle, iBooks,
Nook, and Smashwords).
In my previous review I mentioned
that Greek mythology has a very tender spot in my heart, and that I tend to be
rather snobbish when it comes to a lot of the retellings that have flooded the
market. I’m particularly this way with the myth of Hades and Persephone, which
has so many iterations it can be almost impossible to determine which ones
deserve the time and effort it takes to read them.
Ms. Alexander’s are definitely
worth that time and effort.
She has meticulously woven an enthralling
tale of love, loss, struggle, and triumph that makes for an epic that does full
credit to the original myths. Her research is, simply put, awe-inspiring, and
combined with creative details that bring life to not only the setting, but the
characters themselves. All the characters are fully formed with their own woes
and motivations, leaving no one pigeon-holed into the tired tropes that so
frequently occurs with these sort of retellings. The characterizations of the
divine entities we’re so familiar with is probably my favorite aspect of Ms.
Alexander’s work.
From her beginning as the shy,
sweet maid Kore, to her zenith as the Dread Queen, Persephone’s growth and
development are natural and captivating. She gradually learns who she is, and
accepts her life and fate by taking control of it. It is such a refreshing
change of pace from so many heroines.
This carries over into other
characters as well. Hades is not a Mr. Darcy figure just sulking about in the shadows of
the Underworld, and neither is he some power-hungry villain waiting for an
opportunity to get revenge on the Olympians. Demeter is portrayed as the
grieving, panicked mother she was in original sources, and not some callous harridan
with control issues. Even more minor characters, like many of the mortals, are
given their own narratives that further flesh out the world found in Receiver of Many and Destroyer of Light.
So if you’re looking for a novel
with a genuinely strong female lead, a historical setting with fantasy threaded
through it, intricate relationships amongst all the characters, and an intense plot with some truly
scintillating erotic scenes peppered throughout (all of which is written in
some immaculate prose); Destroyer of
Light is for you.
Remember though, it is a sequel. So
if you want to know the full story you need to get your hands on a copy of Receiver of Many (available at Amazon, iBooks, Smashwords, and Barnes&Noble). This saga will continue in The Good Counselor which is currently in production.
