Review--A Game of Gods by Scarlett St. Clair

 

Told in multiple POVs, A Game of Gods is the final installment in the Hades Saga by USA Today Bestselling author Scarlett St. Clair.

Hades, God of the Dead, has finally made Persephone his in every way possible. With their wedding on the horizon, the couple should be ecstatic. But Demeter is wreaking havoc on their bliss by battering the whole of New Greece with erratic and dangerous weather. At the same time, Theseus continues with his agenda against the Gods, allying with the hate-group Triad in an effort to bring down all of Olympus.

Hades refuses to allow anything to stop him from securing Persephone as his bride, but he must play a deep strategic game with the Gods of Olympus to safeguard their future. And it is not entirely clear which Gods are truly on his side.

 

 

 

A Game of Gods by Scarlett St. Clair is Hades' "last" solo book but as we know the series still has one epic book to go! This book once again tells Hades' version of A Touch of Malice, basically letting us see what he was doing every time Persephone was on her own. I've always found his point of view a little more interesting. Perhaps because in the beginning I did feel like he was leaving out a lot of things to Persephone and that bugged me, these books are definitely letting you know all the details!

What was a surprise in this book was two additional points of view to the story! We get Dionysus' point of view as well as Theseus. I guess it's been too long since I read A Game of Retribution as I couldn't remember these guys' roles in the story to date. But I quickly caught on as the story moved along. I have to say I was fascinated with Dionysus' point of view. It's been ages since I did my Greek mythology classes so I can't remember much about him other than being the God of Wine, nor did I remember his involvement with Ariadne, but wow! I can't wait to see St. Clair further explore this down the line.

But back to Hades! We open with him desperately trying to locate the ophiotaurus before anyone else as a prophecy states that the one who burns its intestines will have the power to destroy the gods. And for many reasons, Hades want to have the creature. But he is not the only one searching for this creature.

Meanwhile, we see Dionysus and Ariadne form an unlikely alliance to find Medusa. Ariadne is desperate to find and save her sister, Phaedra, who she believes is in danger from Theseus who is her husband. Theseus has Phaedra naturally, and this is one conniving demigod! He is such a sinister and disgusting character and I have to give St. Clair props for writing him such as it takes quite a bit for me to continue loathing a character after I finish a book. I mean, yes, I usually dislike the enemy, but I am wanting to see this guy die a slow and painful death for all the pain he has caused these characters. He's a vile villain to say the least! Lol.

The story pretty much follows along A Touch of Malice just as expected. We see through Hades eyes as all the usual events happen and it was great fun being inside his head. I did enjoy the added plot points his character provided off scene from Persephone's story. It does make me wonder if some of the goals he could not accomplish will come about in the final book! I just have to go the store and pickup my copy as I am definitely reading that one next now that I am finally caught up! Lol.

Hermes continues to be a delight in this story! I am glad to see he is his usual self even when Persephone isn't around! It's not that I think he acts differently with her, I was just glad he made it on the page more than just those moments we saw previously. He brings a lightness to the story that at times is shrouded with some pretty dark stuff! He's a joy to read to say the least!

The romance was once again steamy! I mean, it's expected at this point! Lol. True, I'm the kind of reader who can do without numerous lovey dovey scenes, but that's just a me issue. I know when I am picking up a book that's deemed "romance" but still has other excellent plot details. 

Things do end with the same cliffhanger we previously saw in Persephone's book since that was likely our first introduction to Hades' point of view based on release dates of the previous books. I can see why readers clamored for more of Hades after that! I am just glad I picked the series up when I did to be able to enjoy it consecutively! 

This has definitely been a fun series to date! I love Greek mythology inspired books and naturally, the Hades and Persephone myth is the most popular of choices. It's always interesting to see what route the authors will take. It's been a long time since I read through my book of myths to see how they originally went as a lot of the taboo topics tended to appear in these myths as we had no filters way back in ancient Greece! Lol. I do like how St. Clair keeps to some of that style, but mutes the harshness of some that. The gods here do feel like the ones I've read about in the myths, though I think Hermes might be more of a unique style to himself!

If you're a fan of Greek mythology and are looking for a more adult take on the Hades and Persephone myth, look no further than Scarlett St. Clair!

Overall Rating 4/5 stars