Book Review: Winter Harvest by Ioanna Papadopoulou

When her beloved daughter Kore vanishes, Demeter is distraught. Suspecting betrayal and mistrusting of her family, she searches across the world, unable to come to terms with such a loss. But Demeter is one of the original goddesses of Mount Olympus, and a force not to be underestimated. She is determined that she will find her daughter, even if it means destroying humanity in the process.

Winter Harvest is a brand-new, dark reimagining of the tale of Demeter and Persephone by Greek author Ioanna Papadopoulou. Steeped in lore and with a deep understanding of the many different facets of Demeter’s personality, this retelling will change your perspective on one of the most well-known stories of Greek mythology.

GENRE: Greek Mythology Retelling

PURCHASE LINK: Amazon

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Ioanna is a Greek by descent and Scottish by residence speculative fiction author. Other than writing, she is passionate about art history and museology. She has been published at Hexagon Magazine, Idle Ink, Piker Press and The Future Fire.

Review

I've read a lot of books and retellings based on Greek mythology over the years, but never one by a Greek — so I was very excited to dive into this! And it did not disappoint. Most retellings in recent times (including the Norse myth series I co-authored) tend to humanize the gods. Not this one. The story starts with Demeter being born and then swallowed by Kronos, where she grows until her other siblings arrive and they're eventually busted out by Zeus. It's weird, it's different, and it's great.

It does get a little difficult to root for Demeter later on, with her inflicting unfair punishments on humans, destroying the world in her grief of losing Persephone, and being cruel toward her unwanted children. But I guess that's the point. Gods aren't human. We're not supposed to understand why they do what they do as they view things differently than us. Ioanna definitely succeeds in bringing that point across, and, at times, even making the reader feel small and, well, human.

I liked the magic, especially the concept of divinity! Demeter's metamorphoses were also very interesting and uniquely depicted. I learned so many things about Demeter that I didn't know before; or maybe they were stories that just didn't stick so much, seeing that she wasn't as popular in fiction as, say, Persephone. I would love to read more of Ioanna's takes on the other Greek deities and heroes!

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️️

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Hi! I'm Marie, a Filipino fantasy author and book reviewer currently based in the UK. I’m the co-author of The Prophecies of Ragnarok, a Norse myth new adult urban fantasy trilogy, and I also have several short stories published in anthologies and literary journals.

If you'd like to get started with our series, I'd like to recommend Nameless Queen, which is a retelling of the myths involving Hel, the Norse goddess of death and the queen of the underworld. It stands alone and also has a glossary at the back for the Norse myth stuff.

All things end, and all must die.

But death is not always the end.

When Geiravor Lokisdottir was stripped of her name and cast out of Asgard, torn from her family and the life she had known, she thought she’d lost it all. But in the shadows of Niflheim she discovers the path to her destiny, and what it truly means to be queen.

You can find more info about me and my books, and also subscribe to my newsletter for more content, here. And if you like what I do, please also consider supporting me on Ko-fi! 🩷 https://ko-fi.com/mariesinadjan