What if the man you love is the God of the Dead?That’s the problem facing Persephone. Her mother, Demeter, is a Level-1 goddess who wants Persephone to marry Darryl, demi-god of home repairs, and stay close to home. Her father, Zeus, the top god on Mount Olympus, is a bit grumpy these days, fed-up with all the demands being made on him. And Hades, well, now that she’s getting to know him, Hades isn’t what Persephone expected at all — he’s handsome, smart, sensitive and witty — in a word, hot.Beautiful, intelligent and strong-willed, Persephone’s in line to be a Level-1 goddess herself someday. The problem is … she’s dissatisfied and restless.This new take on the classic myth is a smart, sexy, fast-moving read. Dead Beautiful explores the many faces of love, explains why there are four seasons, and reveals what really happens after death.In the tradition of Marie Phillips’s Gods Behaving Badly, Margaret Atwood’s The Penelopiad, and Ali Smith’s Girl Meets Boy, Dugan takes a classic tale and makes it new. Dead Beautiful is a story for anyone who wants to know what life on Olympus with the immortal gods is like, for anyone who has fallen in love, and for anyone who wonders what happens after death. Diane Schoemperlen, author of At A Loss for Words and Our Lady of the Lost and Found, says Dead Beautiful is “a cheeky and thought-provoking romp through the Pantheon, the Underworld, and that peculiar little place called Earth that lies somewhere in between."The Midwest Book Review writes: Being the God of the Dead doesn't mean you have to be dead. "Dead Beautiful" is a romance of the gods, as future goddess and daughter of Zeus Persephone is lured into the surprisingly suave nature of Hades, god of the dead. Disapproved by her superiors, she is faced with rebellion for love, or simply bowing to the wishes of her parents. Twisting ancient Greek mythology with modern conflict, "Dead Beautiful" is a humorous and much recommended pick, not to be missed.ABOUT THE AUTHORMelanie Dugan is the author of Sometime Daughter (“Stunning debut,” Kingston Whig-Standard) and Revising Romance (“heartwarming, amusing and … downright sexy,” Midwest Book Review). Her short stories have been shortlisted for several awards, including the CBC Literary Award.
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