#Caro de Robertis

[transbookoftheday]

The Palace of Eros by Caro De Robertis

Perfect for fans of Circe and Black Sun, this bold and subversive feminist retelling of the Greek myth of Psyche and Eros explores the power of queer joy and freedom.

Young, headstrong Psyche has captured the eyes of every suitor in town and far beyond with her tempestuous beauty, which has made her irresistible as a woman yet undesirable as a wife. Secretly, she longs for a life away from the expectations and demands of men. When her father realizes that the future of his family and town will be forever cursed unless he appeases an enraged Aphrodite, he follows the orders of the Oracle, tying Psyche to a rock to be ravaged by a monstrous husband. And yet a monster never arrives.

When Eros, nonbinary deity of desire, sees Psyche, she cannot fulfill her promise to her mother Aphrodite to destroy the mortal young woman. Instead, Eros devises a plan to sweep Psyche away to an idyllic palace, hidden from the prying eyes of Aphrodite, Zeus, and the outside world. There, against the dire dictates of Olympus, Eros and Psyche fall in love. Each night, Eros visits Psyche under the cover of impenetrable darkness, where they both experience untold passion and love. But each morning, Eros flies away before light comes to break the spell of the palace that keeps them safe.

Before long, Psyche’s nights spent in pleasure turn to days filled with doubts, as she grapples with the cost of secrecy and the complexities of freedom and desire. Restless and spurred by her sisters to reveal Eros’s true nature, she breaks her trust and forces a reckoning that tests them both—and transforms the very heavens.

Told in bold and sparkling prose from “a brilliant and luminous writer” (Madeline Miller, New York Times bestselling author), The Palace of Eros transports us to a magical world imbued by divine forces as well as everyday realities, where palaces glitter with magic even as ordinary people fight for freedom in a society that fears the unknown.

[jetwhenitsmidnight]

The Palace of Eros by Caro De Robertis

Release date: 15 August 2024

Genre: adult romance fantasy retelling

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Synopsis

Young, headstrong Psyche has captured the eyes of every suitor in town and far beyond with her tempestuous beauty, which has made her irresistible as a woman yet undesirable as a wife. Secretly, she longs for a life away from the expectations and demands of men. When her father realizes that the future of his family and town will be forever cursed unless he appeases an enraged Aphrodite, he follows the orders of the Oracle, tying Psyche to a rock to be ravaged by a monstrous husband. And yet a monster never arrives.

When Eros, nonbinary deity of desire, sees Psyche, she cannot fulfill her promise to her mother Aphrodite to destroy the mortal young woman. Instead, Eros devises a plan to sweep Psyche away to an idyllic palace, hidden from the prying eyes of Aphrodite, Zeus, and the outside world. There, against the dire dictates of Olympus, Eros and Psyche fall in love. Each night, Eros visits Psyche under the cover of impenetrable darkness, where they both experience untold passion and love. But each morning, Eros flies away before light comes to break the spell of the palace that keeps them safe.

Before long, Psyche’s nights spent in pleasure turn to days filled with doubts, as she grapples with the cost of secrecy and the complexities of freedom and desire. Restless and spurred by her sisters to reveal Eros’s true nature, she breaks her trust and forces a reckoning that tests them both—and transforms the very heavens.

Content warnings

Sexual content

Misogyny, sexual harassment

Mentioned sexual assault

Mentioned domestic abuse

Familial abuse/toxic family dynamics

Confinement

Pregnancy

Review

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC!

From the start, this book does not flinch away from depicting the brutal misogyny of the time period. Psyche's throngs of suitors are cast into a new light, as this book shows the horrors of being desired by men, as well as the way marriage was viewed during this time.

Plot-wise this book follows pretty closely with the plot of the original myth, although a lot more time is spent exploring Psych's stay in the titular Palace of Eros. This was definitely the right choice to make as it gives the romance time to blossom, as well as allows time to develop Psyche's character. Psyche comes into her own during this time, as Psyche and Eros explore the meaning of womanhood and queerness (among other things😏).

I think the author does a good job of exploring the power imbalance between Psyche and Eros, although it's hard to not be aware that whatever agency Psyche has is only because a goddess allows her that. While their relationship isn't perfect, they do work on it and (mostly) resolve all of their problems by the end of the book.

Eros doesn't get as much character development as Psyche. This is fine, because I think this is much more Psyche's story than Eros'. But there are still certain elements I wish had been explored, mainly Eros' use of her powers. Throughout this book, Eros is kind of flippant about the way to uses her arrows to make people fall in love. Although she expresses regret about how she inadvertently ruined Daphne's life, she doesn't show much remorse or contemplation about any other people's lives she affected. The web of power is something Eros contemplates quite a lot, but she seems to cast herself in the role of being powerless to the whims of Zeus, while failing to recognise or address her own power.

I know I said earlier that the story focusing on Psyche living in the palace was a good choice, but it also results in less time spent on depicting Psyche's trials. I stand by this opinion, but this sort of results in the trials being kind of... boring. The original myth focuses much more on the events of the trials as Psyche proving her love for Eros, but in this book Psyche chooses to undergo the trials as a way to forge peace with Aphrodite. This was an interesting choice to make narratively, but ultimately lowers the stakes, especially since Aphrodite isn't even actively bothered with Psyche anymore.

Speaking of Aphrodite, I feel like her depiction was kind of shallow. She's not portrayed as a very complex character, aside from being a jealous goddess. I appreciate that the author shows how much she loves and cares for Eros, but I feel like she could have been explored a lot more.

I have always appreciated how special the myth of Psyche and Eros is, in the way that Psyche is one of few female Greek heroes, and also one of few Greek heroes who gets a happy ending. I think this novel captures the essence of the original myth, as well as expands on it in new and interesting ways.

Ultimately, while there are certain aspects of this book that I wish there could have been more of, the themes that the author chooses to explore, they do an excellent job of.

[mccoppinscrapyard]

Cantoras by Caro De Robertis

"She looked out at the landscape, now cloaked in the last dregs of twilight. A beauty she could never get used to, never wanted to get used to, though she longed to know it in every light and mood."

[good-books-to-read]

Travel Destination: Argentina

Thirst by Marina Yuszczuk

It is the twilight of Europe’s bloody bacchanals, of murder and feasting without end. In the nineteenth century, a vampire arrives from Europe to the coast of Buenos Aires and, for the second time in her life, watches as villages transform into a cosmopolitan city, one that will soon be ravaged by yellow fever. She must adapt, intermingle with humans, and be discreet.

In present-day Buenos Aires, a woman finds herself at an impasse as she grapples with her mother's terminal illness and her own relationship with motherhood. When she first encounters the vampire in a cemetery, something ignites within the two women—and they cross a threshold from which there’s no turning back.

The Gods of Tango by Caro De Robertis

Set in 1913, 17 year old Leda, clutching a suitcase and her father’s cherished violin, leaves her small Italian village for a new home (and husband) halfway across the world in Argentina. Upon her arrival in Buenos Aires, Leda is shocked to find that her bridegroom has been killed. Unable to fathom the idea of returning home, she remains in this unfamiliar city, living in a commune, without friends or family, on the brink of destitution. She finally acts on a passion she has kept secret for years, mastering the violin.

When You Open Your Eyes by Celeste Conway

Tessa's head over heels for Lucien, the son of a French diplomat. Sexy, artistic, and daring, he brings out a completely new side of her. With him, Tessa feels beautiful and exotic. So when Tessa's strict father forbids her to see Lucien, she's determined to keep their relationship a secret.

But as Tessa gets caught up in Lucien, he becomes increasingly volatile. What she once found alluring about him now feels alarming. Tessa must figure out how far she'll go for Lucien before she risks losing not just him, but everything she loves.

Eartheater by Dolores Reyes

Set in an unnamed slum in contemporary Argentina, Eartheater is the story of a young woman who finds herself drawn to eating the earth, a compulsion that gives her visions of broken and lost lives. With her first taste of dirt, she learns the horrifying truth of her mother's death. Disturbed by what she witnesses, the woman keeps her visions to herself.

But when Eartheater begins an unlikely relationship with a withdrawn police officer, word of her ability begins to spread, and soon desperate members of her community beg for her help, anxious to uncover the truth about their own loved ones.

The Tenth Girl by Sara Faring

A haunted Argentinian mansion. A family curse. A twist you'll never see coming.

Welcome to Vaccaro School, an isolated finishing school that is rumour to be cursed.

Mavi tries to embrace the strangeness of the imposing house, despite warnings not to roam at night, threats from an enigmatic young man, and rumors of mysterious Others. But one of Mavi's ten students is missing, and when students and teachers alike begin to behave as if possessed, the forces haunting this unholy cliff will no longer be ignored... and one of these spirits holds a secret that could unravel Mavi's existence.

[nedlittle]

apropos of nothing, here are some gay historical fiction novels that engage with historical queerness in thoughtful, complex, and interesting ways (organized chronologically)

hild by nicola griffith ↪ early 7th century england

a tip for the hangman by alison epstein ↪ 1585-1593 england

confessions of the fox by jordy rosenberg ↪ 1702-1724* england

the confessions of frannie langton by sara collins ↪ 1812-1826 jamaica to england

patience and sarah by isabel miller ↪ 1816 america

devotion by hannah kent ↪ 1830s prussia to australia

the sweetness of water by nathan harris ↪ 1865 america

whiskey when we're dry by john larison ↪ 1885 america

the city of palaces by michael nava ↪ 1897-1913 mexico

tipping the velvet by sarah waters ↪ 1890s england

at swim, two boys by jamie o'neill ↪ 1915-1916 ireland

the gods of tango by caro de robertis ↪ 1913-1920s argentina

uncommon charm by emily bergslien and kat weaver ↪ 1920s america

the book of salt by monique truong ↪ 1930s vietnam to paris

the amazing adventures of kavalier and clay by michael chabon ↪ 1939-1954 america and beyond

the flight portfolio by julie orringer ↪ 1940 france

the savage kind by john copenhaver ↪ 1940s america

a thin bright line by lucy jane bledsoe ↪ 1950s america

*this one has a framing device and footnotes from the present day but the bulk of the story is set in the early 1700s

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🩵 Trans & Nonbinary Books to Watch for in 2025

🏳️‍⚧️ I'm so excited for these trans and nonbinary books that are coming out over the next few months! These stories are diverse, heartfelt, and important. Let's all support and amplify trans, nonbinary, and queer voices in 2025. 🏳️‍🌈

💜 Please remember that we see you, and love you exactly for who you are.

❓Which of these books caught your eye first?

🩷 Please help me by liking and reblogging this post to ensure it reaches people who need it now more than ever!

🩷 We Are Villains - Kacen Callender 🩵 Notes From a Regicide - Isaac R. Fellman 💜 So Many Stars - Caro De Robertis 💛 In Case You Read This - Edward Underhill 🩷 Hot Girls With Balls - Benedict Nguyễn 🩵 Glitch Girl! - Rainie Oet 💜 These Vengeful Gods - Gabe Cole Novoa 💛 A Gentleman's Gentleman - TJ Alexander 🩷 The In-Between Bookstore - Edward Underhill

🩵 My Best Friend's Honeymoon - Meryl Wilsner 💜 Costumes for Time Travelers - A.R. Capetta 💛 Paper Doll - Dylan Mulvaney 🩷 Marsha - Tourmaline 🩵 Trans History - Alex L. Combs & Andrew Eakett 💜 And They Were Roommates - Page Powars 💛 Beyond They/Them - Em Dickson & Cameron Mukwa 🩷 Stag Dance - Torrey Peters 🩵 The Build-a-Boyfriend Project - Mason Deaver

[lydiacatfish]

3, 5, 8, 17, and 22!

So many!

3. What were your top five books of the year?

5. Barda by Ngozi Ukazu

4. Princess Floralinda and the Forty-Flight Tower by Tamsyn Muir (not bad. Just short!)

3. The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman

2. We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer

1. We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson (I read a lot of Shirley this year)

5. Great minds think alike... horror!! Followed by romance probably lol

8. Did you meet any of your reading goals? Which ones?

Initially my goal was to read 20, then 25, then 30. As long as I finish one book by the end of the year (planning on Time War) then I'll have done it!

Also my library has a Book Bingo where you follow different suggestions in a bingo format so I only have one left on that. The theme is "Featuring Futuristic Elements" which is why I chose Time War.

17. Did any books surprise you with how good they were?

Yes! The Palace of Eros by Caro de Robertis, and some of the short stories in Come Along With Me by Shirley Jackson. Shoutout to The Visit which has haunted me for months.

22. What’s the longest book you read?

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice apparently clocks in at 1207 pages but it felt like a million billion. What a slog. Not my favorite. Will not be reading the sequels.

[libraryleopard]

February reads

The Butterfly Assassin by Finn Longman

Woodworking by Emily St. James

The Indian Card: Who Gets to Be Native in America by Carrie Lowry Schuettpelz

A Year Without a Name by Cyrus Dunham

How to Sleep at Night by Elizabeth Harris

The Rise of Issa Igwe by Shanna Miles

Sugaring Off by Gillian French

Knocking Myself Up: A Memoir of My (In)Fertility by Michelle Tea

A Bloomy Head by J. Winifred Butterworth

The Ghostwing’s Lie by Rebecca Mix

The Nickel Boys by Collson Whitehead

The Sweetness Between Us by Sarah Winifred Searle

Destroy All Monsters by Sam J. Miller

The Palace of Eros by Caro de Robertis

Fat and Queer: An Anthology og Queer and Trans Bodies and Lives edited by Bruce Owens Grimm, Miguel M. Morales, and Tiff Joshua TJ Ferentini

Tonight We Rule the World by Zack Smedley

All the Bad Apples by Moïra Fowley-Doyle

Death’s Country by R.M. Romero

Helen of Troy, 1993: Poems by Maria Zoccola

Leap by Simina Popescu

It Gets Better…Except When It Gets Worse (And Other Unsolicited Truths I Wish Someone Had Told Me) by Nicole Maines

Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia

[indefinitecreations]

found this on the dedications page in my library book and now I’m sobbing

The Palace of Eros - Caro De Robertis

[lgbtqreads]

Fave Five: LGBTQ Novels Inspired by Greek Mythology, Part IV

For the first three parts, click here. Death’s Country by R.M. Romero (YA) Gentlest of Wild Things by Sarah Underwood (YA) Wicked Beauty by Katee Robert The Palace of Eros by Caro de Robertis Oath of Fire by K Arsenault Rivera  

[27-royal-teas]

2, 14, 22 for the end of year asks :33 love u

2.) album of the year?

oof it’s gonna have to be a tie between something for everybody by sammy rae & the friends and alligator bites never heal by doechii!!! honorable mention to gloom division and permanent pleasure by idkhow and joywave respectively :)

14.) favorite book this year?

LAST NIGHT AT THE TELEGRAPH CLUB BY MALINDA LO!!! people have been recommending it to me for ages and i finally got around to reading it this year and it’s so unbelievably good. i think everybody should read this book. second place would have to be the palace of eros by caro de robertis !!

22.) favorite place you visited this year?

my family and i went camping in upstate New York this year, and it was beautiful. also camped in shenandoah state park - probably one of my favorite state parks ever and it was even better because my best friend was there. hoping to travel more in 2025, though!!

[midnightliar]

3 & 9! :)

i'm so sorry i just saw these so late 😭

3. What were your top five books of the year?

Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo

Here We Go Again by Alison Cochrun

The Prospects by KT Hoffman

The Gods of Tango by Caro de Robertis

Caroline's Heart by Austin Chant (novella, but still really fell in love with the premise & world enough for it to make the list)

9. Did you get into any new genres?

i did kind of dip my toe into thriller/horror! the two i read were definitely more thriller than horror, which is how i prefer it i think. early in the year, i read Killing Me by Michelle Gagnon, which was very funny and fun I thought, while also moving through quickly enough to keep me pretty interested.

and just last week i finished Patricia Wants to Cuddle by Samantha Allen, which was also fun and funny, although fell apart for me a bit more with the horror finale- it wasn't even so much the horror as the ending not feeling especially satisfying. but i did have fun branching out into thriller! i definitely like it more than i think i do, and i'll have to do some more research to find some more in the future.

[mccoppinscrapyard]

Books Read in 2024

Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Numb to This by Kindra Neely: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

D’Vaughn and Kris Plan a Wedding by Chencia C. Higgins: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Cantoras by Caro De Robertis: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Plantains and Our Becoming by Melania Luisa Marte: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

You Better Be Lightning by Andrea Gibson: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Violeta by Isabel Allende: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Iris Kelly Doesn’t Date by Ashley Herring Blake: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Black Girl, Call Home by Jasmine Mans: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Lady For a Duke by Alexis Hall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Best We Could Do by Thi Bui: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Love from A to Z by S. K. Ali: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Lady He Lost by Faye Delacour: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Cinder Ella by S. T. Lynn: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

I’m Afraid of Men by Vivek Shraya: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

There Are Trans People Here by H. Melt: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wandering Stars by Tommy Orange: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Hamartia by Scarlett Drake: ⭐️⭐️✨

Tales from the Cafe by Toshikazu Kawaguchi: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My Lesbian Experience with Loneliness by Nagata Kabi: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

The Twenty-Ninth Year by Hala Alyan: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Just Another Story by Ernesto Saade: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Zara Hossein is Here by Sabina Khan: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Lies My Teacher Told Me: A Graphic Adaptation by James W. Loewen & Nate Powell: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sorry, Bro by Taleen Voskuni: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Messy Roots by Laura Gao: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Into the Forest and All the Way Through by Cynthia Pelayo: no starred rating

Our Wives Under the Sea by Julia Armfield: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Second Night Stand by Fay and Karelia Stetz-Walters: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Secret Summer Promise by Keah Brown: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams: ⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

Squire by Nadia Shammas and Sara Alfageeh: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Wash Day Diaries by Jamila Rowser: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

A Marvellous Light by Freya Marske: ⭐️⭐️✨

Sorry for the Inconvenience by Farah Naz Rishi: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️✨

[reveriesofawriter]

1, 35, 47 for the bookworm asks!

1 - the best book I've read so far this year - the palace of eros by caro de robertis, probably tied with the pairing by casey mcquiston, both queer and made me feel a lot of things

35 - least favorite trope in my favorite genre - if I'm saying romance is the genre then I will kind of go out of my way to not read accidental pregnancy stories bc the ones I've read in the past feel like they treat the baby like a pawn or at best like some kind of miracle cure for a relationship that wouldn't have worked otherwise, also not a huge fan of a love triangle where it's not a closed triangle like give me queer and messy or don't even bother

47 - last 3 books I read - odd spirits by s.t. gibson (almost 5 stars, I love this universe I can't wait for the rest of the series), the nightmare before kissmas by sara raasch (again almost 5 stars, silly lil holiday romcom where the prince of xmas falls in love w the prince of halloween), and swordcrossed by freya marske (ultimately gave it 4 stars but it was more like the first third gets 2 stars the middle third gets 3.5 stars and the last third gets 5 stars, I had complex feelings about it clearly) also you didn't ask but I'm currently reading triple sec by tj alexander, and disney high by ashley spencer

[read-alert]

It's Trans Awareness Week! Here's some of my fave recent reads! 📚🏳️‍⚧️

Falling Back in Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom

Hell Followed With Us by Andrew Joseph White

Miss Major Speaks: Conversations with a Black Trans Revolutionary by Miss Major Griffin-Gracy and Toshio Meronek

Ander and Santi Were Here by Johnny Garza Villa

The Gods of Tango by Caro De Robertis

Just Shy of Ordinary by AJ Sass

Sorrowland by Rivers Solomon

Galaxy: The Prettiest Star by Jadzia Axelrod and Jess Taylor

Kapaemahu by Dean Hamer, Joe Wilson, Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, and Daniel Sousa

[nedlittle]

2, 3, and 16 for the book ask!!

lmao nooo all of these have already been answered but some of them i can answer twice

2. Did you reread anything? What?

orphan monster spy/devil darling spy by matt killeen (both better than i remembered!! give them to the teen girl in your life who is weirdly fixated on wwii) and seminal nedlittle text cassandra at the wedding by dorothy baker i will not stop until i get you guys to read cassandra at the wedding

3. What were your top five books of the year?

already answered but here are more of my top 10

the gods of tango by caro de robertis

the perilous life of jade yeo by zen cho [review]

the weight of ink by rachel kadish [review]

the sweetness of water by nathan harris [review]

medical apartheid: the dark history of medical experimentation on black americans from colonial times to the present by harriet t. washington

16. What is the most over-hyped book you read this year?

this is going to be very specific but racing hummingbirds by jeannan verlee. if you were on tumblr from approximately 2011-2015 then you saw lessons for loving a prophet EVERYWHERE and since that one poem is so good one would expect that the rest of the collection would be as good and it is NOT. it is in fact deeply, deeply mid. so this was a case of me overhyping a book for myself.