#gods of hunger

[transbookoftheday]

Drag Me Up by R.M. Virtues

They say he’s a myth…

And Hades prefers it that way. He may do all the work, and Zeus may get all the credit, but at least it allows Hades to preserve the one thing he truly cares to have: his solitude. The mere mention of the Wraith of Khaos Falls is enough to keep order, and he is rarely forced to leave the shadows of Casino Asphodel.

She belongs in the spotlight…

And Persephone clawed her way out of Demeter’s shadow to reach it. Now she’s lead in Calliope’s Cirque production but not without great cost, and there is not enough money in the world to pay off the debt accrued for the simple mistake of trusting Zeus. Though it’s easier to ignore the bars when she still has room to fly.

Landing a residency at the legendary Casino Asphodel is everything she trained for. Meeting a man she’d been convinced didn’t exist? She could never be prepared for that. Hades isn’t prepared for her either, but it’s soon evident they’re a force when together. He gives her a soft place to land, and she makes him want to reach for the stars. But when Zeus ups the stakes, they must be willing to go all in, even if it means coming down from the sky. Or stepping into the light.

[luminouslumity]

If you're still unfamiliar with the Cait Corrain situation, this video explains it! Under the cut are the blurbs for books of the authors Corrain targeted.

VOYAGE OF THE DAMNED by FRANCES WHITE

For a thousand years, Concordia has maintained peace between its provinces. To mark this incredible feat, the emperor's ship embarks upon a twelve-day voyage to the sacred Goddess's Mountain.

Aboard are the heirs of the twelve provinces of Concordia, each graced with a unique and secret magical ability known as a Blessing.

Except one: Ganymedes Piscero - class clown, slacker, and all-round disappointment.

When a beloved heir is murdered, everyone is a suspect. Stuck at sea and surrounded by powerful people without a Blessing to protect him, odds of survival are slim.

But as the bodies pile higher, Ganymedes must become the hero he was not born to be. Can he unmask the killer and their blessing before this bloody crusade reaches the shores of Concordia?

Or will the empire as he knows it fall?

MISTRESS OF LIES by K.M. ENRIGHT

FATE IS A CRUEL MISTRESS

The daughter of a powerful but disgraced Blood Worker, Shan LeClaire has spent her entire life perfecting her blood magic, building her network of spies, and gathering every scrap of power she could. Now, to protect her brother, she assassinates their father and takes her place at the head of the family. And that is only the start of her revenge.

Samuel Hutchinson is a bastard with a terrible gift. When he stumbles upon the first victim of a magical serial killer, he's drawn into the world of magic and intrigue he's worked so hard to avoid - and is pulled deeply into the ravenous and bloodthirsty court of the vampire king.

Tasked by the Eternal King to discover the identity of the killer cutting a bloody swath through the city, Samuel, Shan and mysterious Royal Bloodworker Isaac find themselves growing ever closer to each other. But Shan's plans are treacherous, and as she lures Samuel into her complicated web of desire, treason and vengeance, he must decide if the good of their nation is worth the cost of his soul.

TO GAZE UPON WICKED GODS by MOLLY X. CHANG

In this magical epic fantasy, a young woman cursed with the power of death must decide if saving her family is worth betraying her country—the first installation of a gripping new series.

Heroes die, cowards live. Daughter of a conquered world, Ruying hates the invaders who descended from the heavens long before she was born and defeated the magic of her people with technologies unlike anything her world had ever seen.

Blessed by Death, born with the ability to pull the life right out of mortal bodies, Ruying shouldn’t have to fear these foreign invaders, but she does. Especially because she wants to keep herself and her family safe.

When Ruying’s Gift is discovered by an enemy prince, he offers her an impossible deal: If she becomes his private assassin and eliminates his political rivals—whose deaths he swears would be for the good of both their worlds and would protect her people from further brutalization—her family will never starve or suffer harm again. But to accept this bargain, she must use the powers she has always feared, powers that will shave years off her own existence.

Can Ruying trust this prince, whose promises of a better world make her heart ache and whose smiles make her pulse beat faster? Are the evils of this agreement really in the service of a much greater good? Or will she betray her entire nation by protecting those she loves the most?

SO LET THEM BURN by KAMILAH COLE

Whip-smart and immersive, this Jamaican-inspired fantasy follows a gods-blessed heroine who’s forced to choose between saving her sister or protecting her homeland.

Faron Vincent can channel the power of the gods. Five years ago, she used her divine magic to liberate her island from its enemies, the dragon-riding Langley Empire. But now, at seventeen, Faron is all powered up with no wars to fight. She’s a legend to her people and a nuisance to her neighbors.

When she’s forced to attend an international peace summit, Faron expects that she will perform tricks like a trained pet and then go home. She doesn’t expect her older sister, Elara, forming an unprecedented bond with an enemy dragon—or the gods claiming the only way to break that bond is to kill her sister.

As Faron’s desperation to find another solution takes her down a dark path, and Elara discovers the shocking secrets at the heart of the Langley Empire, both must make difficult choices that will shape each other’s lives, as well as the fate of their world.

"By turns hopeful and devastating, So Let Them Burn is a masterful debut with a blazing heart. I was captivated from beginning to end by Cole’s sharp, clever prose and by her protagonists—two remarkable sisters with an unforgettable bond." — Chelsea Abdullah, author of The Stardust Thief

THE POISONS WE DRINK by BETHANY BAPTISTE

In a country divided between humans and witchers, Venus Stoneheart hustles as a brewer making illegal love potions to support her family.

Love potions is a dangerous business. Brewing has painful, debilitating side effects, and getting caught means death or a prison sentence. But what Venus is most afraid of is the dark, sentient magic within her.

Then an enemy's iron bullet kills her mother, Venus’s life implodes. Keeping her reckless little sister Janus safe is now her responsibility. When the powerful Grand Witcher, the ruthless head of her coven, offers Venus the chance to punish her mother's killer, she has to pay a steep price for revenge. The cost? Brew poisonous potions to enslave D.C.'s most influential politicians.

As Venus crawls deeper into the corrupt underbelly of her city, the line between magic and power blurs, and it's hard to tell who to trust… Herself included.

And because Corrain went after him as well...

DRAG ME UP

They say he’s a myth...

And Hades prefers it that way. He may do all the work, and Zeus may get all the credit, but at least it allows Hades to preserve the one thing he truly cares to have: his solitude. The mere mention of the Wraith of Khaos Falls is enough to keep order, and he is rarely forced to leave the shadows of Casino Asphodel.

She belongs in the spotlight...

And Persephone clawed her way out of Demeter’s shadow to reach it. Now she’s lead in Calliope’s Cirque production but not without great cost, and there is not enough money in the world to pay off the debt accrued for the simple mistake of trusting Zeus. Though it’s easier to ignore the bars when she still has room to fly.

Landing a residency at the legendary Casino Asphodel is everything she trained for. Meeting a man she’d been convinced didn’t exist? She could never be prepared for that. Hades isn’t prepared for her either, but it’s soon evident they’re a force when together. He gives her a soft place to land, and she makes him want to reach for the stars. But when Zeus ups the stakes, they must be willing to go all in, even if it means coming down from the sky. Or stepping into the light.

KEEP ME CLOSE

She is the closest thing Khaos Falls has to a goddess…

And Aphrodite is feared and worshipped in equal measure. She has dedicated her life to being a savior for the lost regardless of the risk, but when unknown enemies nearly assassinate her in her own club, she realizes her reckless vigilante tactics won’t cut it anymore.

He is the furthest thing Khaos Falls has from a hero…

In fact, Hephaestus is who you call when all the heroes have fallen. Still, he is the best at what he does, strengthening the city’s weaknesses and keeping his feelings out of it. When tasked with Aphrodite’s personal security, it’s easy for him to detach himself from their mutual disdain. Until disdain is no longer the only thing he feels for her.

With their enemies elusive and snakes in their midst, good hearts and sharp wit may not be enough. But he made a vow, and he will keep it. Even if it means turning newfound feelings into newfound strengths and using them as a weapon to protect her.

LET ME IN

She never cared about being perfect.

Raised under Zeus’s self-serving influence, Athena only ever cared about being right. But with Zeus gone and everything changing, it’s been difficult trying to break free of the chains he so expertly secured her in as a girl. Especially when constantly worrying about Dionysos.

And he never cared much about saving himself.

Raised under Hades’ self-sacrificing influence, Dionysos only ever cared about pleasing everybody else. But when the opportunity to prove he’s more than a winemaker presents itself —with the promise of spending more time with Athena— he has no choice but to take it.

In a bid for peace, Athena and Dionysos are sent to an ailing Thassos City to try and strike a treaty. But with war within reach and rules rearranged, wit and charisma may just fall short. But they’ve long since decided that to protect each other, blood is a small price to pay. Even their own.

LOVE ME NOW

Achilles loved playing the hero…

Being a mere man had never been enough for him. He wanted to be a great one. And when he finds out that Helen, his childhood best friend, has gone missing, taking the mission is instinct. Even if it meant returning to the place he was born and raised, a place he swore never to return to—Heraklion. But he goes nowhere without Patroclus.

Patroclus loved being one…

But being a hero was nothing like playing one. It was a senseless sequence of pyrrhic victories he'd carry forever. Yet when Achilles needs him to return to Heraklion and the arena he had been forced to claw his way out of, he says yes because… well, of course he does. He would follow Achilles anywhere.

Yet both had left more of themselves in Heraklion's notorious arena than they'd taken. So returning would not require heroes but something else, something worse, especially when Helen is not the only one in need of rescue. They both must determine not only what it means to be a man, but what it means to be a good one.

[lucky-numberme]

Award for the most chemistry-laden meet cute goes to Hades and Seph. Can't stop thinking about them 👀👀👀

Queer Book Draw Challenge 9/20 Drag Me Up by @rmvirtues

[ID: An illustration of Hades and Persephone in formal wear sharing drinks in his private box. Hades is standing and leaning on the bar and Persephone is seated in front of him. They both lean in slightly towards each other, glasses clinking and gazes locked. Persephone's expression is confident and slightly challenging. Hades' expression is intrigued and enthralled. Light fixtures shaped like pomegranate seeds hang above them both. Behind them, wall-size windows reveal the Khaos Falls cityscape at night. End ID]

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[andromedaexists]

Love Me Now || R.M. Virtues

★★★★☆½

TW: EXPLICIT SEX, ROUGH SEX, ALCOHOL/DRUG USE, VIOLENCE, MURDER/ON-PAGE DEATH, KIDNAPPING, ABUSE, TRANSPHOBIA

There are more TWs at the start of this book. R.M. is really good about listing all possible TW's, but that means the list is rather long. Please read it and pay attention to it.

Before I start this, I do want to say that I received an ARC (advanced reader copy) of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Another thing I would like to start off with. I know I've said it before, but I really think that some stories are not meant for certain people even if you love other stories by the same author. This series is a great example of that. I read book one (Drag Me Up) and Did Not Like It. That is okay! I also ended up reading just a few chapters each of books 2 (Keep Me Close) and 3 (Let Me In) before DNF'ing them. They were not stories for me.

HOWEVER, I ended up LOVING this book!

So let's get into it!

I actually do have a few things I didn't like here that brought my rating down to a 4.5 from a 5 star, so let's get those out of the way first:

The weird hyphen thing I mentioned with Drag Me Up is still present. It is not as common, but there were a few moments where I was drawn out of the atmosphere of the book because of the forced cadence

RM really loves ending these books with a sex scene. He really does. Which, in itself, isn't a bad thing but like the final chapters of both Drag Me Up and Love Me Now are sad or somber in tone. I just, I don't think it's appropriate for then to be going at it during these scenes (especially LMN, seeing as Patroclus is literally recovering from an autistic meltdown)

The therapy talk! OMG the therapy talk returns. Again, it's not as present or common as in Drag Me Up, but like I didn't come here for two very clearly unhinged characters to be teaching me morals about rage, y'know? (this book was tolerable, book 1 was not)

All of the trans characters (that we see the genitalia of) have all had bottom surgery. This isn't a bad thing, I just would have loved to see a character that didn't "fully" medically transition (I talked more on this in the review for DMU) like Sisyphus

Speaking of Sisyphus, RM made me like Sisyphus?? that should automatically dump this down to a 2 star read honestly I am Not A Fan of him in mythology. Book Sisyphus can stay tho. I like him.

But that's really all the qualms I had with the book! So let's talk about what I loved:

GAY AUTISTIC TRANS PATROCLUS FTW I love him so very much. A lot of me reading this book was just screaming about Patroclus and how much I love him omgggg

I also love that the contents of the prior books are summed up at the start of this book. Like, I am glad that I read Drag Me Up so that I have an idea of the world, but books 2 and 3 didn't feel like a necessity for me while reading this one.

I genuinely love the dynamic between Achilles and Patroclus. When I tell you I SCREAMED at my kindle every single time the two denied feelings for each other OMG. And then, AND THEN Achilles has the GALL to be soft and loving and adorable and accommodating to Patroclus' autism??? I need me a man like Achilles fr

When I tell you I screamed at the fact that Achilles knows Patroclus is sensitive to sound and he does everything in his power to accommodate that, INCLUDING covering his ears before he has to raise his voice?? I swooned omg

Speaking of Patroclus' autism, the way his autistic rage is portrayed. This is the closest I have come to seeing myself on page. The way that Patroclus processes everything is through the lens of rage, even if he seems calm and collected on the outside. I love that, like genuinely. This book does not shy away from showing the ugly side of neurodivergency. We need more of that in the world, we aren't all uwu pretty boys.

SPEAKING OF Achilles does not infantilize Patroclus AT ALL, not even when he's going through a meltdown! That's HUGE!! Especially for a love interest!! I love it sososo much!

There are honestly so many things I love about this book, a lot of the issues I had with the first book were resolved by the time this book came around. Like, the pacing was great, the characters were fleshed out, they were more than just their sex scenes, over all the vibes were just more put together.

I am so very glad I had the chance to read this book. I will be purchasing a physical copy of it and putting it on my recommendation shelf.

Some quotes I love:

He would follow this man anywhere. All the way to ruin.

It was anger. It had to be anger. It could be nothing else.

Fates, do not let me lose him here.

He put all his feelings in a blender until it all looked like wrath or apathy.

Oh, he would protect this man with his life. He invited the Fates themselves to challenge that.

He made Achilles soft. He made Achilles mortal.

No, as long as there was breath in his lungs, there would be hope.

Honestly there are so many more quotes I pulled out from this book, but I don't want to share too many since it doesn't officially release until the 30th! (I say, already nervous that the scope of this review might bee to in depth to release before pub day)

I would also like to throw in the chat that got to see my live reactions to the book here:

[wszczebrzyszynie]

the god of fear and hunger acknowledges your suffering

[floworence]

God importance of food in HUNGER Games is such amazing aspect of the books and shows the mentality of both Katniss AND Snow.

Coriolanus learns that food is power. He sees Nero Prize cutting off maid's leg to eat it. He sees what tributes will do for food. He knows what Lucy Gray did for food. He knows what he would do for food.

In his eyes food is a luxury and ultimate means of manipulation. That's why there is a tessare system, that's why there are monthly packages for the winning districts, that's why Games are a yearly public spectacle in the Capitol. He keeps districts hungry for food and Capitol hungry for entertainment.

Katniss learns that food is love. It starts with Peeta throwing her the burned loaf of bread. Then goes further into her love for Prim, which is the main cause of her hunting. Then with Gale as her hunting partner. Then with Madge who is her best friend and loves strawberries. Then with Mr. Mellark who loves squirrels. Then with Rue and bread from District 11. Then with Peeta again, with the berries.

Katniss doesn't use the power of food over people. She shares it. That's how she builds connections, forms friendships, wins over people's hearts, starts and wins revolutions.

For Snow food it a tool with which you can sew starvation and chaos.

For Katniss food is a tool with which you can form bonds and find peace.

[theoldkyokodied]

The Allegiance of the Ascended Vampire and the New God of Magic

[corn-cardigan]

yall i dont think they wouldve been so fearful and hungry if they just went to jollibee

[muffinlovingbirb]

Tales of Dungeons and Starvation

[kerpwow]

been working on thsi nonstop all day my neck hurts

the gayest straight couple to ever exist tbh

[moonmarbled]

Puppy

[transbookoftheday]

Love Me Now by R.M. Virtues

Achilles loved playing the hero…

Being a mere man had never been enough for him. He wanted to be a great one. And when he finds out that Helen, his childhood best friend, has gone missing, taking the mission is instinct. Even if it meant returning to the place he was born and raised, a place he swore never to return to —Heraklion. But he goes nowhere without Patroclus.

Patroclus loved being one…

But being a hero was nothing like playing one. It was a senseless sequence of pyrrhic victories he’d carry forever. Yet when Achilles needs him to return to Heraklion and the arena he had been forced to claw his way out of, he says yes because… well, of course he does. He would follow Achilles anywhere.

Yet both had left more of themselves in Heraklion’s notorious arena than they’d taken. So returning would not require heroes but something else, something worse, especially when Helen is not the only one in need of rescue. They both must determine not only what it means to be a man, but what it means to be a good one.

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

Enki S Ending: God Blocking Gambit

[yellow-py]

Me and my friends talked about an au where Cahara lives by becoming a servant to the god of fear and hunger and I just had to draw it out real quick

[myballsitchaurghouchie]

Rough idea of my God-eating Lamb so far.

CW very tame but still nasty blood and maggost covered Lamb under the cut

I might add chains (from TOWW) on them. I also have to figure out their clothes under the fleece

[foxdoodles]

oops.. more hunger games