Wither and Bloom

The myth of Hades & Persephone, retold from Persephone's point of view, made sapphic and happy ever after, featuring divine politics, a goddess transformation arc and a slow-burn, captor-to-lovers romance.

They told you Persephone was taken. A victim of myth, a goddess of flowers carried off against her will. That version is a lie of omission. When Persephone refuses the king of the gods and is cast into the underworld as punishment, she does not wither. She blooms. The underworld does not coddle. It strips. It takes every illusion Persephone carried and holds them up to the dim light until they dissolve. The realm of the dead, cold and void of life, begins to change the moment she sets foot in it. And Hades, the queen who has ruled in isolation, building walls against disruption since before memory began, cannot look away. Persephone does not need saving. She needs to see what she can do when the world stops telling her who she is. The underworld is about to show her. But Zeus will not stay patient forever. What happens when the most powerful goddess in existence finally learns what she is capable of? Find out in Wither and Bloom, a dark sapphic Hades and Persephone retelling featuring divine politics, a goddess transformation arc and a slow-burn, captor-to-lovers romance.

© 2026 Simon Maverick (Audiobook): 9798347206575

Release date

Audiobook: 8 December 2026