According to myth, the Greek goddesses Persephone, Demeter, and Aphrodite faced difficult decisions about love and children. Now, three mortal women-Tess, Tiffany, and Tanya-face conflicts in the same vein. Each woman is on the threshold of great change, if only they have the strength to go it alone. Tess balances her time among her career, her children, and her husband, but she feels detached from her marriage. It would be easy to leave for her sake, but what about the children? Tiffany, on the other hand, seems to have the perfect marriage; she enjoys being a housewife and mother. Life is wonderful-until she realizes her husband has a secret. Tanya moved from Russia with her daughter, hoping to start a new life in Seattle with Jim, but he is not what he seems. Tanya must make her choice to stay or go, but nothing waits for her in Russia. Three women face life-altering decisions when they meet at their neighborhood clubhouse. Will their new friendships be a help or a hindrance?

Perform this ancient Greek myth about Persephone and her mother.

The story of the mother-and-daughter goddesses Demeter and Persephone has seized the imagination of people in every age, from ancient times to the present. Considered today by many to be the archetypal myth for women, it touches on timeless themes in every life, such as the male-female relationship, love between women, initiations into puberty and old age, the mother-daughter bond, death, and ecological renewal. Christine Downing has combined essays, prose, poetry, and even performance art with her own insightful commentary to shed new light on the myth's ancient meanings and to offer new insights in its implications for contemporary men and women.

The story of the mother-and-daughter goddesses Demeter and Persephone has seized the imagination of people in every age, from ancient times to the present. Considered today by many to be the archetypal myth for women, it touches on timeless themes in every life, such as the male-female relationship, love between women, initiations into puberty and old age, the mother-daughter bond, death, and ecological renewal. Christine Downing has combined essays, prose, poetry, and even performance art with her own insightful commentary to shed new light on the myth's ancient meanings and to offer new insights in its implications for contemporary men and women.

This is not the myth that has been passed down through the ages where the Greek God Hades abducts and rapes his niece Kore, the daughter of his sister, the Goddess Demeter; dragging her down to the Underworld to be his consort, thus changing her from the maiden Kore to Persephone, the Goddess of the Underworld. Persephone: Queen of the Dead tells the story of a young Goddess who falls in love and marries a God that she knows her mother does not approve of. It is the story of her life and what she had to sacrifice to be with the only man she loved. This story is told not only through the Goddess' own words, but also her mother, the Goddess Demeter's, for the lives of the two are entwined for eternity. The story begins with Kore as a young maiden, who happens to behold the God Hades as he emerges from the Underworld and falls instantly in love. Part 1 switches between Kore as she tells of her first love and her mother, Demeter as she expresses the betrayal of not only her daughter, but of the other gods as well. It is this betrayal that causes Demeter to withhold her Fertility from the world until most mortal life dies. A compromise is made and Kore, whose new name is Persephone, is forced to leave her husband for one-half of the year to be with her mother. During this time, Demeter allows the vegetation to once again sprout, but when Persephone returns to the Underworld the Goddess of Fertility once again withholds her gifts. Thus the seasons have been created. Continuing on the story explains the role Persephone assumes as Queen of the Dead, and tells several tales of mortals who risked everything by entering into the Underworld. Orpheus travels for weeks to beg the Goddess of Death to return his wife Eurydice to life; the Lapth prince Pirithous, with the help of his companion Theseus, tries to kidnap Persephone and make her his bride, for their foolishness they are turned into statues; four years later when the hero Hercules enters the Underworld as one of his Twelve Labors he is able to free his cousin Theseus Other tales within the story include that of Psyche and Eros, followed by Adonis who was raised by Persephone, and finally the story of how the new God Dionysus was created. The last part explains how with the beginning of Christianity the Old Gods were demoted into demons and without the daily offerings they became accustomed to, they began to fade. Only the strongest of the gods survived during this period. With the beginning of the new century hope was returned as the Old Religions were beginning to be revived. Isadora Marie is a Wiccan living in the metro Chicago area with her life mate and their canine and feline companions. Isadora grew up studying the Greek myths and as a child was fascinated with all the different Gods, Goddesses and heroes that populated them. When Isadora became a Wiccan it was these same Gods and Goddesses who became important not only in rituals, but in her life. She currently works in a history museum and her work around the artifacts of several different countries only increased her love for mythology. Though Isadora has worked with Gods and Goddess of several different cultures, it was those of Ancient Greece, from her childhood that she felt the closet connection to and after several decades of studying these myths she felt that it was time to tell a more modern version of one of her favorites, that of the Goddess Persephone. Since her background is in art and design, Isadora has been working on several projects to incorporate this element into her spirituality. A current project is developing a photographic Tarot deck, which included several of the Goddesses of Greece along with those of India and Egypt. All of her artistic projects are not only a work of love, but she hopes that they will inspire others to find the beauty in the old myths.

The Daughters of Zeus, Book One "Persephone is a fun, imaginative, smart retelling of my favorite myth, fusing modern culture with a rich world of magic." Amazon Top Reviewer, Molly Ringle, Author of Persephone's Orchard. One day Persephone is an ordinary high school junior working at her mom's flower shop in Athens, Georgia. The next she's fighting off Boreas, the brutal god of Winter, and learning that she's a bonafide goddess--a rare daughter of the now-dead Zeus. Her goddess mom whisks her off to the Underworld to hide until Spring. There she finds herself under the protection of handsome Hades, the god of the dead, and she's automatically married to him. It's the only way he can keep her safe. Older, wiser, and far more powerful than she, Hades isn't interested in becoming her lover, at least not anytime soon. But every time he rescues her from another of Boreas' schemes, they fall in love a little more. Will Hades ever admit his feelings for her? Can she escape the grasp of the god of Winter's minions? The Underworld is a very nice place, but is it worth giving up her life in the realm of the living? Her goddess powers are developing some serious, kick-butt potential. She's going to fight back. "I enjoyed Hades and Persephone's sweet romantic relationship. Persephone has her flaws, but she is likable and learns along the way. The author's writing is descriptive and entertaining. I am looking forward to the next book." Rebecca Foote @ Paranormal Muse "Everyone needs to check this book out, I can't rave enough about it, Bevis is definitely a new talent to keep an eye out for. I give this 5/5." Sarah Brown @ Head Stuck in a Book "I found this book to be a fun and fast-paced adventure through Greek mythology with a modern twist." Stephanie Ward @ A Dream Within a Dream "From the first paragraph, I was enthralled with this story. I read it all in one sitting and enjoyed every minute of it. What a great spin on a Greek myth! Move over Rick Riordan!" Amazon Top Reviewer, Rita Webb, Author of Daughter of the Goddess "This story will completely suck you in . . . This book is the first of a trilogy, and I can't wait to see what's in store for these amazing characters." Amazon Top Reviewer, Melissa Groeling, Author of Beauty Marks Kaitlin Bevis spent her childhood curled up with a book and a pen. If the ending didn't agree with her, she rewrote it. Because she's always wanted to be a writer, she spent high school and college learning everything she could to achieve that goal. After graduating college with a BFA and Masters in English, Kaitlin went on to write The Daughters of Zeus series. kaitlinbevis.com

Retells the Greek myths in which Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty, and Demeter, goddess of grain and agriculture, play major roles.