A Touch of Ruin cover

Romantasy

A Touch of Ruin

Scarlett St. Clair · Hades x Persephone #2 · 2019

As their relationship goes public, jealousy, grief, and meddling gods test what Persephone and Hades are building.

Score
75.0
Spice
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️Spicy
POV
first
Ending
HEA / HFN

Tropes

Content warnings

ViolenceDeathGrief & lossSexual assaultSuicideTortureKidnappingAbuseBlood

Curated signals, not an exhaustive guarantee.

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What readers think

Hades remains the near-unanimous highlight — readers consistently praise his complexity, protectiveness, and the romantic tension he generates. Secondary characters such as Hermes, Hecate, and Apollo are frequently singled out as scene-stealers. The primary criticism is Persephone herself: reviewers across multiple sites describe her as immature, emotionally volatile, and prone to preventable mistakes driven by poor communication, creating a heroine many find frustrating to follow. The plot is widely considered thinner than book one — predictable, scattered, with some subplots (notably the Jaison arc) feeling out of place. Many readers note the book functions more as a bridge installment than a satisfying standalone story, and that the high volume of intimate scenes crowds out the fantasy and mythology elements. Overall ratings cluster around 3.5–4 stars from invested series fans, lower from those reading cold.

Read it if

  • · Readers already hooked on the Hades x Persephone Saga who want to continue the relationship arc and see Hades' backstory deepened
  • · Fans of spicy mythology retellings (Lore Olympus, Neon Gods) who prioritise romantic heat and a brooding immortal hero over plot density
  • · Readers who enjoyed A Touch of Darkness and want more of the modern Greek pantheon — Hermes and Hecate in particular shine here

Skip it if

  • · You need a competent, growth-oriented heroine — Persephone's arc regresses in this installment and frustrates most reviewers
  • · You want a plot-driven mythological fantasy — the narrative is thin and secondary to the relationship drama and intimate scenes
  • · You are sensitive to on-page sexual violence, suicide references, or controlling romantic dynamics

If you liked this

  • · For fans of A Touch of Darkness (St. Clair) — direct sequel; same modern mythology setting, same heat level, with Hades' past now centre stage
  • · For fans of Neon Gods (Katee Robert) — contemporary Hades/Persephone retelling with comparable explicit heat and power-imbalanced romance
  • · For fans of Lore Olympus (Smythe) — same myth reimagined in a modern world, emphasising the emotional push-pull between a sheltered goddess and a brooding god
  • · For fans of A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire (Armentrout) — second-book bridge installment with an immortal morally grey love interest and a heroine whose decisions divide readers

In this series

Part of Hades x Persephone — read in order:

  1. 1A Touch of Darkness
  2. 2A Touch of Ruinyou’re here
  3. 3A Touch of Malice
  4. 4A Touch of Chaos
Full series profile & spice/trope breakdown →

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