Spring's Descent : A Sinful Seasons Novel

by C.L. Briar

I’d been stalking her for years. My little witch was always just out of reach. But tonight, I’d gotten her scent. She could run as fast and as far as she liked. It made no difference. I would find her. And when I did, I’d drag my little witch to The Underworld to be my bride. My queen. My goddess forever.


I was powerless against his shadows, unable to do anything as the demon split the earth and The Realm of the Living fell away. He expected me to be terrified, but my life had already ended before he captured me. Death magic was ravaging our world, claiming hundreds of souls, and my twenty-first birthday was next month, the night when my life would be sacrificed to strengthen the weakening Earth Coven.

I'd thought Hades was my damnation, but he might just hold the key to awakening my magic and saving us all.

Things to know about Spring's

Hades and Persephone retellingEnemies to loversDark Romance FantasyWitches & GodsFound familyDuel POVPossessive love interestArranged marriageHEAThis book contains dark themes that may be triggering to some. Please check TW.

Genres: Fantasy, Dark Romance, Romantasy, Romance, Dark, Fantasy Romance, Mythology

342 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 2, 2024

Reviews

[Ari ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book. The author knows how to tell a story and it had so much potential but the one major problem for me was that Persephone and Hades' relationship felt extremely rushed and not fleshed out very well. Insta-love trope doesn't bother me that much but this just felt like it needed some sort of development. I wish the book was longer. I almost felt like the side characters were a bit more fleshed out than Hades which is a bummer.

Book was still good and I am happy I bought the special edition from the author. It is a gorgeous book and was still worth the read because it was a really fun book to read. Persephone was a great character who I wish I had more time to know.

Will be reading more from this author! c:

[Jillian Perdos · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s a hard no from me. Took a chance on this little unknown book and it did me dirty, 100% should have dnf’d.

Boring, cringy, riddled with typos, hard to follow, and a relationship that is so surface level. FMC did literally nothing to deserve any kind of respect or devotion from MMC other than it being “fate”.

Bothered me so much that she somehow knew his fake name before he introduced himself in the beginning. EDIT PEOPLE

[Read.and.Blossom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book a lot! It was a buddy read with my friends and of course I could not myself from binge reading this book.

It was soo good! I love Hades x Persephone, not the first time I have said this, I am down bad when Hades is down bad for Persephone😂

Like him calling her little witch and then my queen uuuuggghhhhhh I kept biting my knuckles!!

I loved the world and the plot. A lot of characters suck who think they have this amazing magic lol they just underestimated Persephone!

[Khayla A · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this adventure. Hades and Persephone were electric on page together. The spicy was spicy and the danger was lurking around every corner. So excited because book 2 just released on KU !

[Ella · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️ | 🌶️🌶️🌶️

The opening line had me hooked and smirking! IYKYK!

A wickedly dark twist on Hades and Persephone that had me clutching my kindle (and my crystals, it fits the theme kinda). Spring’s Descent serves enemies-to-lovers deliciousness with a gothic cherry on top. 🥵

Think: death magic, a crumbling magical kingdom, and one dangerously charming God of the Underworld who drips morally grey menace like its cologne. 🖤

It’s dual POV, which I live for, with writing that’s both lush and sharp. Some twists I saw coming, but others slapped me sideways. And the tension? So thick I wanted to scream into a velvet pillow.

Yes, the romance leans instalove (she hates him and then quickly loves him) and the tension could’ve simmered a bit longer, but I won’t moan 🌶️🌶️🌶️

This isn’t a sugary love story — it’s seductive, shadowy, and laced with yearning. Obsessed. 😏


🖤 Morally grey, death god MMC
🥀 Sunshine x shadows
🖤 Dark Fantasy Romance
🥀Enemies to lovers
🖤 Magic and a slow-burn tension
🥀 Fated Mates
🖤 HEA

[MrsLColley · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️ // 3-3.5 🌶️
Spring’s Descent starts off with a hooking book dedication! We love a Shadow Daddy!!! As well as offering a fast-paced and captivating story line , it gives a provocative tension filled twist on the Hades and Persephone retelling. Springs Descent features lusty and angsty insta-love chemistry between the fated main characters, that’s written in a compelling and seductive way!

Book Quotes….
🖤•” For the dark romantic fantasy lovers who dream of being stolen away by their own shadow daddy-this one's for you.” -book dedication C.L Briar
🖤•“A demon like me enjoys the chase little witch and you’re not ready for what happens when I catch you..”. -Hades 🥵
🖤• “…… and reaching to mid thigh…” -Persephone
(ummmm What!?! Hello!! 😳🤭)
🖤•“She bathed my reality in light. In life. But it was so much more than her magic. It was her. Her goodness. Her hope. I had been exiting in bland sheets of grey, but Persephone saw the world in vivid shades of color.”-Hades💘
🖤•“F**king perfect. That’s what Persephone was. Dazzling, radiant. A f**king goddess among mortals. She was the candle amid endless darkness. A diamond gleaming among lumps of coal. No one was worthy of her, not even to gaze upon her beauty. Not even me.” -Hades 💗

C.L. Briars' writing style was catchy, fun, and playful, providing high stakes, dark romance and a couple of chuckles. Her immersive world-building imagery throughout, particularly the journey through the Underworld was exceptional . The unique interpretation of mythology was also commendable.
There was one thing left unanswered that I wish had been followed up on… the tea Demeter had been giving Persephone, was it suppressing her powers the entire time? Also,I do wish there could have been just a bit more buildup of the romance between Hades and Persephone, but for the length of the story it was still very, very, giving!! The spice was spicing!!!!
Overall , I was thoroughly captivated by the characters, particularly Hades' grumpy/sunny personality, the story, the magic, and steam between the MMC and FMC..🤌🏼
If you have a passion for Hades and Persephone love story retellings, with a touch of spice, you'll undoubtedly find this book to be one you will want to read!
Definitely recommend reading!
I look forward to jumping into the next book!!
🚩Trig.Warnings should be checked before reading.

•Shadow Daddy
•Grumpy/Sunshine MMC 🩶
•Strong FMC ❣️
•Forced Proximity
•Enemies to Lovers
•Fated Mates
•Insta-Lust
•Insta-Love
•Abuse/Trauma
•Found Powers
•Witches/gods/mythology
•Touch Her and 💀
•Dark Romance 🖤
•HEA
•Dual POV

[Elizabeth King · Rating 2 out of 5]

i tried my hardest to give this a three star because it’s legitimately the prettiest book i own but my thumb would literally not allow me to press the third star

[han ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25 ⭐️

i love hades and persephone. it should’ve been spicier!

[Jes · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the core story even though the MC relationship is wildly rushed. Very smutty for the sake of being smutty, which isn’t really my vibe. Also there’s about 25 typo errors throughout the book, which really needed a top to bottom copy edit. I think I’ll take a shadow daddy any time though!

[Cheyanne Nelms · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m a sucker for anything Hades and Persephone 🩵 this one got a little slow in the middle but the second half at my hooked!

[Tabularasa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh boy, that mother is a real b**ch.

Book is nice! Had some good moments😏

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. I am a huge fan of Hades and Persephone retellings. I have read many different interpretations and respect the authors who can come up with a unique idea while also giving homage to the original myth. With that being said, I liked the idea of Persephone being a witch and Hades needing her to unite both the land of the living and the underworld. There were plot points, however, that I really struggled with. Hades wanted to hide his identity from her because she had been taught her whole life to fear and hate him. Ok valid. However, he did a terrible job of that. He constantly talked about her being his and he pursed her so heavily sexually. Yet in her mind she was supposed to believe he was just Hades hound taking her to him? That just didn’t make sense to me at all. Along those lines, character development was horrible. When we first meet Persephone, she is a rebel who is sexually free and doesn’t care what others think. The first sentence in the book got me super excited to read this book. She was presented as this strong albeit broken woman but a very intelligent and street smart, for lack of a better term, person. Yet she never doubts him when he gives a fake name and is so forceful with his need to make her his. And when she spots the tattoo her first thought is that he’s Hades hound and not Hades himself?! Come on! That drove me crazy, and that was a main plot point and what drove this story. Then we add in how they instantly loved each other and said it at the same time, and no this wasn’t an insta love troupe, this was just poor writing. There were also some other minor plot points that annoyed me, like her knowing his fake name before he even told her, her knowing it was Thanatos talking to Hades when she had never met him and her eyes were closed, and I’m assuming it was the tea that was binding her powers yet we were never told how Demeter did it. I so wish I could have been a beta reader for her because I loved the concept of this story, it just needs some tweaks.

[Paige · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything about this book was just okay. It started out promising but after you get about half way into the story it just becomes dull. Persephone started out as an interesting character until she just wasn’t. Pretty much the same with Hades too. I’m honestly a lot more interested in the side characters!

[Kaitlyn Nicole · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought the special edition from TikTok. The cover, sprayed edges, book jacket, chapter pages, and everything else with the design is flawless. 10/10
For the story - I could see where the author took some inspiration (primarily A Touch of Ruin and ACOTAR with a little of Electric Idol). I love a HadesxPersephone retelling, and there are so many, that at this point I think it is hard to have much originality but I could see where the author was putting her twist. The 🌶️ was 4/5. I honestly could’ve done with a little less focus on it and more focus on the plot or emotional intimacy building.

[List · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dropped 2024
I don’t have double standards so it’s still not cool to read sex with OM. Ok I like when the FMCs are not virgins, but I don’t need to read about the h’s conquests just like how I hate reading sex scenes with OW.

[Emily Hosford · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly, this was nothing special. I was a bit bored and sometimes had trouble figuring out what was going on. There were also typos in the book and the English teacher in me cringed.

[* serena * · Rating 2 out of 5]

blah. i hate tik tok and their shit recommendations. this is probably the most bland retelling of hades and persephone i have ever read.

[♡︎.ᐟજ⁀➴ Erie · Rating 3 out of 5]

🌷 Spring’s Descent by C.L. Briar
⭐️⭐️⭐️ — I wanted a descent into madness, but I only got a quick trip down the spice aisle.

🕯️ Hades kidnaps Persephone, but make it witchy, moody, and lowkey underwhelming.

I just finished reading Spring’s Descent, and listen—I was so ready for this to wreck me. Hades and Persephone? Sacrificial coven drama? He drags her to the Underworld to be his goddess?? Say less.

And yet... despite the delicious setup and the promising angst, this ended up feeling like a beautiful glass vase with nothing inside it. Pretty. Fun. But kind of empty.

🌒 What’s It About?
A death witch fated to die. A brooding Hades who’s been obsessed for years. A kidnapping. A dark deal. And a crumbling world where magic is dying and everyone is running out of time. Oh—and also… marriage.

This Hades is shadowy, swoony, and fully in his mine era. The FMC is spring reincarnated, carrying untapped power she doesn’t know how to wield. Cue mutual obsession, trapped proximity in the Underworld, and a romance that teeters between fate and feral possession.

Sounds like your next romantasy addiction, right?

Well… not quite.

🍃 What I Liked:

• Underworld Vibes
Gimme gloomy stone halls, cursed brides, ghostly courts, and shadow-kissed pining. The vibes were vibing.

• Quick, bingeable pacing
The chapters flew. The dual POV helped. Nothing overstayed its welcome—which, honestly, is rare for a retelling.

• Found family stuff with the Underworld girlies
I would’ve loved more of them, but the glimpses were solid. Loved Persephone finding her power, even if it felt… rushed.

• The Hades obsession trope
Do I want him to be a little unhinged over her? Yes. Did he deliver that? Yes-ish. At least hetried to.

🥀 What Fell Flat:

• Too much telling, not enough feeling
We spent a lot of time inside both characters' heads... and yet I never felt anything. Their emotional wounds were mentioned but not explored. I wasn’t devastated. I wasn’t cheering. I was just—there.

• The spice? Mid.
Like, we’re in the Underworld, he’s obsessed with her, they’re magically married, and it still felt... polite. I don’t need full chaos, but I needed more.

• The plot beats were predictable.
If you’ve read any Hades/Persephone fantasy romance, this one doesn’t add much new. I kept waiting for a twist or some kind of emotional gut-punch. It never came.

• Missed opportunity with the magic system
There were cool ideas—death magic, spring energy, sacrificial ceremonies—but they weren’t developed enough to feel immersive. The world could’ve been everything, but it just skimmed the surface.

💫 TROPES TO KNOW 🌸

💀 Enemies to lovers (but soft enemies)

🔥 Possessive, touch-her-and-die MMC

🪄 Witch + god pairing

💍 Forced/arranged magical marriage

🫀 Fated mates vibes, but not quite explained

🪞 Dual POV

🕯️ Shadow daddy wants a wife

🗝️ Final Thoughts:
Spring’s Descent had the bones of a story I’d normally devour in one sitting: angsty retelling, morally gray MMC, and a witch who’s more powerful than she knows. But instead of stabbing me in the heart with longing and plot twists, it sort of… breezed by. Enjoyable? Yes. Impactful? Not really.

Would I read more from the series? Probably. But I’ll be hoping for deeper stakes, more bite, and spice that brings the underworld heat.

[Nicole · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not even sure where to begin with this book. I bought it off of TikTok shop, special edition, due to my FYP recommendations and honestly? I'm feeling betrayed. This was an absolute struggle to get through and I can't for the life of me find really any saving graces.

For instance, the amount of times Persephone is referred to as little witch was absurd. Part of me wanted to count them to see just how many there were, but that would require me to crack open the book again and I just can't do it.

All the characters fell incredibly flat and were highly predictable. Evil mother who had no redeemable qualities (*yawn*) to make her compelling and dynamic. Gruph MMC who has no emotions, according to him, yet is instantly and irrevocably drawn to the FMC because they are 'fated' (*yawn*). FMC who is virtually helpless to resist him just as instantaneously and lets him just blast her the second they are in The Underworld after a brief and half hearted squabble? This after being raised her entire life to fear and despise everything to do with The Underworld. Okay, right...

I could go on but this book just is more of a nuisance to me than it is worth. I can get down with a smutty book with little in the way for plot when I want to. However, this was just smut with a plot but sans any characters to actually care about. And the smut really wasn't it for me, either.

If you enjoyed it, I'm happy for you. It is a hard pass for me.

[ Oh, but I will say that the special edition is gorgeous and well made. Certainly eye candy and likely the only reason it /may/ stay on my shelf. ]

[CozyDreamsStudio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Look, I love a good hades and Persephone story. But this was not it.

I knew going in this is a dark romance. And there was Devine some dark stuff going on. And dark romantic thoughts expressed. But the worst things that actually happened were when Demeter tortured and tried to kill Persephone. All the guy characters expressed desires of sexual deviance, but they never delivered on it. So the biggest aspect of a dark romance fell totally flat.

Then the story wasn’t even that good to make up for it. There was a lot of unexplained stuff and contradiction. Like the magic. And Thanatos and Morpheus maybe had a thing? And one second Hades said I can’t tell Korae her true name, and then the very next he’s calling her Persephone.

It felt very insta-lust, and then insta-love. There’s a difference between love and lust and obsession, and feelings never grew naturally in this book, they just popped out of the ground, like the dandelions Persephone apparently loves with no further explanation.

Finally the end of the book was boring. They defeat Demeter, and then spend a lot of time doing nothing at the end. The end of this book is literally just a set up for the next book. Which I feel is unnecessary. Just start the next book then, why spend all this time here starting a new story?

[Escape Into Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐ - here me out!

This story was great, the spice was so well done and I enjoyed the medium stakes the characters were up against. BUT I gave this 3.5 instead of 4.5 ⭐ for 2 reasons.

The first, because of how many grammatical errors there were in the KU version and Special Edition. They kept throwing me out of the story - and there was one moment where Persephone is internally monologuing and says the original name Hades gave her even though he introduces himself for the first time a few pages later.

This author absolutely knows what she's doing with writing and weaving stories. I just wish the editing/proofreading was a bit more thorough.

And the second - I thought the pacing was great until about 75%, loved the push and pull and struggle Persephone felt when it came to her feelings for Hades but when it came time for the I love yous, they seemed to happen all at once and right after she had said how much she hated him.

I don't normally have issues with insta anything - but the way she couldn't stand him and didn't trust him but then he said I love you and she was in love instantly too threw me out of the story too.

If the errors were fixed this would confidently be a 4.25⭐ for me.

Will 1000000% be reading more from this author tho!

[Meagan Honea · Rating 4 out of 5]

“For the dark romantic fantasy girls out there who dream of being stolen away by their very own shadow daddy. This one’s for you.” Listen, when the author begins her book with this dedication … say less.

4 ⭐️

The MMC, Hades, whose name shall forever be “Daddy Darkness,” has one goal- to find his witch and make her his bride in The Underworld.

The FMC, Persephone, has been raised to believe she’s powerless. Set to marry what I’m going to refer to as the scum of the earth, she’s desperate to run away.

Hades, who has patiently stalked her, is waiting in the darkness and is able to snatch her dragging her to The Underworld.

As Persephone’s magic slowly begins to manifest so does her unexplainable connection to Hades and The Underworld. But her mother, the leader of a powerful coven wants her powers and will stop at nothing to drain her and steal them for her own.

What to expect:
🧙🏼‍♀️ Hades and Persephone retelling
😈 Enemies to lovers
🧙🏼‍♀️ Dark romance
😈 Spicy- check your trigger warnings
🧙🏼‍♀️ Dual POV
😈 Touch her and ☠️
🧙🏼‍♀️ Witches
😈 HEA

Goodbye to Mommy and Daddy Darkness … for now.

[Heather Collins · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, I absolutely love anything Greek mythology and this retelling of Percephone and Hades was so interesting! However, the pacing was very unsteady throughout the book and there were many spelling and gramatical errors. I don't know who C.L.'s editor is but I volunteer as tribute; it definitely needed another couple of proofreadings and another pair of eyes, or even just an online spell check. 🤷‍♀️

I did like that we immediately had an enemy. Percephone's trauma is seen early and I honestly loved her character development. She annoyed me at times with some of her choices, but once information was revealed at the end, everything became clear. I do wish there had more meaningful conversations between Percephone and Hades and more development within their relationship, though.
Hades was perfection. I loved how she thawed his frozen heart. Swoon. 🥰🖤🥵
The spice was good, though I do wish we got more of it. Hades' filthy mouth and the way he worshiped her body was so yum. 2.5🌶️

I'm intrigued by Lark and Morpheu, so I may end up reading their book just to see how they get together and how the over all plotline continues in the war with Hypnos.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always love Persephone/Hades retellings. I will say that around the middle, it felt like I had read it before. BUT, I have read a few of these retellings.

This one is unique as I haven't read one where Persephone is a witch and there was such brutal abuse inflicted by Demeter. In my opinion, it wasn't super dark, but please check your trigger warnings.

I appreciate that this book was ONLY one book. Sometimes, I feel that authors create 4-6 book series out of something that definitely doesn't need to be drawn out so long. This creates quite a lot of action in the book, which I very much appreciate to keep my attention.

When Persephone/Hades finally succumbed to each other, it felt a little instalove from Persephone because she truly, truly did hate the man. But I do know that the fates and the fact that they were fated mates made that possible, sometimes hard for "humans" to understand on that level.

In the end, it definitely feels like a setup for a book 2 if she so chose. I don't see any upcoming books by her, but if it does come out, I will be there to read it.

[Samantha Peirce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spring’s Descent was such a fun, fast-paced, spicy read!

Persephone has been lied to and abused for her entire life. She is drowning under the weight of self-doubt due to unfair judgement from others and expectations she could never meet. This story is about her awakening—coming into her own power, discovering her truth, and forging her own path.

“Where I would’ve felt exposed before, now I felt liberated. It was a subtle shift in perspectives, but a pivotal one.”

“Even before my awakening, I had the power to change my life. To break free from the lies and misery that had been forced upon me and forge my own future.”

Her journey resonated with me soooo much! I feel like I’ve gone through a similar transformation over the past few years.

And then there’s Hades… hot damn. I think every woman secretly craves a beast.

“He was a beast, everything I had been taught to hate. And I craved him all the more for it.”

I loved seeing Hades’s progression and how Persephone helped him reclaim his humanity.

This book was so good, and I’m ready to dive into the next one!

[Maeve · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 - 3 ✨
2 🌶️

Idk man this was just so boring.

Hades wasn’t a badass which was lame and while there was a reason for it, it wasn’t actually explained very well. It was kept very surface level. The curses, spells and magic system weren’t made clear and sometimes they had to speak spells and curses and other times they didn’t. Hecate gives them magic but the Awakening was not made clear. Lastly, Hades betraying/lying to Persephone was never really addressed but was glossed over and turned into insta love. Their relationship felt forced and surface level to me with the only reason Hades loved her being that she was fated to him.

And somehow nothing really happened but also very much happened? The end was very rushed but good god we slogged through every nook of the Underworld. I also found myself enjoying the development of the side characters more than the 2 main characters significantly and that was disappointing.

[Victoria Scozzafava · Rating 4 out of 5]

4⭐️

Spring’s Descent by C.L. Briar is book one in the Sinful Seasons series. This is a Hades and Persephone retelling which is always a fun story. This was a fun and exciting read. The world and magic was easy to understand. The plotline was interesting and I just had to keep reading to figure out what was going to happen next. The characters were likeable. I really liked this story and I am excited to read the next book in this series. Persephone was strong, intelligent, and a stubborn FMC. I loved how she continued to stay true to herself no matter what other thought. I really liked her personality. I loved watching Hades and Persephone relationship progress. They complimented one another. I would recommend this book if you love a Hades and Persephone retelling!!!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

HAPPY READING

QOTD: What is your favorite retelling?

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

The pacing of this book was absolutely insane. The first 50-60% was setting the scene, taking CHAPTERS upon CHAPTERS to travel through the underworld and build this tension yet slight hatred between the main characters all for it to hit 200 mph in the last 10% of the book. Suddenly EVERYTHING was happening. This person isn’t really dead, that person is a traitor, this person gets assaulted and beat until he’s a husk of himself (in one night) and in that one night of being assaulted and beat he also got enough rest to recharge himself and kill everyone that beat and assaulted him and then STILL the MMC had the audacity to ask his help. I could rant for forever about what happened in, I think, two pages. I will not be reading the second book as I just do not care enough about Lark and Morpheus from this book, to want to subject myself to this again.

[Tina Clayton · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️ The book is very high stakes the whole time and hard to put down. I loved that there is such a thin line between running away /being rescued & being kidnapped. I would’ve rated this book higher if it had been a little longer. Because it was such a short book I felt like some of the sequences happened a little too fast without explanation. I would’ve loved to get a little more into some of the side characters like Hecate and Thanatos as well as building up a little more love story for Persephone and Hades. It went from Insta-lust to Insta-love way too quickly. As it is, it was a really fun, interesting, and sexy.

** yes this is an indie author and yes, I found typos as well. I’m not counting that against my book rating. I just fixed the typos as I was reading my hardcover. I should point out that my hardcover special edition is also gorgeous and well thought out.**

[B McMuffin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Id honestly rate it more of a 3.5 but Goodreads wont let me. I think it has a lot of potential and maybe with another glace through or editing it could have been an actual 4 star read. The writing gets a little redundant but not enough to really annoy me. The world building has some strong aspects but there are still some holes that make the plot & conflicts confusing. The pacing is a little inconsistent, at parts everything is happening fairly quickly & others seem to be over explained. I'm not a big fan of some of the events of the story & the characters are kinda eh but I don't dislike them (Except the mother & Cyrus fuck that guy). I did like the spice & romance in it though. Hades has so many great quotes confessing his love & she says this one line that's like "now show me what it means to be fucked by a god" that had me giddy even though he had already fucked her a few times. I mean he ate her out in the throne room while everyone watched...idk I fucks with it. I struggled to get through the writing but I had a fun time reading the actual story.