What do readers think of In the Garden of Monsters by Crystal King? Write your own review.

I was not familiar with the myth of Hades and Persephone or the real life story of Monster in the garden, but I found myself absorbed reading IN THE GARDEN OF MONSTERS (MIRA). I've read Crystal King's prior books and I've always learned something. King has a passion for art, food and history, as do I, so I was excited to dive into her new book.

It's post WWII, Italy where Julia, a woman well-educated in history and art, but with no memory of her past is invited to be Salvador Dali's muse, Persephone, one of the creatures in the stone garden. Dali's behavior intensifies, on the verge of obsession as shadows from the garden appear and become unwelcoming. Julia finds herself on the verge of losing her mind and wonders if she truly is the queen of the underground.

There's a lot I didn't include in my review, because you must read IN THE GARDEN OF MONSTERS yourself. It's a wonderful, but not easy read. I found myself referring to reference books and other tomes to understand the story. I believe it is worth the effort.

The author was inspired by Salvador Dalí's visit to the Sacro Bosco in Italy in 1948. She employs a historical fiction account of Dali's renting the estate containing this garden as the setting for his project of painting a series of surrealistic works that feature the statues of the Sacro Bosco and the protagonist Julia (his model and also artist who can't remember most of her past). In addition to Dalí and Julia, the cast of characters include a handsome, other worldly owner host of the estate, Dalí's unforgettable wife Gala and several other interesting characters. It is a surrealistic, gothic mystery founded in Roman mythology with the model Julia representing Proserpina. There are a number of twists and turns which augment the mystery, and the vivid descriptions of the garden and the Dalí organized feasts further enhance the enjoyment of the story. This is an enchanting book which I highly recommend.

What a great balance between mythology and reality. Every couple of chapters we are reminded that Julia Lombardy cannot remember her past. But it is subtle and unobtrusive and we are drawn back into a story that needs to be devoured. As the characters dance around each other and the garden both fascinates and scares us, we hurry to get to the conclusion. I will remember this book for a long time and recommend it to friends and my two book clubs.

Notes to publisher:
1) I noticed that the Amazon summary and the back of the book refers to Persephone while throughout the book and on her blog the author calls her Proserpina. I know the difference but am curious about why you are taking that approach.
2). P. 107 lines 7 & 8. The word him is repeated. P. 255line 4. A "the" needs to be inserted in front of "house"

I enjoyed the novel immensely. I read fantasy to interact with my high school students and even assigned this book as a classroom discussion project. The good students were enamored with Julia, Dali, and the garden. The kids liked the mythic queen of the underworld concept. Bravo, Ms. King.

In "In the Garden of Monsters", Crystal King paints word pictures that flow like poetry. The details of the meals and garden are extraordinary. I kept waiting for the next pomegranate seed to be unveiled or for a new persona for a character to be revealed. The ending gave me the feeling that things ended as they were meant to end. Love and friendship win.

I have really enjoyed Greek Mythology since I could read as a child. So I am familiar with most of the stories. I loved how the author pulled several of them together and into the present. King's research info at the end showed how thorough she is in her writing. I am also a big fan of Dali since my Junior High School days when I did more than one report on him. What a brilliant move to bring these characters together and so true to the historical documentation. I had to keep myself from reading In The Garden of Monsters too fast so that I wouldn't miss a single wonderful detail.

I so enjoyed Crystal King's previous historical fiction offering set in Italy's past—Ancient Roman and Italian Renaissance. This latest novel, an inventive Gothic work, reaches into the mid-20th Century yet clearly echoes people and places of both earlier periods. And these reflections are vividly and frighteningly expressed through warning voices, supernatural events, and mysterious occurrences that the main character, 24-year old artist Julia Lombardi, encounters in the eerie Sacro Bosco, the Sacred Grove. This wild, overgrown, sculpture-strewn garden of the book's title is no Garden of Eden tempting Eve with its forbidden fruit. In this scary place detested pomegranate seeds, instead, propel Julia to her inevitable fate.

As the story unfolds the relationship to Roman myths and Renaissance pasts is revealed. A rich cast of characters, including Julia's handsome, possessive host and the surrealist artist Dalí and his contentious wife, participate in out-of-this-worldly gatherings and dangerous explorations that ultimately lead to the story's immortal conclusion.
Not quite the well-developed reimagining of powerful mythical women of recent literature but a clever modernization of ancient Roman/Greek mythology that see Proserpina/Persephone once again reclaimed by her Underworld king.

I was drawn to this book because it took place in Italy, had Salvador Dali as a character, referenced mythology, and contained descriptions of fabulous meals. The author did a great job of integrating all of these elements. I know quite a bit about Dali and Gala, and I felt they were realistically portrayed, as were all of the characters. I didn't need to be familiar with the mythology because the pertinent points of the myths were included in the novel. The story was mysterious and very entertaining. I think this book would be enjoyed by fans of the All Souls series by Deborah Harkness.