In A Touch of Ruin, St. Clair brings the fatalistic nature of the ancient Greek myths into conflict with modern notions of free will, agency, and a sense of self. In her mythos, the gods operate on a system of barters, bargains, and trades that represent their own kind of economy but question the extent of control an individual has over their own life.

Persephone plays out this conflict between fate and free will in her relationships with Hades and her mother. The Fates, who control human destiny, have established that Persephone will end up as consort and queen to the God of the Underworld. In the original myth, Persephone has little voice, no agency, and no control over her own fate. Hades abducts her, and her mother and Zeus negotiate her freedom. The only influence she has over her circumstances comes through the pomegranate seeds, which determine the length of her commitment to the underworld.

St. Clair borrows this idea of negotiation and bargaining to characterize how the gods in her world establish and conserve power, especially when they infringe upon one another’s realms, and she also examines how much control Persephone, a modern young woman, has over her own life.