THE DEATH OF THE GODDESS is an epic, narrative poem that is a moving account of affection, personal loss, and grief. Its central figures are two lovers who refuse to accept unjust social hierarchies and suffer separation and death for that choice. In this groundbreaking narrative, Patrick Colm Hogan sets out to re-synthesize ancient Indian philosophy and myth, with a beauty and literary feeling (called "rasa" in Sanskrit) that are the central aspects of this poem. THE DEATH OF THE GODDESS is richly metaphorical and written in an innovative form where Hogan makes liberal use of the musical features of verse-rhyme, assonance, and alliteration-that combines aspects of formal patterning with the unexpectedness of free verse. There are no spare words-each line is crafted with careful accuracy, cutting with a surgeon's precision. These unifying tie-ins make THE DEATH OF THE GODDESS an excellent literary achievement to be read by serious poetry lovers and students in mythology or epic literature alike.