Scan barcode
theinkedpath's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
ES:
Este es un libro complejo de reseñar.
¿Me ha gustado? Sí. ¿Me esperaba más? También.
Creo que ha habido mucha controversia con este libro por el concepto y por el hecho de que la autora a confesado no haber leído nunca el texto original de la "Odisea", ha empañado un poco esta novela en general.
Esta novela se vendía como un retelling de la Odisea, pero no lo es. Es una continuación (cientos de años en el futuro) de un solo capítulo de la Odisea. La mejor forma de describirlo sería: "¿Qué pasaría si al colgar a las sirvientas de Odiseo y Penélope se desatara una maldición sobre Ithaca en donde, salvo que se cuelgue a 12 mujeres inocentes, Poseidón inundará la ciudad?'. Esto es lo que se presenta aquí. Y en el centro de todo esto Melantho y Leto dispuestas a que esto no pase nunca más.
¿Con esta premisa era necesario leerse la Odisea para escribir una novela con mitología griega? Puede que hubiera sido deseable pero no obligatorio porque no es un retelling directo. Y pienso lo mismo sobre su lectura: puedes leer este libro sin necesidad de leer la Odisea.
Dicho esto, ¿que pienso yo de "Lies we sing to the sea"? Me ha parecido una propuesta interesante, con una trama y unos personajes complejos que tienen muchos secretos ocultos. Me ha encantado la forma tan detallada y estilística de escribir, llena de florituras, que me ha recordado mucho a los textos clásicos. Sin embargo, no es oro todo lo que reluce. Aunque me han gustado la complejidad inicial de los personajes, tengo que reconocer que creo que a veces su forma de actuar no era acorde con cómo se nos presentaban previamente, siendo, en ocasiones, inmaduros, torpes o simplemente ciegos. Como punto negativo también debo indicar que la narración tiene problemas de ritmo, siendo durante largos fragmentos del libro muy lenta y sin rumbo y, sin embargo, en su último tramo creo que ha pecado de acelerada y de que algunos hechos y revelaciones aparezcan o se les ocurran a los personajes por arte de magia.
¿Me ha gustado? Sí, pero esperaba más, aunque entiendo que, siendo la primera novela de Underwood tiene mucho que evolucionar.
EN:
This is a tricky book to read because of its controversy...but her we go.
Controversies:
-Firstly, the concept. This story was marketed as a retelling of 'The Odyssey" but it is not. It is a fantasy story that takes one chapter of 'The Odessy', the hanging of the Penelope´s maids and uses it to build up a fantasy story that happens hundreds of yers after that event. To me, that is not a retelling, but a follow up of the story, a what if if you will. Therefore, I did not feel offended by the use of the original text through the story (because the novel itself is a new product on its own).
-Secondly, the fact that the author had not read 'The Odessy' by Homer. I do not see it as alarming as I have read in some places. Should she have read the original text prior writing the story? Probably it would have been a good idea, for research, context and tone for example, but I do not consider it compulsory. The story itself I read it as if a "what if". What if, after the hanging of the maids, Poseidon cursed Ithaca and Odyseus´s family for their cruelty towards the maids by threatening to drown the city? The only way to stop this from happening is hanging 12 young innocent people each year as payment to the God. However, hundreds of years later, our protagonist, Melantho and Leto, decide to break the curse by killing Odysseus's descendant, Mathias. With this premise I do believe that the author introduced enough elements let the reader know the classic passages it refers to while having a new story. So, to me, the fact that she did not read 'The Odyssey' is not that bad. I think the author could have benefit from it, but it is not the end of the world. And I hold the same opinion for the readers: you could read 'The Odyssey' before reading this book to have more context and connect all the references, but you can also jump directly to Underwood's novel (which is what I did although I want to read the classic story too).
What do I think of this book?
This is a complex question because I liked it but, at the same time, I expected more from it and saw a few flaws. Let me explain:
I really like the concept of the story and how it was presented to us. I also loved the characters and how grey the were, specially the three main characters, with their multiple layers. I also love the very crafty way in which Underwood used the language and her writing craft, producing a very flowery prose that conjured beautiful scenes in my head. In this particular aspect, her writing reminded me of the classic text such as 'The Iliad'. However, this book has flaws as well. Firstly, it has problems regarding the narrative reading as it has really big portions of the book in which the action is very slow and, then, in the last third of the book everything happens very quickly and, some of the revelations happen too quickly or out of nowhere. As for the characters, though I love their complexity, I do believe that sometimes they behave in a way that goes against their previous behavior or in a very immature or irrational way producing that, sometimes, the enchantment around the character personality breaks producing in the reader a sense of inconsistency.
Does this mean I dislike the book? No. I like the book, but I do feel that some aspects of it could be improved more to make the story reach its full potential, as well as meeting the good aspects I listed before. However, this is the first book of the author and I am confident she will get better as she writes.
So, in the end, is a 3 stars book. Let's see what Underwood writes in the future
Este es un libro complejo de reseñar.
¿Me ha gustado? Sí. ¿Me esperaba más? También.
Creo que ha habido mucha controversia con este libro por el concepto y por el hecho de que la autora a confesado no haber leído nunca el texto original de la "Odisea", ha empañado un poco esta novela en general.
Esta novela se vendía como un retelling de la Odisea, pero no lo es. Es una continuación (cientos de años en el futuro) de un solo capítulo de la Odisea. La mejor forma de describirlo sería: "¿Qué pasaría si al colgar a las sirvientas de Odiseo y Penélope se desatara una maldición sobre Ithaca en donde, salvo que se cuelgue a 12 mujeres inocentes, Poseidón inundará la ciudad?'. Esto es lo que se presenta aquí. Y en el centro de todo esto Melantho y Leto dispuestas a que esto no pase nunca más.
¿Con esta premisa era necesario leerse la Odisea para escribir una novela con mitología griega? Puede que hubiera sido deseable pero no obligatorio porque no es un retelling directo. Y pienso lo mismo sobre su lectura: puedes leer este libro sin necesidad de leer la Odisea.
Dicho esto, ¿que pienso yo de "Lies we sing to the sea"? Me ha parecido una propuesta interesante, con una trama y unos personajes complejos que tienen muchos secretos ocultos. Me ha encantado la forma tan detallada y estilística de escribir, llena de florituras, que me ha recordado mucho a los textos clásicos. Sin embargo, no es oro todo lo que reluce. Aunque me han gustado la complejidad inicial de los personajes, tengo que reconocer que creo que a veces su forma de actuar no era acorde con cómo se nos presentaban previamente, siendo, en ocasiones, inmaduros, torpes o simplemente ciegos. Como punto negativo también debo indicar que la narración tiene problemas de ritmo, siendo durante largos fragmentos del libro muy lenta y sin rumbo y, sin embargo, en su último tramo creo que ha pecado de acelerada y de que algunos hechos y revelaciones aparezcan o se les ocurran a los personajes por arte de magia.
¿Me ha gustado? Sí, pero esperaba más, aunque entiendo que, siendo la primera novela de Underwood tiene mucho que evolucionar.
EN:
This is a tricky book to read because of its controversy...but her we go.
Controversies:
-Firstly, the concept. This story was marketed as a retelling of 'The Odyssey" but it is not. It is a fantasy story that takes one chapter of 'The Odessy', the hanging of the Penelope´s maids and uses it to build up a fantasy story that happens hundreds of yers after that event. To me, that is not a retelling, but a follow up of the story, a what if if you will. Therefore, I did not feel offended by the use of the original text through the story (because the novel itself is a new product on its own).
-Secondly, the fact that the author had not read 'The Odessy' by Homer. I do not see it as alarming as I have read in some places. Should she have read the original text prior writing the story? Probably it would have been a good idea, for research, context and tone for example, but I do not consider it compulsory. The story itself I read it as if a "what if". What if, after the hanging of the maids, Poseidon cursed Ithaca and Odyseus´s family for their cruelty towards the maids by threatening to drown the city? The only way to stop this from happening is hanging 12 young innocent people each year as payment to the God. However, hundreds of years later, our protagonist, Melantho and Leto, decide to break the curse by killing Odysseus's descendant, Mathias. With this premise I do believe that the author introduced enough elements let the reader know the classic passages it refers to while having a new story. So, to me, the fact that she did not read 'The Odyssey' is not that bad. I think the author could have benefit from it, but it is not the end of the world. And I hold the same opinion for the readers: you could read 'The Odyssey' before reading this book to have more context and connect all the references, but you can also jump directly to Underwood's novel (which is what I did although I want to read the classic story too).
What do I think of this book?
This is a complex question because I liked it but, at the same time, I expected more from it and saw a few flaws. Let me explain:
I really like the concept of the story and how it was presented to us. I also loved the characters and how grey the were, specially the three main characters, with their multiple layers. I also love the very crafty way in which Underwood used the language and her writing craft, producing a very flowery prose that conjured beautiful scenes in my head. In this particular aspect, her writing reminded me of the classic text such as 'The Iliad'. However, this book has flaws as well. Firstly, it has problems regarding the narrative reading as it has really big portions of the book in which the action is very slow and, then, in the last third of the book everything happens very quickly and, some of the revelations happen too quickly or out of nowhere. As for the characters, though I love their complexity, I do believe that sometimes they behave in a way that goes against their previous behavior or in a very immature or irrational way producing that, sometimes, the enchantment around the character personality breaks producing in the reader a sense of inconsistency.
Does this mean I dislike the book? No. I like the book, but I do feel that some aspects of it could be improved more to make the story reach its full potential, as well as meeting the good aspects I listed before. However, this is the first book of the author and I am confident she will get better as she writes.
So, in the end, is a 3 stars book. Let's see what Underwood writes in the future
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Drug use, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
elderwoodreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
The first third of this book could've been about a quarter of the length. I honestly couldn't tell you much of what happened outside of the bits of backstory sprinkled in. The last 2/3 the book really shined, however, the love triangle felt so unnecessary and really made it a struggle to get through at times
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, and Suicide
Moderate: Child death, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, and Murder
Minor: Body horror, Child abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Blood, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
nyst's review against another edition
adventurous
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Murder
Minor: Slavery
ntstucky's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Grief, Murder, and Sexual harassment
kassidyreads's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Suicide
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Death of parent
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Slavery, and Abandonment
lizy's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Child death, Death, Rape, Sexual content, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Slavery, Grief, Death of parent, and Sexual harassment
fossilreads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
As a story, on its own, exciting and thrilling. But as I'm not able to overlook the fact the author has called it a retelling without even reading the original story it is meant to portray, unfortunately I can not rate this better than 2,5 stars.
I'm personally not a fan of time jumps too much and the way flashbacks to memories or stories told were written, I got confused many times when we jumped from an orally told story to a memory instead.
I'm not very knowledgeable in greek mythology, so I'm not able to give an opinion on how accurate those parts of the story are.
I was happy to see Leto gather herself in the end, it frustrated me how flaky she was with going through with things she seemed to be so incredibly set on. But that's also just.. humanity.
Honestly Mathias might have been my favorite character in all this. He truly wanted the best and tried to do all he knew to be able to. I love and hate his ending, I just want him to have everything good in the world!
This is a heavy read for all the grief and especially the pain women go through (of course girls are the ones cursed and at the mercy of men, as it has gone throughout so much of history).
The ending was predictable, but in my opinion it was in a nice way and didn't ruin the book for me. Some things still felt left unanswered in the end, but at least most of it was a somewhat satisfying ending.
So in short: As a story, it's a great one with such grief and also some joy sprinkled in. In context of it supposedly being a retelling, ehhhh... It's a heavy read when you wish so much better for women in general.
I really liked the romances, but there were so many things that frustrated me within them. I understand Melantho's grief over her past lovers, but babygirl, you are allowed to love again. They are gone, taken from you, it's not like you're cheating.
Leto on the other hand... how easily do you forget Melantho as soon as you set your eyes (and lips) on the prince?
I'm personally not a fan of time jumps too much and the way flashbacks to memories or stories told were written, I got confused many times when we jumped from an orally told story to a memory instead.
I'm not very knowledgeable in greek mythology, so I'm not able to give an opinion on how accurate those parts of the story are.
I was happy to see Leto gather herself in the end, it frustrated me how flaky she was with going through with things she seemed to be so incredibly set on. But that's also just.. humanity.
Honestly Mathias might have been my favorite character in all this. He truly wanted the best and tried to do all he knew to be able to. I love and hate his ending, I just want him to have everything good in the world!
This is a heavy read for all the grief and especially the pain women go through (of course girls are the ones cursed and at the mercy of men, as it has gone throughout so much of history).
The ending was predictable, but in my opinion it was in a nice way and didn't ruin the book for me. Some things still felt left unanswered in the end, but at least most of it was a somewhat satisfying ending.
So in short: As a story, it's a great one with such grief and also some joy sprinkled in. In context of it supposedly being a retelling, ehhhh... It's a heavy read when you wish so much better for women in general.
Leto on the other hand... how easily do you forget Melantho as soon as you set your eyes (and lips) on the prince?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Grief
Moderate: Slavery
kanadrallegria's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Confinement, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicide, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
klbreyfogle's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
It’s pretty good, I do enjoy queer Greek mythology stories. That said I also like a happy ending and this one was bittersweet enough that if I’d known the end I probably wouldn’t have picked it up. It’s probably better than a 3.75 but I docked it points for making me sad. Plus, I prefer stories that have a more creative answer than making the boy commit suicide because it’s his duty.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Suicide, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual assault and Slavery
kxl_knight's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Highly reminiscent of song of Achilles and Circe by Madeline Miller. A great beach read!
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Slavery, Suicide, Terminal illness, and Vomit