bubblegirl858's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Spoiler
The only redeeming aspect of the book was getting to see Phaedra take revenge on her rapist because let's be honest, any person who has been raped wishes they could deal out justice to the person who harmed them in the same fashion. Knowing that she was like 6-7 months pregnant when she did it makes it that much more of an accomplishment. That was the only high point of the book. Her death at her own hands doesn't even feel like her own choice at the end due to her being backed into that corner.Graphic: Violence, Rape, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual assault, and Suicide
Moderate: Blood, Death, Vomit, Pregnancy, Sexism, Kidnapping, Alcoholism, and Slavery
not_kamille's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexism, Sexual violence, Suicide, and Grief
elysareadsitall's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The story dives headfirst into the politics of Athens and women's bodies. It's infuriating and hard to read, but it's realistic and important too. The prose is stark and driving. The book was quick to read and difficult to put down. Because it's a well-known myth, I knew what was going to happen, but I kept reading with hope and a need to know how Shepperson would wrap up the story.
The story is told in several perspectives. The characters Shepperson chose were confusing to me at first, but their parts in the story became clear quickly and made perfect sense. I liked the variety of perspectives because it showed how the ripple effects spread wide. Besides the Night Chorus, I was most drawn to Phaedra's perspective because she changes the most over the story and has a lot of inner turmoil.
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Rape, Child death, Suicide, and Sexual violence
nessakate's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Rape and Sexism
coffeekitaab's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
I haven't read Greek mythology since school and have always wanted to read more as an adult. This has been the first opportunity I had in a long time and I found I was still as interested and had never come across the story of Theseus, Phaedra and Hippolytus.
Trigger warnings should be checked.
I really enjoyed the story being told from the perspective of the female characters, and the author did well to commit to the different narratives. I do feel it was weak for a novel that is set out as a "feminist retelling". The characters are helpless before the dominating males and, even the goddesses seem subjected to their violence and treachery. I felt uncomfortable at how explicit the description of male harassment, violence etc was so trigger warnings flagged here.
My only other gripe is at times there was an assumption that the reader was well versed on the different myths which left the writing hanging to your the reader's imagination. Of course that does not work unless you know the tales, so I lost myself in these moments and found it a bit frustrating. This was a 3.5* for me.
Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Graphic: Rape, Child death, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Animal death, Blood, Misogyny, Torture, Violence, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Death of parent
anapthine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Murder, Sexual harassment, Gaslighting, Rape, Sexism, Death, and Injury/Injury detail
inkdrinkeranonymous's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Suicide, Blood, Death, Pregnancy, Grief, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Vomit, and Violence
house_of_hannah's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
I actually did not realize this is considered an adult book until after I finished it. Based on the writing this 100% comes off as YA. Re-reading the description of the book, I definitely see why this would be considered adult, but I feel that the description gives false expectations for the book. Saying that Phaedra, "sparks an overdue reckoning" is misleading, as the very opposite happens...and then the book ends.
I was really looking forward to reading a story from Phaedra's POV, but instead we must also read the POV's of a multitude of other characters. Out of 56 chapters in this book, only 17 are Phaedra. There are characters that really added nothing to the story, and I found myself bored while waiting for it to return to Phaedra's point-of-view.
Speaking of the cast of the characters, everyone comes off as quite one-dimensional. We are only ever shown one aspect of their personality, so everytime that character pops up that is the only thing ever discussed about them. For Phaedra it's painting, Hippolytus is riding horses, Theseus is democracy, Medea her children, etc. We never really explore deeper as to who these characters are.
Unfortunately, I also found the plot to be lacking. Once Phaedra is in Athens she rarely leaves her rooms, so huge amounts of time pass by without anything happening. A good majority of the book is simply conversations that Phaedra has with a few characters in her bedroom. As the book revolves around one event, there isn't anything else that happens that is really of any interest.
Which brings me to the main topic of this story: rape. The description of this book makes it seem like the oppressed women are going to be heard, and perhaps get some justice, but that doesn't happen. Almost every page of this book talks about the brutalization of women. Every man is a rapist, and every woman has been raped. I was expecting some sort of uprising, or mass court hearing where women were going to tell their stories, be heard, and gain back some power for themselves. Yet Phaedra is the only one to speak. The other women remain nameless voices in the night.
With how this book ends I honestly do not understand the purpose of it. I get that this is a Greek tragedy, but with minimal plot and no character growth I am struggling to care. We simply stayed surface level on a topic that should have been delved into so much deeper. There were sparks in the beginning that led me to believe we would be heading for some serious and well needed discussions, but it just never happened.
Here are those quotes:
"It was not until ten summers later, when Theseus was to come to Crete, seeking power beyond what we could give him, that I was to learn the truth: that any man can throw words up into the air, and it is women who must pay when those words land."
"I know that history will judge me, but history is written by men."
Such promise ! Overall this is an unsatisfying story that really should have gone all in if it was going to deal with such a serious topic. I was looking for Phaedra's perspective in a feminist retelling, but instead got multiple perspectives on how large and annoying a table was.
Graphic: Rape, Murder, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Sexism, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Child death, Violence, and Suicide
Moderate: Grief, Incest, and Confinement
Minor: Xenophobia, Slavery, Abortion, War, Vomit, and Pedophilia