katiefronk's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Death
Moderate: War, Murder, and Violence
Minor: Abandonment, Blood, and Animal death
booksandteatime's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Moderate: Abandonment, Animal death, Blood, Rape, Sexual assault, Murder, Death, and Misogyny
liv_jones's review
- 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? No
3.75
Atalanta is a strong protagonist, and her desire for both glory and belonging are well articulated. There are plenty of other strong characters too - particularly Medea, and I definitely appreciate that she is not vilified in this book as she can be in other retellings.
I do wish that the book didn’t focus as much on romance as it does - one of Atalanta’s main character traits in the source texts is that she absolutely didn’t want to be in a relationship (at least until Hippomenes comes along), so to have that part of her character erased is a little disappointing. Also I feel like the ending of the book is pretty divisive, it wasn’t really for me and it felt rather abrupt, but I think other people might love it.
Graphic: Death, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Sexism, and Violence
Period-typical attitudesbandysbooks's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
To start, I loved the characterization of Atalanta. She has been raised to be fierce and independent. She knows no limitations and so she is a very effective warrior. She's never been taught to think that a woman is somehow less capable, so she joins the Argonauts knowing that she will excel. The warning that Artemis gives her to take no husband seems logical, but as Atalanta explores the world, we see her struggle with her obligations to Artemis and the things she now wants as a human. I definitely think this was the strongest part of the book.
The plot was a bit of a let down for me. While there was a lot going on, it didn't feel like much of it was deeply explored. I expected the journey with the Argonauts to be more exciting, but somehow it felt like a secondary plot. There was a lot more time spent on the romance aspect and I think the action and timing suffered a bit because of it. I don't want to make this sound like it was terrible or anything. It was still an enjoyable story. It's just that comparative to Ariadne and Elektra, this one wasn't quite up to the same standard.
All in all, if you enjoy Greek mythology retellings, you'll likely find this one enjoyable as well. Atalanta is an interesting character and the story does move quickly.
As for the narration of the audiobook, I thought it was well done. It was easy to understand and I found the pacing to be typical for an audiobook. (I always speed them up.) It was easy to follow which characters were speaking and overall, I would recommend the audio option if you typically enjoy them.
3.75 Stars rounded up to 4
Moderate: Abandonment, Animal death, Grief, Misogyny, Death, Pregnancy, and Blood
amhud1030's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Another Greek mythology retelling with a female perspective from Jennifer Saint who does a great job deep diving and bringing us into the story that we’ve heard before in a new light.
Atalanta’s story is very interesting and unique. I enjoyed the story starting when she was an infant and following her through her life.
The pacing seem to bounce back-and-forth between medium and slow paced.
This was a really great story with your typical vengeful, gods and goddesses involved with lots of twists some I was not expecting as I did not know about Atalanta previously.
The narrator was excellent!
If you enjoy Jennifer Saints, previous books and Greek mythology, and then you’ll love this story.
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, War, Violence, and Slavery
Moderate: Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Kidnapping, and Rape
flashandoutbreak's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Blood, War, Violence, Death, and Pregnancy
velvetreads_'s review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Sexual assault, War, Murder, Rape, Animal death, Death, and Violence
alireads'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
3.75
Moderate: Death, Gore, Violence, Misogyny, Blood, Animal death, and Sexism
Minor: Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Slavery, Fire/Fire injury, and Rape