Reviews tagging 'Cannibalism'

Circe by Madeline Miller

34 reviews

gabriella_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional funny reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I read most of this book on a round trip train ride and someone’s front lawn. My god this book was gripping. I preferred The Song of Achilles for the romantic overtures but I think Madeline Miller really comes into her own as an author writing prose in this piece. The depth of the way she characterizes has compounded exponentially in this book. It’s such a refreshing spin on Greek mythos that I couldn’t put the book down.

This book made me laugh and cry within mere lines. I love the way Madeline Miller writes structures of misogyny without relegating women to damsels, and while writing all her characters as multidimensional with their own agendas. She captures the essence of Greek mythos without letting it choke out her own artistic vision.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abandonment, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Rape, Child death, Emotional abuse, Body horror, Cannibalism, Murder, Forced institutionalization, Mental illness, Sexism, Death, Grief, Pregnancy, Violence, Blood, Body shaming, Confinement, Medical trauma, Medical content, Misogyny, Incest, Sexual harassment, War, Child abuse, Classism, Physical abuse, Animal cruelty, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

erica_reads_things's review against another edition

adventurous emotional funny mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I loved this updated, feminist themes retelling of so many Greek myths that we have heard so much about. The characters were compelling and I loved the author's portrayal of the Gods and the inner workings of their divinity. Very well done, I really enjoyed this book. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Incest, Adult/minor relationship, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: War, Cannibalism, Child death, Pregnancy, and Sexual content

catwhisperer's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Animal death, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Blood, Body horror, Child abuse, Violence, Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Infidelity, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Grief

lorriss's review against another edition

emotional mysterious slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Animal death, Body horror, War, Sexual assault, Sexism, Fire/Fire injury, Emotional abuse, Blood, Cannibalism, Sexual violence, Murder, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Animal cruelty, Bullying, Slavery, Physical abuse, Incest, Death, Torture, Rape, Abandonment, Alcohol, Violence, Suicide, Grief, Death of parent, and Confinement

sas_ram's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Review will most likely follow soon

It is beautifully written and that's what makes it stand out. First and foremost it's a greek mythology retelling of Circe. This is a rather niche story. The plotline is basically just her mythic life. Yes it's not all accurate based on greek mythology but what do you expect when you read a modern "retelling". There are other myths mixed in to fill the story and make it more interesting.
But it is actually quite interesting with how different she was treated, who she became etc. 
Some parts tend to drag on a bit especially those nothing really happens in. Those parts with a more straight forward plot tend to be cut short where as I would have loved to dive deeper into those scenes.

Now I have high hopes for The Song of Achilles knowing how beautiful her writing style is.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Bullying, Confinement, Death, and Murder

Moderate: Death of parent, Suicide, Violence, Cannibalism, and Pregnancy

Minor: Sexual assault, Incest, Sexual harassment, Torture, War, and Rape

talonsontypewriters's review against another edition

adventurous emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gore, Emotional abuse, Pregnancy, Murder, Body horror, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, Violence, and Child abuse

Moderate: Misogyny, Torture, Confinement, Drug use, Classism, Abandonment, Animal death, Infidelity, Bullying, Sexual violence, War, Child death, Death of parent, Sexism, and Sexual assault

Minor: Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Rape, Self harm, Xenophobia, Cannibalism, Alcohol, Sexual content, Incest, and Infertility

Referenced bestiality. Nonconsensual drugging.

bethhstanley's review against another edition

adventurous hopeful informative medium-paced

• 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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder and Torture

Moderate: Grief, Rape, Sexual assault, and Gore

Minor: War, Violence, Incest, Sexism, Misogyny, Animal death, Infidelity, Cannibalism, Pregnancy, and Death

helhas3letters's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Violence, Death, Murder, Infidelity, Death of parent, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Child death, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Alcohol, War, Grief, Torture, Sexism, and Misogyny

Minor: Incest, Cannibalism, and Animal death

luminifera's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I absolutely loved it. What a beautiful retelling of the myth. So many details!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Sexual assault, Body horror, Cannibalism, Confinement, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Animal death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual content, Violence, Bullying, Child death, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body shaming, Sexual harassment, Torture, Child abuse, Cursing, Rape, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Death, and Drug abuse

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, War, Self harm, Infidelity, Addiction, Incest, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pedophilia, Kidnapping, Abandonment, Xenophobia, and Alcohol

It's a heavy book. However, very much worth the read, and

it has a happy ending!

janethevirgin46's review against another edition

adventurous emotional inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

When comparing this to Madeline Miller’s more famous novel, the Song of Achilles, I believe this book was not written as well. Not to say it was poorly written, but TSOA felt more delicately crafted. I love the story of Circe as well, Miller did a wonderful job of retelling it and adding her interpretations. If Circe was written at the same level The Song of Achilles was, it would probably be one of my favorite books. Circe was overall very enjoyable and was a great illustration of female rage. It was a beautiful read and I am glad I read it. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Murder, Sexism, Animal death, Body horror, Rape, Blood, and Gore

Moderate: Pregnancy

Minor: Suicide, Kidnapping, and Cannibalism