Scan barcode
nastjarchive's review against another edition
3.0
see, this book isn't bad, but I set myself up due to my excitement. it revolves around one of the most fascinating families in greek myth, and Clytemnestra has long been one of my favorite figures. unfortunately, the narrative did not live up to my imagination.
among the three perspectives— Electra, Orestes, and Clytemnestra— i only felt a genuine emotional connection to Orestes and his journey. the female characters, who I believe are the true heart of the myth, were disappointingly underdeveloped. we barely get a glimpse at Clytemnestra's profound pain from loss and betrayal; her suffering and rage that drive her to kill Agamemnon are largely absent. & the she just reverts back to a powerless and passive figure.
Electra's perspective is similarly lackluster; she comes across as passive, making her storyline feel dull and uninspired. While I hesitate to attribute this solely to the author being male, it’s evident that crucial themes surrounding femininity—such as motherhood, female rage, and resistance —were not explored with the depth they deserved. In contrast, Orestes' story was conveyed with clarity and emotion.
among the three perspectives— Electra, Orestes, and Clytemnestra— i only felt a genuine emotional connection to Orestes and his journey. the female characters, who I believe are the true heart of the myth, were disappointingly underdeveloped. we barely get a glimpse at Clytemnestra's profound pain from loss and betrayal; her suffering and rage that drive her to kill Agamemnon are largely absent. & the she just reverts back to a powerless and passive figure.
Electra's perspective is similarly lackluster; she comes across as passive, making her storyline feel dull and uninspired. While I hesitate to attribute this solely to the author being male, it’s evident that crucial themes surrounding femininity—such as motherhood, female rage, and resistance —were not explored with the depth they deserved. In contrast, Orestes' story was conveyed with clarity and emotion.
lizzillia's review against another edition
4.25
This is not a Greek myth retelling as such, the author uses elements of the known myth and plays with it. Told in the three POVs of Clytemnestra, Elektra and Orestes this is a story of loss, of betrayal and of power. It is also, I suppose the story of a dysfunctional family. The story is well known -how Agamemnon sacrificed his daughter Iphigenia to get good winds for his fleet, how Clytemnestra murdered him when he returned after the Trojan war to avenge her daughter's death. How Elektra and Orestes then plotted to kill their mother to avenge their father's death. However, in this tale Orestes is almost the weaker sibling and - in a change to the story - he relies on his friend Leander. The POVs of Clytemnestra and Elektra are in the first person but that of Orestes is in the third - which almost puts some distance between character and reader. The story also focuses on the 'kidnap' of Orestes and his escape. For me, Clytemnestra was the strongest character - we see a woman plotting and losing faith in the Gods and the grief and anger after her daughter's sacrifice is raw - in fact the scene of Iphigenia's death is one of the most harrowing interpretations that I have read. Orestes in the beginning is the child, always wanting to play at sword fighting, a boy who cannot understand why he has been 'kidnapped' and who finds himself manipulated by those he cares about including his sister Elektra who also almost side-lines him when meeting with advisors. This is not the Orestes of the myths that I have read before. Sadly, I could not engage with the character of Elektra. However, even though I have read other re-tellings that I have really been able to immerse myself in, this is nevertheless an enjoyable read.
aseel_reads's review against another edition
dark
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? It's complicated
2.75
I enjoyed the first 40% of the book, found the next 30% okay to read, and the last 30% was just a slog to get through, by the last hour, I wanted it over so badly. I am usually a clytemnestra girly, but I found Electra's pov really compelling. Honestly, it's probably Orestes who was super boring to read and the ghost elements weren't as engaging as they could have been
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal death, Confinement, Death, Infidelity, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Excrement, Kidnapping, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death, Rape, and War
jaiminh0's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? Yes
3.25
whoopsbooks's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.0
nieshkka's review against another edition
4.0
A very interesting and atypical read, even though in my opinion the dialogues lacked emotion. However, the tragedy of Agamemmnon's family and his house was extremely evident and sometimes evoked a sense of sadness and despair.
beccaattiffanys's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
louiza_read2live's review against another edition
3.0
(3.5/5*)I had this book on my bookshelves for a long while, and I am glad I read it as it is quite good; however, I have difficulty rating it, so for now I would say 3.5 stars.
**(This is NOT a spoiler, but if you don't know the ancient Greek myth of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra that the book is based on, and you don't want to know it yet, you might want to skip).**
According to the ancient Greek stories, Agamemnon and his army was stuck at the port unable to sail to Troy to fight. The oracle told Agamemnon that in order for the wind to change, so the army can sail, he has to sacrifice his older daughter to the gods.
Agamemnon deceived his wife Clytemnestra and their daughter Iphigenia to go to the army's camp for Iphigenia's supposed wedding with the great Achilles. Instead of the wedding celebrations that his daughter and wife expected, Agamemnon had Iphigenia sacrificed.
As the oracle had told, the wind indeed changed and the Greek army sailed to Troy. After Troy's destruction, Agamemnon returned victorious to his palace only to find a tragic death at the hands of Clytemnystra and her lover Aegisthus.
The synopsis on the cover says that this is a retelling of this myth, so it sounds like Colm Tóibín has this story retold from the points of view of Clytemnestra (Agamemnon's wife), and their younger children, Orestes and Electra.
Indeed, initially, the book does read as if this is a retelling, but as I kept reading further into the Orestes' chapter, it does not read as a retelling as much as a separate story loosely based on the original myth. Tóibín has taken great liberties as he strays far from the original.
At the end of the book, a note from the author confirms that this is an imaginary tale based on the characters of Aeschylus' Oresteia, and not a retelling; nevertheless, I still enjoyed the book.
I think that in Clytemnestra's chapters he has done a marvelous job portraying, through her own voice, her grief, rage, and how her character evolves. I believe that she becomes more unlikable as the events unfold; however, the reader gets mixed feelings also as we take a good look at her internal change after her own and her daughter's ordeal.
Some scenes are disturbingly graphic at times, which I think makes Clytemnestra's voice and the story in general more powerful, albeit difficult to stomach.
I love what Tóibín has done with Clytemnestra and how he has given her a voice to tell her story, as she is more well known and remembered for her unfaithfulness and murder of her husband than the loss of their daughter by his command. Later in the book, however, it becomes again more difficult to empathize with her despite the loss and pain she has experienced.
The greatest weakness that I have found in this book, and what lower my rating, is that while I loved that Clytemnystra (and Electra) told their own stories in 1st person, the story of Orestes is told in the 3rd person by an unknown omniscient narrator. I would have much preferred to hear Orestes recounting his own story also in the 1st person. That change in the narration put me off somewhat, and I am not sure what is the purpose of it. Also, I think that whereas Clytemnestra's and Electra's chapters were excellent, Orestes' chapters lacked. I thought that the writing in the first chapter of Orestes dragged on and I would have liked it better if it was shorter.
Also, I am still thinking about the ending as it has left me confused.
Overall, it is a good and fast read that I would recommend with some warning about the graphic scenes.
I absolutely loved the chapters of Clytemnestra and Electra. If I had felt that Orestes' chapters were as strong, I would have not hesitated to give this book 4 or even possibly 5 stars.
**(This is NOT a spoiler, but if you don't know the ancient Greek myth of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra that the book is based on, and you don't want to know it yet, you might want to skip).**
According to the ancient Greek stories, Agamemnon and his army was stuck at the port unable to sail to Troy to fight. The oracle told Agamemnon that in order for the wind to change, so the army can sail, he has to sacrifice his older daughter to the gods.
Agamemnon deceived his wife Clytemnestra and their daughter Iphigenia to go to the army's camp for Iphigenia's supposed wedding with the great Achilles. Instead of the wedding celebrations that his daughter and wife expected, Agamemnon had Iphigenia sacrificed.
As the oracle had told, the wind indeed changed and the Greek army sailed to Troy. After Troy's destruction, Agamemnon returned victorious to his palace only to find a tragic death at the hands of Clytemnystra and her lover Aegisthus.
The synopsis on the cover says that this is a retelling of this myth, so it sounds like Colm Tóibín has this story retold from the points of view of Clytemnestra (Agamemnon's wife), and their younger children, Orestes and Electra.
Indeed, initially, the book does read as if this is a retelling, but as I kept reading further into the Orestes' chapter, it does not read as a retelling as much as a separate story loosely based on the original myth. Tóibín has taken great liberties as he strays far from the original.
At the end of the book, a note from the author confirms that this is an imaginary tale based on the characters of Aeschylus' Oresteia, and not a retelling; nevertheless, I still enjoyed the book.
I think that in Clytemnestra's chapters he has done a marvelous job portraying, through her own voice, her grief, rage, and how her character evolves. I believe that she becomes more unlikable as the events unfold; however, the reader gets mixed feelings also as we take a good look at her internal change after her own and her daughter's ordeal.
Some scenes are disturbingly graphic at times, which I think makes Clytemnestra's voice and the story in general more powerful, albeit difficult to stomach.
I love what Tóibín has done with Clytemnestra and how he has given her a voice to tell her story, as she is more well known and remembered for her unfaithfulness and murder of her husband than the loss of their daughter by his command. Later in the book, however, it becomes again more difficult to empathize with her despite the loss and pain she has experienced.
The greatest weakness that I have found in this book, and what lower my rating, is that while I loved that Clytemnystra (and Electra) told their own stories in 1st person, the story of Orestes is told in the 3rd person by an unknown omniscient narrator. I would have much preferred to hear Orestes recounting his own story also in the 1st person. That change in the narration put me off somewhat, and I am not sure what is the purpose of it. Also, I think that whereas Clytemnestra's and Electra's chapters were excellent, Orestes' chapters lacked. I thought that the writing in the first chapter of Orestes dragged on and I would have liked it better if it was shorter.
Also, I am still thinking about the ending as it has left me confused.
Overall, it is a good and fast read that I would recommend with some warning about the graphic scenes.
I absolutely loved the chapters of Clytemnestra and Electra. If I had felt that Orestes' chapters were as strong, I would have not hesitated to give this book 4 or even possibly 5 stars.
angek98's review against another edition
4.0
This book is really interesting because really it could be set not just in Ancient Greece but also like medieval england or like 1780's Germany or whatever.
If I was a film maker i would turn this into a Horror slasher film
If I was a film maker i would turn this into a Horror slasher film