mbondlamberty's review against another edition
3.0
I am on a kick of reading redone or new tellings of Greek myths.
I had not really been familiar with Phaedra at all.
Quite a horrific tale.
Ghosts telling tales seems like a bit of stretch even for retellings but it served its purpose.
I had not really been familiar with Phaedra at all.
Quite a horrific tale.
Ghosts telling tales seems like a bit of stretch even for retellings but it served its purpose.
bamamelereads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.75
So I did the audiobook for this which really helped in differentiating all the different POVs. At the same time I kind of hated a couple of the narrators for some of the smaller POVs. But the Phaedra and Medea sections were great. And the Night Chorus was incredibly moving with the cacophony of women’s voices.
This is 100% a tragedy. And it’s got some really rough sections; I was completely in tears for Phaedra’s rape. Poor naive Phaedra. Even when she thinks people are helping her, they are using her. The plight of women in this book is so bleak honestly. The exploration of fates worse than death and what a mother might do to save their children from such—it’s so powerful to think about. Are they monsters or heroines?
It’s hard for me to recommend this book because it’s so hard to read. But I’m glad I read it and thought it was good, though it had some flaws.
This is 100% a tragedy. And it’s got some really rough sections; I was completely in tears for Phaedra’s rape. Poor naive Phaedra. Even when she thinks people are helping her, they are using her. The plight of women in this book is so bleak honestly. The exploration of fates worse than death and what a mother might do to save their children from such—it’s so powerful to think about. Are they monsters or heroines?
It’s hard for me to recommend this book because it’s so hard to read. But I’m glad I read it and thought it was good, though it had some flaws.
leahleah's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.0
swagsterx0's review
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
2.0
literally so sick of feminist retellings that arent by jennifer saint or madeline miller. can someone please recommend me a good one? because this was not it. the deviations from original myth weren’t worth it… didnt make me like women, just made me feel apathetic to every character, male or female.
rachael_amber's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
robyndansereau's review
3.0
*This rating is actually 2.5 stars*
I had high expectations for "Phaedra," as I was first introduced to her in "Ariadne" by Jennifer Saint and found her quite interesting. While Shepperson did include some compelling aspects, such as the Night Chorus and telling Phaedra's story through a variety of perspectives besides her own, her rendition wasn't what I was expecting. She changed so many fundamental aspects of the Minotaur/Ariadne/Phaedra's original tale that I found it hard to view this as a retelling and not simply as a character who shared the same name as Ariadne's sister.
I would recommend this book to those who are looking for a feminist Greek myth that weren't satisfied with "Ariadne."
I had high expectations for "Phaedra," as I was first introduced to her in "Ariadne" by Jennifer Saint and found her quite interesting. While Shepperson did include some compelling aspects, such as the Night Chorus and telling Phaedra's story through a variety of perspectives besides her own, her rendition wasn't what I was expecting. She changed so many fundamental aspects of the Minotaur/Ariadne/Phaedra's original tale that I found it hard to view this as a retelling and not simply as a character who shared the same name as Ariadne's sister.
I would recommend this book to those who are looking for a feminist Greek myth that weren't satisfied with "Ariadne."
noelle7pages's review
challenging
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
mo_ika's review against another edition
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? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
mickaelae's review against another edition
2.0
I am a fan of Madeline Miller, so according to the synopsis this book should've been perfect for me. But it became clear pretty quickly that whoever wrote that blurb either hasn't read anything from Madeline Miller or hasn't read this book. Sure, it's the same genre, but one is a beautifully written, immersive look into what feels like a very real history, and one is... This.
I was all in from the moment I read "feminist retelling." Awesome. In the myth, Phaedra seduces her stepson Hippolytus and is caught; in this retelling, Hippolytus rapes her, and the story follows the ensuing events that essentially rewrite history to what we know today. I love this premise, and as other reviewers have mentioned, the author writes well about the plight of women in these times and how they silently suffered. That is about the only developed aspect of this book.
Phaedra doesn't have much of a personality. She has this in common with the other narrators. There is a lot at the beginning that is hinted toward rather than stated; I had to pause the book and read pretty in-depth into the family's history to understand what was happening in the book. When she marries Theseus and goes to live with him in Athens, there is a brief description of the plain stone rooms in his "palace," and a mention of her extravagant home, but she honestly doesn't seem upset about it either way. All of the characters are this flat, except maybe one. He wasn't interesting, but his motivations were at least clear.
There were a few good things; I liked the Chorus, which may have only been so effective because it was audio, but seemed well-written nonetheless, and the bull jumper's performance, but most everything else I could have gone without.
From the synopsis:
"Phaedra carves open long-accepted wounds to give voice to one of the most maligned figures of mythology and offers a stunning story of how truth bends under the weight of patriarchy but can be broken open by the force of one woman’s bravery."
This did not deliver. I was left shocked at the ending, and not in a good way; more so in that it took so much to get to that point--so much dry story and boring thoughts of essentially the same character voice--for it to end so abruptly.
Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the advance audiobook. This was an honest review.
I was all in from the moment I read "feminist retelling." Awesome. In the myth, Phaedra seduces her stepson Hippolytus and is caught; in this retelling, Hippolytus rapes her, and the story follows the ensuing events that essentially rewrite history to what we know today. I love this premise, and as other reviewers have mentioned, the author writes well about the plight of women in these times and how they silently suffered. That is about the only developed aspect of this book.
Phaedra doesn't have much of a personality. She has this in common with the other narrators. There is a lot at the beginning that is hinted toward rather than stated; I had to pause the book and read pretty in-depth into the family's history to understand what was happening in the book. When she marries Theseus and goes to live with him in Athens, there is a brief description of the plain stone rooms in his "palace," and a mention of her extravagant home, but she honestly doesn't seem upset about it either way. All of the characters are this flat, except maybe one. He wasn't interesting, but his motivations were at least clear.
There were a few good things; I liked the Chorus, which may have only been so effective because it was audio, but seemed well-written nonetheless, and the bull jumper's performance, but most everything else I could have gone without.
From the synopsis:
"Phaedra carves open long-accepted wounds to give voice to one of the most maligned figures of mythology and offers a stunning story of how truth bends under the weight of patriarchy but can be broken open by the force of one woman’s bravery."
This did not deliver. I was left shocked at the ending, and not in a good way; more so in that it took so much to get to that point--so much dry story and boring thoughts of essentially the same character voice--for it to end so abruptly.
Thanks to Dreamscape Media and NetGalley for the advance audiobook. This was an honest review.