Review: Circe

Circe by Madeline Miller
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company
Release Date: April 10th, 2018
Source: Netgalley
Date Read: 4/10/18
400 pages

In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child--not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power--the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

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I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review. Quotes taken from ARC may or may not be in the published edition.

I can’t believe I haven’t blogged or reviewed a book in so long. Whoops. Well it WAS that time of the semester where I’m doing ALL THE THINGS, and every time I had some free time, I wasn’t motivated. But that all changes TODAY. Maybe.

Today I’ll be reviewing Circe, which is by the same author who wrote The Song of Achilles. Even though I had the eARC since…forever, I actually didn’t read this until release day. Before I go into my review (if I even know how to DO that anymore), I want to mention that I literally read this all in one day. So if anything, you should at least take away that it was THAT good. But, this honestly might just be me. I’m currently in a Greek mythology phase at the moment, with playing God of War and all, and so maybe I enjoyed Circe so much because I was in the right mood.

Let’s talk about Circe. For one, she’s a badass, not doubt about it. Yet, this is the first time I've heard about her story, as I never read Odysseus in high school (let alone spell it). And though I do know the basic storyline of Odysseus, this is my first time learning about Circe. Well, the author’s take of the story, at least. But nevertheless, the author tells it as if it were really part of Greek mythology.

Cool Things I Liked:

• This book is all about Circe. And she is awesome, as I’ve mentioned before.

• How Circe’s life prospered even though she was all alone on an island, thanks to Zeus. And her relationship with everyone who visited her

• In regards to these relationships, the people and gods Circe met were from different myths. Though I’m not overly familiar with them, the stories of the Minotaur, Medea, Daedalus & Icarus, and Odysseus all intertwined with Circe’s. Honestly the only thing I know about Icarus is from a song by Bastille, so that’s how I get my Greek mythology.

Overall, even though I have no idea how close this compares to the actual mythology, I fell in love with this book. It’s definitely a new favorite. And I absolutely recommend this book to anyone who loved The Song of Achilles, or just loves mythology in general (in which that case, read both).

Also, I do want to bring to your attention that the UK hardback edition is absolutely gorgeous, especially underneath the jacket. It hasn’t come yet, but I am eagerly awaiting it because THE GORGEOUSNESS. Definitely check it out if you have the chance.