Review: Circe by Madeline Miller

Name: Circe
Stand Alone
Author: Madeline Miller
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Format: Paperback
Genres: Mythology, Greek Mythology, Retelling, Historical Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Adult
Noted Tropes: First Love, Betrayal, Exile
Steam or Spice: Steam-ish

Rating:

Synopsis: Goodreads
In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe has neither the look nor the voice of divinity, and is scorned and rejected by her kin. Increasingly isolated, she turns to mortals for companionship, leading her to discover a power forbidden to the gods: witchcraft.
When love drives Circe to cast a dark spell, wrathful Zeus banishes her to the remote island of Aiaia. There she learns to harness her occult craft, drawing strength from nature. But she will not always be alone; many are destined to pass through Circe’s place of exile, entwining their fates with hers. The messenger god, Hermes. The craftsman, Daedalus. A ship bearing a golden fleece. And wily Odysseus, on his epic voyage home.
There is danger for a solitary woman in this world, and Circe’s independence draws the wrath of men and gods alike. To protect what she holds dear, Circe must decide whether she belongs with the deities she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

Review:

I picked up Circe because of a new musical project called Epic: The Musical by Jorge Rivera-Herrans which I’m following and loving. And for the majority of Circe I was really glad I had picked it up. This is the first Mythological retelling I’ve read that’s an Adult book (any Rick Riordan fans out there?) and so that was a new experience for me. And as someone who doesn’t actually know the story of the Odessy cover to cover, the whole thing felt very believable to me, that this could have actually be quite close to the source material. If the author took creative liberties, they were woven in very well.

I enjoyed the majority of Circe the book, and I loved the character. I thought Circe was a strong FMC who at every opportunity was trying to help herself out of the shit she was dealing with, rather than complaining and whining as some FMC’s are known to do. I found Madeline Miller’s writing to be lovely to read, it certainly didn’t feel like a chore. I adored the entire section where Circe was at her sisters home to help with the birth of her child as it led to some excellent moments between Circe and Daedalus. Similarly the secion where Circe was with Odysseus was also great.

Unfortunately, I found myself growing bored after the birth of Circe’s son and found that I was very much pushing myself to finish mostly in anticipation of whatever information it could give me that would possibly suggest where Mr Rivera-Herrans would be taking his music next, rather than because I was enjoying it.

I know Madeline Miller has other Greek retellings in her repitoire, but I don’t think I’ll be reading them. It possibly would have gotten the full 5 stars if it had remained interesting till the end, but honestly the book was less fantasy than I wanted. Perhaps, I need to stick to Young Adult mythological retellings.

“The truth is, men make terrible pigs.” – Circe

Reading With Tyler