~Summary~
“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.” -Goodreads.com
~My Thoughts~
I’ve done it folks, I have finally read a book by THE Madeline Miller and can therefore call myself a true lover of Greek mythology! I can see now why so many people adore this book, it is truly stunning. I have never read a retelling before that held so much depth. Before reading this book I was only familiar with the Circe we find in the Odyssey but it turns out there is so much more to her story, and I’m so glad I went into this book blind to almost of it!
One of my biggest takeaways after finishing this book would be that I need to re-read it again in about 10 years. You may be wondering why and all I can say is that I felt I was missing something this time around and I have every faith that, if I re-read this as an adult, it would easily be an all time favorite. As a teen I just couldn’t fully grasp the story emotionally. Maybe it isn’t that deep and I’m just making up a whole bunch of fluff for nothing but I guess we’ll see sometime in the future XD
Overall, I think this book is a must for anyone wanting to add to their Greek mythology repertoire and ultimately just anyone looking for a good story! Happy Reading 🙂
The Art of Reading 