I wanted to like this one a lot more than I did. I'm the first person to love a feminist myth retelling. The point of view shifting so frequently hindered the book in my opinion. It made it hard for me to feel truly connected to any of the characters. Don't get me wrong. I love a Greek tragedy, which this certainly is and I knew that going in. But the tone of this book was very dark, so definitely be warned that the subject matter is heavy. I preferred the book Ariadne by Jennifer Saint and Ariadne Unraveled by Zenobia Neil. Both of those were 5 star reads for me.

I really wanted to like this book. I have been on a Greek mythology retelling reading kick and I thought this book would be the perfect fit. It was not. Knowing the myth does not make this book any easier to read, in fact it only makes you want to scream when events play out exactly as you knew they would but now, NOW you can see the actual (imagined) impact they had on women in the story which only made me angrier. Every single character is unlikable. EVERY SINGLE ONE. Not a single redeeming quality to be found in any male character and not a single likeable character trait in any female character. One of the things that irked me the most about this book was that they CONSTANTLY reminded you how plain Phaedra was. Anytime a new character interacted with her: "Oh that is too bad she is so plain." "Well, she isn't a great beauty" and so on and so forth. That was the only way to describe her. I completely understand the constant reminders that she is a child, because she is, but the constant reminder of how ugly she is compared to other women was so off putting. For a proclaimed "feminist novel", I expected a lot better than what was given. Also, can we talk about how every Greek mythology retelling book is compared to Madeline Miller (just like this book was)? This book's writing was scores below Madeline Miller and just plain boring at times. The Night Chorus was interesting, and I might have enjoyed it if I listened to the audiobook. In writing, it looks super disjointed and is confusing a lot of times.

The only redeeming aspect of the book was getting to see Phaedra take revenge on her rapist because let's be honest, any person who has been raped wishes they could deal out justice to the person who harmed them in the same fashion. Knowing that she was like 6-7 months pregnant when she did it makes it that much more of an accomplishment. That was the only high point of the book. Her death at her own hands doesn't even feel like her own choice at the end due to her being backed into that corner.

i did really like the storytelling and overall writing. however, i felt like there were some characters that were never really flushed out, some weird dialogue, and it overall just felt a little unrefined i guess. the ending was really good though.

 Thank you Net Galley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2023, especially due to my love for Greek Mythology, however it did not live up to my expectations. Whilst the writing, overall, was good, the characters felt very 2-dimensional and it was very difficult to form a connection with them. At times the plot felt rushed and disjointed, and it felt like there were parts missing that could have really added to the storyline. I didn’t really find the characters likeable, they seemed distant in a way. When comparing this with similar fiction that retell this myth, it fell short of the sheer genius that they all seemed to have. I did find this easy to read, and at times it was mildly enjoyable. I am gutted to be writing such a negative review as I really wanted to like this.

 

Wow, this is a FANTASTIC audio! I loved all the different perspective, especially The Night Chorus chapters! The multiple voices overlapping one another, PHENOMENAL! Gave the coolest sound when listening to it. I felt all the feels.

As far as the story goes, I don't know too much about all the different people in Greek Mythology so I went into this with a pretty fresh POV. I enjoyed it. There's a lot more challenging content than I would've liked but looking at it objectively, that's understandable for the time period of ancient Greece. Women were not respected....men did do whatever they wanted & didn't have to answer for it (hmm...wonder what has changed?). With that being said, I don't fault the story or the author for the content. But because of the way the women were treated, it did frustrate me to no end & at times, made it challenging for me to listen to.

My recommendation to anyone would be to listen via audio! The narration/cast was fantastic!

I received a digital ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
With so many Greek myth retellings coming out these days, I am now a little wary when approaching a new one. This retelling, however, was wonderful. It was beautifully written, gripping, and shed incredible light on both the original myth and our modern society. It also shows how all of these myths overlap: those of Ariadne, Phaedra, the minotaur, Theseus and Hippolyta, Medea, and Zeus and Europa. My only quibble would be that the UK title of "The Heroines" would be far more fitting, as it is all of the women's voices combining in this novel that makes it truly powerful as they take the narrative back from the "heroes".

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

“If they are the heroes, does that make us the heroines? We keep going, we persevere, we ask for nothing, and we get even less. Where are our stories?”

Phaedra by Laura Shepperson follows the story of Phaedra, princess of Crete, who becomes the Queen of Athens when she agrees to marry Theseus. When in Athens, Phaedra is Queen in name only and the atrocities of court life and the treatment of women are revealed to her. When Theseus’ son Hippolytus rapes Phaedra, she publicly accuses him and a trial ensues. The women of Athens know all too well what “justice” means for them, but Phaedra is only just beginning to learn these hard truths.

To preface my review, I read Ariadne by Jennifer Saint earlier this year and loved it, so I am a little familiar with this story and have some background on it. I think this story was done really well. I loved how we got Phaedra’s point of view, but also how all the other point of views focused on those characters’ thoughts about her. It really solidified the idea that Phaedra was the topic of all court gossip and the idea that there are many different sides to a story.

I loved the night chorus. It was such a chilling addition to the book that served as Phaedra’s enlightenment to the reality of being a woman at that time. It was also relevant that Phaedra’s case was the one being highlighted because she is Queen and has that status with her, meanwhile these women of the night chorus are expected to continue keeping their heads down and remaining silent.

One thing I wish this book had was more lyrical writing. Personally, I think there is a certain expectation of whimsical writing that comes with writing a Greek mythology retelling.

Overall, I really enjoyed this. I think this book has a very relevant message about how sexual assault is viewed even today. But even in the midst of all that tragedy there were still moments of strength and hope from the women in this story that I think are very well done and deserve to be told.