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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
challenging
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
medium-paced
Rating: 3 stars
So this was a pretty good story collection (even though a few of the stories were a little bit of a stretch) but my main issue with it and the reason it is not higher is because very few people actually died. Murder mysteries are always my favourite, because the stakes are automatically higher when people's lives are involved. Like, what would happen if we didn't catch the handbag thief? They... would just steal another handbag. That's obviously a bad thing, but what then happens if we don't catch the murderer? They could kill someone else. Plus, taking a life is undeniably a worse crime than taking a possession. This is why I rarely enjoy romance (what happens if they don't end up together? They just don't end up together. Now bring about a people's revolution against the monarchy that could go south at any moment on the other hand... (yeah you can tell I watched Dr. Zhivago recently) that's going to have some pretty nasty repercussions) because stakes always so low, and when the author attempts to raise them it feels artificial and contrived.
Anyway, to wrap up and bring this back to the point, there was one quote from The Labours of Hercules that is one of the most true sentences I've ever read in a book:
Amen brother! Preach! Hercules was the biggest dickhead of all and that alone should be his legacy. Ok I am done now.
So this was a pretty good story collection (even though a few of the stories were a little bit of a stretch) but my main issue with it and the reason it is not higher is because very few people actually died. Murder mysteries are always my favourite, because the stakes are automatically higher when people's lives are involved. Like, what would happen if we didn't catch the handbag thief? They... would just steal another handbag. That's obviously a bad thing, but what then happens if we don't catch the murderer? They could kill someone else. Plus, taking a life is undeniably a worse crime than taking a possession. This is why I rarely enjoy romance (what happens if they don't end up together? They just don't end up together. Now bring about a people's revolution against the monarchy that could go south at any moment on the other hand... (yeah you can tell I watched Dr. Zhivago recently) that's going to have some pretty nasty repercussions) because stakes always so low, and when the author attempts to raise them it feels artificial and contrived.
Anyway, to wrap up and bring this back to the point, there was one quote from The Labours of Hercules that is one of the most true sentences I've ever read in a book:
Take this Hercules-this hero! Hero, indeed! What was he but a large muscular creature of low intelligence and criminal tendencies!
Amen brother! Preach! Hercules was the biggest dickhead of all and that alone should be his legacy. Ok I am done now.
This was a fascinating and enjoyable short story collection! While some short stories didn't appeal to me that much, I can still say that this was a delight to read.
It's best to read this in order, but if I were to rate them all this would be the list:
1. The Arcadian Deer (I'm a romantic, so this is definitely the top for me)
2. The Cretan Bull
3. The Nemean Lion
4. The Stymphalian Birds
5. The Erymanthian Boar
6. The Capture of Cerberus
7. The Augean Stables
8. The Apples of Hesperides
9. The Girdle of Hyppolita
10. The Horses of Diomedes
11. The Lernean Hydra
12. The Flock of Geryon
It's best to read this in order, but if I were to rate them all this would be the list:
1. The Arcadian Deer (I'm a romantic, so this is definitely the top for me)
2. The Cretan Bull
3. The Nemean Lion
4. The Stymphalian Birds
5. The Erymanthian Boar
6. The Capture of Cerberus
7. The Augean Stables
8. The Apples of Hesperides
9. The Girdle of Hyppolita
10. The Horses of Diomedes
11. The Lernean Hydra
12. The Flock of Geryon
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I liked how we got stories from some different countries and how there was a whole variety of crimes. There were ransoms, missing people, drugs, murder, theft, political scandals, blackmail and cults. I also liked the reference to the classics because I didn't know anything about the labours of Hercules so I was researching each one as I read that short story which was really fun. My favourite short stories in the collection are The Nemean Lion, The Lernean Hydra, The Stymphalean Birds, The Cretan Bull, and The Flock of Geryon.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Drug use, Suicide
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated