Reviews with content warning for Rape - Troy

Reviews tagging 'Rape'

maggieoc_x's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny informative inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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littlewishling's review against another edition

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informative lighthearted reflective medium-paced

4.0

Not my favourite of Stephen Fry’s mythology books but a good read nonetheless. Fry brings a nice touch of humour to what could easily be a depressing tale.

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abutler's review against another edition

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adventurous funny informative lighthearted fast-paced

5.0

Stephen Fry is always a treat. I highly recommend the audiobook version because he reads it and it is a pure delight.

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bookiewithacookie's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny informative mysterious reflective slow-paced

4.5

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streetmuseums's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

2.5

quite a boring retelling. impressive, really, given the story

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stephphph's review against another edition

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adventurous informative lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

12/9/21 really good!! great for anyone who knows nothing ab greek mythology (aka me) but is interested in the subject!! i feel quite informed now and it was fun to read

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sofipitch's review

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dark funny informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

First off, I got the hard cover edition and this book is so beautiful. It has think pages with color printed art from various era's that depict the myths being told. I dog ear books to keep my place and when I opened this book I considered not dog earing it bc of how nice it is (I ended up doing it anyways though, it's my book).

This book is so comprehensive, it includes a lot of background on the myths and lineage surrounding the main characters in the Trojan war. It mentions myths that are usually less common. I grew up reading a lot of greek myth collections and obviously some get repeated over and over while some you might only see mentioned once or twice. Well Fry doesn't let a single story pass you by, he tells them bc he loves them. It's not until close exactly half-way through the books the Greeks make it Troy and the actual war starts. Which I don't mind at all, the stories surrounding the buildup are as good as the war itself.

Like most myths, there are at time contradictory stories, other lineages and such that the author must choose one over the other. Fry includes a lot of other interpretations in the footnotes of the book. Some greek mythology fans can get angry at adaptations that don't do their favorite interpretation so I think it was a good way to keep those people at bay and show how comprehensive his knowledge on the subject is.

Fry uses dramatic irony from time to time which I love in mythology retelling, foreshadowing disastrous events yet to come through casual remarks made by the characters.
I love the pronunciation guides in the footnotes. I grew up loving greek mythology but since I grew up reading it all I never knew how to pronounce anything.

The only thing that I found slightly disappointing is some minor events from the Iliad are left out, such as Posiden fighting with the Greeks or Hera seducing her husband to distract him so the Greeks could get the upper hand. They are mostly unimportant, but they are funny, and this book often searches for humor whenever it could, so it would've been fun to include them.

Overall this book was amazing, I spent most of Saturday and Sunday this weekend reading it, I couldn't put it down. I can't wait to get my hands on the other two books, Mythos and Heroes. And I hope Stephen Fry doesn't end here but goes on to tell stories of two heroes leaving Troy which make up the Odyssey and Aeneid.

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tamtasticbooks's review against another edition

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adventurous dark informative medium-paced

3.75

"Troy" by Stephen Fry is a retelling of the classic legend of the Trojan War and all of the people and gods it involved. I enjoyed reading it once the story picked up and really got going. If you're familiar with the stories, this will likely be an easy read for you. If not, it might be harder to get into. Most likely though, if you're reading it you have some interest in Greek mythology! There are so many characters in this book (and every iteration of the Trojan War), which can hard to keep straight even if you are familiar with the legend. The story moved quickly. It almost felt like it ended abruptly (even though it was a natural break in the story) and I was left wanting just a bit more resolution.

There were tons of footnotes throughout the book, to offer backstories or research or explanations, which I won't lie, I would skim or skip because I wanted to stay in the action. For a more thorough reading, the footnotes are great. Overall, it was a good read-through.

Thank you to Netgalley and Chronicle Books for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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