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withlivjones's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I tried and failed to read this book twice before finally getting through it. It is a very slow-paced book that only really picks up in the second half. What really threw me off, however, is that while this book is marketed as being narrated by Briseis, there are many chapters (starting from about a third of the way in and gradually getting more frequent) where the point of view suddenly shifts to some of the men - most often Achilles, but also at points Patroclus and Priam. While this does provide an interesting perspective of the war, since few writers have dared to examine the depths of Achilles’ psyche in such detail, it was really not what I was expecting from a book that wanted to tell a more female-focused version of the myth. The dilemma is this: women are notoriously silent in Greek mythology and hardly ever have the freedom to tell their own story, so why, then, in a novel where Briseis is presented as reclaiming her own narrative, is a male perspective inserting itself into said narrative just like they have done for the last two thousand years?
The novel is still very enjoyable and well-written, and I would definitely recommend this book to anyone interested in Greek mythology, but I can’t help feeling a little disappointed that I seemed to be reading a different book to the one that was advertised.
Graphic: Alcohol, Child death, Grief, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, War, Animal death, Misogyny, Blood, Murder, Rape, and Sexual assault
Moderate: Cannibalism, Cursing, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Suicide, and Vomit
Period-typical attitudescondygurl's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5
This is a story of the war between the Greeks and Troy due to Helen. Helen plays a very minor role in the story.
The story is from the perspective of a captured woman who once was going to be Queen, but instead becomes the slave to the most fierce warrior of all time.
The only part I was truly upset about is the author silencing the girls. The beginning starts out very strong, but then we switch POV, and poof, out goes the female voice, and in comes the crazy male voice. It also got a bit repetitive in the camp, but I guess that is par for the course because how different is daily living from day to day when you are a slave?
Very good story but I think it could have been better if the author stuck with one pov.
Graphic: Rape, Slavery, Misogyny, Emotional abuse, Violence, Sexism, Pregnancy, Murder, Bullying, Blood, Grief, Sexual assault, Cursing, Child death, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, and Death
ccee's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Rape, War, Violence, Sexual violence, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Slavery, Sexual harassment, and Sexual content
ok7a's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Graphic: Misogyny, Adult/minor relationship, War, Grief, Slavery, Kidnapping, Rape, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Death
Minor: Pregnancy and Self harm
crankylibrarian's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Violence, Misogyny, War, Rape, Sexism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Child death, Genocide, and Grief
ladyb00k's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual violence, Slavery, Gore, Death, Grief, War, Blood, Colonisation, and Confinement
lunamond's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Ableism, Child death, Genocide, Grief, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, War, Sexual violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Death, Gore, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexism, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Slavery
sapphicpenguin's review
4.0
I didn't like some of the punctuation/format choices, and especially at the beginning a lot of the language felt cliche. After every mediocre sentence, though, was a paragraph that blew me away, so I couldn't dislike the writing.
My main issue was how much of the book—a first-person POV book, too!—didn't center Briseis. This book is from her perspective, marketed itself on being her story—and yet multiple chapters don't include her. It felt like the author just felt we would be too bored without some of Achilles's story as well—but doesn't that defeat the point? Of course that's the issue you run into—all the exciting bits of the Iliad happen with zero women present, that's the challenge of a retelling centering women. It just didn't feel like the author completely overcame the urge to just write a story about Achilles and Patroclus.
Graphic: Sexual violence, Gore, Blood, Cursing, Murder, Alcohol, Excrement, Physical abuse, War, Death, Rape, Sexual assault, Animal death, Child death, Grief, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Slavery, and Violence
Moderate: Vomit, Suicide, Pregnancy, and Self harm
Minor: Cannibalism, Infertility, and Miscarriage
The worst/most violent of the sexual assault is skipped over, but it is very present. The aftermath is discussed.queen_of_the_rats's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Homophobia, Body horror, Child death, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Grief, Medical trauma, Murder, Sexual assault, War, Animal cruelty, Emotional abuse, Suicide, Misogyny, Animal death, Blood, Death, Torture, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Rape, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Violence, Death of parent, Sexual violence, Suicide attempt, and Vomit
emilyandthewhippet's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Alcohol, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Sexism, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Confinement, Gore, Medical content, Physical abuse, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Kidnapping, Colonisation, Deportation, Abandonment, Death, Death of parent, Murder, Misogyny, Blood, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Slavery, Torture, Violence, War, Domestic abuse, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Cannibalism