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miss_sunshine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Graphic: Grief, Infidelity, War, Blood, Animal death, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Child death, Death, Death of parent, Murder, and Slavery
Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Classism, and Rape
Minor: Ableism, Abortion, Pandemic/Epidemic, and Mental illness
tashtasher's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Blood, Death, Sexual harassment, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and War
Moderate: Infidelity, Mental illness, Child death, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Alcohol and Animal death
galexy_brain's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Child death, Classism, Death, Slavery, Gore, Rape, Sexism, Sexual content, Death of parent, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Violence, and War
Moderate: Grief, Trafficking, Blood, Ableism, Suicidal thoughts, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Pandemic/Epidemic, Alcohol, Animal death, Confinement, Vomit, Alcoholism, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Abortion, Cannibalism, and Infidelity
icarusandthesun's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
i found it really hard to enjoy this one. as someone who's read quite a few mythology retellings, surprsingly little was new to me, and even though it's advertised as very feminist and "epic", it didn't feel revolutionary at all.
i love that haynes introduced me to a couple of women and aspects in greek mythology that i hadn't previously heard of, but the stories themselves were a little, hm, flat maybe? i found myself unable to feel for the characters sometimes.
part of it's probably because of the amount of information in this book. haynes tried to fit the whole iliad (and odyssey) into 350 pages and all of it, all of the things that happened (though retold from the women's perspectives) felt textbook-dry.
i expected something emotional and fiercely feminist, but it ended up being unexciting and not entirely feminist either i feel like??? because though penelope wrote those letters, they were basically just retellings of the odyssey, of odysseus' adventures. we got the occasional "it's very lonely without you and there are suitors who invade our home", but other than that she was just retelling her husband's stories. idk.
i appreciate this book as a means to aquire knowledge (i learned many women's names that i've never even heard of), but as a novel it was mediocre at best.
Graphic: Murder, Death, Violence, Slavery, Grief, War, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, and Blood
Moderate: Infidelity and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, and Rape
sareidle's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Death, Sexual violence, Violence, Abandonment, Murder, Child death, War, Rape, and Suicide
Moderate: Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Adult/minor relationship, and Kidnapping
Minor: Sexual content
lizziea229's review against another edition
- 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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Murder, Sexual violence, Slavery, Child death, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Genocide, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and War
allie2ley's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
Graphic: Death of parent, Gore, Kidnapping, Murder, Sexual harassment, Blood, Death, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and War
Moderate: Child death, Rape, Adult/minor relationship, Sexual violence, and Slavery
rosehw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Child death, Grief, Blood, Death, Murder, Sexual assault, Slavery, Violence, and War
dniespal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Abandonment, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Violence, Grief, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Death, Pandemic/Epidemic, Deportation, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Classism, Genocide, Death of parent, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Slavery, War, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse
miaaa_lenaaa's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Penelopes buts were the best
Odysseus is not like other men😏
‘Who could love a coward… someone for whom the alternative is loving a corpse.’
‘That is what it means to refuse a god. It is to be driven mad.’
‘Waiting is the cruelest thing i have ever endured.’
Graphic: Animal death, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, Slavery, Child death, Death, Misogyny, Murder, Sexual violence, Genocide, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Blood, Grief, and War