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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
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
sconrad621's review against another edition
3.5
Minor: Sexual harassment
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
xlivjones073's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Toxic relationship, War, Genocide, Grief, Blood, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Racism, Torture, Adult/minor relationship, Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Gore, Kidnapping, Pregnancy, Sexual violence, Slavery, Sexism, Sexual harassment, Death, Death of parent, Violence, Infidelity, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Emotional abuse, and Suicide
spooderman'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? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Body shaming, Child abuse, Physical abuse, Slavery, War, Child death, Confinement, Torture, Violence, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Misogyny, Murder, Blood, Classism, Colonisation, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Rape, Sexual assault, and Trafficking
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, and Alcohol
isakr's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Kidnapping, Confinement, Domestic abuse, War, Murder, Rape, Child death, Grief, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Trafficking
cglharmony's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
Graphic: Sexual harassment, Child death, Death, War, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Confinement, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, Violence, Slavery, Rape, Murder, Blood, and Animal death
Minor: Vomit and Miscarriage
thegr1mreader's review against another edition
- 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
5.0
Graphic: Child abuse, Slavery, Murder, and Child death
Moderate: Rape, Suicide, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Miscarriage, Mental illness, Grief, Animal cruelty, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Misogyny, Kidnapping, Death of parent, and Animal death
alexisgarcia'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? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Slavery, Cursing, Pregnancy, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Sexual harassment, Animal death, Death, Emotional abuse, Violence, Child death, Infertility, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Adult/minor relationship, Animal cruelty, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Murder, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Sexism, War, Abandonment, Abortion, Gore, Grief, Infidelity, Rape, and Self harm