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storykath's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
I was underwhelmed with this novel compared to other literary adaptations of Greek myths (*cough* Madeline Miller *cough*). I didn't find that this interpretation added anything noteworthy to the stories of Ariadne and Phaedra. The reflections on the roles of women in Ancient Greece were relevant, but came across as surface-level and lost their appeal after the umpteenth repetition of the same thoughts. Other works examine the role of women in myth/history in a more interesting way.
The writing itself didn't draw me in either. It seemed arbitrary which scenes were given detail and focus and which were glossed over. I was jarred the first time the POV shifted because we were already a fair way into the novel by then. There was also a single chapter written in present tense, and whatever effect was intended by that change was lost on me because I was just so aware of that shift. In the scenes where Ariadne was present to witness something outside of her "original myth", I was disappointed because it felt contrived in order to include as many different stories as possible - Ariadne never had any actual impact in those scenes, she just witnessed them occurring so they could be included in the novel.
There were portions of the story that were beautifully written, with attention given to historical accuracy and detail, but in others the writing felt almost lazy, with modern turns of phrase and minimal effort to immerse the reader in the ancient world. I was surprised to reach the end and discover that the author has a degree in classics (if I recall correctly), which would have led me to expect more emphasis on Ancient Greek history, culture, etc.
Altogether, I was disappointed by the execution of the story. As a casual read, or if you want to familiarize yourself with Greek myths in an accessible way, Ariadne fits the bill, but it didn't live up to my expectations.
The writing itself didn't draw me in either. It seemed arbitrary which scenes were given detail and focus and which were glossed over. I was jarred the first time the POV shifted because we were already a fair way into the novel by then. There was also a single chapter written in present tense, and whatever effect was intended by that change was lost on me because I was just so aware of that shift. In the scenes where Ariadne was present to witness something outside of her "original myth", I was disappointed because it felt contrived in order to include as many different stories as possible - Ariadne never had any actual impact in those scenes, she just witnessed them occurring so they could be included in the novel.
There were portions of the story that were beautifully written, with attention given to historical accuracy and detail, but in others the writing felt almost lazy, with modern turns of phrase and minimal effort to immerse the reader in the ancient world. I was surprised to reach the end and discover that the author has a degree in classics (if I recall correctly), which would have led me to expect more emphasis on Ancient Greek history, culture, etc.
Altogether, I was disappointed by the execution of the story. As a casual read, or if you want to familiarize yourself with Greek myths in an accessible way, Ariadne fits the bill, but it didn't live up to my expectations.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Suicide, Blood, Death, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Child death, Alcohol, and Death of parent
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Adult/minor relationship, Misogyny, Sexism, and Gore
Minor: Violence and Infidelity
maddyontheoffbeat's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I loved this book! It really made me think a lot, and I'm actually doing a poetry performance based off of it this year. It really reminded me of Circe by Madeline Miller, with the mythological aspects and the isolated-on-an-island thing. I feel like the main takeaway of this book was the erasing of mythological women and their roles in the hero's story, which makes my feminism go brrr. I was really disappointed in the character Dionysus when he started doing all the weird cult shit. I knew her happiness wouldn't last, but I really wanted it too! Ultimately, men had only brought her pain and harm, and they were what ultimately caused her death. Also, I never thought that I would dislike Hera that much. Like, I get it, sis. Zeus is a terrible husband, and you're the goddess of marriage? What a blow. Don't take it out on the other women though, man. Read this! It deals with such complexities as abandonment, motherhood, sacrifice, and femininity. I really liked it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, and Abandonment
Moderate: Pregnancy and Death
Minor: Adult/minor relationship
courtneyfalling's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
This was so good as a myth retelling and as a contemporary feminist novel but oof this left me with absolutely no faith in humanity. TL;DR even nice guys commit war crimes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Misogyny, Suicide, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Infidelity, Adult/minor relationship, Pregnancy, Rape, Sexual violence, and Child death
Minor: Alcoholism and Death of parent
katiedykema's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Honestly a bit disappointing.
The book started off strong, but it became an issue when one of the most important plot points was over in the first 100 pages. After that, the pacing slowed down A LOT. It became boring after the ordeal with the Labyrinth, and eventually I was only reading to finish it.
Another issue I had was with the dialogue. It mainly served to info-dump and was usually written in a way in which no one ever speaks ; many characters told stories in the same way an author would typically describe them on a page, which is not how people talk or tell stories.
Lastly, the characters were very flat. Relationships between characters happened extremely fast and without the reader getting to know the character first. This made the ending way less impactful because I had no attachment to them.
If you’re looking for something similar to the books of Madeline Miller, this one works fine. It wasn’t my favorite (I felt like it was trying TOO hard to be Madeline Miller and then fell flat) but it does a good job of recounting the myth it set out to explain.
The book started off strong, but it became an issue when one of the most important plot points was over in the first 100 pages. After that, the pacing slowed down A LOT. It became boring after the ordeal with the Labyrinth, and eventually I was only reading to finish it.
Another issue I had was with the dialogue. It mainly served to info-dump and was usually written in a way in which no one ever speaks ; many characters told stories in the same way an author would typically describe them on a page, which is not how people talk or tell stories.
Lastly, the characters were very flat. Relationships between characters happened extremely fast and without the reader getting to know the character first. This made the ending way less impactful because I had no attachment to them.
If you’re looking for something similar to the books of Madeline Miller, this one works fine. It wasn’t my favorite (I felt like it was trying TOO hard to be Madeline Miller and then fell flat) but it does a good job of recounting the myth it set out to explain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Death, Gaslighting, Pregnancy, and Suicide
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Rape, and Sexism
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