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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
Ariadne will stay with me for a long time. This story of an enchanting young woman was empowering and heart breaking at the same time.
The first 100 pages were mostly spent telling of Ariadne's upbringing and how the mythological stories of her Gods impacted her life. As someone unfamiliar with mythology, I read slowly and carefully, trying to understand the world she lived in and trying to remember these stories as they were woven into the novel later on. I ultimately found the first 100 pages dry and very predictable. That, however, was my mistake.
I had gotten comfortable in how easily her life seemed to fall together, that when a life-changing twist occurred at the end of Part 1, I was completely caught off guard. After part 1, I could not put this book down. A magical love story that forced her to unpack childhood trauma, learn to trust, and learn to lose people.
Flowing easily through 20-something years of Ariadne's life, the true tragedy of her existence made me rather depressed. I wanted so much for her that I could never stop reading though. The granddaughter of the sun and the princess of a mad king, Ariadne deserved the world, and instead, she was misused and left behind, having no one to rely on but herself.
Ariadnes message was clearly the value of honesty and integrity and a warning of Man's greed. Ultimately this novel perfectly and soul-crushingly described the price women pay for men’s mistakes.
The first 100 pages were mostly spent telling of Ariadne's upbringing and how the mythological stories of her Gods impacted her life. As someone unfamiliar with mythology, I read slowly and carefully, trying to understand the world she lived in and trying to remember these stories as they were woven into the novel later on. I ultimately found the first 100 pages dry and very predictable. That, however, was my mistake.
I had gotten comfortable in how easily her life seemed to fall together, that when a life-changing twist occurred at the end of Part 1, I was completely caught off guard. After part 1, I could not put this book down. A magical love story that forced her to unpack childhood trauma, learn to trust, and learn to lose people.
Flowing easily through 20-something years of Ariadne's life, the true tragedy of her existence made me rather depressed. I wanted so much for her that I could never stop reading though. The granddaughter of the sun and the princess of a mad king, Ariadne deserved the world, and instead, she was misused and left behind, having no one to rely on but herself.
Ariadnes message was clearly the value of honesty and integrity and a warning of Man's greed. Ultimately this novel perfectly and soul-crushingly described the price women pay for men’s mistakes.
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
I love Greek mythology, and this retelling was wonderful
adventurous
sad
slow-paced
Some scenes in this book, notably when Dionysus is detailing his birth and life events in full, are dull and hard to get through. However the internal monologue and struggles of the two sisters, so different and separate even as they both suffer, was very moving and the last half of the book was by far more interesting than the first. I was able to relate to and sympathize with both sisters perspectives, and there were several very eloquent quotes I underlined that really stood out in the page. Altogether very enjoyable, though slow at times.
The description when I bought this book was different from what I expected. I thought the book was just going to explain the events of the Minotaur and the labyrinth. No spoilers, but all this happens in the first 80 pages. I was hooked until after this occurred and then the pacing went way down.
It explained what happened to Ariadne and her sister after the events and it was very dull. No adventures, but just some stagnant, depressing story. Even though the book was only 300 pages, it felt like it took my FOREVER to finish the book. I need to stop expecting books from debut authors to be groundbreaking. It takes time to develop one’s craft.
There were some positives like how the author told us about some of the most famous stories. I liked getting a reminder on some of those. I also liked the message on how women pay the price for the mistakes of men. It hits that to a T and there are some parallels to today’s society.
Overall, I would not read it again, but if you like more detailed stories with weird pacing and Greek mythology retelling with a feminist twist, then I would check it out!
It explained what happened to Ariadne and her sister after the events and it was very dull. No adventures, but just some stagnant, depressing story. Even though the book was only 300 pages, it felt like it took my FOREVER to finish the book. I need to stop expecting books from debut authors to be groundbreaking. It takes time to develop one’s craft.
There were some positives like how the author told us about some of the most famous stories. I liked getting a reminder on some of those. I also liked the message on how women pay the price for the mistakes of men. It hits that to a T and there are some parallels to today’s society.
Overall, I would not read it again, but if you like more detailed stories with weird pacing and Greek mythology retelling with a feminist twist, then I would check it out!
I liked this much better than Electra, and found it more solidly middling. The descriptions of birth and motherhood were real. Can’t decide if the two sisters being so different was a trope or an authentic reflection of sibling binaries. A bit man-hating, if you’re into that.
adventurous
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes