A review by ivegotyourpaperback
Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes

adventurous emotional funny reflective sad slow-paced
  • 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

5.0

All the stars ever. This is by far my favourite read (or listen) of the year.

The author herself did a brilliant dramatic reading which I was riveted by. Her tone and the way she have each character a unique voice and personality was a delight to listen to.

While this is the story of Medusa, it’s made all the richer by also getting to know the interconnected characters that I’d heard of on their own but never realised they had a connection to Medusa’s myth. There are various POV’s of Goddesses, mortal women, the 3 Gorgon sisters, even an object (the Gorgoneion), the snakes on Medusa’s head, Stone (yes, as in the rock), and more. 
I love how some of the POV’s seem to ‘break the fourth wall’ (so to speak), as if the character is directly addressing the reader.

The coercive sexual assault of a 16 year old girl trying to protect others was heartbreaking (thank goodness the details of the assault weren’t on page). The aftermath made me cry (which I almost never do when reading). The entitlement to a girl’s body radiating from Poseidon is reminiscent of so many SA stories we hear about today. 

But with the horror of the tale it also has incredible moments of beauty highlighting the importance of the company and comfort women can provide to each other during life’s various trials and hardships. 

It was hugely satisfying for me that even when Poseidon is trying to be the great ruler of his kingdom he still comes off as second fiddle to Zeus in this story. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t like either of the deities but the thwarting of Poseidon’s authority is a minor karmic justice for the grave crime committed against Medusa. 

I also loved the portrayal of Perseus as a bumbling idiot, rather than a self-confident epic hero . It’s portrayed that he doesn’t actually know what he’s doing, and drives home the point that what he’s doing isn’t right, because he doesn’t have any strong feelings about the murder of an innocent person, who’s minding her own business. He’s got blinders on - his only motivation is his mother. Speaking of which, the text does a great job of pointing out that, this whole quest to ‘prove himself’ to the king, probably never needed to happen.

Standout characters for me were Métis (short though her appearance was), Stheno (surprisingly funny) and Hera (Sassy, spiteful bitch).

Favourite quote (from Zeus’ POV): “He assumed that Hera was busying herself turning one of his favourite girls into a cow, or a weasel, or whatever, which means it may well be too late to intervene and save her. Although there was always the possibility that the world had just gained an attractive new cow, so all was not lost.”

Content warnings: 
⚠️rape
⚠️adultery
⚠️sexual coercion 
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