A review by karteabooks
Ariadne by Jennifer Saint

dark hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• 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

 

A classic re-told – again another book that has been on my tbr for a long time, but I have joined with some lovely fellow bookstagrammers on a buddy read of this, and I am wondering, yet again, why it has taken me so long… I'm always thrilled to come across such a compelling debut, and I cannot wait to see what else Jennifer Saint comes up with. 

As Princesses of Crete and daughters of the fearsome King Minos, Ariadne and her sister Phaedra grow up hearing the terrible bellows of the Minotaur from the Labyrinth beneath the palace. The Minotaur – Minos’ greatest shame and Ariadne’s brother – demands blood every year. 

When Thesus, Prince of Athens, arrives in Crete as a sacrifice to the beast, Ariadne falls in love with him. But helping Thesus defeat the monster means betraying her family, and Ariadne knows that in a world ruled by mercurial gods, drawing their attention can cost you everything. 

Ariadne has heard too many tales of women being punished for the acts of men – she is determined to set her won fate. But will her decision to help Thesus ensure her happy ending? Or will she find herself sacrificed for her lover’s ambition? 

Girl power! I think that pretty much sums up this book, well mostly. Ariadne fell in love with the first man that paid her any attention, and after achieving his goal, Thesus led her to safety, or so he told her…Left to die alone and with only her mother’s stolen dress, Ariadne had all but given up, but, and after rubbing her eyes several times in disbelief, her knight in shining armour, well actually a Greek god on a mysterious ship, rescued her and taught her the true meaning of love… Ariadne thought she had everything she had ever wanted… 

Until her long – lost sister arrives and really puts everyone on edge, Ariadne, still the strong woman begins to doubt what she knows and realises that close to home, not everything is as it seems… 

This was such a joy to read, and even though I must admit that this was one of the lesser known, well to me, Greek myths, but the author’s writing style was so very descriptive and gave enough of the myth within the book, so much so that I actually ended up reading this in a weekend! 

What does come through within this brilliant book is the struggle for females to break free from the influence and punishment of men, and the way that this is woven into Greek mythology makes it that much more exciting. 

Highly recommend this to anyone that enjoyed Circe, Greek mythology and reading about strong women!