Jennifer Saint Collection 2 Books Set (Ariadne, [Hardcover] Elektra)

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The atmosphere of the book was beautiful and I'll give it some extra points because even though it had all the rights to be a heavy one, it wasn't. Everything felt natural, very Greek if you want, and the story fell nicely into a fluid pace. I would be Medusa... if the gods held me accountable one day for the sins of someone else, if they came for me to punish a mans actions, I would not hide away like Pasiphae. I would wear that coronet of snakes and the world would shrink for me instead.” She stroked my hair, but her eyes were fixed on a distant point. “I thought it was time that you knew something different,” she answered. As an avid reader of Greek mythology I was so curious to see which myths of Ariadne Jennifer Saint would include. I’ve been especially curious about Ariadne and have read many different versions of her story and what happens to her. I was excited to delve into this book to see which ones the author would take inspiration from.

This is a tale that deftly explores the myriad ways in which women were subject to and at the mercy of men and gods. Be they poor or rich, young or old, peasant or queen, no one is exempt and motherhood is fraught with danger. From growing up with the Minotaur for a brother and a cloud of shame over her mother (punished by the gods for her husbands hubris) to becoming the wife of Dionysus, nearly forgetting he was never really human, we follow the story of Ariadne and her sister Phaedra through a world where women bear the weight of men's missteps and they are too easily cast aside or dismissed. This retelling clearly flew through the base myth, Theseus and Ariadne fleeing Crete at 30%, Dionysus being introduced at about 40%, and so on, I had no idea how it was truly going to end and the ending that was given did not leave me feeling satisfied in the least and mostly left me wondering what even was the point of the novel other than “women suffer a lot” I will talk about events in the novel without spoilers aside from things that line up with the original myths and, thus, are not spoilers because you can look it up on Wikipedia or Theoi . com or if you truly want to know nothing about the events of the myth or this book, maybe skip my review. I am a huge fan of Greek mythology and have been for years. The tale of Ariadne and Dionysus was always one of my favorites, so I leaped on this book the second I saw it, and though it started off strong, it was ultimately very disappointing to me.If, like me, you loved Circe and haven’t had quite enough of this style of myth-retelling that focusses more on character than story: this is one you can’t miss. It is “the next Circe”, but it’s also entirely its own. It’s contemporary, but also timeless. It’s a tragedy, but an absolutely joyous experience. Highly recommend. So Medusa had to pay for Poseidon’s act. It made no sense at all, and then I tilted my head and saw it with the logic of the gods. The pieces slid into place: a terrible picture when viewed from our mortal perspective, like the beauty of a spider’s web that must look so horrifying to the fly.

The story broadens, forks,spins, and braids through the perspective of multiple narrators, and the resultis fascinating and unpredictable…A great read.” When Theseus, Prince of Athens, arrives in Crete as a sacrifice to the beast, Ariadne falls in love with him. But helping Theseus kill the monster means betraying her family and country, and Ariadne knows only too well that in a world ruled by mercurial gods – drawing their attention can cost you everything. Athena was angry,” Eirene went on. “A virgin goddess, she could not stand for such a brazen crime in her own temple. She must punish the girl who was so shameless as to be overpowered by Poseidon and to offend Athena’s sight so vilely with her undoing.”Ariadne, the Princess of Crete has loved to dance ever since she was young. She enjoys listening to the stories of heroes and gods that her nursemaids tell her about. But every year the Minotaur, who is trapped in the Labyrinth, requires a blood sacrifice. Then Theseus, the Prince of Athens comes to slay the Minotaur and she sees her chance to escape. Ariadne decides to help Theseus kill the Minotaur but her choice comes at a heavy cost. Will her decision end happily? What will happen to her sister Phaedra who doesn't escape with her?

This felt almost non-fiction. But I think that's just another cool thing about greek mythology. It feels so real because so many people believe it's truth. Another sad, expected end to another beautiful retelling. I can't wait to find my next one. When the Greek hero Theseus arrives with a collection of Athenians to be sacrificed to the Minotaur Ariadne becomes infatuated. She sees an opportunity to stop the slaughter of innocents and take control of her own fate.She is appalled with the cruelty her father metes out towards the Athenians in demanding that Athens send across fourteen young men and women to be sacrificed to the Minotaur every year, an act of vengeance in retaliation for the death of his son. After, Ariadne and her younger sister Phaedra help young prince Theseus, who is masquerading as one of the prisoners, to navigate through the labyrinth and slay the Minotaur she escapes with him in hopes of a better life ahead and to escape the wrath of her father. The exploration of the darker side of the Dionysian cult was quite good but I felt the ending was incredibly rushed and the chance to show Perseus as a completely different kind of hero was lost. Because Saint did a great job of characterising the male villains. We'd had the cruel ruler Minos, the ladies man and fame hound Theseus, then the immortal reveller Dionysus, followed by the austere horse lover Hippolytus (less a villain, more a simpleton), it was a chance for us to finally get a middle of the road hero who was strong but also a good ruler. I know Saint tried to imply that Perseus and Ariadne unravelled all of that with a single glance but I don't think it worked. I also think the handling of the final showdown was poor. Dionysus is supposed to be welcomed to the city after the death of Ariadne through a deal brokered by Hermes. I feel like that would have been a strong point to make again about how women are the collateral damage in so many of these Greek myths but Saint didn't seem to want to take that route. My tears had stilled now and I listened intently. I only knew Medusa as a monster. I had not thought she had ever been anything else. The stories of Perseus did not allow for a Medusa with a story of her own. I also felt that Hera's presence in the novel was in some ways a missed opportunity. She's always there as Araidne's enemy by proxy but we never really explore how the white-armed goddess (not the greatest of epithets) of marriage and birth, the protector of women, and the queen of all gods could have it in for these poor women, exploited by her King of the Gods husband, her Olympian brothers and their children. Instead as Ariadne points out. Perhaps Eirene suppressed a smile, but she did not let me see. Instead, she gently shifted me away from Phaedra and took up the comb herself. “And why would they do such a thing?”