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

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It's moments like these that remind me of the missed opportunity to really give a nuanced feminist slant to these myths. Saint takes the easy wins but seems incapable of stringing them all together into a grand theme or message. A mesmerising retelling of the ancient Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. Perfect for fans of CIRCE, A SONG OF ACHILLES, and THE SILENCE OF THE GIRLS. 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. As a young woman, however, I danced alone. The tapping of my feet across the shining wood created a rhythm in which I could lose myself, a whirling dance that could consume me. Even without music it could muffle the distant rumble that groaned beneath our feet and the skitter of tremendous hooves far below the ground at the heart of the construction that had truly cemented Daedalus’ fame. I would stretch my arms out, reaching upward to the peaceful sky, forgetting for the duration of the dance the horrors that dwelled underneath us. When going into this book, I was not expecting the perspective of Phaedra, but I fully loved this too. Phaedra is the younger sister of Ariadne and her story is mostly told by Euripides in “Hippolytus” and Ovid’s “Heroides”. Phaedra is also explored in “Pandora’s Jar” by Natalie Haynes which I read earlier this month. There aren’t as many retellings of Phaedra as there are Ariadne, and I am so glad the author provides Phaedra, as well as Ariadne, with a voice and fully fleshed out characters.

Will Ariadne's decision ensure her happy ending and what of Phaedra, the beloved younger sister she leaves behind? 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.In the very early days, my mother, Pasiphae, would dance with me; indeed, it was she who had taught me. Not formal, set patterns of steps; rather, she gave me the gift of making fluid, sinuous shapes out of crazy, chaotic movements. I watched how she flung herself into the music and transformed it into a graceful frenzy, and I followed suit. She would make a game of it for me, calling out constellations for me to trace with my feet on the floor, star formations that she would weave stories of, as well as dances. “Orion!” she’d say, and I would hop frantically from space to space, imagining the points of light that made the doomed hunter in the sky. “Artemis placed him there so she could look upon him every night,” she had told me, confidingly, when we’d flopped together to regain our breath. As a lover of Greek Mythology, I thought Ariadne was such a compelling story that lives up to all the expectations of Greek tragedy but also delivers a story of hope, optimism and determination as it follows the story and intriguing lives, loves and losses of Ariadne the daughter of King Minos, her sister Phaedra, Theseus a prince of Athens and Dionysus, the god of wine. The story continues to follow the separate lives of the two sisters until they meet again years later when it is apparent that both women bear the scars of sorrow, love, betrayal and now deep seeded suspicion of each other as the events that shaped them now threatens to pull them apart. When you read Greek Mythology, you know tragedy is just lurking around the corner and this book is no different. This novel is a retelling of the Theseus and the Minotaur myth from the perspective of Ariadne, princess of Crete and sister to the Minotaur, who helps Theseus conquer the labyrinth and defeat the Minotaur. Though the ending fell extremely flat to me and was ultimately disappointing, the writing itself wasn’t completely terrible, (it certainly wasn’t great, and to compare this book to Madeline Miller is hubris and punishable by the gods) and the first half as it followed the myth was alright. Ariadne’s viewpoints of how unfair it is that gods always target women for the acts of men are really the only thing that would be considered “feminist.” So that saves this book from having a one star rating, but it’s still a 1.5, and because it has been my most disappointing read of the year, and still inspires rage whenever I think about this book, I’m rounding it down to one star, as it deserves.

But Eirene did not tell us of Perseus today. Instead, she told us how Medusa had gained her crown of serpents and her petrifying gaze. It was a story I might have come of late to expect. No longer was my world one of brave heroes; I was learning all too swiftly the women’s pain that throbbed unspoken through the tales of their feats. As other reviewers have pointed out, retellings are usually supposed to build upon the base myth and add things to better the story and fully flesh it out, not recount them step by step, which is what the author did, and it led to the story falling extremely flat and having no feeling behind it.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. this book is the perfect addition to my greek mythology shelf and fits right in with ‘circe,’ ‘the silence of girls,’ and ‘a thousand ships.’ 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 Father makes them angry again!” I cried. “Maybe they will take my hair so he is shamed by a hideous daughter.”

The story is ladened with tragedy and also times of happiness, but there was always that overwhelming sense of foreboding. Don’t come into this story expecting gentleness. Ariadne is told with raw brutality, no holds barred. 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. Saint's enchanting debut retells the myth of the minotaur through the eyes of Ariadne... As the women navigate their changing positions of power, they court disaster at the hands of both gods and men. Saint expertly highlights how often the women of this world pay the price for the actions of the men around them. Lovers of mythology should snap this up.' - Publishers WeeklyThe struggle for females to break free from the influence and punishment of men is a familiar tale, and the infusion of Greek mythology makes it that much more exciting. I'm always thrilled to come across such a compelling debut, and I cannot wait to see what else Jennifer Saint comes up with. 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. Beautifully written and nuanced, Ariadne explores the bonds between women and their epic quest for agency in patriarchal Greek society.”