Circe

 

-         Beautiful, lyrical prose, very close to classical literature. Delicate way of storytelling, sometimes just hinting and not telling straight, which I found very appealing and left me earning for more.

 

-         The characters felt very real, comprising both of merits and faults - “50 shades of grey”, as they say, never black and white. However, in my opinion, the characters of Circe’s twin brother and sister - Pasiphae and Perses - are underdeveloped, especially Perses. Circe and Perses almost had no interactions, apart from when they were little.

 

-        The transformation of Circe from a meek and vulnerable nymph to a confident, powerful and resilient witch was convincing and satisfying. Empowered by her spells, she finally learnt how to stand against the hostile forces to protect what was precious to her. 

 

-         The author’s intent to convey the message about the gods being mean and vain and cruel was loud and clear, but still, some of the aspects seemed farfetched. For example: Circe was never anything but nice and caring and helpful to everybody around her, but she was ignored or bullied practically by every god, even her siblings and parents.

 

-         As this novel is a retelling of Ancient Greek mythology about Circe, the witch of Aiaia, and also partly based on the characters and storylines from The Illiad and The Odyssey by Homer, if you are familiar with Ancient Greek mythology and have read the later, there will be major spoilers for you ahead. But as I’ve mentioned, Madeline Miller’s writing is compelling and insightful, with lots of poetic allegories and magnificent descriptions of nature, so you will still be enjoying your way through the book nevertheless.

 

-         The ending was slightly altered from the original story about Circe, but I liked it better, actually, it also made more sense.