WOW it’s been a while! Sorry for my absence between posts. I have been super busy with school and the rest of the time, I have been creating content for my YouTube channel so I've been slack about blogging. Oops.

Today I’m going to be sharing with you a review for the gorgeous Circe by Madeline Miller. If the name sounds familiar, you may have read her other novel The Song Of Achilles which was a huge hit in the literary world and she recently came out with her second novel, once again Greek mythology inspired, which I’m going to be sharing a spoiler free review! 

Also can I just take a moment to say a huge thank you to Bloomsbury Australia, for not only sending me one of the prettiest books I own, but for packaging it so well and putting effort into presentation. You all spoil me!

 

My thoughts.

Madeline Miller can WRITE let me just say that. She has this incredibly cinematic way of bringing her stories to life. Her characters, though thousands of years old and probably mythic, seem so lifelike and layered. The world is incredibly well explained, and she is so articulate in her writing, to the point where you feel the acute pain of Circe, the goddess herself as she struggles between her different identities (which I’ll talk more about below!).  

The best part is Miller doesn’t info-dump, which is essential in a story that has a lot of background, as readers otherwise feel overwhelmed when presented with pages and pages of history. She breaks the Greek tales she draws her story from down very well, so even beginners to mythology can understand it with absolutely no prior knowledge. In saying that, I liked how well researched she was, as the main character, Circe, meets a lot of other characters in the course of the novel and her storyline intersects with many other famous Greeks and immortals absolutely flawlessly.

I’m not particularly good with Greek mythology, but I do know some stories after having studied them in school such as Medea and Agamemnon, and Circe remains true to prior Greek plays, choosing not to embellish facts but rather, draw on those, and Miller’s own writing to spin a unique story of it’s own, forming Circe.

Previous to reading this, I did not know the story of Circe at all, and soon found myself easily engrossed in the book. Miller writes in a fast paced way, that keeps you entertained, even for those who may already know the story, and through humanizing Circe as a character, through her downfalls and insecurities, she evokes sympathy and empathy from the readers as they see parts of themselves in Circe (or at least I did). It is an incredibly unique experience that this book offers as you get to see Circe going from this kind and naïve young immortal, to someone who accepts and comes into her power, and learn how to wield it to her advantage. You see her grow as a person, you see the humanistic qualities in her and you see her become tougher, but no less kind. 

The interplay between divinity and mortality that Circe struggled with, despite being completely unrelatable to me (I am a mere mortal friends!), was extremely compelling and intricate. The rich and poetic writing of Miller emulated that of the Greek bards, and you couldn’t help but love and care about Circe. 

Overall, this was such an incredible story, and I took my time reading it because I really enjoyed every second of the time I spent on it. 

Have you read anything by Madeline Miller? Do you plan to?