"Circe" is another book that has a habit of ending up in everyone's S tier so I knew I needed to read it for myself. Now I have. Every sentence is a work of art. Some passages landed so hard I needed to stop and recover before I could keep reading. It is utterly spellbinding. The scenes with young Telegonus were a particularly poingant depiction of the joys and miseries of parenthood.
Much of the Greek Cannon is retold here, yet it is framed and iterated upon in a way that is completely novel: the life and times of the immortal she-witch Circe. It is a woman's story, told by a woman, and written by a female author. If any of those things make you lose interest then I challenge you to overcome your rectal-cranial inversion because it's keeping you from a legendary book.
I’m really sorry but I absolutely hated this book, I was so disappointed…! But to see everyone loving it so much, sometimes it makes me wonder what is wrong with me. I read it in French, so maybe could it be the translation? Is there any other people that disliked it so bad that it made you angry?
Miller is just such a talented writer. Her word choices are sublime, she manages to paint vivid emotions without sounding corny or camp.
You really end up feeling for Circe. Raging with her, fearing with her, and fighting with her. I’ve read tit twice, but can see more reads in my future
This is a community of people who read a lot so when I see an overwhelming consensus about a book like this I take note! 😅 In my opinion it was good straight away and never once let up.
Circe has a way of making each sentence feel like a spell being cast very slowly. Those Telegonus chapters got us too, that fierce and tired kind of love where you'd stare down a goddess for your kid (and she does). If you want more myth told from the edges, The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood is a funny, sharp little companion to it.
I’m listening to it on audiobook right now and really enjoying it. It took me a while to get into it though - and I have previously tried to read it in print and couldn’t get past the first couple of chapters. The beginning is slow IMO and young Circe is quite a pitiful beige character. Once she gets exiled and starts discovering her powers, I was totally hooked. The writing is gorgeous.
Really didn’t like it honestly. Miller had a chance to put the notoriously morally dubious Greek pantheon in a new light, and all she did was make almost everyone horrible, including Circe sometimes (Glaucos did nothing wrong, anyone who disagrees can fight me). There’s some pretty questionable prose as well. Far from the worst thing I’ve ever read; I’ll admit it was a brisk read, but it’s definitely going in the “fast food” category.
So, nothing. Got it. Also, using a Last Jedi meme, the movie that forewent the lore, turned heroes into cads, and just generally wasn’t very good, is horribly ironic.
Haven’t attacked your character or motives, so it doesn’t seem like you know what an ad hominem is. But sure, my word choice is cringe. Last few books was Omensetter’s Luck by Gass and The Passion According to G.H by Lispector.
Love this book. It feels fresh and modern without falling into the trap of being revisionist. Read “the song of Achilles” too by the same author. Extremely beautiful
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u/Adventurous-One1600 11h ago
I’m really sorry but I absolutely hated this book, I was so disappointed…! But to see everyone loving it so much, sometimes it makes me wonder what is wrong with me. I read it in French, so maybe could it be the translation? Is there any other people that disliked it so bad that it made you angry?