Circe, Madeline Miller (Author)
This book is inspired by the eponymous Circe, a powerful sorceress of Greek myths. Circe features in The Odyssey, first as a challenge and then an ally to the hero Odysseus. Known for her mastery over potions and herbs, she uses them to transform her enemies into animals. Circe is a fascinating figure from mythology, usually appearing as a key part in someone else’s tale, so it is a delight to see her own story so skilfully rendered by Madeline Miller. The story starts in the house of Helios, God of the sun and mightiest of the Titans. Born with the weak voice of a mortal, Helios’s daughter Circe is considered strange by the rest of the family, not powerful and terrible like her father nor beautiful and ruthless like her mother. But she hides a dark power of her own: witchcraft.
Once it is realised that witchcraft is a threat even to the gods, Circe is banished to the island of Aiaia, where she hones her craft, casting spells, gathering strange herbs and taming wild beasts. But Circe’s solitude is interrupted by figures of legend, amongst them the messenger god Hermes, the inventor Daedalus and the hero Odysseus. With incredible skill and sensitivity, Miller has taken snippets of Circe from various epic sources and woven a tale that has entranced a modern readership. It’s no wonder that Circe won a host of awards, including the Athenaeum Literary Award and the Goodreads Choice Awards for Fantasy.
Circe is a clever, brilliant and determined protagonist, and a narrative in her own voice is captivating. It is a voice that spans centuries, a voice that speaks of innumerable losses and struggles but also joys and triumphs. While Circe has moments of epic heroism and thrilling, vividly depicted feats of magic, at its core it’s an intricate and moving story of searching for a place to belong, of a woman struggling to retain her power and autonomy in a world that sees her as a badly crafted commodity, of a goddess with elements of both immortal and mortal.
Lore, Alexandra Bracken (Author)
Greek myths have sparked imaginations for centuries. These stories of love and vengeance, gods, heroes and monsters have continued to inspire countless new novels and retellings. Here are a couple of my favourite stories based on Greek myths.
Lore is not so much a retelling than it is a clever, gripping urban fantasy set in modern-day New York; it’s a story that takes Greek myths and brings them into modern times with a dark, intriguing setup. The plot is based around a murderous hunting game called the Agon. Every seven years, for one week, Zeus punishes the gods by making them mortal.
As mortals, they are forced to walk the earth, where they are hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines. Because whoever manages to kill a god, gains their divine power and immortality. This dark premise is the perfect way to bring the battle savagery and bloodthirstiness of Greek lore to modern readers.
Our protagonist is Lore Perseous, a young woman from one of the ancient bloodlines, whose family has been killed by a rival clan. For years Lore has turned her back on the Agon and her sole focus has been on surviving. But as the next game dawns, Lore finds the goddess Athena gravely wounded on her doorstep. Athena offers her an alliance against their mutual enemy. It might be their only chance to stop the rise of a new god with the power to destroy humanity. And it’s Lore’s one chance for revenge.
Lore has been aptly described as Greek mythology meets The Hunger Games. It’s an action-packed story with a brutal and vividly realised premise, compelling characters, mysteries upon mysteries and shocking plot twists, perfect for readers looking for a thrill.
