“But gods are born of ichor and nectar, their excellences already bursting from their fingertips. So they find their fame by proving what they can mar: destroying cities, starting wars, breeding plagues and monsters. All that smoke and savor rising so delicately from our altars. It leaves only ash behind.” 

i received an advanced readers copy by Bloomsbury Publishing in exchange for an honest review. Since this is an arc, the text in the book is subject to changes.

i adored this book so much; if you love or enjoy greek mythology as much as i do, with a bonus of obscure heroines, lots of bloodshed, a table spoon of magic, adventure, and monsters, this book is definitely the one for you.

i wont lie and say i wasnt a huge fan of madeline millers previous book the song of achilles when i read it a few years ago, so i might have a bit of a biased view on this book and her writing; personally, i do not think my tastes have changed, but i do believe it was a bit of a shock to me that i liked the song of achilles more than circe, since the formerly mentioned book has a more romantic focus; i was surprised to be able to finish the book in such a short span of time, my goodreads says i started on october, but in truth, it took me just three days to finish this masterpiece, which is a huge surprise to me, since ive been in a bit of a reading slump for a year or two now and extremely busy with university, so round of applause to miss miller for snatching my attention like she did with this book.

“You can teach a viper to eat from your hands, but you cannot take away how much it likes to bite.” 

circe is like a beautifully and wonderfully written literary fantasy that almost reads like a greek soap opera; it sounds odd, but hear me out: the book is extremely vivid in detail and description, greatly quotable, as well as thrilling and suspenseful. it moves smoothly between the sphere of the world and the many gods and monsters that exist in it, and the precarious focus of the nymph and witch, circe, including her life before and after she was exiled to the island of aiaia.

circe does become a very powerful witch and yet, the most important thing in her story, in my own opinion, is how relatable she is, and despite her godly traits, she is still very relatable, with flaws and weaknesses; from ignorant nymph that wants nothing more than to be loved and accepted, believing in the lies shes fed, she becomes coldhearted against the deceivers, her benevolence fighting with her exasperation.

“The thought was this: that all my life had been murk and depths, but I was not a part of that dark water. I was a creature within it.” 

but boy, the satisfaction that comes with the development of circe, with watching her get tormented, criticized, and trampled on her entire life by her family, to her slowly blooming and clawing through to her own retribution, is amazing. all the hardship she bears throughout her character development means her accomplishments are just so bittersweet. sure, circe might be a fantasy and mythological story in the end, but looking past the murders and backstabbings, its the tale of a woman going through grief, love, ambition, and parenthood.

another thing i would like to add is other greek myths are added in, but play a tiny role; the minotaur, the story of icarus, and others, but of course, circes story stand out and hit you the hardest.