Krystal's Reviews > Hera
Hera
by
by
Krystal's review
bookshelves: freebies-and-gifts, feminism, light-fantasy, myths-legends-and-retellings, triggered
May 24, 2024
bookshelves: freebies-and-gifts, feminism, light-fantasy, myths-legends-and-retellings, triggered
I wanted badass but I got ... mopey. Not quite what I wanted, and sadly kind of dull.
When I think of Hera, Queen of the Gods, I think of petty vengeance and ferocity. I think of her as bold, brave, and confident.
I was excited for a book that would take these things and show us a villain in a new light, but instead this book tries to make her something of a beaten-down heroine? It really didn't work for me.
I didn't like Hera as a character here at all, and I felt the story really washed her out and turned her into a victim. It seemed to be fighting so hard to tell a feminist story that it forgot women can be villains, too. Hera is well-known for her wrath and it was so washed out, here.
The storytelling was also to blame, I feel. It takes all the big stories from Greek mythology and mostly glosses over them all in a sentence or two - as though it was essential to include all these things but the author didn't really want to. I would have preferred less references in lieu of further detail. As a consequence of the sparse detail, it feels like nothing really notable happens - it's just the bland passing of time.
I just wanted so much more story than what I got. It was disappointing to get to the end and feel that I hadn't really felt anything at all.
An ambitious goal, but I do feel it fell flat. Others may appreciate this more sympathetic take on the famous Queen, but it didn't quite meet my expectations.
With thanks to NetGalley for an e-ARC
When I think of Hera, Queen of the Gods, I think of petty vengeance and ferocity. I think of her as bold, brave, and confident.
I was excited for a book that would take these things and show us a villain in a new light, but instead this book tries to make her something of a beaten-down heroine? It really didn't work for me.
I didn't like Hera as a character here at all, and I felt the story really washed her out and turned her into a victim. It seemed to be fighting so hard to tell a feminist story that it forgot women can be villains, too. Hera is well-known for her wrath and it was so washed out, here.
The storytelling was also to blame, I feel. It takes all the big stories from Greek mythology and mostly glosses over them all in a sentence or two - as though it was essential to include all these things but the author didn't really want to. I would have preferred less references in lieu of further detail. As a consequence of the sparse detail, it feels like nothing really notable happens - it's just the bland passing of time.
I just wanted so much more story than what I got. It was disappointing to get to the end and feel that I hadn't really felt anything at all.
An ambitious goal, but I do feel it fell flat. Others may appreciate this more sympathetic take on the famous Queen, but it didn't quite meet my expectations.
With thanks to NetGalley for an e-ARC
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Reading Progress
April 17, 2024
–
Started Reading
April 17, 2024
– Shelved
April 17, 2024
– Shelved as:
feminism
April 17, 2024
– Shelved as:
freebies-and-gifts
April 17, 2024
– Shelved as:
light-fantasy
April 17, 2024
– Shelved as:
myths-legends-and-retellings
April 17, 2024
– Shelved as:
triggered
May 6, 2024
–
23.86%
"Not quite sure about this. I'm not a fan of present tense, and this faces quite a challenge trying to translate all the bizarre Greek myths into current occurrences."
page
84
May 13, 2024
–
42.61%
"Eh. I really hate present tense, to be honest. There's also not really a lot to latch onto yet."
page
150
May 17, 2024
–
60.23%
"I feel like I'm constantly waiting for something important to happen and it just isn't. It's more concerned with noting all the godly offspring and what they get up to."
page
212
May 24, 2024
–
Finished Reading