CIRCE Paperback – 14 April 2020

Madeline Miller’s Circe is a remarkable feat of storytelling that turns a minor character from Greek mythology into the heart of an unforgettable novel. Through elegant and lyrical prose, Miller brings Circe—the daughter of the sun god Helios and the nymph Perse—to life as a woman of depth, strength, and vulnerability.Banished to the remote island of Aiaia, Circe finds power in witchcraft and the natural world, slowly transforming her exile into a journey of self-discovery. Along the way, she crosses paths with legendary figures: Odysseus, whose cunning and charm leave a lasting mark; Daedalus, the gentle craftsman haunted by his own burdens; the trickster Hermes; the fierce goddess Athena; and even Medea, Circe’s formidable niece. Each encounter deepens our understanding of Circe and the ancient world she inhabits.What makes Circe truly captivating is its emotional honesty. Miller deftly explores timeless themes: the struggle for identity, the cost of defiance, and the loneliness of standing apart. Circe is neither hero nor villain but something more human—a woman seeking her place in a world ruled by gods and men.Richly atmospheric and deeply moving, Circe is both a celebration of female strength and a meditation on freedom and fate. Miller’s writing is immersive without being dense, making mythology feel both accessible and relevant.⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Highly recommended for anyone drawn to myth retellings, character-driven fiction, and beautifully crafted prose.

This one is for the fans of Greek Mythology and for people like this reviewer whose closest association to the Greek Gods is through ‘the Little Mermaid’ – remember Ariel’s Father, the lord of the sea! He seemed alright – both morally and temperament wise.Why is that a surprise one might ask?Its because Greek mythology is full of decadent, amoral Gods and Goddesses who were hell-bent on getting into any kind of scrape simply in the name of having ‘fun’. It is no wonder their shenanigans are such a hit with us mere mortals living our mundane 9-5 lives and trying to cram surviving and progenating in a span of, on average, 80 years if things go well. But one must not be jealous, after all it must be hard living for thousands of years laden with untold riches, never having to work, not really needing to eat but with the ability to produce every kind of food at the snap of one’s fingers and never giving a fig about anyone else, except rarely and then a bit too vehemently. One supposes their lives are now better with the advent of the internet, Netflix and Ekta Kapoor serials. Sadly, at the time that this story begins, poking into other people’s business and trying to get a rise out of weaker immortals and mortals seems to have been the only source of entertainment for these long-suffering souls of divinity.Circe was one of the daughters of Helios, the Sun God, and Perse, a naiad, and thus a Goddess in her own right in Greek mythology. However, apparently she lacked all signs of beauty, divinity and grace common to the other Gods at birth and suffered at the hands of her mother, brother, sister and other members of her father’s court for it. This book takes us on a journey into the life of Circe according to Madeline Miller.The cover of this book on the paperback edition is absolutely gorgeous and eons better than the one on the hardcover edition. Also, if you are on Instagram and follow any kind of bookgrams then you would know how impossible it has been to miss the launch of this particular book over the past few months. Every single book tuber/ book reviewer seemed to have received a copy of the book and was singing its praises to the high rafters. All factors that positively forced one to get a copy ASAP.So, did the book live up to all the hype? Yes and No.There is no doubt that Greek mythology is an interesting read at the best of times, what with their squabbling Gods and down-trodden mortals, with thwarted ambitions and conspiracies and the never-ending intrigues along with all the wanton sex. So, out of all the hundreds of Gods, Goddesses and Demi-Gods and Goddesses it was a novel experience to concentrate on one and read her story from beginning to an almost end – because Gods don’t die so easily it seems. Look at poor Prometheus’ fate.Circe was not a very important entity in the realm of the Greek Gods until she unwittingly displayed a form of magic so monumental that the only way to control her seemed to be exile on a remote island, in lieu of being put in fetters for the rest of her days since she happened to be the daughter of a politically strong God. Here she must spend the rest of eternity alone and she begins her sentence by honing her previously undiscovered talents. With time she becomes strong in her own right and must deal with the ramifications of her love of a human once again. It is a sad story at times and also the story of a woman coming into her own. It is the story of feminism at its core.With its complex storyline, was it an interesting read? It ticked almost all the boxes by my standards. A good read. While it certainly was fast paced and made me want to keep turning the pages, it was more like having a mythological history lesson at times. Which in a way is the purpose of this book. It attempts to tell a complex story, with many many versions through the ages in a simpler, more complete form. Its hard to figure out how true it has stayed to the original if one is not a follower of Greek myths, but the Wikipedia page on Circe more or less adds up to this story. So yes, pick up this book so you can throw in random names of Greek Gods into conversations with highly literary types. And also for the smacking good story that you get out of it. I keep wondering whether her next one will be about Odysseus or even Prometheus. Although after reading this book, I must say I am no longer a fan of Odysseus.

Alright, you lovely people, this post is going to be long so brace yourself.This book took a long time to come to me and by then, almost everyone I knew (at least in the bookish world) had already read it. I have to admit that I was so incredibly jealous of the lucky ones who had the opportunity to read it before I did. (I am aware, it shows how mature I am. I don’t care. Much.)I have loved Miller’s The Song of Achilles for a while now, so much so that I voluntarily pick it out to re-read, knowing I would be heartbroken at the end of it. So, that coupled with the fact that Miller was once again using her love of Greek mythology to bring forth Circe’s tale, you can see why I would be so very eager to devour the book as soon as possible.With The Song of Achilles, there was always a steady pattern, the deep knowledge of what was to come, it still undid me, of course but I welcomed it. The Song of Achilles is paced a bit more speedily despite spanning the lives of Patroclus and Achilles.As more and more reviews were pouring in, I realised something important. Circe was not to be considered in the same vein and rightfully so. I read a lot of people saying that the pace was slow, that nothing really happened in Circe’s life and that Odysseus didn’t feature in the story till very late in the plot. All of that concerned me and it almost made me wonder if I would even like the book.Then the book came and as I started reading it, I realised something. The trick to read and appreciate Circe is to let go of Miller’s previous works. To let Circe stand on its own and shine.People were not wrong, the pace is rather slow and not much happens but this is Circe’s life almost documented. Life isn’t always exciting, I wasn’t able to give my best in terms of concentration, too! (Due to very real migraine problems but let’s not think about that right now.)But there came a time when I finally realised something. While I took my time getting invested in Circe’s life, Miller had already woven her spell over me. I loved her writing in this, it was almost serene despite all that happened in Circe’s life. I started to really empathise with her in due time.Circe is not an easy person to like, she too naive at first and too meek, then she tries her hand at things she doesn’t have much idea about. Her too make Gloucos into a divine being, the fallout from that, I almost gave up (this was during the week from hell, aka, the week of migraines) but then Circe was banished and her true story began.I say her story because before she was banished, I don’t think she really lived? That’s just my opinion.I wouldn’t spoil too much of the book but her interactions with Hermes and her experiences on her island made me love her more than her need for Helio’s love did. I guess, in a way, I saw myself in Circe when she still resided in Helio’s palace. The way she learned the her witchcraft and her love for herself and her companions showed that there was more to the girl who wanted to be accepted into the gods’ inner circle. Her actions with Scylla, her later interactions with men showed growth in her by leaps and bounds.Her scene with Medea was absolutely awesome. Of course there are moments in the book that I should have expected but didn’t. There are some triggery scenes and I wasn’t quite prepared for them. At the time, I almost thought to myself, why include this scene? What purpose did it serve other than to shock and horrify us? But almost in the next moment, I realised why it was included. I did think that there should have been a trigger warning of sorts, oh well.Circe and Odysseus talks were one of the better parts of the book, I have always loved Odyssey and though I have conflicting thoughts about Odysseus himself, I love him too. In a way. The way Miller wrote Odysseus made me happy, too. He was such a contrary character, wasn’t he? Always too smart for the people around him and later, when you are done reading The Iliad or even the Odyssey, you don’t really like him. His impressions are almost always of contrary nature. Miller managed that brilliantly.I should mention that I loved Penelope in this one just as I love her anywhere else. (Yeah, she’s a badass character and should be appreciated more in my opinion.)I think I loved many parts of the book thoroughly and some parts not quite but overall, I loved the book and can’t wait to read it again. I think this book could have done with a bit of a pace and maybe some of the scenes weren’t absolutely needed but if we take that away, it’s a great book. The one thing I really loved was the fact that Miller decided to write about Circe, she is never really been the focus of any story. I had kinda made up my mind about Circe when I read the Odyssey for the first time but now, I am glad that I got to change my mind. I am glad that my impression of her as the witch who turns men into goats has changed, made her into something more real.If you love Greek mythology, a retelling of the said myths and tragic, sad stories, this is the book for you. If you love a languid pace, with side characters just as interesting as the main character then this is the book for you. If you love strong but flawed main characters then this is the book for you.