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I wanted to love Circe so much. I adore Greek mythology and I was so excited to read this novel that was supposed to bring a seemingly minor character in the Odyssey to life. However, Circe did not come to life. She remained flatly on the page.

Before I criticize this incredibly popular novel, I must give Miller credit where credit’s due. This woman knows her stuff. Miller manages to expertly weave different stories of Greek mythology into one cohesive tale (view spoiler)[(heh, or tail for those who read the novel and like puns) (hide spoiler)]. Never once does it feel like something didn’t fit right. During these moments I found myself enraptured and was fully drawn into the novel.

However, beyond the tales of great heroes and the mischief of the Gods, Circe herself felt incredibly flat, and this novel was supposed to be about her. I get that it was all about her growth, but I never felt like she actually did grow as a character. We were told that she matured, but I never saw it in her behavior. In the beginning of the novel we see her pandering to the whims of others and quite frankly, we see that in the end. I clearly missed something that stood out to so many other readers.

Also, Circe was just a boring character to hang out with by herself. I found myself constantly skimming her inner monologue because it didn’t add anything. It doesn’t help that Circe herself as a Greek character didn’t have a ton of agency beyond the men in her life. You can only turn a woman whose life revolves around men into so much of an independent badass if you also choose to portray Greek mythology accurately. I feel like Circe is just a crutch to tell the back story of other great Greek characters.

Plus, this novel is touted as being a strong feminist novel, but can we talk about the fact that (view spoiler)[ rape is used as a ploy to explain Circe’s decision to turn men into pigs? Why can’t Circe just turn men into pigs because she wants to? I’d appreciate that a lot more because we don’t have to make the woman a victim, again. AND she keeps turning them into pigs until she finally meets one man that she actually likes? Ok, yeah, that makes sense. I know this is kind of explained in the end of the novel when she tells Odysseus that she like the power, but it kind of confused me because we come full circle back to my question of ‘did the overused plot devise of “rape makes women destroy men� really need to be used here?� (hide spoiler)]

Overall, this one wasn’t for me, but I am glad that Miller has found such success in it. I hope that it will keep her writing because she has a gift and I want to see more of what she comes up with. I haven’t found another author whose knowledge of Greek mythology is so great.

Happy reading!