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jessica's Reviews > Elektra
Elektra
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i think because there have been sooo many greek mythology retellings over the past couple of years, especially when it comes to the illiad, my enjoyment has become a little diminished due to how similar they are all.
and, because of that, i think i now prefer reimaginings, rather than faithful retellings, which is what this book is.
this novel tells the stories of three women who are impacted by the trojan war - clytemnestra, elektra, and cassandra (why this book is named after only elektra, i couldnt tell you). and because i am already familiar with their stories, this didnt offer me anything new. its very true to the original tale and does a good job at giving a voice to these women. i just wish there had been a little more uniqueness to this book.
i think readers who want to get an expanded view of the effects of the trojan war, specifically when it comes to the women, this is a good book to pick up. i can easily see this being a 5 star read for many readers who are new to the greek myths.
� 3.5 stars
and, because of that, i think i now prefer reimaginings, rather than faithful retellings, which is what this book is.
this novel tells the stories of three women who are impacted by the trojan war - clytemnestra, elektra, and cassandra (why this book is named after only elektra, i couldnt tell you). and because i am already familiar with their stories, this didnt offer me anything new. its very true to the original tale and does a good job at giving a voice to these women. i just wish there had been a little more uniqueness to this book.
i think readers who want to get an expanded view of the effects of the trojan war, specifically when it comes to the women, this is a good book to pick up. i can easily see this being a 5 star read for many readers who are new to the greek myths.
� 3.5 stars
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Reading Progress
Started Reading
May 23, 2022
– Shelved
May 23, 2022
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to-read
May 23, 2022
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Ali
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May 24, 2022 07:58PM
I have a feeling I may feel very similar to you after I read this 🤔
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I feel you: I love Greek myth retellings, but I’ve been avoiding them a little lately since there are simply too many and they start to blur together. I hope authors branch out to covering different cultural myths over the coming years.
I am looking forward to this one but I really hope/wish that women from other myths/stories than the Illiad and Odyssey would get centre-stage.
Can I read this one before the other one - Ariadne - by this author?
I’m currently reading this one and I felt that too: I would have enjoyed something different, something a bit more special� and more focus on elektra too
@Adalia - you can read this one first. They are stand alones. I almost wish there was more focus on Cassandra too. I felt like her story was the stalest of the three.
@nina - if you haven't yet, Kaikeyi is a Hindu retelling from the Ramayana!
Personally I think the reason the book is only named after Elektra is because she is the only one of the three women left standing after the end of the book. Everything was a culmination of the final actions of her mothers death and allowing Elektra to move on.
This is really well said
I had the same thought - I think I would enjoyed this a lot more had I not recently read many retellings/perspectives of the Trojan War. I had the same thought regarding her Ariadne book - pleasant, but doesn't bring anything new to the table.
i feel the same way, but i'm currently reading Ithaca and i love it so far. i'm just waiting for authors to start writing egyptian mythology retellings/reimaginings :')
Only Clytemnestra is the only fully developed character. The other two seem to expend their energy either howling or whining, neither of which gets them anywhere. This disrupts the enjoyment of a potentially great story. A dreary read.
If you’re looking for a good reimagining, try Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati. It only follows Clytemnestra but there’s so much more depth, and while Clytemnestra character was my favorite in Elektra, her characterization is much, much stronger in Casati’s version.
I really agree with this
I read this book with only the super bare bones of the story of the Iliad under my wing, and I REALLY liked this book for its faithful retelling but still easy to grasp language and decent pacing� without having to slog through reading the Iliad in its entirety, a week after reading the Odyssey haha.
named after elektra because is the only one left alive
Maybe it’s just because I’m a guy but I hope that eventually authors will get around to looking at overlooked guys, or even overlooked incidents in mythology.
