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Intégrale Circé - Le Chant d'Achille
Les deux œuvres phares de Madeline Miller réunies dans une intégrale numérique !
Circé :
Fruit des amours d'un dieu et d'une mortelle, Circé la nymphe grandit parmi les divinités de l'Olympe. Mais son caractère étonne. Détonne. On la dit sorcière, parce qu'elle aime changer les choses. Plus humaine que céleste, parce qu'elle est sensible. En l'exilant sur une île déserte, comme le fut jadis Prométhée pour avoir trop aimé les hommes, ses pairs ne lui ont-ils pas plutôt rendu service ? Là, l'immortelle peut choisir qui elle est. Demi-déesse, certes, mais femme avant tout. Puissante, libre, amoureuse...
" Un charme absolument envoûtant. " Le Monde des Livres
Le Chant d'Achille :
Ce ne sont encore que des enfants : Patrocle est aussi chétif et maladroit qu'Achille est solaire, puissant, promis à la gloire des immortels. Mais, grandissant côte à côte, un lien se tisse entre ces deux êtres si dissemblables.
Quand, à l'appel du roi Agamemnon, les jeunes princes se joignent au siège de Troie, la sagesse de l'un et la colère de l'autre pourraient bien faire dévier le cours de la guerre... Au risque de faire mentir l'Olympe et ses oracles.
" Impossible de lâcher ce livre. Toute la sauvagerie et le frisson de l'Antiquité. " Donna TARTT
" Éprise de ses personnages, l'auteure ramène à la vie les statues antiques. Et l'on sort de son livre avec une grande envie de se replonger dans Homère. " Le Monde
Cet ouvrage a reçu le Orange Prize for fiction
Circé :
Fruit des amours d'un dieu et d'une mortelle, Circé la nymphe grandit parmi les divinités de l'Olympe. Mais son caractère étonne. Détonne. On la dit sorcière, parce qu'elle aime changer les choses. Plus humaine que céleste, parce qu'elle est sensible. En l'exilant sur une île déserte, comme le fut jadis Prométhée pour avoir trop aimé les hommes, ses pairs ne lui ont-ils pas plutôt rendu service ? Là, l'immortelle peut choisir qui elle est. Demi-déesse, certes, mais femme avant tout. Puissante, libre, amoureuse...
" Un charme absolument envoûtant. " Le Monde des Livres
Le Chant d'Achille :
Ce ne sont encore que des enfants : Patrocle est aussi chétif et maladroit qu'Achille est solaire, puissant, promis à la gloire des immortels. Mais, grandissant côte à côte, un lien se tisse entre ces deux êtres si dissemblables.
Quand, à l'appel du roi Agamemnon, les jeunes princes se joignent au siège de Troie, la sagesse de l'un et la colère de l'autre pourraient bien faire dévier le cours de la guerre... Au risque de faire mentir l'Olympe et ses oracles.
" Impossible de lâcher ce livre. Toute la sauvagerie et le frisson de l'Antiquité. " Donna TARTT
" Éprise de ses personnages, l'auteure ramène à la vie les statues antiques. Et l'on sort de son livre avec une grande envie de se replonger dans Homère. " Le Monde
Cet ouvrage a reçu le Orange Prize for fiction
899 pages, Kindle Edition
Published December 19, 2024
About the author
Madeline Miller
20 books89.3k followersMadeline Miller was born in Boston and grew up in New York City and Philadelphia. She attended Brown University, where she earned her BA and MA in Classics. For the last ten years she has been teaching and tutoring Latin, Greek and Shakespeare to high school students. She has also studied at the University of Chicago’s Committee on Social Thought, and in the Dramaturgy department at Yale School of Drama, where she focused on the adaptation of classical texts to modern forms. She currently lives in Cambridge, MA, where she teaches and writes. The Song of Achilles is her first novel.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 125 reviews
May 25, 2021
such beautiful stories, I would recommend them both especially if you are into Greek mythology or if you want to learn more about it. the characters' development is so good and they're beautifully written.
August 18, 2021
Im already a sucker for good mythology books. If I had no encouragement before to read the Odyssey, here is something to push me there, if only to see if I can find this characterisation of Odysseus, and the potentially contrasting portrayal of Circe.
This is such a full and honest look at a woman’s inner world who owns to her emotions and actions, both gracious and petty. Circe here seems a mix of Katniss Everdeen and Granny Weatherwax. A survivor who makes the hard choices, but who can see grace in the world, and does her best to care for it.
The writing is beautiful, and even the more contemporary-sounding insertions don’t sound as jarring as I found them in other books. Honestly they just remind that people at any time, in any universe, are still people, and people can be ugly.
This is such a full and honest look at a woman’s inner world who owns to her emotions and actions, both gracious and petty. Circe here seems a mix of Katniss Everdeen and Granny Weatherwax. A survivor who makes the hard choices, but who can see grace in the world, and does her best to care for it.
The writing is beautiful, and even the more contemporary-sounding insertions don’t sound as jarring as I found them in other books. Honestly they just remind that people at any time, in any universe, are still people, and people can be ugly.
October 23, 2021
Can’t stop thinking about Circe. She’s inspiring me to be better. A wonderful novel easily spanning generations with all the cameos from your favourite Greek heroes and gods, cleverly reworked in some surprising and modern ways. I never thought of Hermes as a fuckboi, but here we are. Love this exploration of what it means to be human. Perhaps I’m not well read but most novels set in Ancient Greece or mythology have a reverence to the glory of the gods, and this was quite the opposite. Circe’s defiant and independent female spirit in the face of sex, bullying, single motherhood, living alone and facing her past inspires me to be a stronger person. Loved the ending too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 8, 2022
The teenagers in my life enthusiastically, and through tears, endorsed these novels. I am afraid I am too old and too dead inside to concur.
May 29, 2026
Perhaps not as gripping as other books I’ve read lately HOWEVER so beautifully crafted and the ending made me sob on my birthday so that’s gotta count for some stars
January 10, 2023
Achingly beautiful. Truly hard to put down.
October 6, 2024
oh how i adore greek myths
December 28, 2023
The ending of this book made me almost cry but for happiness for her that despite dying she could finally be free. The way miller writes is poetic that it can't help but capture the reader
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2025
(ελληνικά στο τέλος)
"The Song of Achilles" ⭐
THE ABZOLUTE END OF DAYZ GODAMMIT
Madeline — or let us say Mandalayna, with all due theatrical flourish — takes the story of Achilles and the Trojan War, files down its teeth, chucks it into a literary blender, and serves up a nerveless adolescent romance between two gay boys in bronze breastplates, presumably designed to elicit sighs from a Tumblr demographic who mistake pouting for pathos.
To begin with, she takes extraordinary liberties with Greek mythology. But then again — one assumes — that’s what was on offer: “Greek myths, retωlδ.” And to that end, the result is… well, let us call it a reheated tragedy soufflé, missing the eggs, the heat, and any real sense of doom.
She “entrusts” the narrative to Patroclus, who is rendered with all the dynamism of a damp handkerchief. The reader is left genuinely bewildered as to how the paragon of Achaean excellence -Achilles himself- fell into a romantic frenzy over someone with the charisma of tepid dishwater. Worse still, their amour is kindled not in the furnace of war but in the nursery, with pre-teen fumbles and bashful glances in the house of Peleus. Chiron plays the role of absentee guardian or perhaps just pretends not to notice, while Thetis -painted here as a sort of Mediterranean Lady Bracknell with gills- falls into absolute hysterics at the notion of her son taking up with a social inferior (and, horror of horrors, a boy). One rather begins to sympathise with her; the Patroclus on offer is hardly Homeric — more homoeopathic.
Then come the embellishments: Achilles, forced by his mother to sleep with the daughter of Lycomedes, performs the deed with all the passion of a man folding socks. Said daughter, pregnant and bewildered, turns her affections to Patroclus, who accepts the advance in a state of resigned politeness. This is, of course, not a cause for quarrel, since — we are told — “with a woman, it doesn’t count.”
Brysa enters the stωry. She falls for Patroclus, who again has eyes only for Achilles and gently deposits her into the bottomless abyss of the Friend Zone. One wonders what Patroclus has done to merit such adoration; certainly, it isn’t heroic distinction or narrative charm.
Then we arrive at Troy, and what should be the grandeur of the Iliadic arc. But alas — no. Agamemnon’s seizure of Briseis occurs. Achilles sulks. Patroclus dons the hero’s armour, gets kebab’d by Hector, and Achilles returns to the field. All of this, Homer’s thunderous crescendo, is dispatched with the gravity of a footnote.
Meanwhile, pages upon pages are devoted to brooding, to harp-strumming, to soft glances over flickering firelight. One finds oneself yearning for a spear or a simile — anything sharp, swift, or unexpected. But no. When Hector and Achilles finally meet, it is over in five lines. The confrontation of titans becomes an editorial afterthought.
To add injury to literary insult, Miller then bolts on a rushed tour through the Aethiopis — Memnon shows up only to be flattened — and the Amazons are swiftly removed from the chessboard. Achilles dies. Neoptolemus, that feral, blood-drenched tween, emerges like a minor Greek Caligula, all but frothing at the mouth.
But still, the book does not end.
Why? Because Patroclus is “unburied.” And Thetis, as the eternal mother-in-law from Hades, refuses to etch his name beside Achilles’ on the tombstone — apparently concerned that the world might discover that her son’s affections extended beyond the respectable.
Eventually, it is resolved. The name is carved. The love is eternal. The reader — emotionally dehydrated, historically famished — is permitted to close the book.
Now — all this might be forgiven. But what cannot be excused is the utter flatness of the characters. Everyone is either a cardboard cut-out or a caricature. Agamemnon, for instance, is here written like a street vendor in Istanbul haggling over a stolen rug. In truth, this is a man who lured his daughter to her death with the promise of marriage — hardly shallow material. But instead of depth, we are given dramatic eye-rolls and villain moustaches.
It is not wrong to centre a story around a romance. It is not wrong to reimagine a myth. But when one has 2,800 years of rich material to draw from, it feels almost criminal to produce a tale whose only real tension lies in whether Achilles will kiss Patroclus before or after sunset.
Yes, myths may be retold. But they need not be rewarmed.
"Circe" ⭐
If Circe were a person, she’d be that insufferable guest at the party — the one who speaks exclusively about themselves, with theatrical flair, feigning depth, while everyone else exchanges glances and wonders, who on earth invited this wanker.
Mandalayna plucked a single thread from Greek mythology, doused it in bargain-bin lyricism, and presented it as literary haute cuisine: Greek Myths Retωlδ™. But instead of a feast, what you get is a plate of dirt seasoned with cayenne and balsamic drizzle. It's neither nourishing nor remotely worth the effort. And somehow, even your nose feels insulted.
Circe, as a character, comes across as an eternal adolescent trapped in an identity crisis — whining, overwrought, and existential in every. single. paragraph. You end up fantasising about someone stepping in to tell her:
“Please, for the love of all that is immortal, SHUT UP. You’ve turned our bollocks into zeppelins. And if you don’t know what a zeppelin is, since you are immortal wait for the Montgolfiers to light a match. You’ll get it.”
The rest of the cast? So paper-thin you forget them by the next chapter.
The pacing? Absolutely glacial — like narrative molasses dragged through ship-sealing tar.
And worst of all? The book has the smug conviction that it's doing something bold and radical, when in fact it’s repackaging tired tropes in a feminist varnish, written from the perspective of someone who skimmed “Greek Mythology for Dummies” and now believes she’s James Joyce in a tunic.
Final verdict: An overrated, self-important literary sleeping pill with a beautiful cover. Slightly less obnoxious than “The Song of Achilles” (just barely), but still mind-numbingly dull.
"Το τραγούδι του Αχιλλέα" ⭐
ΤΑ ΥΣΤΕΡΑ ΤΟΥ ΚΟΖΜΟΥ
Η Μανταλέινα παίρνει την ιστορία του Αχιλλέα και του Τρωικού πολέμου, την ξεδοντιάζει, την πετάει στο μίξερ και γράφει ένα άνευρο ρομάντζο για γκέι έφηβους με μπρούτζινες πανοπλίες.
Κατ’ αρχάς βιάζει τη μισή ελληνική μυθολογία, αλλά χάρισμά της, γκρηκ μυθς ρητώλντ θέλατε, πάρτε να ‘χετε.
Έπειτα δίνει τα ηνία της αφήγησης στον Πάτροκλο, τον οποίο παρουσιάζει ως κάτι «ελάχιστα πιο ενδιαφέρον από αυτό που βγαίνει όταν σπας σπυράκι». Κάτι που σε δυσκολεύει στο να δεχτείς γιατί ο άριστος των Αχαιών (Αχιλλέας) τον ερωτεύτηκε μετά μανίας. Και μάλιστα, τους κάνει στα δώδεκά τους να ερωτεύονται και να φασώνονται στις Φθίες και στα Πήλια, ενώ ο Χείρων κρατάει λίγο το φανάρι ή απλώς κάνει τα στραβά μάτια και η Θέτις σαν άλλη Τασώ Καββαδία χτικιάζει γιατί αφενός δεν θέλει υιό τικιτάνκα (μάλλον δεν έχει δει τι κάνει ο Γανυμήδης με το Δία), αφετέρου δεν τον μπορεί αυτόν τον παρακατιανό τον Πάτροκλα (ένα δίκιο της το δίνεις εδώ, η ίδια η συγγραφέας τον έχει κάνει μια περιφερόμενη νούλα).
Τα λοιπά είναι ψιλογνωστά, εκτός από τις σάλτσες που προσθέτει η Μαντλίν: Ο Αχιλλέας αναγκάζεται από τη μάνα του να κουτουπώσει και να γκαστρώσει την κόρη του Λυκομήδη, αλλά «δεν το νιώθει, δεν τη γουστάρει τη φάση». Η γκαστρωμένη κόρη που δεν μπορεί να καταλάβει τι παίζει και δεν τη θέλει ο ημίθεος, ανακαλύπτει το σκληρό «μαν του μαν» που παίζουνε στις προπονήσεις Αχιλλέας με τον Πάτροκλα και σαν τίμια πριγκιποπούλα, πάει και φακαμιέται (έγκυος ούσα με το βλαστάρι του υιού της Θέτιδος) με τον Πάτροκλα, όστις δεν ξετρελαίνεται ακριβώς με την εμπειρία, αλλά νταξ δεν βγάζει και τα σκώτια του. Μεταξύ τους, οι δύο φίλοι είναι μέλι-γάλα γιατί «με γυναίκα δε μετράει για κέρατο».
Στην Τροία έχουμε το περιστατικό της Βρισηίδας, η οποία για κακή της τύχη ερωτεύεται τον Πάτροκλα, αλλά αυτός έχει μάτια μόνο για τον Αχιλλέα και τη βάζει φρεντ ζόουν μέχρι να ξαρμυρίσει.
Ο Αχιλλέας αποσύρεται από τις πολεμικές επιχειρήσεις κατεβαίνοντας σε απεργία όταν του παίρνει τη Βρύσα ο Αγαμέμνων, ο Πάτροκλας παίρνει τη θέση του, τον κάνει ο Έκτορας κεμπάπ, ο Αχιλλέας κόβει την απεργία και κάνει διπλοβάρδιες για να πετύχει τον Έκτορα και τελικά σε μία μικρή παράγραφο, οι δύο μεγάλοι ήρωες συναντιούνται και ο ένας καταλήγει hashtag. Νενε, όπως τα διαβάζετε. Τα χαϊδοκωλίκια των μαντραχαλαίων μπορεί να πιάνουν σελίδες επί σελίδωνε και αχ τα μάτια του τα πράσινα και πώς έπιανε τη λύρα με τα χέρια του και τα λοιπά, αλλά η σύγκρουση Αχιλλέα και Έκτορα είναι πέντε γραμμές. Μανταλένα μου, το καταλάβαμε ότι έδωσες έμφαση στο «γκέι ρομάνς και απαξία γονέων», αλλά ολάκερη Ιλιάδα την έκανες 10 σελίδες (χρόνος και σελίδα υποθέτω) και μας τάραξες στο σορόπι.
Μετά, κερνάει και λίγο Μεμνονίδα ίσα να φάει και ο Μέμνονας μαύρο χώμα), τρώει και τις Αμαζόνες και σκοτώνει τον Αχιλλέα, παστρικά και γρήγορα, γιατί το βιβλίο πρέπει να τελειώσει.
Αλλά δεν τελειώνει. Γιατί ο Πάτροκλας έχει μείνει «άταφος» και το καθίκι ο γιος του Αχιλλέα που για 12χρονος είναι πολύ τσογλάνι (σκοτώνει, βιάζει, λευκαίνει απολυμαίνει) και η Τασώ Καββαδία / Θέτιδα δε θέλουν να μπει στο μνήμα το όνομα του γκέι εραστή του Αχιλλέα, ποποπο ντροπή και τι θα πει ο κόσμος.
Τελικά λύνεται και αυτό και πάμε σπίτια μας.
Θα μπορούσαν να συγχωρεθούν πολλά, αλλά όχι το ότι οι χαρακτήρες ήταν είτε πιο επίπεδοι κι από προφυλακτήρα που βρήκε σε τοίχο με 200 την ώρα, είτε καρικατούρες. Ο Αγαμέμνονας, π.χ., αντιπαθής, ναι, αλλά δώσε του ένα βάθος. Μιλάμε για ένα τύπο που έταξε στην κόρη του ότι «θα πάρει τον καλύτερο», για να έρθει από μόνη της να τη σφάξει ώστε να μπορέσει να ξεκινήσει για πόλεμο. Μην τον παρουσιάζεις σαν έμπορο στην πλατεία Ταξίμ που προσπαθεί να κλείσει συμφωνία για κλεμμένο κιλίμι. Θέλω να πω, χτίσε τον κόσμο γύρω από το αγαπημένο ζευγαράκι σου, δε θα πάθεις κάτι. Υπάρχει μια πολύ όμορφη ιστορία 2.800 χρόνων για να πατήσεις πάνω και το μόνο που κάνεις είναι να συνεισφέρεις αντρικά χαϊδοκωλίκια και πεθερικά χτικιά της Θέτιδας. Δεν είπα να μην τα βάλεις κι αυτά, γούστο σου και πίλος σου, αλλά άσε να φανεί λίγο βάθος, η ιστορία έχει μπόλικο από δαύτο. Ναι, είναι μυθς ρητόλντ, αλλά το ρητόλντ να μην είναι «ξαντέριαντ». Δεν ξέρω, μπορεί τα αμερικανάκια να γουστάρουν χυλό τέτοιου τύπου και να μην τους νοιάζει το βάθος των χαρακτήρων και το να «στέκει» η ιστορία, αρκεί να χαμουρεύονται σφιχτά κορμιά.
"Κίρκη" ⭐
Αν το Σίρσε (LOL) ήταν άνθρωπος, θα ήταν εκείνος ο τύπος στο πάρτι που μιλάει μόνο για τον εαυτό του, με στόμφο, παριστάνοντας τον βαθυστόχαστο, ενώ όλοι γύρω του κοιτάζονται μεταξύ τους και αναρωτιούνται ποιος κάλεσε αυτό το μαλάκα.
Η Μανδαλέινα πήρε μια αχτίδα από ελληνική μυθολογία, την τύλιξε σε λυρισμό του κιλού και τη σέρβιρε σαν λογοτεχνικό gourmet «γρηκ μυθς ρητωλδ». Αλλά αντί για γεύμα, είναι σαν να σου σερβίρουν χώμα με καγιέν και μπαλσάμικο. Ούτε χορταίνεις, ούτε καταλαβαίνεις γιατί κάνεις τον κόπο. Και έχει κι ένα περίεργο σχήμα η μύτη σου…
Η Κίρκη, ως χαρακτήρας, παρουσιάζεται σαν μια αιώνια έφηβη σε κρίση ταυτότητας, με γκρίνια, μελό, υπαρξιακά που επαναλαμβάνονται σε ΚΑΘΕ σελίδα, μέχρι που εύχεσαι να εμφανιστεί κανείς να της πει «ΣΚΑΣΕ, ΜΑΣ ΤΑ ΕΧΕΙΣ ΚΑΝΕΙ ΖΕΠΕΛΙΝ ΚΑΙ ΑΝ ΔΕΝ ΞΕΡΕΙΣ ΤΙ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΤΑ ΖΕΠΕΛΙΝ, ΑΘΑΝΑΤΗ ΕΙΣΑΙ, ΜΟΛΙΣ ΚΑΝΟΥΝ ΤΣΑΦ ΟΙ ΜΟΝΚΟΛΦΙΕΡΟΙ ΘΑ ΚΑΤΑΛΑΒΕΙΣ». Οι υπόλοιποι χαρακτήρες είναι τόσο ρηχοί που τους ξεχνάς πριν φτάσεις στο επόμενο κεφάλαιο.
Το pacing είναι βασανιστικά αργό, σαν να σέρνεται το κείμενο μέσα σε πίσσα από αυτή που καλαφατίζανε τα πλοία. Και το χειρότερο; Έχει την αλαζονεία να πιστεύει ότι σου προσφέρει κάτι ριζοσπαστικό, ενώ στην ουσία ανακυκλώνει κάθε γνωστό στερεότυπο με ένα επίχρισμα «φεμινιστικής ενδυνάμωσης», γραμμένο από τη σκοπιά κάποιας που διαβάζει Greek Mythology for Dummies και μετά πάει να στο παίξει Τσέιμς Τσόις.
Τελικός βαθμός / χαρακτηρισμός: Ένα υπερτιμημένο, αυτάρεσκο, λογοτεχνικό χάπι ύπνου με ωραίο εξώφυλλο. Εκλάχιστα λιγότερο ενοχλητικό από το «Δε σονκ οβ Ακίλες» που προηγήθηκε, αλλά πάρα, ΠΑΡΑ πολύ βαρετό.
"The Song of Achilles" ⭐
THE ABZOLUTE END OF DAYZ GODAMMIT
Madeline — or let us say Mandalayna, with all due theatrical flourish — takes the story of Achilles and the Trojan War, files down its teeth, chucks it into a literary blender, and serves up a nerveless adolescent romance between two gay boys in bronze breastplates, presumably designed to elicit sighs from a Tumblr demographic who mistake pouting for pathos.
To begin with, she takes extraordinary liberties with Greek mythology. But then again — one assumes — that’s what was on offer: “Greek myths, retωlδ.” And to that end, the result is… well, let us call it a reheated tragedy soufflé, missing the eggs, the heat, and any real sense of doom.
She “entrusts” the narrative to Patroclus, who is rendered with all the dynamism of a damp handkerchief. The reader is left genuinely bewildered as to how the paragon of Achaean excellence -Achilles himself- fell into a romantic frenzy over someone with the charisma of tepid dishwater. Worse still, their amour is kindled not in the furnace of war but in the nursery, with pre-teen fumbles and bashful glances in the house of Peleus. Chiron plays the role of absentee guardian or perhaps just pretends not to notice, while Thetis -painted here as a sort of Mediterranean Lady Bracknell with gills- falls into absolute hysterics at the notion of her son taking up with a social inferior (and, horror of horrors, a boy). One rather begins to sympathise with her; the Patroclus on offer is hardly Homeric — more homoeopathic.
Then come the embellishments: Achilles, forced by his mother to sleep with the daughter of Lycomedes, performs the deed with all the passion of a man folding socks. Said daughter, pregnant and bewildered, turns her affections to Patroclus, who accepts the advance in a state of resigned politeness. This is, of course, not a cause for quarrel, since — we are told — “with a woman, it doesn’t count.”
Brysa enters the stωry. She falls for Patroclus, who again has eyes only for Achilles and gently deposits her into the bottomless abyss of the Friend Zone. One wonders what Patroclus has done to merit such adoration; certainly, it isn’t heroic distinction or narrative charm.
Then we arrive at Troy, and what should be the grandeur of the Iliadic arc. But alas — no. Agamemnon’s seizure of Briseis occurs. Achilles sulks. Patroclus dons the hero’s armour, gets kebab’d by Hector, and Achilles returns to the field. All of this, Homer’s thunderous crescendo, is dispatched with the gravity of a footnote.
Meanwhile, pages upon pages are devoted to brooding, to harp-strumming, to soft glances over flickering firelight. One finds oneself yearning for a spear or a simile — anything sharp, swift, or unexpected. But no. When Hector and Achilles finally meet, it is over in five lines. The confrontation of titans becomes an editorial afterthought.
To add injury to literary insult, Miller then bolts on a rushed tour through the Aethiopis — Memnon shows up only to be flattened — and the Amazons are swiftly removed from the chessboard. Achilles dies. Neoptolemus, that feral, blood-drenched tween, emerges like a minor Greek Caligula, all but frothing at the mouth.
But still, the book does not end.
Why? Because Patroclus is “unburied.” And Thetis, as the eternal mother-in-law from Hades, refuses to etch his name beside Achilles’ on the tombstone — apparently concerned that the world might discover that her son’s affections extended beyond the respectable.
Eventually, it is resolved. The name is carved. The love is eternal. The reader — emotionally dehydrated, historically famished — is permitted to close the book.
Now — all this might be forgiven. But what cannot be excused is the utter flatness of the characters. Everyone is either a cardboard cut-out or a caricature. Agamemnon, for instance, is here written like a street vendor in Istanbul haggling over a stolen rug. In truth, this is a man who lured his daughter to her death with the promise of marriage — hardly shallow material. But instead of depth, we are given dramatic eye-rolls and villain moustaches.
It is not wrong to centre a story around a romance. It is not wrong to reimagine a myth. But when one has 2,800 years of rich material to draw from, it feels almost criminal to produce a tale whose only real tension lies in whether Achilles will kiss Patroclus before or after sunset.
Yes, myths may be retold. But they need not be rewarmed.
"Circe" ⭐
If Circe were a person, she’d be that insufferable guest at the party — the one who speaks exclusively about themselves, with theatrical flair, feigning depth, while everyone else exchanges glances and wonders, who on earth invited this wanker.
Mandalayna plucked a single thread from Greek mythology, doused it in bargain-bin lyricism, and presented it as literary haute cuisine: Greek Myths Retωlδ™. But instead of a feast, what you get is a plate of dirt seasoned with cayenne and balsamic drizzle. It's neither nourishing nor remotely worth the effort. And somehow, even your nose feels insulted.
Circe, as a character, comes across as an eternal adolescent trapped in an identity crisis — whining, overwrought, and existential in every. single. paragraph. You end up fantasising about someone stepping in to tell her:
“Please, for the love of all that is immortal, SHUT UP. You’ve turned our bollocks into zeppelins. And if you don’t know what a zeppelin is, since you are immortal wait for the Montgolfiers to light a match. You’ll get it.”
The rest of the cast? So paper-thin you forget them by the next chapter.
The pacing? Absolutely glacial — like narrative molasses dragged through ship-sealing tar.
And worst of all? The book has the smug conviction that it's doing something bold and radical, when in fact it’s repackaging tired tropes in a feminist varnish, written from the perspective of someone who skimmed “Greek Mythology for Dummies” and now believes she’s James Joyce in a tunic.
Final verdict: An overrated, self-important literary sleeping pill with a beautiful cover. Slightly less obnoxious than “The Song of Achilles” (just barely), but still mind-numbingly dull.
"Το τραγούδι του Αχιλλέα" ⭐
ΤΑ ΥΣΤΕΡΑ ΤΟΥ ΚΟΖΜΟΥ
Η Μανταλέινα παίρνει την ιστορία του Αχιλλέα και του Τρωικού πολέμου, την ξεδοντιάζει, την πετάει στο μίξερ και γράφει ένα άνευρο ρομάντζο για γκέι έφηβους με μπρούτζινες πανοπλίες.
Κατ’ αρχάς βιάζει τη μισή ελληνική μυθολογία, αλλά χάρισμά της, γκρηκ μυθς ρητώλντ θέλατε, πάρτε να ‘χετε.
Έπειτα δίνει τα ηνία της αφήγησης στον Πάτροκλο, τον οποίο παρουσιάζει ως κάτι «ελάχιστα πιο ενδιαφέρον από αυτό που βγαίνει όταν σπας σπυράκι». Κάτι που σε δυσκολεύει στο να δεχτείς γιατί ο άριστος των Αχαιών (Αχιλλέας) τον ερωτεύτηκε μετά μανίας. Και μάλιστα, τους κάνει στα δώδεκά τους να ερωτεύονται και να φασώνονται στις Φθίες και στα Πήλια, ενώ ο Χείρων κρατάει λίγο το φανάρι ή απλώς κάνει τα στραβά μάτια και η Θέτις σαν άλλη Τασώ Καββαδία χτικιάζει γιατί αφενός δεν θέλει υιό τικιτάνκα (μάλλον δεν έχει δει τι κάνει ο Γανυμήδης με το Δία), αφετέρου δεν τον μπορεί αυτόν τον παρακατιανό τον Πάτροκλα (ένα δίκιο της το δίνεις εδώ, η ίδια η συγγραφέας τον έχει κάνει μια περιφερόμενη νούλα).
Τα λοιπά είναι ψιλογνωστά, εκτός από τις σάλτσες που προσθέτει η Μαντλίν: Ο Αχιλλέας αναγκάζεται από τη μάνα του να κουτουπώσει και να γκαστρώσει την κόρη του Λυκομήδη, αλλά «δεν το νιώθει, δεν τη γουστάρει τη φάση». Η γκαστρωμένη κόρη που δεν μπορεί να καταλάβει τι παίζει και δεν τη θέλει ο ημίθεος, ανακαλύπτει το σκληρό «μαν του μαν» που παίζουνε στις προπονήσεις Αχιλλέας με τον Πάτροκλα και σαν τίμια πριγκιποπούλα, πάει και φακαμιέται (έγκυος ούσα με το βλαστάρι του υιού της Θέτιδος) με τον Πάτροκλα, όστις δεν ξετρελαίνεται ακριβώς με την εμπειρία, αλλά νταξ δεν βγάζει και τα σκώτια του. Μεταξύ τους, οι δύο φίλοι είναι μέλι-γάλα γιατί «με γυναίκα δε μετράει για κέρατο».
Στην Τροία έχουμε το περιστατικό της Βρισηίδας, η οποία για κακή της τύχη ερωτεύεται τον Πάτροκλα, αλλά αυτός έχει μάτια μόνο για τον Αχιλλέα και τη βάζει φρεντ ζόουν μέχρι να ξαρμυρίσει.
Ο Αχιλλέας αποσύρεται από τις πολεμικές επιχειρήσεις κατεβαίνοντας σε απεργία όταν του παίρνει τη Βρύσα ο Αγαμέμνων, ο Πάτροκλας παίρνει τη θέση του, τον κάνει ο Έκτορας κεμπάπ, ο Αχιλλέας κόβει την απεργία και κάνει διπλοβάρδιες για να πετύχει τον Έκτορα και τελικά σε μία μικρή παράγραφο, οι δύο μεγάλοι ήρωες συναντιούνται και ο ένας καταλήγει hashtag. Νενε, όπως τα διαβάζετε. Τα χαϊδοκωλίκια των μαντραχαλαίων μπορεί να πιάνουν σελίδες επί σελίδωνε και αχ τα μάτια του τα πράσινα και πώς έπιανε τη λύρα με τα χέρια του και τα λοιπά, αλλά η σύγκρουση Αχιλλέα και Έκτορα είναι πέντε γραμμές. Μανταλένα μου, το καταλάβαμε ότι έδωσες έμφαση στο «γκέι ρομάνς και απαξία γονέων», αλλά ολάκερη Ιλιάδα την έκανες 10 σελίδες (χρόνος και σελίδα υποθέτω) και μας τάραξες στο σορόπι.
Μετά, κερνάει και λίγο Μεμνονίδα ίσα να φάει και ο Μέμνονας μαύρο χώμα), τρώει και τις Αμαζόνες και σκοτώνει τον Αχιλλέα, παστρικά και γρήγορα, γιατί το βιβλίο πρέπει να τελειώσει.
Αλλά δεν τελειώνει. Γιατί ο Πάτροκλας έχει μείνει «άταφος» και το καθίκι ο γιος του Αχιλλέα που για 12χρονος είναι πολύ τσογλάνι (σκοτώνει, βιάζει, λευκαίνει απολυμαίνει) και η Τασώ Καββαδία / Θέτιδα δε θέλουν να μπει στο μνήμα το όνομα του γκέι εραστή του Αχιλλέα, ποποπο ντροπή και τι θα πει ο κόσμος.
Τελικά λύνεται και αυτό και πάμε σπίτια μας.
Θα μπορούσαν να συγχωρεθούν πολλά, αλλά όχι το ότι οι χαρακτήρες ήταν είτε πιο επίπεδοι κι από προφυλακτήρα που βρήκε σε τοίχο με 200 την ώρα, είτε καρικατούρες. Ο Αγαμέμνονας, π.χ., αντιπαθής, ναι, αλλά δώσε του ένα βάθος. Μιλάμε για ένα τύπο που έταξε στην κόρη του ότι «θα πάρει τον καλύτερο», για να έρθει από μόνη της να τη σφάξει ώστε να μπορέσει να ξεκινήσει για πόλεμο. Μην τον παρουσιάζεις σαν έμπορο στην πλατεία Ταξίμ που προσπαθεί να κλείσει συμφωνία για κλεμμένο κιλίμι. Θέλω να πω, χτίσε τον κόσμο γύρω από το αγαπημένο ζευγαράκι σου, δε θα πάθεις κάτι. Υπάρχει μια πολύ όμορφη ιστορία 2.800 χρόνων για να πατήσεις πάνω και το μόνο που κάνεις είναι να συνεισφέρεις αντρικά χαϊδοκωλίκια και πεθερικά χτικιά της Θέτιδας. Δεν είπα να μην τα βάλεις κι αυτά, γούστο σου και πίλος σου, αλλά άσε να φανεί λίγο βάθος, η ιστορία έχει μπόλικο από δαύτο. Ναι, είναι μυθς ρητόλντ, αλλά το ρητόλντ να μην είναι «ξαντέριαντ». Δεν ξέρω, μπορεί τα αμερικανάκια να γουστάρουν χυλό τέτοιου τύπου και να μην τους νοιάζει το βάθος των χαρακτήρων και το να «στέκει» η ιστορία, αρκεί να χαμουρεύονται σφιχτά κορμιά.
"Κίρκη" ⭐
Αν το Σίρσε (LOL) ήταν άνθρωπος, θα ήταν εκείνος ο τύπος στο πάρτι που μιλάει μόνο για τον εαυτό του, με στόμφο, παριστάνοντας τον βαθυστόχαστο, ενώ όλοι γύρω του κοιτάζονται μεταξύ τους και αναρωτιούνται ποιος κάλεσε αυτό το μαλάκα.
Η Μανδαλέινα πήρε μια αχτίδα από ελληνική μυθολογία, την τύλιξε σε λυρισμό του κιλού και τη σέρβιρε σαν λογοτεχνικό gourmet «γρηκ μυθς ρητωλδ». Αλλά αντί για γεύμα, είναι σαν να σου σερβίρουν χώμα με καγιέν και μπαλσάμικο. Ούτε χορταίνεις, ούτε καταλαβαίνεις γιατί κάνεις τον κόπο. Και έχει κι ένα περίεργο σχήμα η μύτη σου…
Η Κίρκη, ως χαρακτήρας, παρουσιάζεται σαν μια αιώνια έφηβη σε κρίση ταυτότητας, με γκρίνια, μελό, υπαρξιακά που επαναλαμβάνονται σε ΚΑΘΕ σελίδα, μέχρι που εύχεσαι να εμφανιστεί κανείς να της πει «ΣΚΑΣΕ, ΜΑΣ ΤΑ ΕΧΕΙΣ ΚΑΝΕΙ ΖΕΠΕΛΙΝ ΚΑΙ ΑΝ ΔΕΝ ΞΕΡΕΙΣ ΤΙ ΕΙΝΑΙ ΤΑ ΖΕΠΕΛΙΝ, ΑΘΑΝΑΤΗ ΕΙΣΑΙ, ΜΟΛΙΣ ΚΑΝΟΥΝ ΤΣΑΦ ΟΙ ΜΟΝΚΟΛΦΙΕΡΟΙ ΘΑ ΚΑΤΑΛΑΒΕΙΣ». Οι υπόλοιποι χαρακτήρες είναι τόσο ρηχοί που τους ξεχνάς πριν φτάσεις στο επόμενο κεφάλαιο.
Το pacing είναι βασανιστικά αργό, σαν να σέρνεται το κείμενο μέσα σε πίσσα από αυτή που καλαφατίζανε τα πλοία. Και το χειρότερο; Έχει την αλαζονεία να πιστεύει ότι σου προσφέρει κάτι ριζοσπαστικό, ενώ στην ουσία ανακυκλώνει κάθε γνωστό στερεότυπο με ένα επίχρισμα «φεμινιστικής ενδυνάμωσης», γραμμένο από τη σκοπιά κάποιας που διαβάζει Greek Mythology for Dummies και μετά πάει να στο παίξει Τσέιμς Τσόις.
Τελικός βαθμός / χαρακτηρισμός: Ένα υπερτιμημένο, αυτάρεσκο, λογοτεχνικό χάπι ύπνου με ωραίο εξώφυλλο. Εκλάχιστα λιγότερο ενοχλητικό από το «Δε σονκ οβ Ακίλες» που προηγήθηκε, αλλά πάρα, ΠΑΡΑ πολύ βαρετό.
October 5, 2025
Incredible interpretation and story telling. I will read everything Miller writes.
July 19, 2026
I’m hooked! Will soon be reading Circe!
February 22, 2023
Grazie Jessica
October 8, 2026
[For "The Song of Achilles"]
I LOVE THIS BOOK SOOOOOOOO MUCH! I will not be accepting any other interpretation of Achilles and Patroclus as anything other than lovers. I have read the Iliad, I have read the Odyssey, and I have read this book approximately a million times (an massive overexaggeration ik but i will make it the truth eventually. I PROMISE !!), and Madeline Miller has permanently cemented this version of their story in my head as the truth.
This was also the first proper romance book I ever read. And by proper romance, I mean I’m not counting the Iliad and Odyssey as even though you could classify it as a romance/greek tragedy.....but well .....
Madeline Miller is an incredible writer. The way she takes a story I already knew and makes it feel completely new is genuinely something special. I already knew how Achilles’ story ended. I knew what was coming. I knew there was never going to be a happy ending because, well... Greek tragedy. And yet I still spent the entire book desperately hoping that somehow, maybe this time, they would get one.
SPOILERS!!! They did not. I wished they did. Maybe in another life. And yes, by the end I was crying. Absolutely sobbing. Like I said before, I can not overstate how I desperately wished Achilles and Patroclus could have had the happy ending they deserved, but then again, when has a Greek tragedy ever cared about what its readers want? They call it a tragedy for a reason don't they.
I’ve read this book so many times and I will continue reading it until my copy literally turns to dust. And when it does, I will simply buy another copy and start again. And yes, I know this quote is incredibly basic. I don't care. It is my favourite for a reason: “He is half of my soul, as the poets say. I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell. I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”
1 million out of 10 stars. Achilles and Patroclus were lovers. This is the truth. I will not be taking questions.
[For "Circe"]
I LOVE THIS BOOK SOOOOOOOO MUCH!! Madeline Miller, you have done it again. I genuinely do not understand how one person can write two books that have completely consumed my brain, but here we are. I read The Song of Achilles and thought there was no possible way I could love another one of her books this much. And then I read Circe. Apparently, I was wrong. VERY wrong.
Greek mythology has always had a special place in my heart, but what I love most about Madeline Miller's writing is how she takes characters I thought I already knew and makes me see them in an entirely different light. Circe is a character who, in the original myths, is often remembered as the witch who turned Odysseus's men into pigs. And while that is certainly one way to introduce yourself to someone, I feel like there is SO MUCH MORE to her story than that. Miller takes this woman, who is so often reduced to a supporting character in someone else's epic, and gives her an entire life of her own. Her own story, her own pain, her own desires, her own mistakes, and her own power. And I LOVE HER FOR IT.
Circe's journey is genuinely one of my favourite things about this book. Watching her grow from a lonely, overlooked daughter of Helios into a woman who learns to embrace her own power is something truly special. She is not perfect. She makes mistakes, she gets hurt, she hurts others, and sometimes she makes decisions that made me want to grab her by the shoulders and SCREAM. But that is exactly why I love her. She feels so painfully human despite being a goddess. She has to learn who she is outside of the people who hurt her, the people who underestimate her, and the people who try to tell her what she should be. And watching her slowly figure that out? INCREDIBLE.
Also, can we PLEASE talk about how lonely this woman is? Because I wanted to give her the biggest hug imaginable. She spends so much of her life being dismissed, rejected, used, or treated as though she is somehow less than everyone around her. And yet she keeps going. She learns, she creates, she survives. She turns her isolation into something of her own. Her island becomes a place where she can exist without constantly having to prove herself to people who have already decided she is unworthy. And honestly? GOOD FOR HER. Let the woman have her island. Let her have her witchcraft. Let her turn a few men into pigs if she feels like it. She has EARNED IT.
Madeline Miller's writing is, once again, absolutely beautiful. I genuinely don't know how to explain it without sounding like I am losing my mind, but there is something about the way she writes that makes even the quietest moments feel important. Her prose is so lyrical and atmospheric that I often found myself rereading sentences simply because I loved the way they sounded. She makes mythology feel alive, intimate, and devastatingly personal. These are stories that have existed for thousands of years, and somehow she makes them feel as though they are being told for the very first time. I already knew who Circe was before I picked up this book, but I certainly did not KNOW her. And now I feel like I do.
And the THEMES. OH MY GOD, THE THEMES. Power, womanhood, motherhood, immortality, loneliness, love, mortality, and what it actually means to be human. This book has SO MUCH to say, and yet it never feels like Miller is simply trying to lecture me about life. Instead, she lets Circe live through these things, make sense of them, and sometimes completely fail to understand them. There is something especially fascinating about the way Circe, an immortal goddess, spends so much of her life surrounded by beings who treat mortality as a weakness, only to gradually discover that being human might be something far more precious than she was ever taught to believe.
And I cannot talk about this book without mentioning the way it handles women in mythology. So many of these women are remembered through the men they encounter, the men they love, or the men they supposedly destroy. Their stories are filtered through someone else's perspective, and their reputations often become more important than their actual experiences. Circe is a woman who has been made into a monster in other people's stories, and Miller asks us to look beyond that label. To consider what it means to be called dangerous simply because you refuse to be powerless. To wonder how many women in these myths we have misunderstood because we have only ever heard their stories from someone else's point of view. I LOVE THAT SO MUCH.
And yes, there were moments when I wanted to throw the book across the room. There were moments when I was furious, moments when I was heartbroken, and moments when I just had to sit there and process what I had read. Because apparently Madeline Miller has decided that writing beautiful prose and then emotionally destroying her readers is her life's purpose. First The Song of Achilles, and now THIS? WOMAN, PLEASE LET ME BREATHE.
But what I love most about Circe is that, despite everything she goes through, this is ultimately a story about becoming. Becoming someone beyond the expectations placed upon you. Becoming someone who can survive terrible things without allowing those things to define every part of you. Becoming someone who can choose what kind of life they want, even when the entire world seems determined to choose for them. Circe spends centuries being told, in one way or another, what she is supposed to be. And her story is about finding the courage to decide for herself.
I also love that this book feels so different from The Song of Achilles while still carrying that unmistakable Madeline Miller magic. The Song of Achilles completely destroyed me with its love story, and Circe made me fall in love with a woman who had spent so much of her life believing she had to be alone. One broke my heart into a million pieces, and the other reminded me that there is something beautiful about surviving long enough to build a life that belongs to you. I honestly cannot decide which one I love more, and I refuse to try. They are both masterpieces in their own ways, and I will be rereading them until my copies fall apart.
Madeline Miller, I hope you know that you have permanently altered my brain chemistry. I will read anything this woman writes. If she publishes a grocery list, I WILL READ IT. If she writes another book about Greek mythology, I will be first in line. If she decides to write about a completely different subject, I will still be there. I trust this woman with my life, my emotions, and apparently my ability to recover from fictional tragedies.
1 MILLION OUT OF 10 STARS. Circe deserved her own story, and Madeline Miller gave her one. A story about loneliness, power, love, survival, and the terrifyingly beautiful experience of being human. I love this book. I love Circe. I love Madeline Miller. And I will be thinking about this book for an unreasonable amount of time.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go stare at a wall and think about Greek mythology again.
I LOVE THIS BOOK SOOOOOOOO MUCH! I will not be accepting any other interpretation of Achilles and Patroclus as anything other than lovers. I have read the Iliad, I have read the Odyssey, and I have read this book approximately a million times (an massive overexaggeration ik but i will make it the truth eventually. I PROMISE !!), and Madeline Miller has permanently cemented this version of their story in my head as the truth.
This was also the first proper romance book I ever read. And by proper romance, I mean I’m not counting the Iliad and Odyssey as even though you could classify it as a romance/greek tragedy.....but well .....
Madeline Miller is an incredible writer. The way she takes a story I already knew and makes it feel completely new is genuinely something special. I already knew how Achilles’ story ended. I knew what was coming. I knew there was never going to be a happy ending because, well... Greek tragedy. And yet I still spent the entire book desperately hoping that somehow, maybe this time, they would get one.
SPOILERS!!! They did not. I wished they did. Maybe in another life. And yes, by the end I was crying. Absolutely sobbing. Like I said before, I can not overstate how I desperately wished Achilles and Patroclus could have had the happy ending they deserved, but then again, when has a Greek tragedy ever cared about what its readers want? They call it a tragedy for a reason don't they.
I’ve read this book so many times and I will continue reading it until my copy literally turns to dust. And when it does, I will simply buy another copy and start again. And yes, I know this quote is incredibly basic. I don't care. It is my favourite for a reason: “He is half of my soul, as the poets say. I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell. I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”
1 million out of 10 stars. Achilles and Patroclus were lovers. This is the truth. I will not be taking questions.
[For "Circe"]
I LOVE THIS BOOK SOOOOOOOO MUCH!! Madeline Miller, you have done it again. I genuinely do not understand how one person can write two books that have completely consumed my brain, but here we are. I read The Song of Achilles and thought there was no possible way I could love another one of her books this much. And then I read Circe. Apparently, I was wrong. VERY wrong.
Greek mythology has always had a special place in my heart, but what I love most about Madeline Miller's writing is how she takes characters I thought I already knew and makes me see them in an entirely different light. Circe is a character who, in the original myths, is often remembered as the witch who turned Odysseus's men into pigs. And while that is certainly one way to introduce yourself to someone, I feel like there is SO MUCH MORE to her story than that. Miller takes this woman, who is so often reduced to a supporting character in someone else's epic, and gives her an entire life of her own. Her own story, her own pain, her own desires, her own mistakes, and her own power. And I LOVE HER FOR IT.
Circe's journey is genuinely one of my favourite things about this book. Watching her grow from a lonely, overlooked daughter of Helios into a woman who learns to embrace her own power is something truly special. She is not perfect. She makes mistakes, she gets hurt, she hurts others, and sometimes she makes decisions that made me want to grab her by the shoulders and SCREAM. But that is exactly why I love her. She feels so painfully human despite being a goddess. She has to learn who she is outside of the people who hurt her, the people who underestimate her, and the people who try to tell her what she should be. And watching her slowly figure that out? INCREDIBLE.
Also, can we PLEASE talk about how lonely this woman is? Because I wanted to give her the biggest hug imaginable. She spends so much of her life being dismissed, rejected, used, or treated as though she is somehow less than everyone around her. And yet she keeps going. She learns, she creates, she survives. She turns her isolation into something of her own. Her island becomes a place where she can exist without constantly having to prove herself to people who have already decided she is unworthy. And honestly? GOOD FOR HER. Let the woman have her island. Let her have her witchcraft. Let her turn a few men into pigs if she feels like it. She has EARNED IT.
Madeline Miller's writing is, once again, absolutely beautiful. I genuinely don't know how to explain it without sounding like I am losing my mind, but there is something about the way she writes that makes even the quietest moments feel important. Her prose is so lyrical and atmospheric that I often found myself rereading sentences simply because I loved the way they sounded. She makes mythology feel alive, intimate, and devastatingly personal. These are stories that have existed for thousands of years, and somehow she makes them feel as though they are being told for the very first time. I already knew who Circe was before I picked up this book, but I certainly did not KNOW her. And now I feel like I do.
And the THEMES. OH MY GOD, THE THEMES. Power, womanhood, motherhood, immortality, loneliness, love, mortality, and what it actually means to be human. This book has SO MUCH to say, and yet it never feels like Miller is simply trying to lecture me about life. Instead, she lets Circe live through these things, make sense of them, and sometimes completely fail to understand them. There is something especially fascinating about the way Circe, an immortal goddess, spends so much of her life surrounded by beings who treat mortality as a weakness, only to gradually discover that being human might be something far more precious than she was ever taught to believe.
And I cannot talk about this book without mentioning the way it handles women in mythology. So many of these women are remembered through the men they encounter, the men they love, or the men they supposedly destroy. Their stories are filtered through someone else's perspective, and their reputations often become more important than their actual experiences. Circe is a woman who has been made into a monster in other people's stories, and Miller asks us to look beyond that label. To consider what it means to be called dangerous simply because you refuse to be powerless. To wonder how many women in these myths we have misunderstood because we have only ever heard their stories from someone else's point of view. I LOVE THAT SO MUCH.
And yes, there were moments when I wanted to throw the book across the room. There were moments when I was furious, moments when I was heartbroken, and moments when I just had to sit there and process what I had read. Because apparently Madeline Miller has decided that writing beautiful prose and then emotionally destroying her readers is her life's purpose. First The Song of Achilles, and now THIS? WOMAN, PLEASE LET ME BREATHE.
But what I love most about Circe is that, despite everything she goes through, this is ultimately a story about becoming. Becoming someone beyond the expectations placed upon you. Becoming someone who can survive terrible things without allowing those things to define every part of you. Becoming someone who can choose what kind of life they want, even when the entire world seems determined to choose for them. Circe spends centuries being told, in one way or another, what she is supposed to be. And her story is about finding the courage to decide for herself.
I also love that this book feels so different from The Song of Achilles while still carrying that unmistakable Madeline Miller magic. The Song of Achilles completely destroyed me with its love story, and Circe made me fall in love with a woman who had spent so much of her life believing she had to be alone. One broke my heart into a million pieces, and the other reminded me that there is something beautiful about surviving long enough to build a life that belongs to you. I honestly cannot decide which one I love more, and I refuse to try. They are both masterpieces in their own ways, and I will be rereading them until my copies fall apart.
Madeline Miller, I hope you know that you have permanently altered my brain chemistry. I will read anything this woman writes. If she publishes a grocery list, I WILL READ IT. If she writes another book about Greek mythology, I will be first in line. If she decides to write about a completely different subject, I will still be there. I trust this woman with my life, my emotions, and apparently my ability to recover from fictional tragedies.
1 MILLION OUT OF 10 STARS. Circe deserved her own story, and Madeline Miller gave her one. A story about loneliness, power, love, survival, and the terrifyingly beautiful experience of being human. I love this book. I love Circe. I love Madeline Miller. And I will be thinking about this book for an unreasonable amount of time.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go stare at a wall and think about Greek mythology again.
May 8, 2021
Both of Madeline Miller's books were incredible. I've always loved Greek Mythology, but admittedly I didn't know much about Circe. Miller gave this character a full story, with emotion and depth - something which women in mythology are often robbed of. And I don't go a day without thinking about The Song of Achilles... I think it will stay with me forever.
June 14, 2026
The section of this book I loved most was the period Patroclus and Achilles spend in the cave with the centaur Chiron. It was slow in the best way, unhurried, intimate, and genuinely rich in character development. By the time they leave you care deeply about both of them and understand who they are to each other. That section alone is worth reading the book for.
But I have to be honest about where it lost me.
There is a scene where Patroclus sleeps with a princess, out of pity, that made absolutely zero sense to me in the context of everything we know about him by that point. It felt out of place and I haven’t seen a satisfying explanation for it since.
My larger criticism is that the story skims the surface in places where I wanted to go deeper. The world building, the lore, the interpersonal relationships… there were moments where I felt like I was being walked past something extraordinary rather than invited inside it. When I raised this at book club someone responded that Miller wanted to stay completely faithful to the original story. I understand that. But if that’s the goal, what is the point of the retelling? Staying true to the skeleton of a story doesn’t mean you can’t go deeper into the muscle and tissue of it. More detail doesn’t break the original, it enriches it.
But I have to be honest about where it lost me.
There is a scene where Patroclus sleeps with a princess, out of pity, that made absolutely zero sense to me in the context of everything we know about him by that point. It felt out of place and I haven’t seen a satisfying explanation for it since.
My larger criticism is that the story skims the surface in places where I wanted to go deeper. The world building, the lore, the interpersonal relationships… there were moments where I felt like I was being walked past something extraordinary rather than invited inside it. When I raised this at book club someone responded that Miller wanted to stay completely faithful to the original story. I understand that. But if that’s the goal, what is the point of the retelling? Staying true to the skeleton of a story doesn’t mean you can’t go deeper into the muscle and tissue of it. More detail doesn’t break the original, it enriches it.
January 4, 2022
Just finished reading Circe, and it was AMAZING. I loved Song of Achilles, but Circe was far more enjoyable from a content standpoint. I liked how it was less about her and more about the people she met and influenced, and how because of them she changed over time. And the ending made me sob because it was so beautiful!
Not only that, but the entire book was written like a poem and there were breathtaking quotes and unforeseeable twists on every page.
Definitely a must-read for anyone into Greek Mythology or a good female badass adventure!
Though side note, whilst it's a pretty easy read, there is still a good amount of exposition at the start to give you some background info, but once you get into it, I promise that it is a masterpiece!
Not only that, but the entire book was written like a poem and there were breathtaking quotes and unforeseeable twists on every page.
Definitely a must-read for anyone into Greek Mythology or a good female badass adventure!
Though side note, whilst it's a pretty easy read, there is still a good amount of exposition at the start to give you some background info, but once you get into it, I promise that it is a masterpiece!
July 7, 2021
I actually listened to Circe on Audible. The narrator with her beautiful British accent was lovely, and brought Circe alive. Beautiful retelling of a strong, survivor woman in Greek mythology, with universal themes of love, survival and loyalty.
August 10, 2021
This book makes you fall in love with the relationship between Achilles & Patroclus. You can’t help but get attached to these characters
June 23, 2025
Circe: This is book of the goddess Circe or say Nymphs Of magician witch. She after changes the shape of scylla and find her love for companion as a mere mortal which was not consumed well be Zeus, so he banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.
But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, specially god of war Athena, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most her son Telemachus from Odysseus, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love. When her life came to crossroads , she decided to lie down and handover her reign to Penelope and her sons. She is goddess with mortal qualities and her tragedy befall on her because of Catharsis.
The song of Achilles
Achilles, "the best of all the Greeks," son of the sea nyphm goddess Thetis and the legendary king Peleus, is strong, swift, and beautiful, irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland after an act of shocking violence for killing a boy at young very young age . Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods' wrath.
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped , where the oath that everyone would save the husband of Helen at any cost ,all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows as a wound dresser and kind-hearted person , he save the most beautiful bed slave from Argammenon wrath and respect women. Prophecy of his death was already done and he can't run away from his fate. After Hector killed Patroclus , and in vengeance Achilles killed him and his death approaches next by Trojan prince Paris with the help of God Apollo. That was end of Troy kingdom as Achilles son was the reason behind the fall of Troy.
But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, specially god of war Athena, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most her son Telemachus from Odysseus, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love. When her life came to crossroads , she decided to lie down and handover her reign to Penelope and her sons. She is goddess with mortal qualities and her tragedy befall on her because of Catharsis.
The song of Achilles
Achilles, "the best of all the Greeks," son of the sea nyphm goddess Thetis and the legendary king Peleus, is strong, swift, and beautiful, irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland after an act of shocking violence for killing a boy at young very young age . Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods' wrath.
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped , where the oath that everyone would save the husband of Helen at any cost ,all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows as a wound dresser and kind-hearted person , he save the most beautiful bed slave from Argammenon wrath and respect women. Prophecy of his death was already done and he can't run away from his fate. After Hector killed Patroclus , and in vengeance Achilles killed him and his death approaches next by Trojan prince Paris with the help of God Apollo. That was end of Troy kingdom as Achilles son was the reason behind the fall of Troy.
September 18, 2022
What a masterpiece.
When will a stop reading it? Maybe never because I litteraly love this book.
I decided to read it because, you know, "everybody told me i had to read it"...so did I.
I will never regret it.
We all know the story. Who would say "I don't know anything about Achilles". However, I was surprised.
I was expecting the story of Achilles' adventures, as we know it, but I had no idea what I was about to discover.
First of all, the choice of Patroclus as narrator is more than judicious.
Patroclus is the reader. He is secondary, the one who counts is Achilles.
Madeline Miller offers a new version of this myth. Perhaps more human? I can't really describe it. In any case, this new version offers a magical approach, thanks to the presence of the gods, but also human.
Thank you for not describing Patroclus as a person who is erased, who does not leave any trace. Thank you also for not having described Achilles as a perfect hero who is not afraid of anything.
The story in this book reads in the details and detours. The lovely prose immerses you in Madeline Miller's world and it's a real heartbreaker to leave it.
The characters are made so human with their foibles, strengths and flaws that you feel like you are living alongside them.
Can we also talk about the ending? (Without spoiling anything...if we can spoil the ending of the Achilles myth). We know the ending before we even start the book. Yet, and this is one of Madeline Miller's many talents, we are still surprised when it happens. It's as if the reading has infused us with a breath of hope.
This edition is a pure masterpiece, detailed and with good quality.
When will a stop reading it? Maybe never because I litteraly love this book.
I decided to read it because, you know, "everybody told me i had to read it"...so did I.
I will never regret it.
We all know the story. Who would say "I don't know anything about Achilles". However, I was surprised.
I was expecting the story of Achilles' adventures, as we know it, but I had no idea what I was about to discover.
First of all, the choice of Patroclus as narrator is more than judicious.
Patroclus is the reader. He is secondary, the one who counts is Achilles.
Madeline Miller offers a new version of this myth. Perhaps more human? I can't really describe it. In any case, this new version offers a magical approach, thanks to the presence of the gods, but also human.
Thank you for not describing Patroclus as a person who is erased, who does not leave any trace. Thank you also for not having described Achilles as a perfect hero who is not afraid of anything.
The story in this book reads in the details and detours. The lovely prose immerses you in Madeline Miller's world and it's a real heartbreaker to leave it.
The characters are made so human with their foibles, strengths and flaws that you feel like you are living alongside them.
Can we also talk about the ending? (Without spoiling anything...if we can spoil the ending of the Achilles myth). We know the ending before we even start the book. Yet, and this is one of Madeline Miller's many talents, we are still surprised when it happens. It's as if the reading has infused us with a breath of hope.
This edition is a pure masterpiece, detailed and with good quality.
September 13, 2026
El despertar de una diosa entre las sombras del mito
Madeline Miller ha logrado algo extraordinario: coger una figura secundaria de la Odisea —tradicionalmente retratada como la hechicera peligrosa que convertía a los hombres en cerdos— y otorgarle una voz íntima, lírica y profundamente humana.
Circe no es solo una revisión del mito clásico; es un viaje de iniciación sobre la soledad, el poder personal y la búsqueda de la propia identidad. Nacida en los salones dorados de Helios, Circe es marginada por su propia familia divina debido a su tono de voz «humano» y su falta de crueldad. Sin embargo, es precisamente en el desierto de su exilio en la isla de Eea donde descubre su verdadero arte: la pharmakeia, la magia de las hierbas que requiere paciencia, observación y voluntad.
Lo mejor de la novela:
Una prosa cautivadora: La escritura de Miller es poética pero accesible, capaz de transportar de inmediato al mar Egeo, a la botánica de Eea y al peso sofocante de la eternidad divina.
Redefinición del mito: El cruce de personajes ilustres (Dédalo, el Minotauro, Medea, Odiseo) no se siente como un mero catálogo de guiños homéricos, sino como piezas orgánicas que moldean el carácter de la protagonista.
La humanidad de lo divino: Frente a la soberbia fría e inmutable de los dioses olímpicos y titanes, la vulnerabilidad y la empatía de Circe la convierten en un personaje inolvidable.
Una lectura imprescindible tanto para los amantes de la mitología clásica como para quienes busquen una historia épica de emancipación y soberanía personal.
Madeline Miller ha logrado algo extraordinario: coger una figura secundaria de la Odisea —tradicionalmente retratada como la hechicera peligrosa que convertía a los hombres en cerdos— y otorgarle una voz íntima, lírica y profundamente humana.
Circe no es solo una revisión del mito clásico; es un viaje de iniciación sobre la soledad, el poder personal y la búsqueda de la propia identidad. Nacida en los salones dorados de Helios, Circe es marginada por su propia familia divina debido a su tono de voz «humano» y su falta de crueldad. Sin embargo, es precisamente en el desierto de su exilio en la isla de Eea donde descubre su verdadero arte: la pharmakeia, la magia de las hierbas que requiere paciencia, observación y voluntad.
Lo mejor de la novela:
Una prosa cautivadora: La escritura de Miller es poética pero accesible, capaz de transportar de inmediato al mar Egeo, a la botánica de Eea y al peso sofocante de la eternidad divina.
Redefinición del mito: El cruce de personajes ilustres (Dédalo, el Minotauro, Medea, Odiseo) no se siente como un mero catálogo de guiños homéricos, sino como piezas orgánicas que moldean el carácter de la protagonista.
La humanidad de lo divino: Frente a la soberbia fría e inmutable de los dioses olímpicos y titanes, la vulnerabilidad y la empatía de Circe la convierten en un personaje inolvidable.
Una lectura imprescindible tanto para los amantes de la mitología clásica como para quienes busquen una historia épica de emancipación y soberanía personal.
August 2, 2026
Enjoyed having a female lead and all from her perspective. Didn’t have to know about mythology to enjoy and enjoyed hearing some stories about the gods I’d heard before and brand new ones.
Madeline Miller takes one of mythology’s minor, maligned figures and gives her a full, aching interior life. What starts as a story about a witch banished to a lonely island becomes something much bigger: a meditation on power, isolation, and what it means to choose yourself after centuries of being defined by gods and men.
The prose is gorgeous — lush without being overwrought — and Miller’s take on Circe’s transformation from timid nymph to formidable sorceress is genuinely satisfying. The parade of familiar myths (Icarus, the Minotaur, Odysseus) woven through her exile keeps the pacing varied even when Circe is, quite literally, alone for long stretches.
Docking one star because I did think some chapters weee only description which didn’t move the plot along. The back third leans a little heavily on the Odysseus/Telemachus section, which slows the momentum after such a strong build. Still, a beautifully written reclamation of a character mythology never gave her due.
Madeline Miller takes one of mythology’s minor, maligned figures and gives her a full, aching interior life. What starts as a story about a witch banished to a lonely island becomes something much bigger: a meditation on power, isolation, and what it means to choose yourself after centuries of being defined by gods and men.
The prose is gorgeous — lush without being overwrought — and Miller’s take on Circe’s transformation from timid nymph to formidable sorceress is genuinely satisfying. The parade of familiar myths (Icarus, the Minotaur, Odysseus) woven through her exile keeps the pacing varied even when Circe is, quite literally, alone for long stretches.
Docking one star because I did think some chapters weee only description which didn’t move the plot along. The back third leans a little heavily on the Odysseus/Telemachus section, which slows the momentum after such a strong build. Still, a beautifully written reclamation of a character mythology never gave her due.
July 24, 2025
(Using this as my TSOA reread) so. I am broken and shattered and traumatized. Um on a real note this is 6 ☆ category and my favorite book of all time. Re reading this book is such a joy and pain. It is so so so amazingly painful to read. It is everything—beautiful, wonderful, heartbreaking. I genuinely love this book with my whole heart and feel deeply attached to Patroclus and Achilles, especially Patroclus. It is just so painful to read because it is that amazing. It hurts to feel this much, however immediately after finishing it I feel empty. I accept no criticism and could write pages and pages of everything about this book. I annotated this time—first ever annotation (by choice). I did order the hardback so now I have 2 copies. Anyway this book and characters destroy me…I am scared to be alone with my thoughts.
January 16, 2022
Nie jest to książka która bardzo przypadła mi do gustu, kilka razy musiałam się zmuszać do czytania dalej, jest ona dobrze napisana, ale ani fabuła ani bohaterowie nie są bardzo wciągający. Nie mam wrażenia że chcę się z nimi znaleźć w trakcie tej historii, a na tym powinny polegać książki fantasy i nie tylko. Wiem że jest to jedna z popularniejszych książek i właśnie tego nie rozumiem, po za treningami i motywem już bardzo oklepanym, zakazaną miłością nic ciekawego nie można znaleźć w tej książce, może tylko jeszcze dość mocno przerobioną historię Achillesa.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 14, 2026
First let’s start with “Circe”, I really enjoyed reading this book. I really enjoyed the underlying themes and the ending was exactly what I had hoped it would be. I highly recommend, especially for those interested in Greek mythology.
“Song of Achilles” was a decent read. I don’t know if knowing some of the details already (details that were in “Circe”) kind of took away some of the enjoyment of reading the story. I liked the second half of the book more than the first half. Again, if you like Greek mythology you would still enjoy this book.
“Song of Achilles” was a decent read. I don’t know if knowing some of the details already (details that were in “Circe”) kind of took away some of the enjoyment of reading the story. I liked the second half of the book more than the first half. Again, if you like Greek mythology you would still enjoy this book.
May 8, 2022
I waited a long time to read this book as I have always been confused & put off by mythology. I listened to an Audible recording of Circe and found myself immediately drawn in to the story. The person reading, Perdita Weeks had a marvelous style of unfolding the story. I was captivated. There are many characters, but I did not get lost among them.
It’s a rich story of familiar names and stories woven in one persons viewpoint (Circe). I really enjoyed the experience of seeing her world.
It’s a rich story of familiar names and stories woven in one persons viewpoint (Circe). I really enjoyed the experience of seeing her world.
August 10, 2026
four years later, i finally reached the last page. the person i was when i started it vs the person i am now - maybe i needed to grow and change before i could ever finish it. i have never felt love as pure, or grief as painful as Miller has so beautifullly portrayed with her book. may we all find a love as pure as achilles’ and patroclus’. for even though there may be pain, it would all be worth it.
March 10, 2023
Per quanto riguarda Circe la storia è comunque avvincente e lo stile della Miller è sempre incalzante, ma non mi ha lasciato quel vuoto cosmico che mi ha lasciato "The song of Achilles". La narrazzione si plasma attorno ai miti omerici e ne rimane piuttosto fedele anche se modifica leggermente i personaggi.
September 19, 2023
I am just waiting for Miller to write more! So far, I have re-read these novels every summer since they were released. Magical without being twee, angry, knowing, poetic and deft of expression, Miller's writing is a delight. Immersion into the classical world with a corresponding effortless suspension of disbelief is achieved with panache. Read them both.
May 17, 2024
I read The Song of Achilles first and then Circe. While Circe can certainly be enjoyed on its own, I found that reading it after The Song of Achilles adds a deeper layer of appreciation. Madeline Miller has created amazing and addicting versions of The Iliad and The Odyssey. Her captivating works bring these classics into the modern era with beautiful, detailed writing. Highly recommended.
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