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Dido
While she was still trembling with the complete unexpectedness of what Aeneas had just said and done, he leaned forward a little and kissed her on the mouth. Just one swift, soft touch of his lips on hers and then he turned and walked away.
Love can be deadly. Especially when two girls fall for the same man - one a queen, the other her serving girl.
Elissa knows she is playing with fire, but she can't resist. Queen Dido suspects nothing, until one fateful night . . . Secrets are revealed, hearts are broken and as dawn breaks, a terrible tragedy unfolds.
A passionate tale of love, betrayal and revenge.
Love can be deadly. Especially when two girls fall for the same man - one a queen, the other her serving girl.
Elissa knows she is playing with fire, but she can't resist. Queen Dido suspects nothing, until one fateful night . . . Secrets are revealed, hearts are broken and as dawn breaks, a terrible tragedy unfolds.
A passionate tale of love, betrayal and revenge.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
6 people are currently reading
143 people want to read
About the author
Adèle Geras
190 books137 followersAdèle Geras FRSL (born 15 March 1944) is an English writer for young children, teens and adults. Her husband was the Marxist academic Norman Geras and their daughter Sophie Hannah is also a novelist and poet.
Geras was born in Jerusalem, British Mandatory Palestine. Her father was in the Colonial Service and she had a varied childhood, living in countries such as Nigeria, Cyprus, Tanzania, Gambia and British North Borneo in a short span of time. She attended Roedean School in Brighton and then graduated from St Hilda's College, Oxford with a degree in Modern Languages. She was known for her stage and vocal talents, but decided instead to become a full-time writer.
Geras's first book was Tea at Mrs Manderby's, which was published in 1976. Her first full-length novel was The Girls in the Velvet Frame. She has written more than 95 books for children, young adults, and adults. Her best-known books are Troy (shortlisted for the Whitbread Prize and Highly Commended for the Carnegie Medal) Ithaka, Happy Ever After (previously published as the Egerton Hall Trilogy), Silent Snow, Secret Snow, and A Thousand Yards of Sea.
Her novels for adults include: Facing the Light, Hester's Story, Made in Heaven, and A Hidden Life.
Geras won two prizes in the United States, one the Sydney Taylor Book Award for the My Grandmother's Stories and the National Jewish Book Award for Golden Windows. She has also won prizes for her poetry and was a joint winner of the Smith Doorstop Poetry Pamphlet Award, offered by the publisher of that name.
(from Wikipedia)
Geras was born in Jerusalem, British Mandatory Palestine. Her father was in the Colonial Service and she had a varied childhood, living in countries such as Nigeria, Cyprus, Tanzania, Gambia and British North Borneo in a short span of time. She attended Roedean School in Brighton and then graduated from St Hilda's College, Oxford with a degree in Modern Languages. She was known for her stage and vocal talents, but decided instead to become a full-time writer.
Geras's first book was Tea at Mrs Manderby's, which was published in 1976. Her first full-length novel was The Girls in the Velvet Frame. She has written more than 95 books for children, young adults, and adults. Her best-known books are Troy (shortlisted for the Whitbread Prize and Highly Commended for the Carnegie Medal) Ithaka, Happy Ever After (previously published as the Egerton Hall Trilogy), Silent Snow, Secret Snow, and A Thousand Yards of Sea.
Her novels for adults include: Facing the Light, Hester's Story, Made in Heaven, and A Hidden Life.
Geras won two prizes in the United States, one the Sydney Taylor Book Award for the My Grandmother's Stories and the National Jewish Book Award for Golden Windows. She has also won prizes for her poetry and was a joint winner of the Smith Doorstop Poetry Pamphlet Award, offered by the publisher of that name.
(from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 6, 2010
Dido is a deeply moving story. It is the tale of two women who fall in love with the same man. The first is a Queen who builds herself an empire in Carthage after escaping the mad tendencies of her brother. Queen Dido is a strong, beautiful and formidable woman who is perhaps the only Greek female ruler who embraces her power and is not weakened by her female identity. She is almost a visionary. She is a respected ruler who shows great sense in her kindnesses to her people. The second is young Elissa the Queen's handmaiden.
Dido has ruled Carthage wisely until the day that Aeneas arrives with his men on the shores of her country. When Dido meets the wandering Trojan, she falls madly in love with him. Her head is full of constant thoughts of him. Her heart is longing for his touch. Aeneas has a young son Ascanius who is mischievous and quite a handful. Dido arranges for her handmaiden Elissa to be his nursemaid while Aeneas stays in Carthage. Dido goes out of her way to make Aeneas as comfortable as possible and gives him all the luxuries he could possibly desire. But the Gods have already written Aeneas's destiny and he has been told by his mother, the Goddess Aphrodite, that he is to build a great city across the water from Carthage.
Aphrodite is a mother who spoils her son allowing him the fulfilment of all his desires. Dido opens herself up to him and takes him for her husband. She is willing to share her power as ruler with him even though she has always wanted to rule alone. But Aeneas wants a kingdom of his own. I think he was too proud a man to accept that which was offered by a commanding woman. Instead his eyes begin to wander to the innocent Elissa. She is a sweet natured girl who falls for Aeneas's handsome face and gentle manner with his son. Her heart and body are bursting with desire for him. Unfortunately, the Goddess Aphrodite cannot deny her son anything and so follows the great betrayal of Dido.
I felt really moved by this story. The strength of love a mother has for a child should also extend to not giving in to what they think they want. It makes me think of the increase in childhood obesity and parents not having the strength to say no to all these junk foods and sweet treats. My motto is everything in moderation. Perhaps this does not apply to love but perhaps it should if the choices you make will break the hearts of those you love.
Adèle Geras has written another beautiful masterpiece. Characters touch your heart as you are woven into the narrative and feel their shame, their joy and their heartbreak. Cubby was my favourite character from this novel. He was the most innocent observer and showed so much loyalty. It really endeared him to me. I pitied Dido but I couldn't help but think she suffocated people with her expectations. Elissa was not as naive as she made herself out to be. Geras inspires such passionate feelings towards her characters that the ending of this novel left me with a deep feeling of sorrow. Dido is a masterpiece which builds slowly weaving history and fantasy to create a most explosive story. Truly excellent!
Dido has ruled Carthage wisely until the day that Aeneas arrives with his men on the shores of her country. When Dido meets the wandering Trojan, she falls madly in love with him. Her head is full of constant thoughts of him. Her heart is longing for his touch. Aeneas has a young son Ascanius who is mischievous and quite a handful. Dido arranges for her handmaiden Elissa to be his nursemaid while Aeneas stays in Carthage. Dido goes out of her way to make Aeneas as comfortable as possible and gives him all the luxuries he could possibly desire. But the Gods have already written Aeneas's destiny and he has been told by his mother, the Goddess Aphrodite, that he is to build a great city across the water from Carthage.
Aphrodite is a mother who spoils her son allowing him the fulfilment of all his desires. Dido opens herself up to him and takes him for her husband. She is willing to share her power as ruler with him even though she has always wanted to rule alone. But Aeneas wants a kingdom of his own. I think he was too proud a man to accept that which was offered by a commanding woman. Instead his eyes begin to wander to the innocent Elissa. She is a sweet natured girl who falls for Aeneas's handsome face and gentle manner with his son. Her heart and body are bursting with desire for him. Unfortunately, the Goddess Aphrodite cannot deny her son anything and so follows the great betrayal of Dido.
I felt really moved by this story. The strength of love a mother has for a child should also extend to not giving in to what they think they want. It makes me think of the increase in childhood obesity and parents not having the strength to say no to all these junk foods and sweet treats. My motto is everything in moderation. Perhaps this does not apply to love but perhaps it should if the choices you make will break the hearts of those you love.
Adèle Geras has written another beautiful masterpiece. Characters touch your heart as you are woven into the narrative and feel their shame, their joy and their heartbreak. Cubby was my favourite character from this novel. He was the most innocent observer and showed so much loyalty. It really endeared him to me. I pitied Dido but I couldn't help but think she suffocated people with her expectations. Elissa was not as naive as she made herself out to be. Geras inspires such passionate feelings towards her characters that the ending of this novel left me with a deep feeling of sorrow. Dido is a masterpiece which builds slowly weaving history and fantasy to create a most explosive story. Truly excellent!
October 14, 2012
meh. started off with real potential but quickly devolved into two women who should know better woe-is-me-ing over some dude they love but for different reasons can't have, and other characters woe-is-me-ing over not being able to have their One True Love because said One True Love is in love with someone else. I don't mind a bit of romance, but this 'omg, if i can't have him I will dieeeeee' crap is too much.
June 3, 2010
This is the story of Queen Dido and nursemaid Elissa and their love for Trojan prince Aeneas. Dido and Aeneas are married but Aeneas is leaving to fulfill his destiny and Dido is distraught. Elissa has fallen in love with the Queen's husband, she knows it is wrong but she just can't help herself. The events of the book take place over one fateful night but we learn of events over the previous 2 years in the form of flashbacks from various characters. Dido and Elissa's tale is full of secrets, jealousy and lies - can if have anything other than a tragic ending?
Dido is a re-telling of a classic Greek myth, I have to confess that I don't know much about Greek mythology so I don't know the original story & can't compare this book to it. However, I can say how much I enjoyed reading Dido and what a fantastic job Adel Geras has done bringing these characters to life.
The story is told by 4 different narrators - nursemaid Elissa, Dido's sister Anna, Poet Iopas and kitchen boy Cubby. Sometimes I find having multiple narrators can make for a confusing read but Adele Geras has done such a great job of giving each of them individual voices that I found it easy switching between them. The way the story is told through flashbacks by the different narrators really added to the story, allowing the reader to see events from different perspectives and discover the character's feelings and motives.
I love the way various Greek Gods & Goddesses are brought to life and make appearances throughout the book meddling in the lives of the various characters. Although I have to say that the minute one appears to me I'll be running in the opposite direction as fast as I possibly can because even when they mean well they have a knack of causing more harm than good! I thoroughly enjoyed the story and am looking forward to reading Adele's other books based on Greek mythology - Troy and Ithakas.
Dido is a re-telling of a classic Greek myth, I have to confess that I don't know much about Greek mythology so I don't know the original story & can't compare this book to it. However, I can say how much I enjoyed reading Dido and what a fantastic job Adel Geras has done bringing these characters to life.
The story is told by 4 different narrators - nursemaid Elissa, Dido's sister Anna, Poet Iopas and kitchen boy Cubby. Sometimes I find having multiple narrators can make for a confusing read but Adele Geras has done such a great job of giving each of them individual voices that I found it easy switching between them. The way the story is told through flashbacks by the different narrators really added to the story, allowing the reader to see events from different perspectives and discover the character's feelings and motives.
I love the way various Greek Gods & Goddesses are brought to life and make appearances throughout the book meddling in the lives of the various characters. Although I have to say that the minute one appears to me I'll be running in the opposite direction as fast as I possibly can because even when they mean well they have a knack of causing more harm than good! I thoroughly enjoyed the story and am looking forward to reading Adele's other books based on Greek mythology - Troy and Ithakas.
May 28, 2010
Dido is a strong, passionate re-telling of a classic Greek myth that really captured my imagination.
I have to admit that I’d never heard of Dido before reading this book, and I’m rather glad because Dido is compelling and beautifully written by Adele Geras. I know that it’s a story that I’ll remember for a long time. But what really made me love Dido was the visits from the gods and goddesses. Hermes, Aphrodite, Hades, Hera and Artemis all meddled with, confused and comforted the characters throughout the novel, usually for their own amusement! And I actually knew what they were the gods and goddesses of! I was really proud of myself as other than re-tellings, my last encounter with Greek myth was history in Year 6!
The story of Dido, Elissa, Anaeas and many others is messy and complicated. Like many good love stories are! It actually reminded me a little of A Midsummer Night’s Dream with all of the characters loving the wrong person. Or should it be that A Midsummer Night’s Dream is like Dido? I mean, Dido's story must be around 2000 years old, right? Shakespeare’s plays are little kids compared to that! But, anyway, Dido’s plotline is incredibly meaty and once you can definitely sink your teeth into.
I also loved how it’s told over just one night with flashbacks to Anaeas’ time in Carthage. About a year and a half, I think. Because of all the different points if view, the same event was seen in many different ways and it really extended the story away from just Dido, Elissa and Anaeas.
I really enjoyed Dido and I feel that I’m definitely going to have to read Adele Geras’ other two re-tellings, Troy and Ithaka, when I get a chance.
I have to admit that I’d never heard of Dido before reading this book, and I’m rather glad because Dido is compelling and beautifully written by Adele Geras. I know that it’s a story that I’ll remember for a long time. But what really made me love Dido was the visits from the gods and goddesses. Hermes, Aphrodite, Hades, Hera and Artemis all meddled with, confused and comforted the characters throughout the novel, usually for their own amusement! And I actually knew what they were the gods and goddesses of! I was really proud of myself as other than re-tellings, my last encounter with Greek myth was history in Year 6!
The story of Dido, Elissa, Anaeas and many others is messy and complicated. Like many good love stories are! It actually reminded me a little of A Midsummer Night’s Dream with all of the characters loving the wrong person. Or should it be that A Midsummer Night’s Dream is like Dido? I mean, Dido's story must be around 2000 years old, right? Shakespeare’s plays are little kids compared to that! But, anyway, Dido’s plotline is incredibly meaty and once you can definitely sink your teeth into.
I also loved how it’s told over just one night with flashbacks to Anaeas’ time in Carthage. About a year and a half, I think. Because of all the different points if view, the same event was seen in many different ways and it really extended the story away from just Dido, Elissa and Anaeas.
I really enjoyed Dido and I feel that I’m definitely going to have to read Adele Geras’ other two re-tellings, Troy and Ithaka, when I get a chance.
August 20, 2014
A moving story about two women who fall deeply in love with the same man, the Trojan prince Aeneas. And the women in question? One of them is Dido, the fierce and powerful Queen of Carthage, the other - Dido's servant, Elissa. Even without knowing Virgil's version of the story, you can guess that situation is only going to end badly, can't you? This book is aimed at young adults and is therefore pretty simplistic, but I did really enjoy Geras' plot device of having the Gods and Goddesses dropping down to Earth to meddle with the lives of mortals - a device she uses in her other Ancient Greece stories. If you like historical fiction/mythology - this is for you.
February 22, 2013
I would recommend this highly to someone who wants to read - quickly and easily - the bare bones of Virgil's epic.
I found the book 'interesting' - the easiest word to use when I don't quite like something and can't lay my finger on why. Maybe if I did not know the end of the book, I would have enjoyed the details given to the course of the night. As it was, I was pleasantly surprised by the telling of the story, but nowhere near intrigued enough to keep reading. The tragic climax left me unmoved, simply because I knew what to expect.
I found the book 'interesting' - the easiest word to use when I don't quite like something and can't lay my finger on why. Maybe if I did not know the end of the book, I would have enjoyed the details given to the course of the night. As it was, I was pleasantly surprised by the telling of the story, but nowhere near intrigued enough to keep reading. The tragic climax left me unmoved, simply because I knew what to expect.
October 30, 2009
see my full review at
http://swordandsandalkids.blogspot.com
http://swordandsandalkids.blogspot.com
January 19, 2022
Królowa Kartaginy, Dido zakochuje się w przebywającym na jej dworze dowódcy z Troi, Eneaszu. Historia szeroko znana i na nowo opowiedziana. Między nimi stoi bowiem służąca królowej, Elissa...
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews