Jennifer Saint Collection 2 Books Set (Ariadne, [Hardcover] Elektra)

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I loved seeing their sisterhood and growing up in Crete shrouded in shame, ruled over by their tyrannical father. I also loved the exploration of the sisters individual characteristics; Ariadne as the gentler, introspective sister with bravery and cunning when deciding to help Theseus: Phaedra as the outgoing, daring and confident of the two.

The plot unfolds with Ariadne choosing the man of her dreams over her family and becomes a condemned exile in Naxos. However, despite her sacrifice Ariadne finds her life dramatically reversed when she awakens to the knowledge that she has been abandoned by Theseus who then marries Phaedra years later. Alone in Nexus, Ariadne learns to live of the land as nature becomes her only friend. The atmosphere of the book was beautiful and I'll give it some extra points because even though it had all the rights to be a heavy one, it wasn't. Everything felt natural, very Greek if you want, and the story fell nicely into a fluid pace.Saint’s immersive novel thrusts the reader straight into the heart of Greek mythology with this wonderful reimagining of the story of Ariadne.’– iPaper But when I thought of Scylla, I thought of the foolish and all-too-human girl, gasping for breath amid the froth of waves churning in the wake of my father’s boat. I saw her weighed down in the tumultuous water not just by the iron chains in which my father had bound her but also by the terrible truth that she had sacrificed everything she knew for a love as ephemeral and transient as the rainbows that glimmered through the sea spray.

Enchanting…Saint expertly highlights how often the women of this world pay the price for the actions of the men around them. Lovers of mythology should snap this up.” When Theseus, Prince of Athens, arrives in Crete as a sacrifice to the beast, Ariadne falls in love with him. But helping Theseus kill the monster means betraying her family and country, and Ariadne knows only too well that in a world ruled by mercurial gods - drawing their attention can cost you everything. When going into this book, I was not expecting the perspective of Phaedra, but I fully loved this too. Phaedra is the younger sister of Ariadne and her story is mostly told by Euripides in “Hippolytus” and Ovid’s “Heroides”. Phaedra is also explored in “Pandora’s Jar” by Natalie Haynes which I read earlier this month. There aren’t as many retellings of Phaedra as there are Ariadne, and I am so glad the author provides Phaedra, as well as Ariadne, with a voice and fully fleshed out characters.I loved the twist on the Greek heroes. Theseus is an asshole and I loved hating on him. I enjoyed all the different elements and characters, including Daedalus and Icarus.