After reading multiple Greek retellings this year I was looking forward to one from the perspective of Phaedra, daughter of King Minos, and sister to Ariadne. The author took a unique approach to the story and the plot was different than what I initially expected. The author mentions in her Author Note how these stories were spoken over and over again, allowing for variations to the original tale. This definitely was refreshing to find something unique in a retelling

Apart of the unique perspective and storyline, I did find a lot of the book fell flat for me. There was little to no description and constant dialogue. This book is written in multiple characters perspectives, and at times it was confusing trying to differentiate a unique voice between them. A lot of the language was repetitive and there was very little character development. I found the most well-rounded character to be Theseus, and found myself wanting a chapter from his perspective as well. The Night Chorus was also an interesting part as it gave a voice to the women of this time period and their sufferings at the hand of men. Phaedra herself was labeled as naive and had few traits to make her likable.

There also were a few things that disoriented me from the time period that seemed oddly placed and almost modern. Such as clothing description or certain dialogue between the characters that didn’t seem to fit.

This story truly does have the tone of a tragedy and it did deliver on that. As a content warning, rape and suicide are very prevalent throughout the second half of the book.

I think this would be a good read for those who enjoyed similar works such as Circe or Ariadne, but I do feel that it falls short in capturing the audience.

I received a complimentary e-arc from NetGalley and opinions expressed in my review are my own.