I finally read Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

*This review was written before the release of Percy Jackson and the Olympians on Disney+.

In the arrival of the Percy Jackson series airing on Disney+ this year, I knew that there would be a select hype surrounding the already cult-classic, dearly loved series by Rick Riordan. Apart from a small and unserious review I made on Goodreads last year in 2023, I have never really discussed the series in full before; I thought that the general hype for the series would no doubt be accompanied by diehard fans, fans I cannot associate myself with or force myself to become.

While I definitely saw the appeal of the Olympians series, I have to confess that I was slightly disappointed by the first book, which is possibly why I have had little interest in diving into any of the following additions.

Circe is the girlboss of Greek myths

Following the book I read in January, also a Greek retelling but revolving around Medusa, I picked up another Greek retelling for my second read of the year. Having read Madeline Miller’s famous contribution to the world of modern classics, Song of Achilles, I noticed Circe on the shelves of Waterstones and picked it up, along with two other Greek retellings just to top it all off.

2023 really can be defined as the year I found an interest in Greek retellings, and I hoped that Circe wouldn’t disappoint me as my next read. I gathered from the blurb that Circe was about Circe herself and her banishment. As I said in my post for Stone Blind, I don’t know a whole lot about Greek myths, which is what makes reading retellings more exciting. So, when my boyfriend went off on a trip to Amsterdam and I remained at home for Uni, I picked Circe up and devoured her in an entire sitting.

In short, here’s what I thought of Heracle’s Bow by Madeline Miller

After capturing my attention with both Song of Achilles and Circe, I know that Madeline Miller is an author I now choose to pay attention to. But, this short story really failed to live up to the expectations set by her longer novels — but that’s okay.

Short stories always come with high and often unrealistic expectations. I’m not sure what I was expecting from this ten page short by Miller, but I definitely felt underwhelmed by the entirety of it.

The ending packed a punch and was the only part I can actually remember in detail from this short. I still have no recollection of anything Miller actually said or tried to say here. The story of Philoctetes was brand new to me, but unfortunately, this slight palette cleanser did nothing to create a lasting effect, and I can say that after reading, the myth still feels new and unexplored.

I know that Miller can write fabulously and her other stories have left profound impacts on me, but Heracles’ Bow did nothing of the sort. But for a short, I don’t necessarily care too much about it. I just know that I’d rather read longer stories with Greek myths if I’m looking to genuinely engage with the myth in its entirety.

A Thousand Ships and the painful lament of “forgotten women”

Continuing on the journey across Greek retellings, A Thousand Ships made its way onto my bookshelf. It follows the women of the Trojan war; forgotten and unsung heroines, martyrs, victims, women. 

Had it not been in the Greek retelling “must reads”, I don’t think I would have ever picked this story up. It seemed to fall into an entirely different ball park to what I am used to, and considering I was (at the time) new to retellings, I was slightly put off due to the introductions of characters I had personally never heard of before.

Thankfully, I thought the “fresh slate” was welcomed and I ended up thinking this book was fine at most. It failed to capture my attention the way that other retellings have, which is entirely down to the narrative features of this story, but it wasn’t by any means a horrible or uninteresting story.