Lies We Sing to the Sea: AN INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! New for 2023, a sapphic YA fantasy romance inspired by Greek mythology, for all fans of The Song of Achilles

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The plot lacks internal logic for why and when things happen except that it’s convenient for whatever scene is currently playing out. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice. A lovely, lyrical fantasy which takes the fate of the hanged maids of the Odyssey and weaves something brand new. One thing I was very pleased about was the ending – I thought it might end all happily, but it didn’t, and I liked that.

Would it have killed the author to make sure Melantho is aware of what is happening between Mathias and Leto? I get she wanting to give justice to these twelve maidens, killed by a cruel man, giving them space and a feminist pov, but I'm also a bit confused by not reading the original material because boring and long (according to this interview). please, don't be put off by the comments here from people who haven't read the book and clearly know nothing of what it's about. A reclamation of a story from thousands of years ago, Lies We Sing to the Sea is about love and fate, grief and sacrifice, and, ultimately, the power we must find within. Why would Poseidon set up such a convoluted plot to have princes murdered when he could just demand the lives of the princes outright?Just because the ‘centuries old, immortal being x 18 year old’ trope is sapphic does not mean I find it any less flip flopping annoying and off-putting. If we're being honest, the only reason I reached the last page is because the rest of the club dropped the book and I was the last rat left standing.

I’m never going to get direct experience of living in Ancient Greece, but you learn about interpersonal relationships at university, which you can adapt and lift and put into your novels. This could have been a book with ancient Greece aesthetics and mythology, that's ok I guess, but saying it is a re-telling of the Odyssey is claiming prestige when there is little to no work or interpretation behind it. What it *did* feel like was direct response to Margaret Atwood's The Penleopiad to an uncanny degree. The exact parameters of the curse are never explained and while it is implied the yearly sacrifice keeps Poseidon appeased, it doesn’t really elaborate on why Ithaca still suffers (in the vaguest terms, we know the kingdom lacks money and food, but this is never truly investigated).

I really enjoyed Lies We Sing to the Sea and it has inspired me to learn more about Odysseus and his wife Penelope. I would give this book 0 stars if I could because it’s poorly written, poorly conceptualized, and it’s an insult to Greek culture and mythology. They help us to know which pages are the most and least popular and see how visitors move around the site. And we heard a bit about your criticisms, but what other things did you find weren’t so great about it? As for the setting and the retelling, there are names from the Odyssey, stories and myths from it, but the story could be set anywhere.

It's a sequel slash spinoff that could honestly be set in an entirely different universe and it would make no difference, which is why I won't touch the "she didn't read the Odyssey" thing. Sarah Underwood's classical reimagining is woven with pure magic: salt-laced myths, a plot that slowly unravels like a tapestry, and vivid characters who are destined to steal your heart. exactly what she’s talking about, wherein Penelope is forced to deal with the consequences of her actions (or inactions). I was yelling at my Kindle over and over because that’s not how that works or that’s completely unrealistic. The characters at times have some depth but do really seem largely superficial most of the time - and I found it difficult to really care about them or identify with them.and yea, when I say unclear I do unfortunately mean these questions are never answered or they’re given multiple vague and contradictory answers). You can’t just take people who are actually mentioned in the Odyssey and then proceed to completely disregard that source material for “vibes” or whatever. They may be used by those companies to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant adverts on other sites. I guess I never looked or inquired, but it’s pretty easy to tell early on that it’s a YA book (and I think I had assumed it was adult) so some things happened a bit too easily as befitting most YA books, etc.

And it wasn't even bending history for story purposes- the coffee appears in a comparison for dark brown, which was wholly unneeded.

And while all of this criticism may be valid, my hackles always get a bit raised when such criticisms take such a negative tone while beginning with the caveat "I haven't read this book , but.