Thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of the audio book.

I absolutely adore Greek mythology and retellings, but unfortunately this book did little to build upon the original story.

I went into this book thinking that this would tell the story of Antigone, however the book covered the creation of Thebes and Antigone's family history, with Antigone appearing towards the end of the story.

Oedipus' story is very well known, but Gebler did not build on it or make the characters come to life. Instead, this was very much a faithful retelling of a story, with nothing added on top. Some readers may prefer this and others may not - I fall into the second category and would have liked to have seen some more personality or for the story to have focused on a different character.

The narrator did well reading the book, but it fell flat at points and I found myself distracted at times. This may not have been a fault of the narrator but of the story itself.

Overall, this was a faithful retelling of the creation of Thebes and the downfall of Oedipus, but did little to build upon the original story.

I had high hopes for this book, even if I was not happy with the cover from the first moment. Unfortunately, I feel let down by the content too.

Stephanie Racine's narration was great, and there were parts where she was the only reason I kept on listening. The title is somewhat misleading: Antigone is not the main character here. The story of Oedipus is well-known and hence predictable, and this retelling did not provide any new information. It was slow-paced, the same event told again and again from different perspectives, which made it a boring audio book to me.

Thank you NetGalley and Saga Egmont for this Advance Review Copy.

Thank you to Netgalley for the audiobook of “I, Antigone” by Carlo Gébler, I loved it so much!

We all know I’m in my myth-phase of 2022 (there’s always a portion of the year devoted to myths) and when I saw this on Netgalley I knew I needed it. I rarely read stories like this written by men. In fact, I’d say other than Ovid’s “Metamorphoses” I haven’t read anything by a man… till now. And I have to say, I was surprised at how thoughtful it was. The audiobook narrator, Stephanie Racine, was incredible as well. I found her voice soothing and so nice to listen to. A perfect storyteller.

This is a fairly straightforward telling of the Oedipus myth, as told by his daughter, Antigone. It begins well before Oedipus is born and allows you context for the story. Context is a major theme of “I, Antigone”. The importance and relevance of why people do things, what factors contribute and asks the question how much can free will ever really exist.

Some of the scenes are graphic and uncomfortable in nature but they are (as is the whole book) written in a very nonchalant way. It has a very fairytale tone, overall, and moves right along. This, I think, also adds to it being a good audiobook. However, don’t let the things I’m saying about the writing make you think it isn’t thought provoking, smart, and beautiful.

If you’re interested in Greek myths and not super familiar, this is a great place to start. Oedipus is one of the most famous myths and full of interesting themes we see in modern literature and film. It is incredibly readable! I had a genuinely good time and would definitely read more from Carlo Gébler.

With thanks to NetGalley, Carlo Gébler, and the publishers for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A thoughtful and passionate retelling of the Oedipus story, delivered in elegant prose and turns of phrase that pay homage to the original text while changing just enough to draw in a modern audience.

It’s not always pleasant, not always gentle, and by no means always comfortable - but throughout Gébler manages to evoke the requisite emotions in the reader. You are angry, when the story calls for it. Disgusted, when the story calls for it. Filled with dread, when the story calls for it.

The reader knows the ending already, and yet it is a retelling - so perhaps this time it will he different? Thus, like the players in the story, you go through this book with a glimmer of hope that perhaps the ending has changed. Perhaps, matters will end differently.

In the truest sense I, Antigone embodies the ethos of the ancient tale - in knowing the future you are bound by it, so don’t ask questions you don’t want answers to and even then be careful what you wish for.

The narrator for the audiobook, Stephanie Racine, did a wonderful job. A performance filled with wonder and melancholic acceptance with a spark of rebellious belief - most fitting for Antigone.

A truly remarkable book, one I will be reading again in the future.

Please note: My standard audiobook disclaimer applies, I listen to almost all audiobooks at increased playback speed, but always listen to a portion at regular speed to get a feel for the narrator.

First things first, the audiobook itself is fine. The narrator speaks clearly and ennunciates well. It did all feel a bit detached, but that might also be because of the book itself. A personal thing for me was the pronunciation of "Oedipus" but that's only because it was so different from how I learned it during Ancient Greek class. It was the proper English pronunciation (there are two, which are both different from the one I learned- yes, I did research this to be sure). So that's 100% a personal thing and probably not the same for everyone.

Next of, if this wasn't an arc and an audiobook, I would have dropped this. Instead I put it on in the background while doing other things, and managed to make it through. I did not like this at all.

If you, like me, thought this book would be about Antigone, you'd be wrong. Despite being literally in the title, and the book starting with I, Antigone close my eyes, this book is about Antigone telling us about her family history. She goes into great detail especially about Laius (her grandfather/her mum's ex), Lacosta (her grandmother/mother) and Oedipus. We learn very little about Antigone's life, and nothing at all about her as a person, despite her being the narrator of this book.

We start with the abduction and rape of Europa by Zeus. We have even more rape when Laius rapes a boy. Now, my problem isn't with the inclusion of the rape, but with the way in which it is included. Obviously, this is a retelling of existing myths. The author did not choose the plot, but instead modified it for a modern audience. Yet the choice to in great (gross) detail write about the rapes is on the author. And it's wasn't bad enough to be in the head of Laius as he rapes his young slave, no, he also has to think back to the rape in just as much detail, so we can get to experience it more than once. I could have really done without that. It was bad enough once.

There were also very detailed descriptions of torture of one of the slaves, as well as the experience of suicide. As in, that same female slave "daydreamed" about jumping of a cliff and how it would feel when she reached the ground and... well, you can imagine what happens when you reach the ground, and I'm sure you could do without a detailed description, because so could I.

But, Annemarie, these things actually happen to people, do you mean to say we should never mention the bad things? No. No, that's not at all what I mean. Yes, these things happen to people, but in this book we focus not on the victims, but on the perpetrators. The effects of the rape get less attention than Laius feeling sad because his victim commited suicide. Am I supposed to feel sorry for the rapist? Because I really don't.

And it gets even more icky if we consider that this book is told through Antigone, the granddaughter of the rapist. Imagine going into great detail about the time your grandfather raped his young slave. We also get several very detailed sex scenes between Antigone's grandparents, which again, thinking about it as granddaughter talking about her grandparents feels very... uncomfortable.

The book feels very detached, with most things told rather than shown, which I assume is because everything is told by Antigone. And while there is an explanation to how she knows all these details about her forefathers lives, and their thoughts, it doesn't quite add up. Oedipus heard it from Hermes in three dreams, he told it to Antigone in 3 days, yet it takes Antigone 10 days to talk about everything she heard in 3 days? How did it suddenly take more than three times as much time?

The characters are written in a way that makes them all very unlikable, and I had trouble connecting with them at all. The plot is basically taken directly from the myths, so if you already know them, it adds very little extra value. The rape/torture scenes seem to be the most detailed of the whole book, which felt weird to me.

That said, reviews for this book seem to be very positive, so maybe it's a me thing. If you are interested in the lives of Laius and Jacosta, and Oedipus, and have little prior notice, this might be a good book for you to start, if you can stomach the detailed explanations of rape and torture.

Format: audiobook
Author: Carlo Gébler ~ Title: I, Antigone ~ Narrator: Stephanie Racine
Content: 4 stars ~ Narration: 5 stars

Sophocles wrote a series of plays about Oedipus and his family over 2400 years ago. Antigone is a heroine and a princess in Greek mythology, and she is the daughter of Oedipus and Jocasta. I, Antigone is a retelling of the tragic story of this family.

I like that we learn a broader picture here. The story starts with Europa and continues with the creation of Thebes. We get to know the entire family tree. The narrator is Antigone, and she doesn’t appear until the last 20% of the book. So, more than this is her story, it is a story of her family and ancestors.

This novel is perfect for fans of (Greek) mythology and retellings, especially if you want to know more about Oedipus’ story.

The audiobook form is an excellent choice. Stephanie Racine takes us on this great and also sad journey of ancient times.

Thanks to Saga Egmont Audio for the ALC and this opportunity! This is a voluntary review and all opinions are my own.

I requested this Arc as the description suggested it would follow in the footsteps of Natalie Haynes, Madeline Miller and Jenifer Saint, a Greek myth, play or epic tale retold, fleshed out and given new life. As a fan of Sophocles’ Theban Plays I was excited at the idea of a fresh retelling and new input to an ancient tale. I was disappointed however, when I realised this is not actually a retelling of the play Antigone, nor a story of her at all really… This is the story of Thebes, from its inception and tragedies thereafter. Antigone is actually the narrator of the story, and only really appears as an established character until the epilogue. I found this frustrating, as I felt the author, Gébler, has used the trend of amplifying female voices in Greek mythology to garner attention and has not followed through.

The story itself is a great resource for those who would like to learn the Theban myths, from Cadmus searching for Europa to the Sphinx and her riddle and the horrors of Oedipus and Jocasta. Gébler does not stray far from what we know and allows a little artistic licence for what we don’t. This is a plot driven book, the characters do not have much inner life, and merely help us get from A-Z. Antigone, as our narrator, simply tells us the story, and you forget that the narrator is technically a character herself, as she shows little opinion on the story as it unfolds, or any personality in her method of storytelling.

Ultimately, I enjoyed the story, because it is already a story I know and enjoy. This book unfortunately brings nothing new to the table. The writing feels stilted, repetitive and the author packs in an exasperating amount of ominous proverbs that fail to land the haunting impact he was hoping for. I would have liked to see more character depth, as I feel that could have brought new life to this story, and a new perspective. I would recommend this book to someone who simply wanted to learn the Theban legends, but not to someone who is looking for something more fleshed out.

As for the audio recording, I felt Stephanie Racine did a good job with the writing she was given. There are a few editing issues throughout, where there will be a lengthy pause in the middle of a conversation between characters, as though there is to be a new chapter incoming, this could be easily fixed.

I received this as an audiobook from Netgalley by Saga Egmont Audio.

It seems everything is determined even before it starts. One thought constantly came back to me - only if you asked why. With that, the tragedy can be prevented.

I'm a simple woman - I see another retelling of Greek myth, I make it my mission to read it. Gebler's addition to this genre is wonderful - engaging, lyrical, self aware, and with a very strong voice and a gorgeous oral quality (heightened by the audio format perhaps), which suits the source material even better. I think the story would have stood up well by itself, but it was the narration that really made it come to life.

This is the story of Antigone’s family as told by Antigone. It begins with Europa and her encounter with the bull and travels through time to tell the ins and outs of her family. Eventually, it focuses in on Jocasta and Laius and their struggle to please both the Fates and themselves. But in trying to avoid what has been foreseen, they fall into their own trap.

I really liked the concept of this story. I think this could be an enjoyable read for people who don’t know much about the Oedipus Cycle. However, for those who are already quite familiar with this tale, this work doesn’t really add anything new. There isn’t a critical lens or a new point of view on these stories – it really is simply a modern-written retelling without anything original or insightful added.

The title of this work is massively misleading. Antigone is in the preface and maybe the last eight percent of the book. The focus of almost the entire work is on Jocasta, Laius, and Oedipus. I was quite disappointed by this.

Antigone was solely used as a narrator of this story. Because of this, the work came across as extremely detached and honestly quite boring. There was no emotion conveyed through the dialogue and no emotional connection created with the characters. The characters also lacked any sort of depth or emotion – no effort was put into including this for any of the characters. The author told rather than showed, which again added to the detachment of emotions from characters. This made it impossible to feel any sort of horror, pain, or outrage when bad things happened to the characters because they didn’t feel like real people; they felt more like cardboard cutouts.

Overall, this read was a disappointment. It was a bland retelling of the Oedipus Cycle that added nothing new or interesting and greatly lacked in meaningful characters. Unfortunately, I don’t recommend this work.

I received a complimentary copy of this work through NetGalley. All opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I, Antigone is the retelling of the tale of Oedipus and how his fate came to be, despite the numerous efforts everyone around him have taken to prevent disaster from striking.

I am obsessed with Greek Mythology retellings, so I expected nothing less than to love this retelling. Although Antigone is basically a noncharacter in this story, the point of view and her narration of the story give the story a bit of extra dramatic flair.

The storytelling was good to follow on audio too, despite there being a typical Greek cast of characters with difficult names and backgrounds. I was unaware of Jocasta's history, and this was a beautiful introduction. Really recommendable for everyone who enjoys retellings and has enjoyed Madeline Miller's and Jennifer Saint's work.

The only thing I did not fully comprehend was why Europa's story was woven into this?

First things first, don't be mislead by the title of this book, this book is not a retelling of Antigone. This does not mean that this book is a bad, in fact this is an absolutely exceptional retelling of the Oedipus trilogy with a lot of time and care spent in setting the scene of the sequence of events that set in motion the tragedies of Oedipus and his family.

I really enjoyed Antigone as our narrator for this story.

I definitely agree with the comp titles given for this book, this is definitely the kind of story that is likely to be loved by those who enjoy mythology retellings. I am not sure if a stronger knowledge of the players in this story would take away or add to the enjoyment as this book does have a very larger cast of characters and at times I had to repeat sections of the story as I had missed the significance of the people that were in the scene.

I am very excited for more people to read this book and to learn the intricacies of Oedipus' tale.

I, Antigone is a Greek Mythology story that follows Antigone's family right from the beginning with her ancestor Europa and Zeus. The audiobook is read by Stephanie Racine and personally I didn't enjoy the narration and that did effect my enjoyment of the story. I found the narration hard to follow especially as this is set in Seventh Century BC, I, The story was a bit dry but if you like Gebler's writing you will love this. Personally, there wasn't much keeping me invested in the story especially as I already know this Greek Mythology tale so it didn't offer me anything different. I just don't think the narrator has the right voice for this story.

How good it was, reading an Oedipus retelling. Gébler gave the story a completely new light especially highlighting how much Laius was really hateful.

It’s amazing how you can know how the story goes and still your mind keeps shouting “OH NO PLEASE, DON’T DO THAT”. I actually felt very helpless like the Shepard who realized who Oedipus was but couldn’t do anything to prevent the worst. The position of the Shepard and his mother is actually very interesting, at a certain point Jocasta tells that slaves are the happiest people because the do not need to take any choice at all and it’s in that moment that you realize how much helpless they are. They must obey any whim their masters have and just do the most horrible things like letting a child die. It’s very unfair!

The only think I hoped was to see more of Antigone because of the title but she is actually present only at the very end, but the idea of making her the narrator is very effective!

The audiobook was really enjoyable and it’s been a pleasure listening to it.

As someone who is extremely interested in Greek Myths and having already devoured similar retellings like "The Song of Achilles," "Circe" and "Ariadne," I was immediately compelled to listen to "I, Antigone." It is a retelling of the famous Greek myth of Oedipus, (who killed his father and married his mother) through the words of his daughter Antigone.

What I really enjoyed about this version is that it started all the way in the beginning, telling the story of Antigone's ancestors Europa and her brother Cadmus. From then on we dive forward into the tragedy that is Laios', Jocasta's and Oedipus' story. While I was familiar with the basics of the myth, I was not aware of the specific background information that caused the events leading to the tragedy.

I also really admired that the story was told as it actually happened: with all of the brutalities, rape and uncomfortable details you might not want to read about, but that are integral to the story. Because let's be real: the world of Greek mythology is a brutal one, so I appreciated that it was kept this way.

The story is really well written and the narrator does a wonderful job and really brings the characters to life!

The only thing that I found a bit disappointing is that Antigone's own story isn't really focused on, as I had assumed from the title. Nevertheless, hearing Oedipus' story through his daughter's words gave a new perspective to the well-known myth that really makes you feel for the characters.

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone who enjoys Greek Mythology and those who are interested in learning more about it!

Thank you so much for this audiobook. It was amazing. I really liked the style of story telling for this kind of story. As it helps keeping track of where we are in the story.

Thank you to Netgalley and Saga Egmont Audio for the digital audiobook of I, Antigone in exchange for my honest review.

Content warning: sexual assault, suicide, graphic animal sacrifice, discussions of infanticide

While the novels of Madeline Miller, Natalie Haynes and Jennifer Saint tell their tales with a poetic subtly, Carlo Gébler does not pull punches. Greek myth can be ugly and I, Antigone tells the myth with all of its vicious atrocities and sacrifices intact.

The whole book was the opposite of a palate cleanse.

We trace the lineage of one Antigone, phonetically ANT-TIG-OH-NEE, beginning with her ancestor, Europa, and working down the family line, tying many Greek myths together into a singular beautiful, violent, interesting, and heart wrenching tapestry. The stories of Europa, Cadmus, Jocasta, Oedipus and Antigone blend into one masterpiece.

The main takeaway from this novel is that fate is unmovable, and no matter what you do to prevent the Pythia’s prophecy, you are still going to come by what was foretold. That’s why they call it a tragedy.

But I loved this book anyway. It’s very well-written, and I could see each character and their motivations clearly. It gives new life and personality to each of them.

I also really enjoyed the narrator, whose voice carried the exact nuance of emotion in every scene to show me exactly how I was supposed to be feeling. Scheming Jocasta, the comical gate watchmen, and the ever present and matter-of-fact Antigone. A fantastic audiobook.

A fairly straightforward retelling of a famous Greek myth which would be good for anyone who maybe like me, lacked knowledge of this specific story.

The novel is a retelling of the very famous myth of Oedipus, going back several generations and told from the voice of his daughter Antigone. I don’t feel like I really need to give plot points for Oedipus?

I always avoided this specific myth even while obsessed with Greek mythology in general. Obviously, young me just didn’t like the ick factor. So I managed to not collect details on the story and really knew very little than what everyone who has ever gone through a Greek phase might know.

This gave all the backstory and felt like an oral epic tale. I could picture sitting around a fire and hearing the tragic story of Oedipus. It was completely engaging and well paced. Several smaller tales are told together to create the epic feel.

Because of my lack of knowledge its hard to review Gebler’s version. The story was interesting and beautifully told but its hard to narrow down what is his voice and what has been passed around for years and years of history and retellings. As my only version of this story, its wonderful but I can’t say if you are overly familiar with it that it will bring anything new to you.

I also don’t know if some of my issues with the tale itself would be with the actual myth or this particular version so its hard to narrow down! Character motivations and actions are waved away as fate which feels a little like a cop out to a more realistic behaviors that could be even more tragic because they make sense.

Also, Antigone is not really in this and I was a little disappointed. Its definitely a story of Oedipus and his parents and not really Antigone.

Overall, I would recommend this to anyone who is curious about Greek mythology but hasn’t had this particular story repeated to them over and over again.

Thanks to Netgalley and Saga Egmont Audio for a copy of this audiobook. This was narrated by Stephanie Racine who was absolutely amazing and I fully recommend this as an audiobook for the tale telling skills!

This is a retelling of Oedipus told by Antigone. This story gives us a different look at Oedipus. He is not only a tragic figure, but a complex individual. He is a man that wants to do the right thing and protect those he loves. I also thought this was an excellent story that examines the complex relationship between a father and daughter. I also love the narrator. She brought the voice of Antigone to life. The narrator’s voice was raw with emotion. The only I did not like about the audiobook was that I wish it would continue to tell Antigone’s story after King Oedipus died. Nevertheless, I recommend this for fans of Song of Achilles, The Children of Jocasta, and The King Must Die!

This the story of Oedipus, told by his daughter, Antigone. It seemed to follow the original story as told by Sophocles, but is beautifully crafted and I loved listening to Antigone's tale.

The narration is pure and contributed to the experience beautifully, The narrator has good pace and intonation so that I wanted to listen on and hear the story.

Though the story is told by Antigone, she doesn't really feature in the story too much as this really is the recount of the punishment of Laios by the gods for his sins, particularly the sodomisation of Chrysippus.

When listening, I would have liked a copy of the book to hand at times to remind myself of some of the characters and their relevance - so many complicated names! The ending seemed to come about quite quickly and it seemed to me that Jocasta killed herself quite quickly once she realised that Oedipus was her long lost son. There did not seem to be any time between his arrival at Thebes and her death for them to fall in love, marry and have 4 children together. I am not sure if I missed something in the listening of this audio book (like a mention of time passing) or if it is missing.

All the same, a wonderful read with a great choice of narrator.