DNF. I tried repeatedly to read this book and I just couldnt get into it. It's just not for me. I'm sorry. If/when I finally finish it, i may come back here and revise my review.

I have started this so many times, but I just cannot get past the first ten pages or so. Then I learned that Perseus is depicted as a rapist and I'm supposed to root for him? Hard pass, not for me!

In the emerging genre of greek myth retellings, I appreciate one that allows women the voice to the myths, giving us a different perspective on the heroes and gods that we've heard about before. Character being presented through the eyes of the people around you is something that I really enjoy reading.

In Heywood's "The Shadow of Perseus", I was expecting more. The description pulled me in, but as I got into the book, it didn't hold my interest. This could be because I have read so many historical books like this, but unfortunately, this one wasn't for me.

I love how detailed Claire's stories are. It's just amazing how much richer she makes mythology. The characters become relatable and more human.

This was an interesting retelling for sure.

The Shadow of Perseus, told from the viewpoints of his mother, Danae, first love/crush Medusa, and wife, Andromeda, tells a very different story than we have come to know.

The author, Heywood, wished to paint a more plausibly historical take on Greek myth, which in all honestly, I actually appreciated. They say myth is often rooted in truth in some way, no? However, can a story stripped of all magic and fantasy really be considered a mythological retelling?

Anyway, while written well, this story just wasn't for me, after all. As I said, there was none of the magic that is synonymous with mythology - this was mostly a story of trauma bonds and quite frankly, enabling of heinous behavior. Interesting and probably more historically accurate, but not what I was looking for.

Now, these are simply opinions of my own. If mythology written with a more real world feel sounds interesting to you, definitely give this a read!

3/5 stars.

A retelling of the women who lived in Perseus' giant shadow, and how he changed each of their lives irrevocably.

Mythology retellings is a sub genre I am here for all day every day. And I love the variety we have seen. Authors are being creative and telling stories from the point of view of the women that were almost ignored in some original stories.

I find that premise to be very exciting, I just found that this story fell a little flat. Like it felt like it was a schlog to get through and read more like a textbook than a story at times.

I would read more by this author because I think the creativity of the story is there!

I rather see myths retain their original framework and retold with whatever literary licenses the writer needs around this framework and respecting the myth itself.
This one is an attempt to write a new myth based on the original characters yet telling a different story. I don’t like loosing the intrinsic magic of the myths

I felt like I had to finish this out of spite, I really didn’t enjoy it. I typically love mythology stories, especially some recent ones that give a different perspective on certain stories and events. This was not one of them.

"... you are too old for showers of gold."

Heywood did a marvelous job of taking a more realistic historical approach to the myth of Perseus. I loved this book. It follows the three women affected by the choices of Perseus while shinning a less than glorious spotlight on a stubbornly selfish and narcissistic man. It's well thought out and hard to put down. One of my favorite retellings this year.

I love the surge of female-centered retellings of these classic myths. This one will be for fans of books like Circe. I have a particular love for the tale of Perseus and his dealings with Medusa, so it was fascinating to think about how the women around him might reflect on his heroism and hubris.

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for sharing this book with me. All thoughts are my own.

An utterly fantastic, harrowing read for fans of Circe and The Silence of the Girls as it explores three women who shaped and were altered by Perseus’ violence and hubris

I did not have time to download and read this book before it was archived, so I'm unable to leave a review.

As a classicist, I am all for feminist retellings of myths. Give me them all. The Shadow of Perseus is a fairly straightforward retelling of the hero's iconic mythology. The twist here is that we get his myth from the perspective of the three women in his life. I found this a bit of a strange choice because there are so many women in mythology who can stand alone.

Overall, it is a well-written retelling. I don't think it stands out in such a saturated retelling market.

I Really enjoyed the concept of the book, giving voice to the women in Perseus's life. However, the book has no fantastical element and reads almost like pure historical fiction. The first half of the book was a lot more interesting, Danae's story before Perseus. Medusa was by far the best character. the ending was a bit slow and fell a bit flat. This book would be great for anyone who wants to read a more realistic spin on Greek Mythology.

Thank you Dutton and NetGalley for the eARC of The Shadow of Perseus! All opinions in this review are my own.

I absolutely loved The Shadow of Perseus! I really liked how Haywood took the familiar myth and told it through the eyes of the women that are most important to Perseus's story. The Author's Note at the end of the book details how Haywood chose to ground the novel in more historical and realistic aspects which I think made it all the stronger. The short chapters allowed me to fly through this book and I read it in three days! I am really excited to read Haywood's Daughters of Sparta now!

Thank you very much for the opportunity to read this book early! I really enjoyed it. I thought the writing was very well done, and the story kept me interested. I believe my students/patrons would also love this book and will be acquiring it for the library!

I loved Claire Heywood’s debut of Daughters of Sparta. So, I was excited for this novel! I hoped that it would be a fun twist on the infamous legend of Medusa. However, I was disappointed. I thought that this tale would be a fantasy tale like Circe which was full of gods and monsters. However, Mrs. Heywood took out all the fantasy and tried to make it realistic. This became a weird choice since Perseus killed Medusa and kept her head as a trophy.

I also did not like the reason why Perseus killed Medusa in this novel. It cheapened the legend. I think it would have been better to have portrayed Medusa as the monster she was. It would have made for a more delicious tale.

I also did not like Perseus. He was portrayed as the evil villain here. He had very little redeeming qualities. I did not find a complex character even though the story revolved around him. Thus, he was not someone I wanted to spend much of my time on.

Overall, this novel is about trauma, choices, and love. As for the other female characters, I did not find them particularly appealing. They were weak and indecisive. I also thought they were not complex. I really did not like the violence in the story and was very misogynistic. Thus, The Shadows of Perseus had an interesting idea. However, it would have been better if it was a more mythological tale and followed the myth faithfully like Circe. Like how Madeline Miller made Circe into a sympathetic villain, Mrs. Heywood could have done the same with Medusa. There was no reason for the roles being reversed in that Perseus was the villain and Medusa the victim. It just cheapens the myth and did nothing to enhance it. Still, Mrs. Heywood is an excellent writer. Her novel, Daughters of Sparta was a fantastic story that portrayed her characters as sympathetic. Unfortunately, Mrs. Heywood just couldn’t pull this off. Nevertheless, I recommend this for fans of Greek Mythology!

Thank you Netgalley and Dutton Publishing for the ARC. All thoughts are my own!

I do not know why it took me so long to get to this one. I really enjoyed this one. And am very interested in the other stories by this author. I enjoyed this one very much. I will say that I'm not super familiar with mythology so if there are inconsistencies from the actual stories I would not have been bothered by them. I highly recommend for those who like mythology and retellings!

This is a retelling of the story of Perseus told from three different women in his life. It spans large amounts of time. It starts with Perseus's mother Danae getting banished from her home as a princess for having a child that was prophecied to destroy her father. Then later on in the stories it tells of his adventures running into Medusa. Lastly, it tells of how Perseus interferes with Andromeda's sacrifice to the Gods.

Read if you enjoy:
Greek mythology retellings
Female POV
Multiple perspectives