Medusa by Jessie Burton is a retelling of Medusa's story, told as a conversation between Medusa and Perseus after he finds himself lost on her island in voluntary exile. In this retelling, Medusa's hair was turned into snakes by Athena after she was assaulted by Poseidon in her temple. After this event, she left to an abandoned island along with her sisters, Euryale and Stheno, who were given wings as punishment for defending Medusa. The book is centered around themes including healing, the expectations imposed on women's physical appearance, and accepting oneself.

I decided to rate this novel a 3 stars because it felt young compared to greek retellings and other novels that I generally read. In addition, there was disjoint between some of the phrases used by the characters and the setting - "cologne" and "fairy tales" were brought up in a novel set in ancient Greece. The decision to have Medusa's story be told as a conversation also made the setting feel stagnate, and the descriptions of different places in the novel were lacking. The way the dialogue was written also felt heavy-handed and themes seemed almost too obvious at times. Overall, I think the novel reads best for the YA demographic, as the story presented seemed straightforward.

Even with these critiques, I still enjoyed this relatively quick read. My favorite part of the retelling was the characterization of the different snakes on Medusa's head and her growth to begin appreciating their personalities. I thought that this was a lovely way to display her journey in healing and acceptance of who she had become. It also brought an unexpected characteristic into the novel, personalizing Medusa's story. I also found Burton's writing to be poetic at times, and Medusa's inner reflections were some of the strong points of the novel.

Overall, while I may not have been the target audience for this novel, I enjoyed Burton's writing and getting a deeper glimpse into Medusa's story. I believe that it makes a great retelling for a YA crowd, and makes for a lovely introduction into feminist Greek retellings. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Bloomsbury Publishing for the opportunity to read this digital advanced reader copy.

This book is stunning, heartbreaking, and the story we needed about Medusa. My only complaint is I wish it had been longer.

This book is heart wrenching. Filled with angst, sorrow and hatred for men. I LOVED IT SO MUCH. Medusa has always been my favorite to read about and her strength is admirable. I know I know I know, she’s a monster- but she’s not. Not really.

Thank you for showing her side.