This was a straightforward retelling of Oedipus, told by Antigone. But it didn’t start with Oedipus. It started with Zeus’s rape of Europa and follows the whole family tree. There is very little about Antigone in the story. She is just recounting her family’s history as she knows it. This is honestly just a modern retelling and doesn’t turn the myths on their head or offer any additional explanation. It is just hand-waving over the parts where you might want more explanation. The narration of the audio was good, but the story itself felt dry and a bit overly detailed with the rape scenes. The ick factor was expected given the story of Oedipus, but I didn’t expect to feel creepy about Antigone telling the story of her grandfather raping a young slave in detail. I think, somehow, readers were expected to feel some empathy for the rapist. But all I felt was uncomfortable and vaguely bored. This is not a bad book and I think a lot of readers got more out of this than I did, but I might have DNFd this book if I wasn’t obligated to finish it for NetGalley.

A series of brilliantly written, interwoven Greek tales told from the perspective of Antigone and all she has learnt from her ancestors.

This gives me real Piranesi vibes, which is a good thing, because I absolutely loved Piranesi. The story is really well told and the narrator is excellent and expressive. Definitely worth a listen if you are into Greek mythology/ tragedy etc.

I am a big fan of Greek mythology, so I was excited to listen to this. While I wished the focus was more on Antigone, it was a good retelling that was very faithful to the original plays. However, one thing I wanted for ‘I, Antigone’ was for it to be more revisionist. Adding something new or reinterpreting the tale would have made this more interesting to me. Overall, 4 stars.

I really thought that this book was very well read, it made it more interesting for the history of Oedipus and Antigone. I thought it did jump around a bit, so I had to go back over some parts to refresh. It did keep to the mythology well, but it did give a new light on the myth. The descriptions of the events were quite good as well and I felt that I was witnessing the actions, like I was there. There were not many flowery descriptions at all, but this made it seem more nonfiction like, more historical.. I would recommend this for those who are studying ancient text as I think this would be a very good addition to the study for interpretation of the myths and plays

With the current influx of Greek retellings, it can be hard for some books to stand out from the crowd of their contemporaries but I, Antigone does just about enough to shine through. I really like the narration structure with Antigone telling the story of her family with broad scopes and many threads. It also gives a unique look at the impossible positions the slaves are put in. They have no choice but to agree with their masters and the book often points this out in just one line. it also delves deeper into the slave characters who are royalty screwed over by this dynamic as they are dragged into this myth sorry business.

I listened to the audiobook and Stephanie Racine's narration was beautiful. She was a perfect fit for this book's narrative structure and she brought the book to vivid life.

I received a free copy of the audiobook from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Meh. This book was interesting , And it didn't bore me, But it was nowhere near on the same scale as "The song of Achilles" or "Circe ". It did present the Oedipus story in a slightly new light, but it didn't change it enough that it seemed much like a new story. Additionally, Antigone didn't seem to play a pivotal role in it at all. I realize she was the narrator, But that's really ALL she was.

Normally in these stories, If you're going to tell the story from the point of view of an outside character, that character is usually featured significantly in the book. That was not the case with this one.

I didn't hate the book at all. I gave it a solid three stars on Goodreads. But it didn't thrill me like I was hoping it would. I love retellings. They're probably one of my favorite genres, but this one just didn't do it for me. As for the audio aspect, it was fine.

The narrator did a great job, and it was well-paced. I just wasn't a huge fan overall.

I'm not a huge fan of Greek mythology, and maybe that's why I couldn't enjoy this book despite almost a month of trying. The only reason I picked it up was because it had been pitched to me as something similar to Madeleine Miller, but the fact of the matter is it's nothing like Miller.

I went into this expecting a creative retelling with a modern twist, or perhaps a new angle, but it was just a retelling. I couldn't help getting more and more bored as I powered through this book. The only reason I finished it at all was because of the narrator. Stephanie Racine did all she could to make the characters seem a little more alive, but despite all her efforts, I felt detached from the story and couldn't care less for any of the characters. I would have never been able to finish this book if I had to read it myself, but listening to Stephanie was a real treat and sometimes even a bit of a zen experience.

I'm not sure what kind of reader this is meant for, but I can see someone who loves Greek mythology as a whole reading this and finding it enjoyable although perhaps still mediocre.

Thank you to @NetGalley and @SagaEgmont for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly I didn’t expect to like this. I did with one big caveat below.

I had to read some summaries of Antigone (it’s been too long) but I enjoyed the storytelling. I liked the subtle frame of the Europa story. I wanted Antigone to play more of a role, but the choice of her as narrator was a clever one.

I have to bump down the rating due to the graphic rape scene which we must relive more than once as a listener/reader.

I think "I, Antigone" may be one of those books that I would have been better off experiencing in print. The narrator is great, but I found myself wishing I could flick back through pages as I got a bit confused at times. It's also a little bit repetitive. It's an enjoyable read (listen?) though, and I would definitely like more from this author.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

4.5 stars.

This was incredibly well-written and well-voiced, and that alone might have been enough to get me to like it, even before taking into account that it follows one of my favorite series of Greek mythology. I was a bit disappointed that Antigone's actual role in the story is much smaller than I imagined, but having her as a narrator of her family history was an interesting way to tell the story.

I think this would be a good book to introduce people to Greek mythology, both because of the writing style and the very straightforward way the story is told, which is always a plus in my book. I think it's actually better than starting with Sophocles I because this has a lot of small details that humanize the characters, and that helps readers have empathy while still being aware of what happened all through the story.

This audiobook was such a joy to listen to. The narrator was perfectly suited and did a brilliant job. By far the best performance I have heard in a long time.

The story is an intriguing and entertaining re-envisioning of the tale of Oedipus as told by his daughter/sister, Antigone.

I love the way that Gébler mimics classical texts with their use of poetic phrasing and proverbs. As well as the habit of restating things in the same manner. It gave the story a truly classical feel.

My only critique is that I would have liked to learn more about the story's narrator, Antigone, since it is her voice that we are listening to.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me a free digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm not a huge fan of Greek mythology, so it took me a few hours to actually get into the book - the beginning was a little slow and I didn't understand who was who. This was more so because I was expecting Antigone to show up in the middle of the story (which shows you how little i know more than anything about the book itself, maybe)

I thought the narration was amazing- this was super evident in places where i was struggling to follow the story!

Coming back to the book itself, there was a sense of detachment which I found odd - I couldn't quite figure out if it was intentional or not. There was a bit of rape that wasn't handled in the best way, imo.

However this was an ambitious project and among people who know Greek mythology well, maybe these points would actually be positives!

3.5 Rounded up. Antigone captures us with this retelling of his family's story as set in the Seventh Century BC. A story capturing a popular Greek mythology. Antigone gives us a retelling of her father Oedipus and the story behind his death.

First off the narration on this book was excellent! I like this story and the background we received. I did get a little lost between all the different characters, but the story did keep flowing and picking up. I liked that we received a more in-depth retelling of this great myth. I would have loved to see more of Antigone, it was more focused on Oedipus.

Anybody who loves Greek Mythology will find this to be a very interesting read.

Thank you Netgalley and Saga Egmont for a copy of this ARC.

As a classicist, I am a big fan of Greek myth retellings, and I am happy for every chance I get to read them. In I, Antigone, Carlo Gébler paints a beautiful picture of a world filled with Kings and Queens of the ages, and brings a new twist to one of the oldest stories in the world, the story of Thebes. If you thought you knew the whole story, think again.

Antigone is a tragedy by Sophocles written in or before 441 BC. Of the three Theban plays, Antigone is the third in order of the events depicted in the plays, but it is the first that was written. The play expands on the Theban legend that predates it, and I, Antigone is written in the same spirit for a modern audience.

Most modern myths have many versions and variations, and will pull from various sources like Ovid, Homer, Hesiod, Sophocles. I was interested to see which myths Carlo Gébler would include in Antigone’s world. I was excited to find the author took inspiration from various sources and included many gods and goddesses into the story, all while giving them a modern spin.

With this books we get many stories in one. Many myths make up the grander tale of the Greek king, Oedipus. Within the story of Oedipus, we also get the stories of Europa and the bull; their children Minos and Adamanthus; Cadmus’ search for his sister Europa, and his founding the founding of the great city Thebes; how Cadmus’ great-grandson Laius became king at Thebes, and how he brought a great curse upon his line.

Retellings of the Greek myths and legends are really popular right now, and I, Antigone is a great read for fans of Madeline Miller and Scarlett St. Claire.

A beautiful retelling of the Greek myth of Oedipus and his daughter Antigone. As someone who loves Greek Mythology I was pleasantly surprised seeing a retelling of this myth due to the taboo content it covers.

One of my only critiques is that the story focuses more on Oedipus and his story rather than Antigone, but overall I did enjoy this.

I, Antigone is a solid re-envisioning of the Oedipus story. The flaw however is that although told from Antigone’s POV it involves her sharing the story of her father and mother, and what proceeded that well-known story, while not focusing on her own story guiding Oedipus to Colonus and glosses over the war between her brothers and her own disobedience of the king. While admirable to give Antigone more voice, the focus takes away from what could have been more of Antigone’s story.
Fortunately, the narration of Oedipus’ story is well done and engaging. The audiobook narrator is very good and while I believe the book could have been better, it was enjoyable.

Thank you to NetGalley for the advanced copy.

I was hoping to enjoy this a little more than I did because I tend to really enjoy this mythology. However, I knew a lot of the story and research this presented. It was a fun listen because the perspective is Antigone's, but I didn't find much more outside of that. The writing was nice, the narration was lovely, and the story is interesting, but if you're well-versed in the Oedipus story, you might want to skip this one.

"We live forward, but understand backwards."

Thank you to Netgalley for the copy of the audio book "I, Antigone" by Carlo Gébler! I listend the audiobook and I'd like first of all to say how much I enjoyed the voice of Stephanie Racine.
First I thought the book is about Antigone, but it turned out the book was about Antigone's familly and ancestors. Antigone is the teller, she tells the story of her family and meditates about free will and the power of fate. "It will happen if it is meant to, but is it?"
I never liked greek mythology. And then came my daughter who loves Percy Jackson and greek mythology and witch parent doesn't do anything just to feel closer to his children?! So I become interested in greek mythology and was very happy to see this book on netgalley.
The book is a retelling of the Oedipus myth, tolled from his daughter, Antigone. The story begins even earlier, as Europa was kidnapped and raped by Zeus, it tells about the creation of Thebes and a great part of the book is dedicated to Laius. I didn't liked him, how could I? He raped his slave and made his wife give up his son. An still, as he was murderd, I felt sorry for him. Or maybe I felt sorry for Oedipus. Or maybe I felt sorry for us all, even when we try so much to do the right thing, is it meant to be? And do we have to accept it all or should we ask questions? And if we ask questions, are we ready to hear the answers? I enjoyed this book very much.
I know there are young people out there, which will be glad to read this book. That's why I'd like to notice, that there are some hard scenes about rape, suicide, sex.
For me this book was a wonderful reading/hearing.

This book was pretty straight forward and felt more like I was listening to a lecture. It was full of information which is good for those who know nothing about the subject.

This was so much more than Antigone's story which was what I expected. Brilliant for audio. In the tradition of Homer, these ancient Greek retellings and re-inventions are much improved when heard rather than read. A brilliant narrator also helps - well done to Stephanie Racine! I know my Classics pretty well but taking this back to the 'Europa & the Bull' myth and connecting the dots to Antigone certainly adds to the story for any newcomers. I know nothing about Gebler's other work but will be on the look out. Thanks to Netgalley.