### turned into lions ––> HEA?

Atalanta is a Greek heroine that does not get much popular coverage, but she is one of my favorites, so I was ecstatic that Jennifer Saint chose her for a retelling! I was most familiar with her as a runner and using her track talents to escape her father’s plans to marry her off, but *Atalanta* covers her entire history, including her early years with Artemis and her adventures on the *Argo*.

I loved this book and thought Saint gave Atalanta depth as a character, especially with her interactions with and thoughts about the other women she encounters in her life. Atalanta’s encounter with Medea during her time as an Argonaut was the most thought-provoking for me. Fiercely independent (and physically strong), Atalanta is disappointed in Medea’s choice to betray her family and marry Jason, but Medea points out that they have a lot in common. Atalanta thinks Medea is shrinking herself into the shape of a “wife” even though she is smart and tenacious (like Atalanta, herself) enough to make it on her own. Their marriage takes place in Aeaea, home to Circe, Medea’s paternal aunt, which again makes me think that Jennifer Saint and Madeleine Miller are sister novelists. I wish there had been more Circe in this book because she is my very favorite character of the Greek myths, but she has already had her book and it is Atalanta’s turn.

All that being said, I loved *Ariadne* and *Elektra* more (in that order), so I rated it four stars. *Atalanta* filled the Jennifer-Saint-shaped hole in my heart that I had since finishing her other two books and now I am in desperate need of even more of her books! I hope she focuses on Medea next.

I completely fell in love with Ariadne and Elektra and Jennifer Saint has quickly become an auto-buy author for me. In her newest release, we follow Atalanta – raised in the forest by a bear, Atalanta is a favourite of the goddess Artemis. When Artemis sends her on a voyage to be part of an epic quest to find the Golden Fleece, Atalanta is excited for the chance to prove herself. Before she leaves Artemis warns her that a man will be her undoing. Will Atalanta succeed in her quest to prove herself and will she stay true to the oath she swore Artemis?

I admit I don’t know an awful lot about Atalanta, she does feature a little in Luna McNamara’s Psyche and Eros which I read recently but otherwise, I don’t know much about her original story. In Jennifer Saint’s tale, Atalanta is a strong, brave, and fiercely compelling character. I loved watching as she fought to prove herself the equal to any man. She is strong minded, determined to succeed in her quest, but she’s also physically strong and incredibly fast. Like in her previous books, Saint gives a voice to a female from Greek mythology that doesn’t often get one. I knew a little about the Argonauts but certainly didn’t know there was a female one, so it was fascinating to read her story.

Saint has a truly gorgeous writing style and the world of Ancient Greece really comes to life in her prose. I found it so easy to get lost in the story and was completely engrossed in the plot. The story felt well researched and incredibly detailed. Much like her previous books, I completely devoured Atalanta and cannot wait to see what Jennifer Saint writes next. If you’re a fan of Greek mythology retellings with beautiful writing and vivid characters, then Atalanta is an absolute must read.

I really enjoy Greek retellings - and they're very much having a moment! I love that Jennifer Saint centers her stories on the women from popular Greek stories, gives the women a voice and truly gives us a chance to imagine these stories from a different perspective

I love a retelling of ancient Greek myths and legends. I particularly love when these are centered around women. Jennifer Saint's retelling of Atalanta did not disappoint at all. I could feel her power and strength oozing from the words as much as I really felt the injustices she faced. A very easy 5 stars from me

I received a gifted copy of this book to listen to and read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Hybrid Read (listened to audio and read kindle ARC).
Atalanta was such a well narrated audio book and I was captivated from the first few chapters.
Atalanta was abandoned on the mountains by her father at birth and left there to die. Saved by a bear and her cubs, Atalanta was raised and taught how to survive. Artemis then took Atalanta under her wing and trained her up to become a fierce warrior, archer and huntress. When Aralanta is persuade by two Centaurs after saving a man they were hunting, she manages to not only outrun them but defeat them with her skills. This leads to her joining Jason and his Argonauts on his pursuit of the golden fleece. Artemis is forbidden from falling in love by Artemis. This leads to her going back into the sights of her father and leads to a fate foretold by the Oracle. This was such a well written and captivating book, and I was invested from the start. My heart broke for Artemis afew times during this adventure. I hope to read Elektra soon too!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

After having really loved Ariadne, and then not enjoying Elektra as much, I was slightly worried I wouldn't like Saint's newest offering. But I shouldn't have worried - Atalanta is the kind of character the current trend of feminist Greek mythology retellings is meant for. Knowing next to nothing about the character only helps as you follow her through the story. Saint also takes a critical look at the goddess Artemis, evaluating what kind of response to misogyny and violence against women is really practical when women have little to no power. A great read.

I adore Jennifer Saint’s retellings of classical stories and I think she’s an essential part of the cult of feminist retellings of this type. I thought Atalanta was another brilliant title and I’m excited to see what she writes next. I will definitely be looking out for her titles!

Atalanta is Saint’s third novel bringing the reader into the world of Greek myths and legends. Saint is now one of my auto-buy authors. I love her ability to give a voice to women who were kept on the margins in the original stories.

Atalanta is the goddess Artemis’ favourite child. Abandoned by her father, the King of Arcadia, as a baby on a mountainside, Atalanta is reared by a protective mother bear. Atalanta learns to survive and thrive alongside the bear cubs who become her siblings , all under the protective watch of Artemis.

When Atalanta is asked by Artemis to embark on a journey and join Jason’s band of Argonauts, she agrees. Can Atalanta, in a world of men, carve out her place in the legends?

Written from Atalanta’s perspective, Saint has given new life to the only female Argonaut and provided a refreshing reimagining of what it must have been like for Atalanta onboard the Argo. Saint doesn’t hold back in terms of depicting the vitriol against Atalanta by many of her fellow Argonauts, who see her as a bad omen for their journey. The cold-hearted nature of the gods and their treatment is their subjects is perfectly captured by Saint. Artemis in particular is shown to be a cold-hearted and vengeful deity.

Atalanta is presented to the reader as a vulnerable and naive figure but she learns to stand up for herself when she realises that the goddess’ standards and expectations are not possible to achieve.

An engaging retelling full of action, adventure, struggle and heart. A must-read for fans of Madeline Miller, Natalie Haynes and Pat Barker.

Thanks to NetGalley & Headline for the arc.

Another beautiful novel from Jennifer Saint! I was suckes into the world of Atlanta from the very start. Would definitely recommend.

Quality Rating: Three Stars
Enjoyment Rating: Three Stars

I struggled a lot with Atalanta, for many of the same reasons I struggle with a fair few classical retellings; ‘strong independent woman’ who does still need a man in her resolution, reimagining a known tale from a different perspective but ultimately just making the protagonist be an observer, throwing in a bunch of references but not really executing what they thematically mean and missing out on the true wonder of these beloved myths. That being said, I do want to give it credit for not being entirely depressing, which I think is another common pitfall with female retellings of Greek myths.

I don’t think there was a lot of personality in this story, it was just the straightforward sequence of events of the Argonauts from a slightly different angle. While I appreciate that some myth retellings become hard to follow from how much effort being put into making it ‘different,’ I feel like the wonder and the glory, the characterisations and the morality is just lost. I also feel that this book, while reinventing a classical tale to make space for female stories, just came across ignorant to reality while still referencing misogyny and taking part. Atalanta didn’t really conquer anything, not because it wasn’t there, but because it didn’t seem to affect her.

The ending is so hilariously ironic, and sums up my frustrations with this book; we’re going to make fun of and look down on all these ‘womanly’ women throughout the story and be strong and independent (which mostly manifests as making judgements as we stand at the sidelines watching the actual story happen) with very little nuance, but our resolution will still rely on us falling in love with a man who tricked us (but it’s okay because we let him).

Jennifer Saint once again does not disappoint with her retelling of the story of Atalanta.

Retelling of Greek mythology and God is really having a moment making the stories accessible to a wider and new audience.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for an ARC in return for a honest review

When a baby girl is born, instead of the expected son and heir, she is left to die in the wilderness. Found and raised by a mother bear, Atalanta grows up under the protection of the goddess Artemis. When the Argonauts embark on their quest for the Golden Fleece, she fights for her chance for adventure and proving her skills alongside the greatest warriors of her times...

Atalanta is another retelling of a Greek myth, and I really wanted to love this one. I mean, we have a woman join the crew build from the most incredible heroes of Ancient Greece. It’s the perfect material for a novel. I loved Jennifer Saint’s writing style, but unfortunately, after a spellbinding beginning, the plot turns into a sequence of vaguely connected adventures with an unclear goal somewhere on the horizon. While reading, I felt like there were too many places and characters to present, so the descriptions turned out rather flat. Also, I found the romantic plot unconvincing.

To sum up, I love Greek mythology and its retellings, but this novel will not be one of my favourites.

Atalanta is Greek female hero who is supposed to have been a parallel version or some say protege of Artemis- goddess of hunting. This book by @Jennifersaint has taken the thread and woven it into such a magnificent tapestry that I was breath taken. This was presented from the first person view and from the first sentence you get hooked
Atalanta was born as the daughter of a king and she was left to die on a mountain side because she was a girl baby. Here a mother bear takes care of her and later on Artemis herself takes pity on the child and takes her under her wing. She is taught how to hunt and to take care of herself by the Goddess and in return she has to promise celibacy and eternal disdain of males.
Atalanta joins the all the Greek heroes of the time on an ancient voyage in search of Golden Fleece ( an impossible task ! meant for attaining glory for all) aboard a ship named Argo. They were called Argonauts and Atalanta was the only female.
The story follows her through her journey and how she faces the dangers and comes out on top. But how everyone still tries to downplay her achievements once the journey was done. How she had to overcome the disdain of many and she had to still fight for her name, even after the journey. How the life in those periods didn’t even give the slightest value to females. In the world of heroes and gods how difficult it was for a mortal woman’s name to be recorded let alone be remembered .
As for Jennifer Saints writing, it was so beautifully portrayed that I have fallen in love with books again. I had tried reading Song of Achilles recently but found it difficult to move forward because of the numerous Greek gods names and stories made it very confusing. Saint has however made all the characters in her books accessible and memorable that there was no difficulty at all in focusing.
All in all it’s a beautifully rendered mythological retelling which leaves you feeling powerful and strong because you are woman. Not because society is fair to you but because you are strong enough to stand up for yourself
Thanks to @netgalley and @headline publishing for the review copy.

It looks as though my Greek mythology bender is still going strong - and it’s not difficult when there are fabulous stories like Atalanta being retold.

And what an amazing heroine Atalanta is - the only woman amongst the Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece, she can run faster than the men, beat the best at wrestling, shoot arrows more accurately and hunt wild animals. All activities completely unexpected for women of the time. But Atalanta was raised by a bear from when she was abandoned as an infant, and then nurtured by Artemis and her nymphs in Artemis’ own forest.

When Atalanta leaves the safety of Artemis’ forest to go on her adventures, Artemis warns her that she must remain a virgin - if she doesn’t and she consequently marries, it will be her undoing.

So you just know what’s going to happen!

I loved this book, I loved Atalanta, I love thatGreek mythology is having something of a renaissance in the last few years (but has it ever not been popular in one way or another?), and I love these Retellings where the women are front and centre.

This is just perfect - more please!!

I have to admit, I was particularly excited about this, especially after learning that she also wrote Elektra (genuinely one of the best mythology retellings I have read). This book, however, fell completely short in numerous aspects.

One, I was hoping this would turn out to be similar to I Who Have Never Known Men (one of my all-time favourite books) because I gathered as much from the premise. But boy, I was so so wrong.

Two, I strongly dislike how Athena is depicted here. I just want to read about a huntress who isn't a total jerk. Jeez.

Three, I wanted to throw my phone across the room during all the lovey dovey kissy scenes because the romance was so awfully written. There was no chemistry between the characters.; I mean, the guy speaks like some sort of robot for crying out loud.

On the whole, it was alright but just not as good as I heavily hoped it would be.

So far, all books from Jennifer Saint are unmissable: happily this new epic is no different from the writer’s earlier smash-hit novels Ariadne and Elektra. This time the author has turned her attention to retelling the legendary story of Atalanta, who was left to die on a hillside as a baby for the “crime” of being a girl – then saved and raised by bears, before being taken by the goddess Artemis to live alongside her nymphs, enjoying a seemingly idyllic childhood in an enchanted forest, running wild, growing strong and learning to prove herself – yet as she matures (unlike her ageless companions) she starts to question the unbending rules and harsh punishments which Artemis imposes upon her pastoral idyll. Atalanta is curious about adventure, to experience life outside the forest, and is soon given her chance by the goddess: she is sent to join the Argo, to be the only female Argonaut, and takes her place as one of Jason’s crew on his mythical voyage to retrieve the legendary golden fleece. She proves her worth time and time again, winning over the initially sceptical crew with her strength, her speed, her loyalty and devotion to her patron Artemis, and her journey sees her encounter monsters, navigate challenges and cross paths with other heroes and legends from myths, all described in Jennifer Saint’s artful, poetic prose. This book will no doubt already be on the radar of those who love retellings of classical Greek stories, but anyone who loves a strong female lead will adore this adventure alongside the fearless, irresistible Atalanta: grab your sandals and your spear and strap in for the ride.

A brilliant book; hugely deserving of all the plaudits it gains.
A scintillating telling of Atalanta, the only women among the Argonauts.

This was really fun and enjoyable. I love everything Jennifer Saint writes so I’ve been eagerly anticipating this one and I waited until I was on holiday to read it.

The story of Atalanta is one I’m not really familiar with so this was new territory to me. I didn’t enjoy it as much as her previous books, due to the pacing. It seemed quite rushed and I could’ve done with another few 100 pages really going into depth. Essentially, I wanted the book to be longer and to be able to enjoy her writing even more 😂😂

3.5 stars!

It was interesting to read a retelling of Atalanta, as oppose to some of the more famous stories from Greek myth. An enjoyable read but some of the chapters put me in a bit of a slump as they seemed to be more fillers than important to the story.

Nice to read about Atalanta, who I didn’t know much about. Some powerful moments and another good read for fans of Greek myth retellings.