I love Greek myth re-tellings and as Medea has an 'interesting' story, i jumped at the chance to read this arc. We all know the story of Medea - how she betrayed her family to help Jason win the Golden Fleece; how she sailed away with him, became his wife and had two sons; how, when Jason decided that he would discard Medea to marry the daughter of the King of Corinth, she killed the princess and then her own sons to deprive Jason of a new wife and heirs. We know of her as a villain, but Rosie Hewlett gives us so much more. She puts flesh on Medea's bones and gives us another version of events where we see that Medea is as much a victim as she is a villain. We see a life in Colchis where as a child she almost lives in fear of her father, a man who regularly beat hers, her mother and their servants. She adores her younger sister and will take the blame so that her sister is never beaten. As a child she is aware of the magic that she possesses and learns how to use it when her aunt, Circe, takes over her instruction. She falls under the spell of Jason and the escape he offers and in this re-telling, the hero, Jason, does not come out of it well. From her childhood, her marriage we see a woman who is manipulated by the men in her life. She becomes their weapon, a means for them to get what they want. But does this mean that Medea is blameless? In this novel we get a version of Medea that we can empathise with, and we can even understand her motives for killing her sons - not that we would ever agree with that act. We can see that there are times when she is a victim, but there are times when maybe the shouts of 'witch' are justified. I loved this as it allows a 'villain' of Greek mythology a chance to show us that maybe, things are not always black and white.

"They'll either make you his adoring lovesick damsel, or they'll make you the villain. They are the only roles they feel comfortable with us occupying."

After previously reading and enjoying Medusa by Rosie Hewlett, I was really looking forward to reading this - and I'm glad I did.

A very dark villain origin story written from Medea's perspective; this is a story about power and revenge, highlighting fragile masculinity and the male ego in response to powerful women.

Hewlett's retelling does not hold back in showing us both the good and the bad of Medea and you cannot help but feel conflicted almost constantly by her character and her actions. It is so beautifully written, and heart wrenching.

I found the pacing of this book fairly good, and felt it rarely slowed. However there were some big time jumps which did feel a little jarring but they were required to cover the entirety of Medea's life and story without unnecessary filler.

I am really looking forward to what Rosie Hewlett writes next.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As a play, Medea is known for its dark and disturbing themes. Medea's actions are generally regarded as horrific, and it's almost impossible to avoid questions about revenge, justice and the depths of human emotion while reading it.

I chose this book knowing all this, but hoping for someone who would appreciate Medea's intelligence and resourcefulness, while also recognising the destructive choices she makes.

Hewlett delivered.

It pained me to see Medea so starved for love, validation and affection; it pained me to watch Circe and Atlanta's failed attempts to bring her to her senses. It pained me to see Jason exploit her vulnerability and manipulate her. But it was also refreshing to finally see someone hold him accountable for his part in Medea's crimes.

The book retained the play's enduring relevance: Medea's struggles with betrayal, abandonment and societal expectations still resonate with audiences today, but it also explored new aspects such as domestic and psychological violence and manipulation.

Hewlett crafts an absolutely gorgeously foreboding piece of prose. Brimming with despair, complexity and provoking power. A lovely look into the terrors that can easily sway one towards villainy, or tear them to shreds. I found Medea incredibly relateable, it was hard at times to keep from cursing, knowing the feelings behind being gaslit or emotionally manipulated. This is not an emotionally easy read, but it is an intensely beautiful one. Bravo...

Is very difficult to connect with a retelling. But Medea’s story is told with a nice complexity and experiences are shared with care by the author. Traumatic events and story but very well written and is such a good try of retell the story of this character much of us never knew. Solid easy to read book and I think is a good chance to enter to historic fiction.

As I have never read any mythology before I was a little nervous of reading this book.

The story of Medea was thought provoking, dark reading in places, it showed the lengths that some people will go to get their wish for fame and power. Going from a young girl living in a palace to Medea's life as a married women and the power hungry husband.

Will she use her magic, both dark and light to get revenge, on all those that have treated her unfairly.

Thank you Netgalley for letting me read this copy

Thanks to NetGalley and the author for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

The retelling of Greek mythology have been so hype online in the past few years that I have stayed away due to fear that these books wouldn’t like up to their hype. However, on reading the description for Medea I decided to give it a go.

I really enjoyed the undercurrent of female rage in this book and found Medea to be a very powerful character. The main issue I had with the book was Jason. From his first appearance, I found him incredibly unlikeable as a character so struggled to relate to him being the love interest. Despite this, the book was easy to read and was a good gateway into more retelling of Greek mythology.

I had a copy of this from Netgalley and it has criminally been sat on my kindle for what feels like an eternity, thanks to the biggest reading slump of my adult life. I also know not to force these things, and I’m so glad to have finally read it and (spoiler alert) I absolutely loved it.

The emotions I went through reading this book has made it probably one of the most intense and immersive reading experiences I’ve ever had. Medea is everything I wanted as some bad b main character. The way the lines between good/evil and almost a grip on one’s sanity is greyed and blurred to the extent you don’t even know what you want to come next. It really made me question and think about how I at least make these mental alliances with characters and what happens when this isn’t so straightforward.

This is some of the most intense character ~development~ I’ve ever been witness to. The way Medea’s story is so perfectly woven through the drama and turmoil and culminating in this engulfing darkness. Stupendous. If you enjoy the darkness that is.

For reference, I knew none of this story before picking this up. Me oh my was I taken on a journey. If you liked Circe, this not only is for you, but will most likely blow it out of the water.

Knowing nothing of this myth, I read Medea with an open mind and feel this is a very worthy addition to the Greek myth retelling genre. Although Medea is at times a difficult character to care for, given how skilfully her character is built with a complexity of morally grey choices and thought processes that at times have a reader screaming at the page for her to see sense and leave Jason before her ruin, I couldn’t put this one down. Jason’s betrayal in the final quarter of the book is foreshadowed as his charisma is broken down slowly to reveal a weak and power hungry coward, so that even though I didn’t like Medea, her fear of a precarious situation for herself and her children unleashing the horror of the final chapters made this slow burn very much worth sticking with.

The love story, which is a focus for most of the book, could have been a modern-day relationship. Most women have experienced some form of gaslighting or emotional manipulation, and you can't help but relate to Medea at times, as well as wanting to scream at her.

If you want to read an incredibly empowering story about one of the best witches in history, then please pick up this book.

I highly recommend this if you’re into Greek myths. I don’t think you need to be familiar with Greek myths to enjoy this book though.

I'm a fan of Greek mythology and have enjoyed a lot of the recent retellings in this genre but I wasn't familiar with the story of Medea and I was absolutely blown away by Rosie Hewlett's retelling. Such an incredibly engaging story that perfectly portrayed Medea as a hero, a villain and a victim which so much depth and emotion.

I'd definitely recommend reading this book, the characters are so moving and the story so gripping with so many twists and surprises.

I’m relatively new to the Greek mythology retelling world but have been really enjoying the books I’ve been reading and this was up there with the best for me.

Medea’s story is told with such depth and her complexity and experiences are shared with a true care by the author, traumatic though they may be.

I can’t believe I knew so little of Medea’s tale before this book but I’m so pleased I have learned her story.

A beautiful work containing mythology and the fear from men in women. The author really pulls you in the grief and angst medea feels and I think all in all it’s been wonderfully done!! 3,5 stars!

4.25*

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK/Transworld Publishers/Bantam for a digital review copy of "Medea" in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

I am a modern Greek Mythology retelling fan and eagerly keep an eye out for new titles and subjects. As soon as I saw a re-telling of Medea I knew I wanted to read it. We get a lot of 'heroic' tales and now, along with Medusa and Circe we're starting to hear more voices of the traditional 'villains'.

In this dark and troubling story we have the sorceress/witch front and centre. Stuck as a virtual prisoner of her father due to her magical powers, Medea yearns for a different life and when Jason arrives on Colchis to claim the revered Golden Fleece she takes her opportunity. What follows is a tale of dark magics, obsessional love, adventure and ultimately betrayal.

Rosie Hewlett's Medea is a character of contradictions, multi-layered and complex. Her motivations stem from desperation, loneliness and isolation which makes her ripe for the emotional manipulation and gaslighting of the men around her, especially Jason and his lure of the promise of love, equality and a new life.

There is a truly troubling and unsettling sense of foreboding throughout the novel leading to a final quarter that is emotionally draining and devastating. You know from page 1 that this story won't end well but Hewlett keeps us as an audience feeling empathy for Medea even whilst you're also appalled at her actions.

Having read 'Atalanta' by Jennifer Saint and 'Circe' by Madeline Miller I definitely felt a much greater appreciation of the story on offer here and found that 'Medea' rounded those tales out to give greater details on elements that are more minor plot points in those individual stories. I was also glad to get a different take on the Jason persona, to see him as a flawed, selfish and spoilt little boy rather than the golden flawless prince of traditional myth (if you enjoyed the alternative way Romeo is portrayed in 'Fair Rosalind' then you'll appreciate this element), however he was so unlikeable that for the middle section of the book I found myself reading more quickly whenever he was involved - the other Argonauts during this part of the narrative are much more interesting to read though.

This is a great addition to the pantheon of Greek Myth retellings as it's so much darker than many others. There isn't a great deal of hope on offer and as a modern reader I definitely felt frustrated at times at the Medea/Jason relationship as I could see so clearly the manipulation, and she was so desperate that she ignored so many strong voices, ultimately leading to that finale. I definitely want to read Hewlett's other retelling, 'Medusa', now as I'm extremely intrigued to see a different perspective on that story and see how it reads in comparison to Jessie Burton's own Medusa retelling.

'Medea' is released March 21 2024.

Choosing this title was a mingle of interest and trepidation. Medea is such a controversial character, how can she be redeemed, how will her story be represented? In a plethora of female retellings, particularly ones focusing on Greek mythology, "Medea" shines. Hewlett's prose is lush and engaging, touching sensitive topics with a delicate, gifted hand.. The result is a captivating story that reads like a beautiful melody.

First, I'm a huge fan of Madeline Miller's books and short stories and so far, no other author has done as good a job transporting me back to ancient Greece as she has done, so this review is somewhat biased.

And Medea not necessarily being a character I've ever been much interested in, also dampened my enthusiasm for this story, but I am Madeline Miller starved, so I thought, let's give this a try.

It's not hard to get into it, but sadly it's just not as good as Miller's writing and then it hits a snag, once we get introduced to Jason - who is insufferable in my opinion. And that Medea doesn't see right through him and sacrifices everything for him, just because he's handsome and an undeniable charmer, annoys me. I went part villain myself reading parts of this book.

In short, I believe it was a faithful retelling of the myth, but it wasn't for me.

The writing was really beautiful and I loved the beginning, particularly Circe and Medea’s relationship and seeing the cruelty of her father and the questions Medea has about her own power as a child. Is she something to be feared? Or a weapon to be wielded by another? These seem to be Medea’s only two options, and unfortunately I didn’t finish the book to find out. From the introduction of Jason I found Medea’s naivety and her almost willing manipulation hard to read and once they arrived in Iolcus her willingness to kill on his behalf despite the clear turmoil at the death of her brother was too much for me. Perhaps that is the point - I’m not sure - and I think that other people will really enjoy it. It’s not a bad book by any means, just not one for me, so I’ve rated it 2.5 stars.
Thank you to NetGalley, Rosie Hewlett & Random House for the ARC copy

I love Greek mythology books and this didn't disappoint. It was rough, brutal and had some hard hitting scenes. In places, I will say Medea frustrated me but to be fair, there's only so much you can do considering the source material! I did think the writing was very readable, which isn't always the case with these sorts of books.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

I've always been fascinated by the history of Medea in mythology, definitely one of those characters that stood out to me always. so when I had the opportunity to read this I was so excited, and it didn't disappoint. the book does a beautiful job of retelling but also reposing moral questions around nature and nurture. it's hard to hate Medea totally despite what she does, because of how she became that way. Great read!

When read retelling stories about women from Greek Mythology we always get damsels or villains. This book will give you a villain original story. Medea become curse on Jason glowing heroic journey. But at beginning she only a brokenhearted princess.

The writing capturing me since begining chapter. The story is interesting, healthy mixed between fragility of a lonely princess who longing for unconditional love with a desperate witch dark magic ability who seek recognition.
First half naration feel little bit angsty for my taste. Medea character lack depth and sound so naif with repetition phrases. But I am enjoying more when the plot thickens and she open her eyes about how manipulative his husband and embraces her wicked side.

Thank you to Netgalley, and Bantam from Transworld Digital for providing a copy of this ebook. I have voluntarily read and reviewed it. All thoughts and opinions are my own.