wowww that was beautiful and impactful. i was curious what the author was going to do re: hera’s tendency towards cruelty with the women zeus cheated with/straight up assaulted, and she definitely felt a lot more likeable than i expected (but not an overall likeable character). adored the ending and the exploration of how the gods began to stop being as important to humans. would absolutely recommend.

This is the story of hera the venegful queen of anxient Greece. She is the wife of Zeus and it was nice.to read a story from her point of view. It also gives a fresh perspective on the story. It was good to see the greek legends through heras eyes.

A powerful retelling on Hera, vengeful queen of the gods and wife of tyrannical Zeus. I haven’t read much focused on Hera before and I adore Jennifer Saint’s writing so I was very happy to read this new novel!

As with Saint’s other novels, this one gives us a new perspective on Hera’s story. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the legends we know so well through Hera’s point of view. Saint manages to lay bare Hera’s flaws and weaknesses, including her jealousy and power grabs, but in a way where we understand her motives. The injustices and trials she faces were so frustrating to read but the ending was satisfying and quite moving. Saint’s writing was as lyrical and beautiful as always and draws you in to the world of the gods.

This feminist retelling of Hera, Queen of Mount Olympus, Goddess of Marriage and Wife of Zeus, is a beautifully written look at one of the most misunderstood and complex female characters in Greek mythology.

Historically, Hera has been depicted as a jealous wife and cruel stepmother. In this book, Saint provides a new perspective, showcasing the other sides of Hera, a goddess who is also compassionate and powerful, and who was mistreated and wronged by those around her.

I think this book is incredibly powerful, engaging and thought-provoking, as all of Saint’s retellings are. It’s now up there as one of my favourites of hers, after Atalanta which does still just about have the top spot!

If you’re a fan of Greek mythology, this is one you absolutely must have on your radar.

𝙷𝚎𝚛𝚊 𝙰𝚁𝙲 𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚛 𝚏𝚛𝚎𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠

𝚛𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐: ★★★★★
𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚎: ☆☆☆☆☆

“𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗’𝚝 𝚋𝚊𝚗𝚒𝚜𝚑 𝚊𝚗 𝚒𝚍𝚎𝚊 𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝚒𝚝’𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚋𝚘𝚛𝚗”

When the immortal goddess Hera and her brother Zeus overthrow their tyrannical father, she dreams of ruling at his side. But as they establish their reign on Mount Olympus, Hera begins to see that Zeus is just as ruthless and cruel as the father they betrayed.

When it comes to Greek mythology retellings, Jennifer Saint is one of my holy grails and yet again she does not disappoint.

While typically one-note and villainised throughout Greek mythology, Saint illustrates Hera as a goddess fuelled by grief, loss, love, hope, and pure female rage. While not watered down or veering away from the mythology, you’re drawn to Hera’s reasoning and drive - a rich and deeply tortured woman who never asked or wanted the life she was forced into. There was no glorification of Hera’s choices, but ultimately an understanding.

Saint is a master of weaving historical events and mythology into her retellings, and bringing them to life not just for the goddess the story is focused on, but the humans and everything that event touches. The lore around the Titans and the patriarchy of Mount Olympus was explained beautifully, without feeling like I had to memorise a history lesson.

While there were slow parts of the book, I found the pacing overall really had me gripped. I found myself constantly looking for a spare 5 minutes to dive back into this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Headline Publishing for providing a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Loved this book. Hera’s isn’t a story that’s commonly told (or re-told) and it was refreshing to read this. Well-written and engaging throughout. Would definitely recommend.

I absolutely loved Hera!
This is no surprise as Jennifer Saint is one of my absolute favourite autjors for Greek mythology retellings.
I was extra excited about this one as I haven't really seen any books about Hera and if I'm being honest I'm kinda sick of Greek mythology retellings being the same 1 or 2 stories being done. So this being about Hera was fresh and exciting, and it ended up being so good!

The writing, like usual, was great and easy to read. It was perfect to help me out of my reading slump!
I also really grew to love Hera as a character, which I definitely didn't expect.
This book really is just perfect and I highly recommend you read it!
Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for a review.

Confession time, I haven't enjoyed 'Hera' as much as I thought I would. While the story of Zeus is well known, the story or the woman scorned got a bit old for me, quickly. I felt the tale jumped around and, while I have an understanding of the God's and their roles, there were other names I hadn't come across before and wasn't sure how they fit into the story. Parts of the tale were gripping, especially when Hera plots and outsmarts Zeus and his mortal children. Other times, it felt like the point was overly laboured. Yes, Zeus was a terrible God, promiscuous and disrespectful but, I really don't see how Hera could have bested Zeus. It felt very laboured at times and the more thwarted attempts, seemed to reinforce this notion of a woman scorned. For me, this was similar to 'Ariadne' which I was also confused by at times. Split into 5 parts, we follow Hera and the Gods of Mount Olympus as Hera vicariously lives through her children and tries to ruin them all. A vindictive read of the scorned woman with some gripping descriptions. Assumes a knowledge of the Greek myths as often the stories are alluded to or summed up rather than explained in any great detail.

I love Greek mythology retellings told from female perspectives. This is a great retelling.

I knew quite a few stories involving Hera but there was plenty in this book that I hadn't heard of before. Even the stories that were familiar to me were interesting to read as they were told from Hera's perspective and you can identify with the reasons behind her decisions, even if you don't agree with them.

I love Saint's writing style. It is easy to read and keeps you gripped. Even for someone who is not familiar with any Greek mythology, you could easily read this book to learn more.

The only thing I found a little off with this book was the pacing. It felt well paced for most of the book but slowed down towards the end. I completely understand that this is because of the way the narrative falls (I did enjoy how the book ended - no spoilers though), but it did feel like an odd pace to end on.

I really can't believe how much story Saint managed to pack into this book. There are so many Greek stories included in this and it covers a massive span of time. This helped to keep the pace up for most of the book though and kept it really interesting.

This book will be released on 23rd May. I highly recommend this for fans of Greek mythology retellings. Jennifer Saint is an author I will always keep going back to for excellent Greek mythology reads.

Thanks to NetGalley, Jennifer Saint, Headline and Wildfire for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Sooo good, one of my favorite Greek mythological retellings ever!

I loved how holistic this story was - from the origin of Hera, to her defiance of Zeus, her downfall as a vengeful, jealous wife and mother, and then her revival as a free goddess living among mortals. It was so fascinating to see Hera’s character develop and almost devolve as she becomes consumed by her hatred towards the men and circumstances dictating her life - the story of Ixion really foretold it all.

From being helpless to the men around her to finding fulfillment in acceptance and change, I really appreciate how inspiring and empowering the story of Hera is as she eventually claims her agency as the Queen of the Gods. It’s frightening how relatable elements of this story are even to modern women and I think Hera is a much-needed example of female power and redemption.

Would highly recommend this book to everyone, even those who might not know much about Greek mythology!

the novel begins with the war of the olympians versus the titans, after which new hierarchies and new an order amongst the gods is established. rifts start to form between the siblings, especially the sisters, dividing them over the matter of knowing they deserve more and wanting to take what is rightfully theirs. this dynamic is explored throughout, especially with the introduction of zeus’ daughters and the ever expanding group of olympians. focused on the sister and eventual wife of zeus, we gain insight to the queen of the gods who for centuries, has been presented as cold and countlessly slighted by her unfaithful husband. with this retelling, i am happy that zeus’ behaviour is turned into something it is not for the sake of being able to consume and understand his behaviour. he is simply a predator hiding behind his status as a god, and believes that each and every woman is there for his choosing. hera herself is aware of this, having been assaulted on the beach which led to the conception of their first child, ares. zeus’ spot on my ranking of “most hated men of mythology” is only further affirmed by this narrative. hera sees the irony in her own station. she is the patroness of matrimony, and women and girls prey to her religiously; yet hera’s own marriage couldn’t be further from ideal. saint weaves together various affairs of zeus’ found in other myths, including semele, echo and io. I will admit, I have never been a lover of hera due to her tendency to punish the women her husband prey upon rather than zeus himself - but saint however has completely changed my opinion of her, and therefore this retelling has done its job perfectly. the prose and writing itself is beautiful and captivating and the feature of the festival dionysia at the end really tied this book to the perfect close.

thank you netgalley and wildfire for a review copy!
this is one of my favourite greek mythology books i have read!! one of my favourite parts of this book is how other myths were intertwined throughout so even though the focus of the book was on Hera there were other plots running across the book. the writing was amazing and i loved how whole the characters felt. if you have liked other books from jennifer saint or enjoyed circe i would definitely recommend this book!!

This for me, was one of Jennifer Saint’s best works, continuing in her retellings of goddesses lives from Greek mythology.
Hera, so often described as the nagging, bitter and jealous wife of Zeus, is shown in the context of how she was mistreated, tricked and subdued into a subordinate role, leading to her behaviours. Saint’s deftly-woven tale brings Hera the empathy that she deserves at last! And, as a friend of mine would say, shows ‘all the ways that Zeus sucks!’. There is a lot going on in this novel, and many characters which may challenge readers without some knowledge of Greek mythology, and with different versions of myths, some events may be different, depending on the reader’s awareness of that. I found it a thoroughly captivating read, and thank NetGalley for a free ARC in return for my honest review.

This is my first Jennifer Saint book but it won't be my last. Hera is the enthralling tale of a powerful Greek goddess maligned in both myth and ancient history. An excellent read, totally absorbing.

Off to read her others!

Thanks for the ARC.

This book is beautifully written. It is incredibly descriptive. I did read this books quite quickly as I did find it very interesting. I am not usually one for retellings but this was good. I just wish Hera had been a little bit more able to be angry in the right direction, Zeus. I found Zeus to be a very well fleshed out character even though for the most part we all know how he is this gave more dimension.

In Hera we see not only the Goddess,, we see the woman.
Hera loves, she hates, we see her strength and also her flaws. This makes her real and like you could jump into the pages to talk to her.
As always there is lots of research into the historical aspects and although it took me a while to grasp the who’s who,, I flew through this book in a couple of days.
Thoroughly enjoyable and another Saint triumph..

Thank you to the author and publisher for a chance to read this ARC, via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Hera is a gorgeous read. It is atmospheric, tense, rich and dramatic. I could have done with a little more showing as opposed to telling, but otherwise, a solid four stars.

A powerhouse of a tale, Saint weaves together the many myths surrounding the apparently 'jealous' wife of Zeus, the goddess of marriage Hera and reimagines her as a violated woman who will not be suppressed.

Sharply observed and teased out, it's a triumph of a books that sits proudly alongside her other works of the famous Greek heroines Atalanta, Ariadne and Elektra.

Jennifer Saint's 'Hera' is a gem in the realm of Greek mythology retellings. With a deft touch and undeniable intelligence, Saint reshapes the narrative landscape, offering readers a refreshing perspective on characters often relegated to one-dimensional archetypes. I have loved Saint’s books - Ariadne is a particular favourite - but this shift in perspective from focusing on the mortal world to the rich cast of Mount Olympus through the perspective of it’s Queen is inspired!

What truly sets 'Hera' apart is Saint's ability to humanize Hera, a figure typically portrayed as simply “the vengeful wife of Zeus.” Instead of merely succumbing to stereotypes, Saint delves deep into Hera's psyche, unraveling layers of complexity that make her not just sympathetic, but downright relatable. Okay sure she does slightly unhinged things to Zeus’ lovers + children but I support women’s rights and, importantly, women’s wrongs. Through Saint's skilled storytelling, we witness Hera's struggles, her victories, and her moments of vulnerability, transforming her from a distant deity into a fully fleshed-out protagonist.

And let's talk about Zeus – Saint pulls no punches in depicting him as the absolute worst. As she should - he is the worst. She lays bare his flaws and misdeeds, casting him in a light that exposes the darker aspects of his character. This was a clever move, but one that pays off brilliantly, as it allows Hera to shine as herself a flawed character - but at least you understand her motivations in comparison.

But 'Hera' isn't all heavy drama – Saint infuses the narrative with moments of humour and pondering. It's these touches of levity that make the story feel so dynamic and alive, balancing out the weightier themes with a sense of playfulness. In particular the Heracles chapter mixed both the irony of Hera’s disgust of his being named to her glory, but the pain of Hera realising how many of the tasks involved killing those beloved to her in secret.

In terms of plot, 'Hera' is impeccably plotted, with twists and turns that keep you guessing until the very end. I felt like it possibly ended a little abruptly though! I did want more. But the nature of Greek feminist mythology retellings means seeing glimpses into cut out scenes rather than cohesive story due to the immortal nature of the characters. Saint's prose is captivating, drawing you into a world where gods and mortals collide in epic fashion.

Overall, 'Hera' is a triumph of storytelling, offering readers a fresh perspective on familiar myths while delivering a riveting tale of love, betrayal, and a kind of rehabilitation for our girl Hera. Jennifer Saint has crafted something truly special here, and I can't wait to see what she does next. Hestia? Athena? Artemis?

Thank you to the author, publishers and Net Galley for an ARC in return for an honest review. I’m a Greek mythology girlie so I jumped at the chance to review this one!!

Rating: 2.5 stars

In this book we follow Hera, wife of Zeus and Queen of the Gods. My knowledge of Greek mythology prior to reading this book was limited, so I had been intrigued to delve into this story. Unfortunately, it failed to live up to my expectations.

While I appreciate that Greek mythology by its nature does have many characters, I found the way small side characters jumped in and out of the story confusing and at times I struggled to know who was who. Additionally, again while I appreciate that the God’s are complex beings, this story failed to produce a single likeable character and there wasn’t a single person I was rooting for.

I was not a fan of the writing style in this book. It felt very simplistic and like a list of events, rather than a story fully woven together. 30-50% of the way through the story it felt like there was some real promise and I felt invested in the plot, excited to see where it would go next. Unfortunately, from this point onwards the story would often jump forwards randomly to a new event, often with that event having no real lasting impact on the story. The book became very repetitive and I found myself struggling to get through in the last 50%.

If you are familiar with this authors writing style and a fan of Greek mythology with some background knowledge on the topic, you may really enjoy this book! Unfortunately it wasn’t for me.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC.