Thank you NetGalley UK for giving me an audiobook of Hera in exchange for my honest review.

Hera offers a refreshing and nuanced portrayal of one of Greek mythology's most complex and often misunderstood figures. This book goes beyond the typical depiction of Hera as merely a vengeful and jealous wife, diving deep into her multifaceted character and highlighting themes of female agency and solidarity in a patriarchal mythological landscape.

From the outset, Hera's strength and resilience are evident. The epic battle between the Titans and the gods is vividly described with ethereal language, providing a gripping backdrop to Hera's journey. The solidarity between Hera and Gaia showcases a powerful alliance of female characters often sidelined in traditional mythological narratives. Their bond underscores a central theme of the book: women finding strength and agency in unity against overwhelming odds.

Hera’s appreciation for order and predictability, juxtaposed with her fierce desire for freedom, paints a portrait of a goddess in constant conflict with her environment and the expectations placed upon her. This inner struggle is poignantly portrayed through her relationships with her siblings, Demeter and Hestia, whose sisterly bonds offer moments of solace and support amid the chaos of divine politics.

The lore surrounding the gods, the Titans, and the creation of humans is richly woven into the narrative, adding depth and context to Hera's motivations. Her disdain for humans, whom she finds unimpressive, and her complex feelings towards her roles as the goddess of marriage are explored with sensitivity and depth. Hera's preparation for her roles and her strategic mind are highlighted, showing her as a capable and proactive deity, rather than a mere reactionary force.

The book does not shy away from the darker aspects of Hera's life, including Zeus's betrayal and abuse. Hera's pain and humiliation are palpable, and her subsequent actions, though often morally ambiguous, are portrayed with empathy. The narrative delves into Hera’s complex feelings towards her children, particularly Hephaestus and Ares, revealing a mother torn between her divine duties and personal grief.

One of the most compelling aspects of Hera is how it redefines her role in the pantheon. Rather than being reduced to Zeus’s wife, Hera emerges as a powerful and independent figure, striving to break the cycle of female subservience. Her transformation from a vengeful wife to a queen who seeks to rule in her own right is inspiring. Hera's journey towards self-empowerment, culminating in her ultimate revenge on Zeus, is both satisfying and liberating.

The book also highlights Hera's relationships with other female figures, such as Athena and Demeter, and her interactions with mortal women. These interactions further emphasize the theme of female solidarity and the hidden power women hold in a male-dominated world. Hera's sympathy for Medusa and her anger towards the treatment of women by the gods are particularly poignant, showcasing her growth and shifting perspectives.

The descriptions of divine feasts, the nectar, and the ambrosia add a sensory richness to the narrative, making the divine realm both enchanting and accessible. The book's detailed and immersive prose brings the mythological world to life, with each scene vividly painted in the reader's mind.

In the end, Hera is a celebration of a goddess who refuses to be defined by the men around her. Hera steps into her own power and embracing change.

Hera is a must-read for fans of mythology and those interested in stories of female empowerment. It is a poignant reminder that even in the most patriarchal of settings, women can find and wield immense power, both openly and in the shadows. This book offers a rich, immersive experience that reclaims and redefines the legacy of one of mythology’s most formidable goddesses.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️- a great retelling of Hera the goddess of marriage, family, children and women.

Such an amazing retelling of this goddess from a new perspective! The goddess who appears to be pictured as a villain is every other story gets her own story with a much more heroic telling!

The use of third person made the book flow extremely well and made for an excellent read!!!

Her jealously and vindictive behaviour towards Zeus is always the main subject when it comes to her stories and before that it is hard to imagine that she was someone so carefree and loving before things happened.

Jennifer saint provides a great insight into the why Hera got her reputation for being a vengeful goddess by humanising her to an extent allowing for us readers to get a better look at her as a whole!!

This book in no way nulls the wrong doings that’s occurred from Hera but provides a better explanation as to why she did the things she did.

This story was very interesting and so much fun to read!! I love the Greek mythology and Jennifer saint books have definitely gone to the top of my tbr to get a better insight into all of the gods!!!

There are some tough topics discussed in this book… the main one being the ancient Greeks lack of understanding of consent so maybe read TW’s if you need to 🫶

I absolutely love all of Jennifer Saint’s retellings of different women in greek mythology and this was no exception!

We see the story of the gods of Olympus rise to power and eventual decline through the eyes of Hera and her tumultuous relationship with Zeus.
It brings new light to how the events are seen through her perspective. How she is cast as a villain amongst heroes of earth but is she truly the villain we have been made to believe? Or was she a woman who knew her power and so she was “put in her place”

It’s so interesting because she’s so much more complex in this story. She isn’t “good” she doesn’t see other women as her equal or support them and her children are a means to get revenge on Zeus but she also isn’t the villain she’s made out to be in the myths.

The narrator does a great job of telling her story and bringing her voice to life and I loved listening to it as I worked.

Jennifer Saint’s enthralling tale of a complex goddess deals with love, betrayal, vengeance and spite amongst many other themes and tangents.
The audiobook adds a dimension of theatre to the story and heightens the drama and intensity - an enthralling, although sometimes uncomfortable, listen which I would highly recommend.
Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to listen.

Thank you NetGalley and Headline Audio for the advance copy.

As I was provided with the audiobook, I want to praise the audio. I loved the diction and tone: it felt very fitting for the story. As a bonus, I found the pronunciation of Greek words a lovely touch, helping with immersion!

Now focusing on the content: I finished the book in a day, which is always a good sign. As others have mentioned, I surprised myself by feeling sympathy for Hera. I had always thought of her as cruel and evil, further tormenting women who had suffered Zeus´ abuses. Do not get me wrong, I still disapprove of her lack of compassion (which, to be fair, cannot be expected of a classical god). However, I did want her to succeed in her pursuit to hurt Zeus and break the chain of submission he established.

This is the second of Saint´s classic retellings I have read, and I will keenly read more of her works and keep an eye out for future publications.

I have read and enjoyed the author’s 3 previous Greek myth retellings so I was pleased to be able to read an advance copy of her newest title.

Jennifer Saint has a very easy to read (or in this case, listen to) writing style which I which makes the reading experience pleasurable and feel effortless.

In the original stories, Hera is shown as jealous and vengeful, making it hard to relate to her. However in this retelling the author manages to make the reader feel far more sympathetic towards her, without changing her actions. While maybe not a likeable character we can at least understand her motivations.

Because Hera is such an important and powerful goddess, her story intertwines with many of the other characters in Greek mythology and I liked this aspect.

For me, as someone with a very basic knowledge of the Greek myths, I find these feminist retellings very powerful and I learn a lot from them. Someone who is very knowledgable about the original stories might have a different experience but I really enjoy them and look forward to reading any more that the author writes.

I particularly enjoyed listening to the audiobook of Hera and thought the narrator was excellent.

Hera by Jennifer Saint and narrated by Naomi Frederick is a glorious retelling of the myth of Hera, immortal goddess and daughter of the ancient Titan Cronos. Often recounted as a spiteful, vengeful wife, this retelling is completely different and I was all in!

Jennifer Saint has a unique way of re-imagining the characters of Mount Olympus, reframing Hera to a woman of strangth and tenacity, fighting for what is right against the odds

Naomi Frederick is a highly intuitive and very talented narrator. Incredibly versatile, she adds a colourful narrative to this brilliant book

Absolutely outstanding

Thank you to Netgalley, Headline Audio | Wildfire, the author Jennifer Saint and narrator Naomi Frederick for this fantastic ALC. My review is left voluntarily and all opinions are my own

“They call out to Hera the bride, Hera the wife, Hera the mother, with every gift and sadness the hold. Each of them is a stream flowing into an ocean of disparity, deeper and vaster than she could imagine, and she follows them one after the other, each women’s suffering so familiar she can barely tell one anguish from the next. “

I never thought that I would I feel very much positive emotion at all towards Hera based on EVERY other retelling of various Greek myths and stories. It was refreshing to think about hera in a totally new light - of, at times, infuriating by her lack of action where she could have really made a difference vs where she chose to use her power.

I really enjoyed thinking about the truth of her perceptions vs what I’ve always assumed/ the image I have of Hera. The writing style didn’t quite capture me like Ariadne. I would have preferred a first person narrative to tell Hera’s story - for me it felt a bit jumpy at times and I struggled to feel really at one with the narrative until the last third of the book. However, chunks of the writing really enamoured me. I particularly loved the descriptions of the lands/the earth, in addition to the depiction of Gaia. I could really feel the presence of Gaia through the writing.

Also Hera’s relation to Typhon and therefore the chimera, hydra etc was something that I was totally unaware of? Always nice to learn something new. Plus I enjoyed the little easter eggs from Jennifer Saint’s other books.

This is her best one yet (and that's saying something because I'm a huge fan of her other books)!

Hera is a very rich book and I felt like it made Jennifer Saint’s books come full circle for me because, in illustrating the vastness of Hera’s life - and that of any god - it touched on some of the narratives explored in the author’s other rewritings.

Hera is known in current times usually as Zeus’s wife, the goddess of marriage, but this book intends to show just how much more Hera has to show for herself. The book starts right after Hera and Zeus take down Cronus and the Titans, starting the age of the Olympians. It shows how Hera was in equal measure responsible for this take-down of the old regime and is just as powerful as Zeus, but suffers at the hand of misogyny.

Reading this book was really infuriating because of all of the situations Hera goes through, especially when it comes to her relationship (in the wide sense) with Zeus, and it intended for us readers to feel that way. Jennifer Saint’s writing is at its best here; she was really able to portray the vastness of the life of a god, compared to the fleetness of a human's - the changes and the frustrating many cases of sexism/misogyny.

The book doesn’t seek to redeem Hera against characterisations of her as the jealous and vengeful wife, but humanizes her and gives an overview of her life and all of the many things that happened in the life of a goddess that is one of the most ancient and powerful among the Olympians.

Thank you very much to Wildfire/Headline for my stunning proof! I also listened to this one as an audiobook, narrated by Naomi Frederick, and it was incredible. Thank you so much to Headline audio!

“All she knows is that he leaves a trail of broken women on his wake. And she is the most broken of them all. It makes her dangerous. And he knows it”

I listened to the audio version of that book. I truly enjoyed how the narrator read the text. It felt like a monument, a long and epic poem and truly helped to get immersed in J. Saint’s prose deeper.
Even if I love deep mythology retellings, where events are often completely different from the legends we have, I liked how here the motives are more discussed than the actions. Hera is a very complex character and we go through her whole story. All her contradictions and the way she processes events are deeply human (the fact that she overanalyzes human behavior wasn’t lost on me, and is a great mirror of her own character). Through the pages, we develop empathy for Hera. Not because she’s overly sympathetic (she remains very gray, and that’s this novel’s force), but because we learn why she acts like she does. She is the first victim, the first reduced to silence. She sees her life and her hopes collapse one after the other and reacts like she believes she has to. And, like all of us, she makes mistakes.
Which makes her very human, and opens the book’s question, identity. What defines us? Our enemies? Our family? The people who watch us? Their expectations? How do they interpret our actions?
With its very beautiful prose, in addition to narrating Hera’s story to us, this book incites us to question about ourselves.

Thank you NetGalley, Jennifer Saint and Headline Audio/Wildfire for the ALC. My opinions are my own.

I know very little about Greek mythology although it’s something I find interesting. I welcomed the opportunity to listen to this title which covers Hera and Zeus in particular. Zeus is particularly unpleasant and although I had sympathy with Hera, I found her difficult to like. That aside, their stories are the stuff of legend and this title provides a brilliant insight into the whole wold of Greek myth and legend. Some difficult themes are explored; incest, abuse, violence amongst others, but it’s all in context and handled well. I found the narration rather mixed. Pronounciation of some place names felt and sounded incorrect and jarred. It wouldn’t encourage me to listen to other titles narrated by this person; I’d stick to a book version.

I enjoyed listening to Hera a lot, I've always loved Classics stories so hearing this take on the trials and tribulations of Hera was exciting. The cadence of the writing appeared to give the feel of an epic poem, so fit right in. Naomi Frederick did a good job of getting this across. The story made me ponder Hera in a new light, which I guess was the point? So that was a success!

A few slight niggles on the reading, the pronunciation of some of the names threw me right off for a while (like Ath'ina for Athena, there were a few others, that one in particular stood out). Other than throwing me for a loop the first few times they were mentioned I got used to it and continued to enjoy the story as it progressed.

I would be interested in listening, or reading, more of Jennifer's take on other Sagas and godly tales in the future.

Rating: 3.5 stars

I’m glad I read this book as I learnt a lot about greek mythology, especially surrounding Hera. It did sometimes feel a bit of a chore to pick up though as it’s not a page turner. It spans over thousands of years so it’s more like a bunch of short stories all connected together. Basically you’re learning Greek mythology in a story format.

It’s written well and Hera is given very good reasons for acting the way she did. I have a lot of sympathy for her now. I hated Zeus already but despise him after reading this.

I listen to this story by audiobook and the narrator was perfect for the voice for Hera. However, there were quite a few wrong pronunciations of names that quite bothered me honestly to the point I don’t know if it be an audio version I’d recommend.

Overall I’m giving it a 3.5 stars but closer to 3 stars personally for me.

(Content warning of sexual assault for this book! Not graphic but it is talked about a lot)

Thank you to NetGalley, Headline Audio and the author for granting me an Advance Reader Copy. All opinions are honest and my own.

First things first - TW are Rape, Sexism/Misogyny and Incest!! Oh and Zues...just for those like me that gets a bit aggy hearing the crap he does.

I love anything Greek mythology related, so knew I would enjoy this book! I love how Jennifer focuses on the powerful bad ass females of Greek Mythology, I feel like we do not hear hardly enough about them, just the basic information. So I hope she continues sharing the wonderful powerful stories!

For me Hera the goddess has always been a hit and miss for me due to Heracles and also knowing what her womanizer of a husband does. However this gave me a bit more empathy for her, her story before her "villain arc". She put up with so much trash, I'm honestly surprised she didn't break sooner and was more harsh.

The narrator was ok, though I didn't like how some of the names were said like Athena and Demeter - I'm not sure if that's just how the narrator says it or if the names are actually meant to be read like that, and everyone else is saying them wrong. Either way I felt the narrator was a good fit, and can picture it being Hera's voice.

Loved the storyline and as mentioned I hope Jennifer continues showcasing these heroines. I really was encaptured from the get go, and honestly it didn't feel like 13 hours of reading, it felt like 5 hours because I enjoyed it so much and got lost in Hera's world.

Overall really enjoyed the book and would recommend to anyone that loves their Greek Mythology and want to hear more about powerful females! So when the book is published don't run or walk, SPRINT... or fly - your choice!!

Thank you to Netgallery for providing me the opportunity to read this book. #Hera # Netgallery # JenniferSaint #GreekMythology

The beguiling story of the Queen of Mount Olympus, told by Jennifer Saint. To say I wanted more would be an understatement. This was a delicious page turner right from the start. Everytime I had to put it down, it was all I could think about. I did end up finishing way past my bedtime, just so I would be able to sleep. Audible narrated so well.

Perfect for fans of Madline Miller and Greek mythology . Grrat narrator and a fascinating retelling of the story of Hera. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the advance audio book

Jennifer Saint is a fantastic writer of Greek mythology retellings and this does not disappoint. This book was like a Greek mythology overview starting with the fall of Cronos all the way through to the fall of the gods all from the POV of Hera, queen of the gods and wife of Zeus. Dipping in and out of so many myths from the really well known ones like Heracles, and Medusa, and into some of the lesser known ones the reader gets a bit of a Greek mythology 101. For me personally it helped me much better understand the chronological order of my favourite Greek myths.

Hera isn't exactly a likeable character, she is, what she always has been, vindictive, jealous, and petty but this book gives a better understanding of why she is this way and although I definitely did not agree with her actions I could at least emphasise with her. I did find it a little repetitive, Zeus does something bad, Hera lashes out at some poor victim of her husband.

While I enjoyed the story and the narrator her pronunciations of some names and places really took me out of the story at times and it took me a little minute to figure out who was who. I am not sure if she was perhaps pronouncing them the correct Greek way and my knowledge of the pronunciations is just wrong in which case I retract this statement.

Overall a really good retelling, it isn't my favourite by Jennifer Saint but it certainly wasn't a bad read and I would recommend to anyone who loves a good retelling.
Thank you Netgalley and Headline Audio for an arc copy of this audiobook.

Thank You, NetGalley for allowing me to read Hera by Jennifer Saint.

I love Greek mythology and am always on the lookout for more books on it.

I remember reading Atalanta by Jennifer Saint and quite enjoying it.

Hence, I had to request for Hera. I love reading mythology from the female point of view and that is what I found in this book too,

I loved the volatility of Hera and the Gods in general and that made for an interesting read.

I would recommend this book for sure.

Can't wait to read more from the author.

Jennifer Saint's retelling of Greek myths are among my favourite within this genre. She builds a really strong narrative and makes the story very enjoyable and easy to follow. My particular favourite of hers is Atalanta. My issue with this audiobook is two fold though, and in no way a fault of the author. To me, relating to an immortal god, rather than a human, even one a son or daughter of a God, isn't as easy, since the stakes are never quite as high, and Hera's motivations ultimately have less threat to her than they would to a mortal, which to me made her less likeable and more self interested. Yes, I know she's Zeus' sister and powerful, but at times I was thinking of toys and baskets.
Secondly, and way more importantly, the narrator. Her pronounciations, were not just distracting, but actually ended up being laughable, and for the 4th book in what is a series of books so far, why on Earth/Olympus is there no-one directing her on consistancy. Particular favourties were Athena - pronounced Argh-Then-Ah rather than A-thEEn-A, and, even funnier, Ares, pronounced Argh-Rez, rather than Air-Reez. Pirate Gods.

Actual rating 4.5.

I thought I had just about read every Greek myth retelling, but thankfully along comes my favourite, Jennifer Saint, and brings to life a totally and utterly new take on the often reviled Hera, wife of Zeus!

I absolutely adored this perspective on Hera, where she’s not some jealous and possessive wife, but a powerful woman desperate to stand in her own right rather than in Zeus’s shadow. The story was in fact pretty heartbreaking at times, painting her as far more of a victim of Zeus’s wants and needs, taken advantage of in much the same way as the human women we read about. It’s easy to feel enraged whilst reading, but thankfully there were strong bonds of sisterhood and unexpected tender moments towards her own children which brought some light and hope to the story - and as always, it’s beautifully written and compelling. And I truly loved that satisfying ending.

Another triumph from one of my favourite authors!