The Morrigan by Kim Curran is a powerful book filled with fierce battles, complex political intrigue and feminine rage and power.
The Morrigan is a powerful figure from Irish mythology , commonly known as a goddess of war and death and this book would make an excellent introduction to her story to readers who are unfamiliar with the mythology. It is a long and complicated tale with many characters and in general Kim Curran does an excellent job here of streamlining the story and making it easier to follow for the reader. The writing style is wonderful - powerful yet poetic and I frequently found myself highlighting passages as I read because of the striking imagery or unusual turns of phrase, like " I would lick their pain from my fingertips like honey, sucking one delicious agony after the other. "
We first meet the Morrigan as a young girl newly arrived with her family and fellow Gods and Goddesses to the shores of Ireland. She tells us her story in her own words which seems fitting for a woman who was always ready to stand and fight for herself. The narrative style does take a little getting used to at first because it is almost like a stream of consciousness and once the story starts to flow it seems to meander and fork off into several directions before circling back. As a character the Morrigan is fascinating, sometimes cruel and inhumane as one might expect from a Goddess, especially a Goddess of war, but at other times so lonely and afraid that it is easy to forget her power and rage.
This is a story that spans thousands of years and so we are introduced to a huge number of characters, some obviously more important than others. It is a lot to keep track of for the reader and there is a character list that helps but I think readers who are completely unfamiliar with the mythology may struggle a little to keep it all straight. I am torn because while spreading the story out into a series may have helped with that issue, the story as written is so sweeping and epic and powerful that I could not help but love it .
This is a wonderfully immersive read and Kim Curran's version of The Morrigan is a character that will stay with me for a long time.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own

Thank you to Jack Hallam at Penguin House for emailing me about this book.

This book is so detailed that at times it did feel a bit like an information overload, but it is necessary information. The book achieves a great deal and I went in quite blind which I loved, it has fantastic feminine rage and fantasy.

Thank you, Michael Joseph and Kim Curran, for a Netgalley eARC of The Morrigan.

Before reading this story, I must admit, I knew nothing of The Morrigan. The blurb intrigued me with the potential to be the epitome of feminine rage.

This retelling is incredibly detailed and felt slightly autobiographical. For me, I struggled with this, especially the first 30% of the book. I did get used to it but when you're deciding to read this just know that it is a lot. So much happens its slightly difficult to remember where you are.

The book absolutely did give me what I needed in respect of Feminine rage, the characters, description and story was beautifully written. Just maybe this style of writing wasn't for me.

This is a bold story, filled with angst and feminine rage. I wasn't a fan of the writing style and I struggled to follow the story at times. I was intrigued by the story as I love Mythology tales and it was an interesting read.

Thank you, Michael Joseph and Kim Curran, for approving my request for a Netgalley eARC of The Morrigan.

The Morrigan explores eons of Irish mythology in a whirlwind tale spanning thousands of years of cutthroat agendas, political games, betrayals of turmoil, and trickery. A light horror with a vengeance, gore, and dark themes runs throughout the plot of The Morrigan. I would encourage readers to check the trigger warnings to ensure this is a book you would enjoy reading, as some parts detail bloody battles, grief, death, and abuse.

Kim Curran’s writing is beautiful, bold, blunt, and fiercely descriptive, and she feels as ageless as the goddess telling her story. The storytelling has a slow, drifting pace, covering centuries of years of early Irish history in the making, seen from different identities the Morrigan takes in her journey. Kim Curran’s world-building shows the care and painstaking detail implemented to bring this story to life and invokes the energy behind the complex character of the Morrigan many identities through Irish mythology.

I loved Morrigan’s evolution of her identity and ever-changing forms. She’s so inhuman at times with her untamed, bloodthirsty nature, wild as the sea with her power and rage, and then so bleakly mortal with her battles with loneliness and moments of weakness. She’s a character of many faces that are all bewitching as she reinvents herself through grief, joy, and unyielding in the face of her suffering and limitations imposed upon her by the male form of both human and Tuath. I enjoyed the many forms and emotional states of mind the Morrigan journeys through.

An immersive, feminist retelling of Irish myth and legend of the origins of this ancient land full of magic, mythical heroes, shapeshifters, and games of Celtic gods. A book to symbolise why we should never stop fighting for our rights and challenging perceptions to be true to ourselves (though hopefully with a little less tearing warriors’ limb from limb). If you enjoyed Juliet Marillier Sevenwaters Series or Lucy Holland’s historical Celtic retellings, you would enjoy reading The Morrigan’s dark, fierce feminist retelling of the ancient Irish origin story.

"They reduced me to an old woman wailing for the dead. But I was so much more than that."

Curran's debut novel twists the myths and folklore of Irish Mythology, specifically the Morrigan, into a tale of wartime, revenge, and love.

"They called me the Morrigan and a great many things besides. Phantom Queen. Battle Crow. Hag. But the Morrigan will do".

Before this book, I knew only briefly about the Morrigan because little information was available online. I knew about her connection to Cú Culann, but I wanted to know why she was called the other names and what her story was, and this book did exactly that.

The Morrigan is a Goddess, but she is also a warrior, a sister, a mother, and so much more. I grieved for her losses and understood her pain, suffering, and loneliness.

Others misunderstand her in many ways, seeing her only as a Goddess of death and war. However, she is so much more than that.

She is clever, prophetic, strategic, and a goddess who has experienced and dealt with a lot of pain.

This retelling is so incredibly detailed and powerful. It makes me want to learn even more about Irish myth and folklore. Another Goddess that made an appearance that I want to learn more about is Airmed, the goddess of Healing. Seeing parts of her in this story, intermingling with the Morrigan, fascinates me to read more about her.

This feminist retelling is one you need on your shelves!

You know that feeling when Shania Twain says 'lets go girls' and you feel like you can take on the world? That is exactly how I felt reading this book.

A big thank you to Kim Curran and Net Galley, as well as Penguin Random House for allowing me to read this absolute gem of a book.

Typically, this type of writing style isn't one I would go for. But this almost 'autobiographic' story telling completely blew me away. I was in love with her strength, how she kept her rage at bay. How she tried to strengthen the woman around her & how she desperately above it all, just wanted to be seen and loved.

There were some fabulous strong feminine lines throughout that just took my breath away and gave me chills. I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone who loves a strong FMC.

just. bravo for this.

I didn’t know much about the Morrigan in Irish mythology, but after reading this I want to know so much more! A powerful retelling of this goddess of war (among other things), representing the rage and complexity of women across the world. We follow her across battlefields and worlds and experience her cunning, vengeful nature as well as her grief and love. The descriptions were beautiful and jumped off the page. I’d highly recommend for those who love a mythology retelling but have been seeking something new.

The Morrigan is a powerful retelling of mythology. With shapeshifting, divinity and war, it is like an epic fantasy book but with a strong basis in real culture. As with the best books, you learn something meaningful whilst reading.

I have been a big fan of Irish and British mythology since I was a child. After watching Merlin at an impressionable age, I dreamed of exploring old estates and castles. Since then, I have not only visited a variety of ruins but I’ve also tried to read every mythology retelling I can get my hands on. The Morrigan provides a new and fresh perspective on one of the most powerful goddesses of Irish and English legend.

I think that this was a well-written book with a strong focus on feminism. The titular character is fierce and unapologetic. She is a goddess of many faces and clearly separate from mortal kind. This reminded me of stories about fae in Britain like Shakespeare’s Titania and Oberon. Their strangeness makes them seem alien. But the author still managed to make The Morrigan sympathetic. I thoroughly enjoyed exploring this world of myth and mayhem.

The Morrigan - Kim Curran

I haven’t read much Irish folklore in the past so it did take me a little bit to get used to the names and pronunciations etc. However, this didn’t take away from the story for me.

The Morrigan reads much like a diary. You read everything through a constant stream of consciousness which is filled with female rage and vengeance. Kim’s writing style is captivating, beautifully connecting different lifetimes, you feel every emotion hard, sometimes being uncomfortable.

I strongly recommend you read the trigger warnings before starting this book, there is some dark themes which I know may not be for everyone.

A powerful, fierce and unapologetically feminist debut for Kim, I can’t wait to see what her next work looks like.

Thank you NetGalley, publishers Michael Joseph and Penguin Random House for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

It’s been a while since I’ve read this type of story, with lots of characters with unfamiliar names to navigate, so it took me a while to get into it and become interested in the machinations and cutthroat politics of the Tribe of the Gods. Kim Curran’s debut adult novel tells the story of the Irish mythological goddess of war, The Morrigan. She’s made for war but capable of love. Easily made furious (know that feeling), she strives to keep the promise made to her mother that she will not use her power to harm the tribe. That intention is put to the test repeatedly.
Drawing on The Mythological Cycle, Kim Curran has kept its motif of threes. Before she becomes The Morrigan, great queen, she is Badb, the crow. Only she can see the future and shapeshift, choosing often to be a murder of crows; her talons itch and sprout under her skin. Living as a human, she takes on the name Macha. In her vengeful form, she is Nemain, the enemy. She has three sisters, is the surviving triplet, has a son with three hearts. She is sometimes an actor, at others an observer.
There’s a lot crammed in here. I think I’d have enjoyed it more if it had been spread over two or three times the length so the characters and events could have had more room to tell their stories. I recommend this if you’d like to be swept up in a whirlwind story covering centuries of clan battles, magic, betrayal and political machinations.

4.25/5 Stars

“They reduced me to an old woman wailing for the dead. But I was so much more than that. I was magnificent. I was multitudes.
Trying to tell my story is like trying to hold the smoke of a forest fire in”

This was such an incredible book about the Irish goddess of war and death.
The writing was beautiful (I highlighted so many quotes) though not quite a style I usually read and it took me a bit longer to get through because I wanted to fully absorb the Morrigan’s story.

Her curiosity, her rage, her pain and how her story is interwoven with the history of Ireland made for a really interesting read. It does discuss heavy (but important) topics so I would recommend having a look at the trigger warnings!

Overall, I would absolutely recommend the book. If you like feminist mythological retelling, please do yourself a favour and pick up this book.

It is a while since I read a book that was so filled with feminist rage like this. The Morrigan is a shape shifting goddess living a myriad of lives. Her lives are often filled with heartbreak, war and rage. She mirrors the lives of more ordinary women and perhaps that is the most interesting part of this book. Hard to read in places but worth the effort.

Thank you to NetGalley, Michael Joseph (Penguin Random House) and Kim Curran for sending me an eARC of this in exchange for an honest review.

The Morrigan is a feminist retelling of Irish folklore from the perspective of the Morrigan herself. The story is full of feminine rage, with the Morrigan being bold, powerful, unapologetic and downright brutal.

The book is written as if it’s Morrigan’s stream of consciousness - almost like a diary in ways. You get all of her thoughts and feelings about what is happening in the world she is in. Opposed to being one story, it’s a lot of smaller stories that span her entire lifetime(s).

It’s very descriptive and captivating - it hooks you right in and keeps you wanting to read on.

Despite this not being my usual type of read, I still enjoyed it - although I suggest looking up content / trigger warnings for the book as some not very nice things happen (and it is pretty gory too)

This book was enjoyable.. full of feminine rage and strength.. the story of the morrigan told by herself. Immersion writing full of stories that keep you captivated within the pages always wanting more

A dark, sweeping, vengeance filled retelling that I thoroughly enjoyed. It was beautifully written, I felt every emotion the goddess went through, her grief was consuming and her path a long and bloody one.

Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the chance to read this.

The Morrigan is a stunning feminist retelling of the Irish folklore. I thoroughly enjoyed the overall tale, though I did struggle a little with the way its put together. It felt a little, at times, like there wasn’t an overarching story as opposed to lots of little stories put together. However, it’s beautifully written and I flew through the book. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to friends.

Thank you to NetGalley, Penguin Random House and Kim Curran for gifting me this eARC.

A fantastic retelling of dark, wild Irish legends, narrated by a fearsome goddess of battle and rage. Plenty of blood and guts; love and vengeance; horror, grief, betrayal, beauty, destiny and tragic inevitability. It's not quite the perfection I want for five stars, but it's really bloody close.

Thank you to both Netgalley and penguin random house for the chance to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Anyone who knows me knows I love a good retelling; I’ll be honest, I don’t read much Irish mythology and after reading this, I’m questioning why I’ve waited so long to start.

“Men have always been afraid of women’s anger. Have shushed and shooed us away. And so… they should be afraid”

The Morrigan is a brilliant feminist retelling of Irish Mythology; The Morrigan is bold, fierce, and powerful.

The Morrigan takes on many forms and lives throughout the journey of this novel. There is a beauty in the parallels of her lives to those of the mortal women, though I have to admit, this was not a book I could even attempt to read in one sitting - but that’s okay. Not every book has to be.

This book is for anyone who needs a little more feminine rage. This is a story of transformation, embracing power, and understanding loss. It will always leave you wanting more.

As much as I have been thoroughly enjoying the trend of feminist retellings of stories from Greek mythology, even I have started to hit a wall. With perfect timing, along comes 'The Morrigan'. I confess to having known absolutely nothing about Irish mythology prior to this novel, so this was a real treat.

So, who is 'The Morrigan'? The Morrigan was a powerful Celtic goddess that represented war, fate, sovereignty and fertility. During the novel, we watch The Morrigan as she takes on many different forms and many different lives. What is particularly affecting is that every time the Morrigan shapeshifts, it is painful. It tears her limb from limb. She may be a Goddess, but nothing in the lives she chooses is easy.

The clever nature of the narrative is that it carefully parallels her lives with the lives of mortal women and questions if there is any true path of satisfaction for women. The Morrigan is unapologetically bloodthirsty and furious - she doesn't need to be likeable for you to be riveted by her story, only compelling, which she certainly is.

Thank you so much to Michael Joseph, Penguin Random House and Netgalley for the ARC!