retellings – Page 2 – Cannonball Read 17

“‘Why would anyone love a monster?’ asked Perseus. ‘Who are you to decide who is worthy of love?’ said Hermes. ‘I mean, I wasn’t…’ ‘And who are you to decide who is a monster?’”

Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes

April 4, 2023 by narfna Leave a Comment

I knew I was going to like this, but I didn’t quite expect to like it as much as I did. Sometime in the near future, we’re going to hit the saturation point for Greek mythology retellings in the literary marketplace, but it seems we’re at the peak right now, and it can be hard to sort out the copycat clones from the worthwhile without reading them first. Stone Blind is one of the worthwhile. It’s not enough to just retell a myth, even if you are […]

Natalie Naudus saved me on this one.

Heart of the Sun Warrior (The Celestial Kingdom Duology, #2) by Sue Lynn Tan

March 31, 2023 by narfna Leave a Comment

Last year I got into a really bad habit of not only buying pretty much every first book in a series that looked good to me, but oftentimes buying the sequel as well. That is what I did for this series. I was so convinced I would love it, I overcommitted. When I finally got around to reading the first book, Daughter of the Moon Goddess, in January, I had a tough time getting through it. Something about the pacing and the writing style did […]

“It’s true on a technicality. I’m being held unlawfully. I didn’t commit the crime for which I’ve been convicted. But if you look at it another way, I deserve to be here. I did a lot of other shitty things, for which I wasn’t punished.”

The Family Chao by Lan Samantha Chang

February 10, 2023 by narfna Leave a Comment

I wish I would have known this was a retelling of The Brothers Karamazov before I purchased this book and got all excited about it. I probably never would have picked it up. There is a reason that I have never read any of Dostoyevsky’s stuff (or Tolstoy for that matter). The Family Chao follows the titular family, owners of a Chinese restaurant in a small town in America. The parents of the family are immigrants from China, and there are three sons. When the […]

The women of The Odyssey, except eighteen years afterwards, as narrated by Hera.

Ithaca (The Songs of Penelope, #1) by Claire North

January 31, 2023 by narfna 2 Comments

I really, really liked this! Claire North’s writing style translated extremely well to retelling Greek mythology. The undercurrent of female rage and sorrow was pleasing and upsetting at the same time. It’s also darkly funny. I almost feel like I want to re-read this before I write a review so I can get my thoughts more in order, but nobody has time for that. Or, maybe some people do, but I don’t know who they are. I just feel like it was so well done! […]

“He kissed for his enjoyment and mine, and we staggered and stumbled our way to the ground, still kissing for the sheer glory of being alive, the wonder of finding a congenial soul in the world, and the very real prospect of being dead before the weekend.”

The Henchmen of Zenda by K.J. Charles

November 21, 2022 by narfna Leave a Comment

This honestly might be five stars on re-read, but I’ve been handing out five star ratings like they’re candy, and I’ve come off my book high now. This is a strong 4.5 stars for now. Firstly, this is a retelling of The Prisoner of Zenda, a Ruritanian Romance/Adventure/Swashbuckler from the late 1800s, written by Anthony Hope. I’ve never read the original, but before diving into this I did read the detailed summary of the book and I’m really glad I did that, because it was […]

“You have to make the best of whatever story you were born into, and if your story happens to suck ass, well, maybe you can do some good before you go.”

A Mirror Mended (Fractured Fables, #2) by Alix E. Harrow

August 23, 2022 by narfna Leave a Comment

So is this the last one of these then? It was a really good ending, if so. It’s been five years since we last saw Zinnia Gray, and she’s spent that time hopping from world to world, fixing fairytales, and helping princesses, sometimes realizing they don’t need help at all. But Zinnia is beginning to realize she’s running from her own life. She hasn’t spoken to Charm or Prim (who are now married) in six months. She’s avoidance denialing. That’s when she’s pulled through a […]

Zirza on A Gothic Classic for a ReasonIt's one of those wish-you-could-read-it-again-for-the-first-time books. I loved it.
Emmalita on “It came to something when you found yourself hoping that the footsteps you heard were ghosts.”I loved the ending! I don’t think it’s been out long enough to talk about why though.
Dixie on Track Her Down by Melinda LeighI am just starting Track Her Down and I have read them all in order till now and thought I...
Roland of Gilead on How can you give us the gift of a crazy character named Rando Thoughtful and then just as suddenly take that gift away? We need to talk, Uncle Stevie.I came across this randomly years after it was written because I was searching "Random Thoughtful. But I have the...
Emmalita on “Only you, Em, would refer to heartbreak as a distraction. I think I would have a more sympathetic response if I asked to marry a bookcase.”Oh my goodness, Gallifrey was beautiful. I’m sure her mittens were gloriously murdery.

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