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    Circe
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    Circe
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    Circe
    Audiobook12 hours

    Circe

    Written by Madeline Miller

    Narrated by Perdita Weeks

    4.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    The daring, dazzling and highly anticipated follow-up to the New York Times bestseller The Song of Achilles

    In the house of Helios, god of the sun and mightiest of the Titans, a daughter is born. But Circe is a strange child—not powerful, like her father, nor viciously alluring like her mother. Turning to the world of mortals for companionship, she discovers that she does possess power—the power of witchcraft, which can transform rivals into monsters and menace the gods themselves.

    Threatened, Zeus banishes her to a deserted island, where she hones her occult craft, tames wild beasts and crosses paths with many of the most famous figures in all of mythology, including the Minotaur, Daedalus and his doomed son Icarus, the murderous Medea, and, of course, wily Odysseus.

    But there is danger, too, for a woman who stands alone, and Circe unwittingly draws the wrath of both men and gods, ultimately finding herself pitted against one of the most terrifying and vengeful of the Olympians. To protect what she loves most, Circe must summon all her strength and choose, once and for all, whether she belongs with the gods she is born from, or the mortals she has come to love.

    With unforgettably vivid characters and mesmerizing language, Circe is a triumph of storytelling, an intoxicating epic of family rivalry, palace intrigue, love and loss, as well as a celebration of indomitable female strength in a man's world.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHachette Audio
    Release dateApr 10, 2018
    ISBN9781478975311
    Unavailable
    Circe
    Author

    Madeline Miller

    Madeline Miller is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of two novels: The Song of Achilles, which won the Orange Women’s Prize for Fiction 2012, and Circe, which was short-listed for the Women’s Prize for Fiction 2019. Her books have been translated into over thirty two languages. Miller holds an MA in Classics from Brown University, studied in the Dramaturgy department at Yale School of Drama, where she focused on the adaptation of classical texts to modern forms, and taught Latin, Greek, and Shakespeare to high school students for over a decade.

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    Reviews for Circe

    4.5/5

    2,216 ratings143 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I don’t have much original to say about this book, since it's popularity has produced so many reviews.It’s the story of Circe, the daughter of Titans, whom was exiled to a lonely island when she defied her father.You may have met her in Greek myths such as the The Odyssey, as Odysseus lands on her island and famously has his men changed to pigs. Eventually, he takes her as a lover and spends several years with her.But this is her intimate, extended story – as an unwanted child, as an exile where she honed her herbcraft and witchcraft; human and more than human; woman and goddess; reviled, feared and loved; humiliated and wise. And most of all as a strong woman with dreams.This is my favorite retelling of the dozen or so retellings I have read. I did not read Miller's earlier [Song of Achilles] when it was released; now, having loved this one, I’ll go back and read that one and look eagerly forward to whatever Ms Miller publishes next.I listened to the audio version with Perdita Weeks as the reader. I loved both her reading and her accent. I will look for more that she narrates.
    • 1/5
      I really could not finish this dull, lifeless adaptation of the Greek myth of Circe. The central character was written as a whiny teenager, and the author dropped in random bits of mythology in so dull a manner I thought I was reading an unenthusiastic book report. It's back to Robert Graves for me!
    • 5/5
      My enjoyment of this book comes from two things in my life. I teach "The Odyssey" to freshman every year, and my 10-yr-old is obsessed with Percy Jackson and is spending the summer reading the series. I knew many of the stories before starting the novel, but found the parallel characters and settings with Percy Jackson fun to discuss with my son. Madeline Millers interpretation of Circe's life is a fun read and one I can recommend to others that enjoy the myths of the Greek gods.
    • 4/5
      Super accessible retelling of Circe's life story -- from her perspective rather than Odysseus's. A quick, compelling read, with interesting characterizations of a variety of mythological figures. A great beach read but not without depth
    • 4/5
      Miller has done something clever in reimagining Circe, a minor but intriguing character from the Odyssey, and in reimagining the, well, polity of the various deities of Greek mythology. Miller's account offers stories of her growth and change over centuries of time and ends with her perhaps making a big mistake, perhaps making the best decision of her life. The ending is, to my mind, open enough to allow for a sequel. Enjoy CIRCE for now.
    • 5/5
      Based on the Greek mythological character Circe, who was the daughter of the Titan sun god Helios, and Perse, one of the three thousand Oceanid nymphs. Her brothers were Aeëtes, keeper of the Golden Fleece, and Perses. Her sister was Pasiphaë, the wife of King Minos of Crete and mother of the Minotaur. Madeline Miller expands upon the tale of Circe in Homer's Odyssey to work in her early life, her interactions with her family and other Titans, and what happened to her after Odysseus left her island. A totally fascinating story! I love the cover of the print book, with its reflective copper/gold image, but the image on the audiobook is quite cool too. Perdita Weeks (who plays Higgins on the Magnum P. I. reboot) was a fabulous reader - as the story is told in first person from Circe's point of view, I definitely felt she defined Circe.
    • 5/5
      Rating: 6* of fiveWhat does it mean to be a god?I thought once that gods are the opposite of death, but I see now they are more dead than anything, for they are unchanging, and can hold nothing in their hands.******You cannot know how frightened gods are of pain. There is nothing more foreign to them, and so nothing they ache more deeply to see.******But gods are born of ichor and nectar, their excellences already bursting from their fingertips. So they find their fame by proving what they can mar: destroying cities, starting wars, breeding plagues and monsters. All that smoke and savor rising so delicately from our altars. It leaves only ash behind.What Circe learns in this novel is that gods aren't much more than vessels crafted to serve a purpose. The gods exist relative to us humans so that they may be filled and emptied; all the roots and seeds of the universe's awareness reside in them. The gods woke, they were not born, they did not (as humans, created only in personal union, always do) represent the culmination of anything. They were not, then they were. Where we struggle to find purpose in, a frame for, our human existence, the gods in the myths and tales struggle to find individual, personal meaning. Athena, born of her male parent's really bad headache, has shape and purpose from the instant she arrives in the world. She's got to spend human lives by the scores to perceive the dimmest outline of personal meaning in a cataclysm like the Trojan War. Her existence is framing the story of this war; her fighting for one side and against the other is what her identity, her meaning, derives from. She's defining herself through this war. Her purpose, Goddess Athena the Personification of Wisdom, was with her always. Down here on Earth, meaning is an inevitable precondition of human life. Priam, Helen, Agamemnon represent the culmination of generations of royal births. Their meaning in life is to lead large groups of Greeks to their glorious deaths, reduced to simplest terms and presented only in the purpose or frame of the goddess's desired war. We complete patterns we cannot ever see because we are always amid them, albeit without a sense of our orientation within them. Our multivarious searches for a purpose to plop our meanings into go by many names, religion and art and philosophy and sex. The gods see, therefore create, the pattern of meaning we weave in our searches for "Personal Purpose" in the world.The whole review, very much TL;DR for LT purposes, goes live tomorrow at Expendable Mudge Muses Aloud. But you get the idea; it's a six-star read because it made me think and think and think. I love books that do this. [The Song of Achilles] did as well. Madeline Miller's beautiful prose makes my brain click on, my heart switch from vibrate to song mode, and my eyes strangely susceptible to atmospheric contaminants requiring copious tearing to cleanse the irritants out.That's my story, anyway. I'm stickin' to it.
    • 5/5
      Outstanding. Miller has worked her way inside the Greek myths and legends to flesh out their gods, Titans, mortals, and monsters with not only backstories but motivations, conflicts, inconsistencies, entanglements, nuances, and scars. That's surely the point for anyone who studies classics, but she's done the writer's work as well to give it all a solid armature of plot and narrative arc that's not always there when you get them piecemeal, as most of us have done. And the result is thrilling, honestly. Miller is a strong writer, and—just as important when working with this kind of deep historical material—she has an excellent ear, so not a word rings false. From the book's opening pages the witch Circe is a character to wonder and care about—a believable and fascinating anti/heroine. I loved every word.There are also some interesting meditations here on mortality and fate, both of which are often on my mind these days. The last page and a half was as moving as anything I've read in a long time.Also in awe of the book's insane crossover power. Circe is for lovers of literary fiction and historical fiction, book clubs, scholars, your aunt, your teenager, your best friend. This was a great book to wind up a good reading year.(There are some neat images of Circe on Miller's blog.)
    • 4/5
      Lovely retelling of Circe's story. We all know her from "The Odyssey" as the witch who turned Odyssey's men into pigs, and kept him on her island as her lover for a year. That was the extent of what I knew about Circe. In this novel, Circe herself tells of growing up a daughter of Helios in a household filled with gods, nymphs, and other immortals whose squabbles, jealousies, and self-centeredness is repugnant to her. She is disdained by the others, including her own siblings and mother, but learns to use herbs, potions and magic words to transform beings into their true forms. This becomes her curse and her blessing. I especially liked the ending to her story. It was satisfying on many levels and makes you say, "Ah, of course!"
    • 5/5
      Circe, Marilyn Miller, author; Perdita Weeks, narratorIn this re-imagined story of the Greek goddess Circe, Marilyn Miller has done a wonderful job of bringing her to life. The narrator is superb, as she uses different voices and stress points to make each character unique. I studied Greek mythology in College, many years ago, and her presentation evoked many pleasant memories for me. I really enjoyed listening to it and remembering the history it portrayed of Troy and Sparta, the Titans and the Olympians. I remembered and re-imagined with her, all of the heroes, heroines, and villains, that I had once loved reading about. Although she was considered a minor goddess, Circe’s interactions with Odysseus, Athena, Daedalus, Prometheus, Hermes, Zeus, the Cyclops, Trident, Helios, Scylla, Penelope, the Sirens, and many more, were fascinating.The relationship between the gods, goddesses and mortals was very creative, as was her handling of mysterious events during that time. Her interpretation of their bitterness and vengeful behavior was illuminating. People in modern times are sometimes as arrogant and petty, vindictive and unforgiving toward each other. The pride and arrogance sometimes resulted in remorse but in most cases the behavior simply proved how unrewarding and detrimental it could be. It was difficult to trust mortals or the gods. The gods had no interest in mortals other than to use them as playthings, to be toyed with and then disposed of, but in some rare cases, some of the gods were kinder. To most, humans held no real value, though. The lesser gods, had less power and they had to be more clever or use magic and witchcraft to better their superiors who even chose to punish them. Imagine a punishment that lasted into eternity…the torture, the torment, the hopelessness. gods and goddesses were immortal and simply existed to please themselves. Any who defied or broke the rules paid dearly.If you loved the Greek classics, you will love Miller’s reinterpretation of Circe.
    • 2/5
      This was my third attempt at this book. The first two times I didn't make it much more than 50 pages in before acknowledging I don't enjoy mythology. I didn't like it when the tales were written by Homer and don't when it is Madeleine Miller at the keyboard. In other words, "Circe, its not you, its me." I love the idea of a feminist(ish) retelling of the great myths, but I don't actually want to read that (or any) retelling.This book sat on my shelf staring me down for months. Then the online book group I moderate chose it as the August read. I took it off the shelf, and it sat beside my bed staring me down. Deciding that life was too short, I asked my co mod to lead the August discussion, and resigned myself to not reading a book club book for the first time since we started the club in 2014. That was until a friend from the book club said I should try the audio. One last try, and WOOHOO I finished the book. The reader was excellent, and there were times I was truly engaged, but there were also many more times I was listening and realized I had no clue what had been said for the last 10 or 20 or 30 minutes because I my mind had left the building. (Nearly everything with Hermes left me thinking about what I was going to make for dinner or when I had time for a pedicure, or some other such completely unimportant thing.)It is a simple matter of bad match of book and reader. The writing was quite good as a matter of craft, and the book is jam packed with good stuff like sex and violence and family drama. As a matter of fact, I kept thinking it would make a kick-ass telenovela, and the ending absolutely confirmed that. [ The cuckolded wife of Circe's long-term lover attends at the birth of Circe's daughters conceived with the son of said wife and said ex-lover. If that is not a telenovela storyline I don't know what is. Everyone else loved this book, and I can understand why, it just was not for me.
    • 5/5
      Before reading this, my knowledge of the Greek myths consisted of bits and pieces that I had to fit together like a jigsaw in my mind. Miller has not only put them all the characters in context for me, but produced a narrative that flows beautifully. The story of Circe, daughter of Helios the sun god, has been retold in a way no one else has ever achieved. Like Miller's Song of Achilles, I can recommend this one heartily.
    • 5/5
      Very enjoyable retelling with rich additional details.
    • 5/5
      Chef's kiss. A total comfort read (I loved reading the Greek myths as a kid and I studied Latin in first year university), while also being SO feminist and having so much emotional depth. I love it.
      Also, I read it through my library's "Fast Read ebooks" service where you don't have to wait on a hold but you have to return it in 7 days. Super cool and I'm glad I know about it now.
    • 3/5
      Having taught The Odyssey for many years, I was curious to see what this book had to offer to the famous Greek myth. I admire Miller’s writing style, which replicates Homer’s, but the story seems a bit far fetched to me. That may be more my problem than hers since I am so familiar with the traditional story of Circe. I had no trouble with the gods and goddesses since I am familiar with the epic, but I would think others might struggle to keep up with the names. There is a list in the back of the book. It might be good for those who haven’t read the story to print that list. All in all, it was entertaining reading.
    • 5/5
      What I remembered of the story of Circe is a hazy recollection of her appearing in the Aeneid as one of the trials of Odysseus as he made his way back to Ithaca after the Trojan War - specifically turning his men into pigs.What I got from Madeline Miller's wonderful noveliztion of Circe's life is a luminous fairy tale for grown-ups, and listening to it as an audio book narrated exquisitely by Perdita Weeks was the way that myths and legends are meant to be learned - by word of mouth.Circe, usually portrayed as a emasculating bitch in classical literature is, under Miller's pen, shown to be a feminist heroine from her beginnings as the scorned ugly duckling child of her father, Helios, and her naiad mother to our final look at her as a fully-formed (and perhaps even happy?) woman, Circe is portrayed as resourceful and brave as shwe faces every challenge the gods can throw at her.If you have any kind of passing knowledge of Greek mythology and/or Homer; epic poem, much of the narrative and characters will be familiar to you. However, the author's style and use of language keeps you turning the pages even when you know a lot of the outcomes. I needed a book to take me away from the real world and this one certainly did. Don't miss this one.
    • 4/5
      I'd read "Song for Achilles" and thought it was OK but nothing special. Circe sounded more my kind of thing though & reviews were interesting. And I enjoyed it much more than "Achilles". I knew nothing about Circe although I did vaguely remember the pigs bit from that general notion of Greek myths you get from culture. I enjoyed it a lot.
    • 5/5
      The intended audience for this novel are adults; there are few young adult characters in this book.If you’ve read Odysseus, you’ll remember when he and his men arrive at an island and the men are turned into swine by a sorceress. That woman is Circe. This novel is her story. Circe’s father is Helios--the god of the Sun. He rides his chariot across the sky daily. They are not of the Olympians; they are Titans. Circe’s mother is a nymph and, like all gods and those who are with gods, cares only for herself. These are selfish beings that do whatever it takes to get what they want. Circe is different; she isn’t as selfish. She truly wants love. She agrees to raise one of her brothers, thinking he will always love her. When he grows up (in the way of gods), he only cares for himself. Circe is continually treated as a lesser being, unworthy of spending time with gods, and being left out. She eventually discovers her abilities as a witch and confesses to a few bad deeds that causes her to be banished.Circe spends centuries on her island where she cultivates her skills and tames the animals; this is where she becomes a force for gods to take note of. She finds mortals interesting and wants little to nothing to do with the gods. It’s during the time she lives on the island that she encounters the Minotaur, Daedalus, Icarus, Medea, and Odysseus. She has a child and the consequences of the child changes everything for her future. Her story on the island is fascinating as she becomes who she is--she isn’t pathetic anymore but strong and, in many ways, wise to the gods which allows her to make brave decisions.I thoroughly enjoyed listening to this novel.
    • 5/5
      Brilliantly done! I'll be rereading this one for sure. This tour-de-force fleshes out the character of Circe and puts the reader inside her POV, providing a 180° different perspective from the "classics". Highly recommend!
    • 5/5
      Having read and loved The Song of Achilles, by Madeline Miller, and having heard great things about Circe, I got the Audible edition. First of all, kudos to the narrator, Perdita Weeks, who made listening a pleasure. Coupled with a superb story, this book is wonderful. Circe is not a beloved goddess, and the other gods and goddesses can be (and usually are) mean and petty. Although I read some mythology years ago and remember some of the gods, I've forgotten most of their stories. I do remember that humans + gods = trouble. I immersed myself in the story, the tale of Circe who is not quite like most goddesses but learns to embrace who she is. What a lovely and engaging story.
    • 4/5
      This was a solid novel, but it lags and meanders in several parts- which serve as a detriment to the whole rather than augmenting it. However, there are some great scenes in here (especially involving Odysseus) and there is much to be learnt, appreciated, and respected in this book. A solid effort and a good book nonetheless.3.5 stars!
    • 5/5
      "That is one thing gods and mortals share. When we are young, we think ourselves the first to have each feeling in the world.""Life is not so simple as a loom. What you weave, you cannot unravel with a tug." "He does not mean that it does not hurt. He does not mean that we are not frightened. Only that: we are here. This is what it means to swim in the tide, to walk the earth and feel it touch your feet. This is what it means to be alive." Circe is the brilliant retelling of the Greek myth of Circe, daughter of the sun god Helios and the nymph Perse. Circe is a witch, a demigod who has been, in this telling, alienated and marginalized all her life -- set aside by parents, ridiculed by siblings, scoffed at by other gods, eventually exiled to an island to live out her days in isolation and despair. Not so easily is this heroin cast aside. The language in this literary recreation is spare and lovely. Circe herself is a strong, admirable woman who gradually learns to stand up for herself and make choices based on self-interest, yes, but also on the basis of a clear moral compass. As her story unfolds, so does that of Greek mythology: the story of Odysseus who takes Circe as a lover and by whom she bears a son, the stories of the Minotaur and Scylla, Prometheus, Daedalus and Icarus, Achilles and Hector, and more. Had Greek mythology been told with this sense of story and pacing when I was in high school, I would have loved it. This is literature at its best: moving, engaging, humorous, and deeply human (yes, even when we are speaking of gods). The universality of the Greek stories emerges from every tale and Circe herself becomes a heroin to be revered and remembered. Heartily recommended.
    • 5/5
      Radiant, swift, and gripping. Smooth prose and perfect pacing set this grand and subtle myth above us mere mortals. So beautifully wrought, so inevitably realized, it is easy to forget how rare such work really is while under its spell. Worth it for any chapter alone.
    • 4/5
      While Circe will not be among my top books read this year, I did enjoy it. I liked where the author took the character of Circe. The prose was very good and the plot moved along at a nice clip. I particularly like how she portrays the Gods. The book has all the elements of a 5 star read; yet, there is something missing for me and I am having a hard time putting my finger on. You could say, I didn't like it enough to want to read it again in the future. That is always the determining factor for me between a 4 and a 5 star book. In the end I think I would rate it as 4.3. A lot of people loved this book and gave it 5 stars. Therefore, I feel confident in recommending this book to loves of Greek/Roman mythology and historical fiction. Furthermore, I believe it will appeal to readers of Historical Fiction.
    • 5/5
      My goodness, Madeline Miller can write.I have always loved Greek mythology, and it’s clear she does, too, but the author elevates these characters and stories into something perfect. I just want to crawl inside her books and stay awhile, but I ended up devouring this book in a day and half because I couldn’t stop reading.I can’t be the only one who teared up at mention of the death of ‘the best part’ of Achilles.
    • 5/5
      It’s like I waited all my life to read this book. Absolutely stunning.
    • 5/5
      This was a really lovely telling of the Circe story. Frankly, I knew little about Circe, and found her a fascinating and refreshing character. I know the author is well-versed in Greek history and mythology. I don’t know how much of the novel is canon and how much is the author’s filling in the edges, but it makes a beautiful whole.The part of Circe’s story that I did know was her life on an island, encountering Odysseus, and turning his men to pigs. I thought the author did a great job of conveying what life as an immortal on an island would be like, and how that would evolve over time. And the ending - I loved it so much, I read the last chapter twice.
    • 5/5
      This book is a great pleasure to read. The story of Circe is hardly new news, but in this book it becomes exciting, surprising, and a compelling read. Circe, of course, was the enchantress (or nymph, or perhaps goddess) who turned Odysseus' crew into pigs, but then kept him with her for a year, interrupting his voyage home to Ithaca The book traces Circe's beginnings, her (highly disfunctional!) divine family, her exile, her encounter with Odysseus -- but it does much more than that. It's a wonderful story, which I kept on reading to find out what would happen next. And it is gorgeously written, catching the wonder and glamor of an untouched world. Now, I will go read the author's book about Achilles.
    • 4/5
      It was too long! That is my only criticism.
      I love mythology and am familiar with most of the famous stories. I've not read a great deal about Circe, so the main storyline was new. It was interesting seeing all those great events through her eyes.
      I liked the ending. It suited the character. The style of writing was not too 'high literature' as these classical texts tend to be, but modern and easy to read, but also beautiful.
      Highly recommended to those who enjoy mythology and fantasy.
    • 4/5
      This is my second time reading a Madeline Miller novel. Both have been equally enjoyable for multiple reasons. Miller has a way of bringing mythical figures to life, in the same manner as "Wicked" fleshed out the Wicked Witch of the West. The audio version's narrator was excellent. Ultimately, Circe has to choose to remain a goddess or to become human. It's worth the read to find out her choice!