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From the classicist and author of A Thousand Ships and Pandora's Jar comes another bravura reimagining of Greek myth as the story of Medusa is transformed into a powerful meditation on mortality, betrayal and the cruel limits of beauty.
Shortlisted for The British Book Awards 2023 Fiction Book of the Year
Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2023
'So to mortal men, we are monsters. Because of our teeth, our flight, our strength. They fear us, so they call us monsters.'
Medusa is the only mortal in a family of gods. Growing up with her sisters, she quickly realizes that she is the only one who gets older, experiences change, feels weakness. Her mortal lifespan gives her an urgency that her family will never know.
When, in Athene's temple, desire pushes Poseidon to commit the unforgivable, Medusa's mortal life is changed forever. Athene, furious at the sacrilege committed, directs her revenge on Medusa. The punishment is that she is turned into a Gorgon: sharp teeth, snakes for hair, and a gaze that will turn any living creature to stone. Appalled by her own reflection, Medusa can no longer look upon anything she loves without destroying it. She condemns herself to a life of solitude in the shadows to limit her murderous range.
That is, until Perseus embarks upon a fateful quest to fetch the head of a Gorgon...
This is the story of how a young woman became a monster. And how she was never really a monster at all.
Publisher: Pan Macmillan
ISBN: 9781529061475
Number of pages: 384
Weight: 607 g
Dimensions: 241 x 164 x 38 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
'Haynes is [a] master of her trade... She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories' - Telegraph
'Haynes is the nation's great muse' - Adam Rutherford
'A gripping, feminist masterpiece' - Deborah Frances-White on A Thousand Ships
'Natalie Haynes is swiftly becoming this generation's Mary Renault' - Observer
'With her trademark passion, wit and fierce feminism, Haynes gives much-needed voice to the silenced women of the Trojan War. Her thoughtful portraits will linger with you long after the book is finished' - Madeline Miller on A Thousand Ships
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“Brutal, devastating, addictive.”
This is Medusa’s story. And so much more.
Medusa is the only mortal among a family of gods. Growing up with her protective sisters, she soon realises that she is the only one who grows older, and with it her...
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“Poor Medusa!”
I have struggled with how best to rate Stone Blind. On one hand I will happily follow Natalie's siren's call no matter the mythological topic. She can do no wrong in my book and I love her for it. With... More
“Righting the wrongs against Medusa”
I loved a Thousand Ships and Children of Jocasta so was really keen to find out how Medusa’s story would be told. I think I particularly relish Natalie Haynes’s books just that bit more than, say, Pat Barker’s because... More
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