Jennifer Saint has such a distinctive stamp on the genre of Greek mythological retellings—the narratives are captivating and choose interesting new takes on familiar stories. Saint turns her eye to the Queen of the Gods in this nuanced take on misdirected wrath and humanising a complex, otherworldly figure.
Saint’s retellings are quintessentially complex, sitting in the ambiguities of the story and pushing against the preconceived ideas of her female protagonists. Hera continues in this vein, exaggerated to a greater extent. Hera is not to be fully understood by mere mortals as a deity and yet Saint humanises her to an extent that you can understand the motivations behind her actions, but strays from justifying them. Historically she has been cast as a jealous vengeful woman twisted with hatred and taking out her anger at her husband’s actions against the women he was involved with. Saint adds nuance to this depiction and instead explores the core of that rage—giving it gravitas and slowly building it up. The Hera we initially meet is a respected warrior and an equal (at least in her view). Saint’s narrative is one of being crushed and diminished by a patriarchal force. It is a slow erosion of your being—taking away her power and her autonomy. For me, this formed the emotional core of the book and added a devastating view of Hera.
However, the narrative shows her jealousy and misplaced rage—in fact it makes a point of illustrating just how misdirected it is. Hera is caught up in her fear and rage. It is vindictive and cruel at times. While Saint does not shy away from the monstrosity of Hera’s actions at times, she still squares the majority of the blame on Zeus’ shoulders. He is a despicable figure throughout the book. He embodies a revulsive claim to women’s bodies and beings that he thinks he is owed. Sexual assault and the impact of this trauma is a central theme of the book, so please be aware of your own triggers with reading. Saint allows us to sit in the quiet moments with this—giving time and space to the horror of this trauma. Of all Saint’s retellings, I would say this is the angriest so far. It simmers with a building rage that occasionally overspills in the wrong direction. It is also a cautionary tale of allowing that rage to consume you though.
Saint’s overall depiction of divinity is fascinating. We start in the blaze of battle with the war against the Titans finally drawing to an end and a new power emerging. The creation of this new regime and how it begins to interact with creating humanity is so interesting and adds this lofty view of myths we know. There is an overarching arc of the involvement of gods and humans and the co-dependent nature of this relationship. For me, this was endlessly intriguing and asked interesting questions about legacy and faith. Saint builds to a wonderfully cathartic ending but in an unexpected way. Threaded through this is Hera and her journey as a queen, a wife and a mother. Saint pulls in the expected plot beats, but also adds in lesser-known aspects of Hera’s myth and gives them the spotlight. In particular, there is a wonderfully explored dynamic between herself and Gaia that I really enjoyed. It expanded the central theme of femininity and expectations. Also, the dynamic between Hera and Aphrodite was charged with a tension of power and dynastic influences. This and the dynamics between Hera and Hestia and Hera and Athena were my favourites of the book. On the flipside, there is a fantastic plot thread around Hera and Echidna that is wonderfully written and explores another side of Hera’s story. This is also another aspect of grappling with her own trauma and shifted status within the divine hierarchy. It adds a counterbalance to this story of gods and heroes.
Hera is another marvel of a mythological retelling from the mind of Jennifer Saint.
Hera is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of May 23rd 2024.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
The enthralling tale of a powerful Greek goddess maligned in both myth and ancient history, as told by Sunday Times bestselling author Jennifer Saint.
When Hera, immortal goddess and daughter of the ancient Titan Cronos, helps her brother Zeus to overthrow their tyrannical father, she dreams of ruling at his side.
As they establish their reign on Mount Olympus, Hera suspects that Zeus might be just as ruthless and cruel as the father they betrayed.
She was always born to rule, but must she lose herself in perpetuating this cycle of violence and cruelty? Or can she find a way to forge a better world?
Often portrayed as the jealous wife or the wicked stepmother, this retelling captures the many sides of Hera, vengeful when she needs to be but also compassionate and mostly importantly, an all-powerful queen to the gods.
