Reviews

Herc by Phoenicia Rogerson

_raachreads's review against another edition

adventurous funny sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

tinyeri's review

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

tamarant4's review against another edition

emotional funny informative lighthearted sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Maybe I was beautiful enough to launch ships, after all. But when I looked down I saw blisters on my hands from scrubbing blood from the floor. That was the wife I had to be.[loc. 643]

I've had variable experiences, and some great disappointments, with the current flood of retellings of Greek myth, so I was trepidatious about Herc -- especially when I saw it described as a 'queer feminist retelling'. My reservations were unfounded: it is immense fun, vastly tragic, and told in a multitude of voices that are distinctive in themselves, even if the names (Iolaus, Iole, Iapetus) can confuse those unfamiliar with the minutae of the myth.

This is not Hercules' book, but a book told by the people who knew him, some of whom speak to us from Hades, where Hercules has sent them. We hear from Hylas (drowned by nymphs), Megara (slain, with their children, while Hercules was <s>drunk</s> possessed by the goddess Hera), Linus (beaten to death with a lyre for criticising Hercules' playing), Augeas (murdered over a dispute about a cleaning job), Iphitus (pushed off a cliff while Hercules was possessed by the goddess Hera), ...

Not everyone is dead. Priam, king of Troy, grumbles about the aftermath of Hercules' solution to a sea-monster threatening Troy (the link goes to a photo of the Hesione vase, which is discussed in the excellent The First Fossil Hunters): Theseus is grateful to Hercules for rescuing him from Hades, Omphale recalls fondly that 'when I wore his cloak and he my dress, I saw him smile more than I did before. There was a lightness to his voice'. And there is a virtuoso chapter told from the points of view of all fifty daughters of Thespius. Hercules himself is glimpsed only in his love letters to Hylas, and in his reflection in the eyes of others -- many of whom have reason to loathe him. And yet I couldn't help but feel some sympathy for him, always losing the ones he loved to Hera's implacable hatred. (Or, to be fair, to his own poor impulse control.)

Yes, the language is quite modern ('bro', 'cuz') and some of the chapters, such as 'Graffiti', didn't work as well as others. (I am also disproportionately vexed by the line about Diomedes' mares having 'fathered what seemed to be every horse in Greece'. Mares, dammit!) But Herc is a delightful mosaic of opinions and incidents that form, together, the shape of a monstrous hero, a man 'frightened by fragility', craving the softness and strength of his male lovers, a courageous man who tries hard to be better than he's been. I shall look out for more by Phoenicia Rogerson, whose debut this is.

bepbop's review against another edition

adventurous informative inspiring sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

laurawurz's review

dark slow-paced

• Strong character development? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

milatonin's review

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

as1u18's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

spib's review

adventurous dark medium-paced

3.0

aneggy's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

4.25

julsmarshall's review

adventurous emotional funny tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

So good! Witty, queer, unique, and funny, I’ve never read anything quite like it. Telling the story of Hercules from various perspectives of everyone but Hercules himself, it is equal parts enjoyable and thought provoking. If you like mythology, check this out!