Author: Madeline Miller
Published: 2018
Genre: Fantasy / Mythological Retelling / Literary Fiction
Setting: Ancient Greece and various mythological islands and realms
⭐ Why It Matters
Circe is a feminist reimagining of Greek mythology, told from the perspective of a character traditionally sidelined: the enchantress who turned Odysseus’s men into pigs. This novel became a bestseller, a book club sensation, and is now being adapted for television. It’s a modern fantasy that draws on classical roots while giving voice to a powerful, flawed, and unforgettable heroine.
👥 Main Characters
- Circe – A nymph, daughter of the sun god Helios. Rejected by gods and mortals alike, she discovers her own power through witchcraft.
- Helios – Her cruel and proud father, god of the sun.
- Pasiphaë, Aeëtes, Perses – Circe’s powerful siblings, all dangerous in their own ways.
- Odysseus – The mortal hero who becomes Circe’s lover and catalyst for transformation.
- Telemachus – Odysseus’s son, whose relationship with Circe changes her fate.
- Scylla – A transformed monster, once a rival for love.
- Hermes, Athena, Daedalus, and others – Appear throughout, grounding the story in myth but always through Circe’s eyes.
📚 Plot Summary
🔹 Exile and Awakening
Born to Helios and a sea nymph, Circe is considered weak and strange among the gods.
When she discovers her power to transform others, she’s banished to the island of Aiaia by Zeus.
In exile, she begins to master the craft of witchcraft and potion-making, encountering both gods and mortals.
🔹 Encounters with Legends
Circe’s island becomes a waystation in many famous myths:
- She crosses paths with Hermes, Daedalus, and Jason & Medea
- She battles Scylla, the sea monster she unwittingly created
- She hosts Odysseus, with whom she has a deeply emotional — and physical — relationship
- She gives birth to Telemachus, raising him alone on the island
🔹 Power and Choice
Throughout the centuries, Circe’s solitude forces her to reflect, grow, and defy the gods who cast her aside.
She endures heartbreak, rage, and joy — and eventually makes a radical decision: to reclaim her mortality and choose her own fate.
The novel ends with Circe leaving behind immortality to embrace a mortal life, fully lived.
🧠 Themes & Takeaways
- Female Power & Autonomy – Circe reclaims her voice, body, and destiny in a world of male gods and heroes.
- Isolation & Identity – Exile becomes a forge where Circe transforms into her truest self.
- Mythology Reimagined – Familiar stories are made new and personal through Circe’s lens.
- Mothers & Sons – Circe’s motherhood becomes a central part of her humanity and transformation.
- Mortality vs Immortality – The novel questions what makes life meaningful: eternal safety or fleeting choice?
