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Medousa

Michael F. Butchin (Goodreads Author)

really liked it 4.00 · Rating details · 22 ratings · 15 reviews

Classic Greek mythology paints Medousa as one of the most loathsome creatures of the ancient world. Feared by man and shunned by the Gods themselves, with a visage so hideous, any living creature that looked upon her would be instantly turned to stone. But what made Medousa such a monster?

Author Michael F. Butchin retells the classic story from Medousa's point of view, fro ...more

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Paperback, 646 pages

Published January 15th 2016 by Createspace Independent Publishing Platform

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May 06, 2018 Katie.dorny rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2018, lgbtq

This book was a fucking journey. And it completely 180'd my perception of the Gods, Olympians and the legends within Greek mythology.
The story details the life of Medousa, from child stolen to serve as a slave, to young woman battling for self respect and a place within society - all under the watchful eye of the goddess Athena.
It details her dramatic transformation into a Gorgon and the decades that follow - that part of her stream of consciousness was tough to read as you could feel the despai ...more

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Apr 12, 2018 Alina rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: drama, female-lead, mythology-folklore, bloody-gory-slimy-snotty, netgalley-arcs, violence-abuse, glbt

***Note: I received a copy curtesy of Netgalley and BooksGoSocial in exchange for an honest review.

“…Many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view.” (quote from ObiWan Kenobi)

Quite interesting interpretation of Medusa (Μέδουσα), the famous Gorgon in Greek mythology – as the author points at the end of the book, «I liked the idea of doing a story that, in the tradition of Philip Jose Farmer, essentially said, “You’ve always heard this version of the story; now let m ...more

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Apr 09, 2018 Laura L. Van Dam rated it really liked it

Shelves: historical, fiction, fantasy, arcs

Choosing to humanise a mythological character is difficult to achieve. Still, this book nails it, converting Medousa into a tragic heroine.
It´s well written and except for a couple paragraphs that are a bit repetitive, very entertaining.
Some passages brought tears to my eyes - hey, it´s a tragedy after all and the author has to be faithful to the sources of the story, and he does for the most part.
I really enjoyed it!

*Disclaimer: I received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest re ...more

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May 02, 2018 Devann rated it liked it

Shelves: z-18-netgalley, 3-0-star, a-adult, c-arcs, g-historical-fiction, sg-mythology

I received an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley

This was actually a very impressive book, both in terms of the story and the sheer scope of it, but although I did enjoy it I also can't really rate it higher than 3 stars for a couple of reasons [although your mileage may vary because it really is such an interesting project]. The first was just the length of the book. This book is very very long and I have a very very short attention span. I know a lot of people like longer books, but most of w I received an ARC copy of this book from NetGalley

This was actually a very impressive book, both in terms of the story and the sheer scope of it, but although I did enjoy it I also can't really rate it higher than 3 stars for a couple of reasons [although your mileage may vary because it really is such an interesting project]. The first was just the length of the book. This book is very very long and I have a very very short attention span. I know a lot of people like longer books, but most of what I read is about half the length of this so it was definitely a bit of struggle in that regard.

It makes sense that it is so long because it covers Medousa's entire life from the time she is five until she dies, but at times I found myself wishing things would hurry along a little bit. Something I did really like is that it included a lot of other characters from Greek history / mythology. For example, Medousa is friends with Helen as a child and the Trojan war takes place during her lifetime. She also spends quite a lot of with the Amazons and other people/creatures you will recognize. This makes for a very long story, but it is also interesting how the author combined all of these things from different eras into one story.

The summary of this book says that it goes "from a brutal childhood of slavery in Sparta, to [Meouda's] death at the hands of the hero Perseus on a remote island at the end of the world", and I just really want to focus on the word BRUTAL there because it was just hard to read sometimes. I mean I thought I had prepared myself because I knew the whole rape thing with Poseidon was going to be in there, but Medousa was basically dealing with sexual assault and rape threats her entire life up until that point and it was just very heavy and I wasn't entirely prepared for it.

I will say that it was all handled, I think, as respectfully as possible and also with the right message in mind. If you're a woman who reads a lot of fantasy you will know what I mean when I say that sometimes you are reading a book by a man and there's a rape scene that absolutely doesn't need to be there at all and it definitely seems like he's enjoying writing it WAY too much. THIS IS NOT THAT BOOK. The narrative actually spends a lot of time focusing on how Medousa realizes that what happened to her wasn't her fault, and the author spends a lot of time in his author's note talking about why he wrote this book and how horrible it is that thousands of years later women are still being blamed when they are attacked or raped.

It was definitely an interesting story and I'm glad that I read it, but I also struggled with it a lot both in terms of length and subject matter and I think it ended up taking me over two weeks to read it. I think it's one of those books that you definitely can't read all in one go and is better if you pace yourself. ...more

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Apr 16, 2016 Claire Holland rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Trust me... this is the best novel I have read on Medusa. I thoroughly enjoyed the poor girls story of slave to demigod. I laughed, I cried, and have a whole new perspective on Medusa, This book I rate five stars for all round it fitted, it was fresh and New and if you're a fan of Greek history this tome packs a punch to satisfy your desires. ...more

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Mar 23, 2016 E.P. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy

Update: The author has since reworked the novel, and was kind enough to provide me with a copy of the new edition. While I quite enjoyed the original version, I found the new version even more compelling, with an increased focus on the character Medousa's heartwrenching childhood as a Spartan helot and the emotional connections between her, her mistress/lover, her friends, and Athena. It also delves into the self-blame victims often feel, and how one can unwittingly become a monster, morally or Update: The author has since reworked the novel, and was kind enough to provide me with a copy of the new edition. While I quite enjoyed the original version, I found the new version even more compelling, with an increased focus on the character Medousa's heartwrenching childhood as a Spartan helot and the emotional connections between her, her mistress/lover, her friends, and Athena. It also delves into the self-blame victims often feel, and how one can unwittingly become a monster, morally or physically. I found this particularly interesting since, as someone who is currently quite severely ill with Lyme disease, I have myself become "cursed," as it were, and a kind of strange outcast/monster figure in society. While my gaze can't physically turn people to stone, many people do look away in horror when they catch sight of my face covered by a surgical mask, or my painful shuffling pace. And of course, many people have tried to convince me that if I just thought the right thoughts and repented for my past sins, I would be cured, rather like Tiresias promises Medousa. So while this is a fantasy novel set in the distant past and peopled with gods and monsters, the emotions and relationships it describes are all too real in the present day. A very worthwhile read for anyone who enjoys epic fantasy, woman-centered fantasy, or anything about Ancient Greece.

My original review is below:

I was immediately intrigued when I came across this book. I have to admit I'm a sucker for those stories where we get to hear the side of the "bad guys," and it certainly seems like classical Greek mythology is in desperate need of a retelling from the point of view of the other side, especially when that other side is female. So I absolutely loved the concept right off the bat.

The book is very detailed and well-researched, and for those of us with an amateur love of Greek mythology, it's a lot of fun to encounter Ajax, Heracles, Helen, and so on and so forth from a different perspective (Ajax is a bashful suitor, Heracles is a drunken screw-up who takes credit for others' deeds, and Helen is one of Medousa's friends and protectors). The author freely admits in the afterword that all these characters are thrown together with no particular attention paid to their "actual" chronology, if such a thing can be said about mythological figures, but the effect is (for me at least) a series of delightful cameos by famous heroes. Medousa herself is a very sympathetic character, and her rehabilitation is welcome and overdue.

My only problem with the book is basically that I think that it was good but it could have been great. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, but I felt that it lacked a certain element of narrative tension. I've been trying to put my finger on exactly what that was, and the best I can do is that we know that Medousa is a tragic figure and that she is inevitably hurtling towards her (unjust) destruction, but in the book this is portrayed as being, to a certain extent, bad luck. Which is entirely realistic--people like Medousa are generally the victims of bad luck--but with the echoes of Greek tragedy reverberating in the background, it was slightly unsatisfying for me. Because we see everything from Medousa's point of view, we never really get to know why Athena wanted to punish her, which left the story a little bit flat in my opinion.

That being said, overall "Medousa" is an excellent revision of a number of classical Greek myths and well worth the read for those that enjoy myth-based fantasy. Furthermore, the fact that most of the main characters are female warriors of one sort or another as another very refreshing aspect of the book: instead of having a token warrior princess, practically the entire cast is made up of Spartan battle-trained women, Amazons, goddesses, Gorgons, etc. etc...we're not used to having that many women in our books, and it was yet another good reason to enjoy "Medousa."

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. ...more

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Jun 05, 2018 Anne Monteith rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-reviews-ebook, arc-reading-soon, netgalley-arc, netgalley-reviews

This is a retelling of a tale that anyone with any interest in Greek Mythology should read; it really changed my perception of what I had learned years ago

Medousa was considered less than a human from the time her family was killed and she was mad a slave, only two humans ever treated her with any kindness in the palace and they were unable to protect her. She would have been much better off if Athena had never noticed her. If the Greek goddesses and gods were so powerful, why did she not look i ...more

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Apr 16, 2018 NaTaya Hastings rated it did not like it

Shelves: couldn-t-finish

Gave it up at the 24% mark. I just couldn't bring myself to go any further. The plot was okay, but the writing was ridiculously trite and "junior high"ish. The dialogue between the characters was, at best, worthy of great eye rolls and, at worst, so horrible and unbelievable it made me want to throw the book across the room. Plus, the book was just SOOOOOOOOOO SLOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWW. I wanted to finish it; I really did. There have only been maybe two times in my entire life that I didn't finish a ...more

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Mar 12, 2018 Amy Bradley rated it really liked it

Shelves: child-abuse, fantasy, female-protagonist, historical-fiction, lgbtq, net-galley, sexual-assault, mythology, gender-roles, slavery

Content note: slavery, sexual harassment, sexual assault, child abuse, rape, victim blaming, solitary confinement,

Overall, this felt like a refreshing take on the legend of Medousa, and examining through fiction how some of the myths about her may have come about. There is experience of madness through essentially the solitary confinement of not being able to interact with other beings. She also learns over time to control both her anger and urge to lash out - both as a human and later as a Gorg Content note: slavery, sexual harassment, sexual assault, child abuse, rape, victim blaming, solitary confinement,

Overall, this felt like a refreshing take on the legend of Medousa, and examining through fiction how some of the myths about her may have come about. There is experience of madness through essentially the solitary confinement of not being able to interact with other beings. She also learns over time to control both her anger and urge to lash out - both as a human and later as a Gorgon, when she learns to leash her fatal power.

Large amounts of pain and suffering form Medousa’s tale, with times of joy and repose. Sensual without being graphic, there are lovely bits depicting the love, romance and sexual relationship between Medousa and Cynisca as young mortal women. Love, longing, and the sadness of missing an absent lover are major threads woven throughout.

Slavery, and the desire for being able to decide her life for herself are major issues for Medousa early in the novel. Once her freedom is won, she is still constrained through societal expectations, including those who knew her while she was still a slave, and her own ingrained attitudes from living as a slave.

The casual sexual assault and harassment was something I could read through, but the author’s portrayal of Athena’s response to the rape of Medousa in her temple I found really difficult to deal with, due to how I have experienced and heard others recount people reacting to sexual assault and rape in real life. While it reflects Ovid’s telling, (which I had forgotten about in the intervening years), the sheer victim blaming of her words is brutal.

While horrific and hard to deal with, it does remind the reader that the Greek Pantheon of Goddesses and Gods were not only the positive aspects commonly associated and interpetted in beginner neo-Pagan and New Age books, but also the sheer brutality contained within mythology and poetry that tends to get edited out in reinterpretations or versions parsed for high school audiences. (Granted, there is a whole other discussion about male authorship and misogyny in classical Greek texts).

For anyone dealing with issues around experienced sexual harassment, assault, or rape, the victim blaming of other characters (and at times, from Medousa towards herself) may be difficult to read, especially pronouncements from characters on her guilt of simply existing provoking or being responsible for the attack. ...more

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Aug 24, 2018 Sarah rated it really liked it

I love retellings so I was intrigued when I heard about "Medousa" and this retelling definitely didn't disappoint.

I liked how Butchin put a new spin on well-known myths, including not only the story of Medousa but also touching on the fall of Troy, Heracles, and the war between Titans and Olympians.

The main weakness of this novel, in my opinion, is that it felt somewhat repetitive at points with characters making the same point over and over again, but the overall story is still fascinating and ...more

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Nov 19, 2020 Liliyana Shadowlyn rated it really liked it

Shelves: not-featured-yet

I admit, I'm a sucker for a myth or fairy tale retelling done well, and this was a great read. Many people know the story of Medusa, but as it's said the victors write history, and this is a peek into the other side of the story. Medusa was once a girl with hopes and dreams and struggles all her own before being turned into a gorgon, and this is the engaging story of her life. Highly recommend for anyone who loves mythology and alternate tellings. ...more

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Aug 05, 2020 Rebecca Hill rated it it was ok

I did not care for this book. I know that it was from Medousa's point of view, but this story just did not resonate with me. I felt it was flat, and unconvincing.

To each their own! ...more

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Mar 14, 2017 Kathy rated it it was amazing

Loved the book and if you like mythology so would you.

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Susan Sassi rated it it was amazing
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Mar 06, 2018 J.D. DeHart rated it it was amazing

Medousa takes a monster and makes her human in a literary story that draws on classical mythology and weaves an engaging prose narrative. Recommended for those of us who revel in the myths and appreciate a new approach.

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Becky rated it liked it
Jun 09, 2016

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Feb 24, 2018

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Mar 08, 2016

Mar 19, 2018 Katy rated it it was amazing

What a wonderful little book. This novel follows a recent trend of humanising the Greek and Roman myths (or am I noticing it more because I am addicted to BBC's Troy?) A wonderful literary take on the scapegoated woman, very refreshing. ...more

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About Michael F. Butchin

Michael F. Butchin

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Michael Butchin is a writer currently living in Beijing. A Philadelphia native, he was born to a family of scholars, musicians, actors, and singers, and grew up in South Jersey.

Butchin attended Rutgers University, New Brunswick, from which he graduated with a degree in Chinese Language and Literature. He also attended graduate school, where he read for Early Childhood Education.

After graduation, ...more