Medusa
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- ¥2,200
発行者による作品情報
In this "imaginative and thought-provoking" retelling of the Medusa myth, readers get an intimate look into the life of a legendary mythical villain who has so often been stripped of her voice and humanity—perfect for fans of Madeline Miller and Jennifer Saint (Laura Shepperson, author of Phaedra).
You know how Medusa’s story ends, but you’ve never heard her tell her own story… until now.
The only mortal daughter of two sea gods, and a priestess of Athena, Medusa was a woman who thought she had found her place in the world. But when Medusa suffers a horrific violation at the hands of Poseidon, Athena is outraged over the desecration of her name and sends a message by transforming Medusa into the snake-haired monster of legend. With one look, any who meet her gaze is turned to stone. Word of her monstrosity travels fast, igniting a king’s fear so greatly that he commands the boy-hero Perseus to bring him her head. With a power that will spare no one, Medusa begins to wonder if this is a blessing or a curse. Medusa only knows that she must leave the city she has come to call home before she harms another soul.
Searching for a haven free from mortals, anger buoying her every step, Medusa journeys across ancient Greece. Her eyes are hidden beneath a blindfold, with nothing but the snakes for company. Through her travels, Medusa discovers solace and understanding in the mythical figures she stumbles upon: A debaucherous wine god, an alluring nymph, and a three-headed dog. But one cannot escape fate forever. As Perseus closes in, Medusa faces a choice: become the monster everyone expects her to be, or cling to the last piece of her humanity.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Gruender's ingenious debut brings new life to the story of Medusa, a woman wrongfully punished for a man's transgressions. Medusa alone among her divine sisters is a mortal—but according to a prophesy, she is destined to become a monster. This prediction further separates her from her siblings Sheno and Euryale. Together, these triplets are known as the Gorgons. As immortals, Sheno and Euryale have no interest in the mortal world, but their mother insists the three Gorgons travel from their isolated beach to live among humans. This sets the Gorgons on the path to Athens, where Medusa finds her calling as a priestess of Athena. When Poseidon rapes Medusa at the foot of Athena's altar, Athena—who cannot punish a fellow god—turns her wrath onto Medusa, transforming her. Newly monstrous, Medusa wanders from Dionysus's mountain, where she befriends a kind naiad, to the home of her sister Echidna, and finally back to the rest of the Gorgons as she figures out how to live—and maybe even be happy—with all that has happened to her. Gruender brings a truly new spin to Medusa's story, casting her as a tragic but resilient character who seeks to live on her own terms. In a saturated market for retellings of Greek myth, this holds its own.
