Poor Medusa!

 

 ⭑⭑⭑⭑  I have struggled with how best to rate Stone Blind. On one hand I will happily follow Natalie's siren's call no matter the mythological topic. She can do no wrong in my book and I love her for it. With Natalie, you know you are in for a fun, cheeky retelling of mythology and that is part of her charm. On the other hand I found this story of Medusa from baby to decapitated 'monster' nearly unbearable. I truly felt for Medusa in a gut-wrenching way and felt anguish the moment Perseus stepped foot in her cave. How could one mortal girl be so badly abused by the Gods then allowed to be a prized trophy for her suffering? Myths are all about injustice, and this is no exception, but I really felt the sting and it troubled me.

I absolutely bought in to the Perseus of this book as a fumbling, bumbling boy hardly capable of survival much less being a 'hero'. He didn't deserve all he claimed to have succeeded as it wasn't his doing but Medusa's head. Makes me grumble just thinking about it!

Excellent writing, as ever, with plenty of cheek and sarcasm dripping from the page. It would have been a joy had the treatment of poor Medusa not hurt so much.