Hera by Jennifer Saint: Characters, summary & book review | EP. (2024)

I always find it interesting to try to understand the perspective of an unlikeable character. For example, June Hayward/Juniper Song in Rebecca Kuang’s Yellowface. Or Amy Dunne in Gone Girl. Nesta in ACOTAR. Even Walter White in Breaking Bad (who in the beginning, I liked). And Hera, the all-powerful Queen of the Gods, wife and sister to Zeus, daughter of Cronus, Goddess of Marriage... and possibly the gnarliest of them all.

Hera is often vilified in Greek mythology, due to her jealousy and vindictiveness towards Zeus' lovers and their children. She frequently punished Zeus' mistresses/victims and their offspring, even though it was her husband who was the philanderer, sexual predator and rapist.

But before Hera was a vengeful deity, she enjoyed hanging out in the forest with river gods, shapeshifting and winning wars against the Titans etc. you know, the regular. Jennifer Saint’s retelling highlights who Hera was vs. how she got to be that way.

For people unfamiliar with where the root of her wrath began, it had a lot to do with the pain that kindled inside her following Zeus pretending to be an injured bird, then surprising Hera and raping her. That’s just the beginning, there is a lot more that unfolds after these first chapters which I won’t spoil for people who aren’t familiar already.

Notably, this retelling isn't going to redeem Hera’s actions. Yet it will humanise her as someone grappling with subjugation, suffering, ridicule and betrayal, without absolving her. More than anything, it’s probably going to make you despise the patriarchy and Zeus AKA the Greek god version of Harvey Weinstein, more than you already did.

You'll meet a lot of the famed gods, demi-gods and their divine offspring (mostly Zeus'). Some are cameos but it's still cool. I learnt a lot. One of my favourite things I learnt while reading this was also about the monsters of Greek mythology, such as Ekhidna, Typhon and the Hydra. And Jennifer Saint made me empathise with them and see a rounded perspective of their story.

Whether you’re a Greek mythology rookie, dabbler (⬅️ me), or expert/classicist, I’d recommend this for a more holistic perspective of Hera. Although some scene transitions were slightly disjointed, overall the third-person narration was emotionally evocative and lyrical and I felt connected to it.

You'll have to mind your triggers should you choose to read this, because the Greek Gods didn’t know that No Means No and Jennifer Saint does not shy away from lack of consent in ancient times. The Greek Gods can ALL get in the bin. Yep, you too Apollo, you're one of the worst.

My heartfelt thanks to Hachette Australia & New Zealand | Wildfire for the advanced digital review copy, and also to my GR friend, Persephone's Pomegranate, who is a Greek mythology expert and gave me some contextual background knowledge before I dove in.