The audiobook was so well narrated, I love the story and I’m not the biggest Greek mythology fan!
The FMC could have been a little more fierce and j think I would’ve loved it more if she were but it was an enjoyable listen nonetheless- thankyou for this

Book Title: Atalanta

Author: Jennifer Saint

Narrator: Beth Eyre

Genre: Greek Mythology, Fantasy

Publication Date: 13-April-2023

Rating: ★★★★☆

I received a free book copy from Headline Audio | Wildfire and NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Introduction

✨ I absolutely adore the Greek mythology and feminist retellings that have popped up in popular literature in recent years and Jennifer Saint's Atalanta is no exception! With this new Greek mythology instalment, Jennifer Saint continues her exploration of Greek heroines’ stories who now get a chance to share their story through their own voice, offering a compelling and refreshing take on a classic myth.

Source: NetGalley

Plot Summary (Spoiler-Free)

🏹 Atalanta tells the heroic tale of a princess abandoned as a baby because she was a girl. Left to die, she is instead raised by a bear under the protection of the goddess Artemis, growing into a formidable huntress and warrior. When she joins Jason and his band of Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece, she is the sole woman on a journey full of danger, adventure, and discovery. As she navigates this world of men, she is forced to confront her identity, question her beliefs, and decide what her future could be, all while dealing with the wrath of the goddess who has watched over her. The novel follows Atalanta's journey as she breaks the boundaries set by men and challenges the restrictions placed on women.

Narration and Performance

🔊 Beth Eyre’s narration for Atalanta is superb, breathing vivid life into the story. While it took a moment to get into the narrator's rhythm, the performance quickly became a truly immersive experience. Eyre's voice is perfect for this tory, bringing the rich descriptions of the ancient world to life, making it feel less like a modern retelling and more like a fable from ancient times. She masterfully gives each character a distinct voice, making the transitions between them smooth and engaging, all while keeping the focus on Atalanta as the main character. Her performance makes the audiobook an excellent choice for anyone new to the format.

Overall Thoughts

🔖 Jennifer Saint has shown to be a master at taking a few lines about women from male-centric myths and crafting entire books around them. What makes Atalanta so appealing is that it focuses on a heroine most people have never heard of. It’s an empowering story about a woman who is both mentally and physically strong, which is a welcome departure from the stereotypical depictions of "strong" female characters. My favourite parts of the story were those set in the forest with Artemis and her nymphs, and Atalanta’s role as the only female Argonaut was a fascinating and empowering angle.

🌱 What stood out in the novel is Atalanta's development as a character. At first, she's a fierce huntress, completely isolated from the world of men and shielded by Artemis. As the story progresses and she joins the Argonauts, she starts to question the world she knew and the boundaries she was taught to live within. Her journey is about more than just a physical quest for the Golden Fleece—it’s about a young woman learning to connect with people, form friendships, and make her own choices, even when it means defying a goddess. Watching her change from a solitary warrior to a woman capable of love and deep connection is a highlight of the book.

Conclusion & Final Rating

💯 While some parts of the story felt a bit slow, Jennifer Saint’s lyrical and insightful writing, combined with the masterful narration by Beth Eyre, makes Atalanta a must-read for any fan of Greek mythology, feminist literature, or historical fiction. The novel is a beautiful and absorbing reimagining of a classic tale, celebrating female strength and bravery in a myth that had previously forgotten its women.

Final Rating: ★★★★☆

Book Tropes:

Feminist Retelling

Found Family

Greek Mythology

As someone who adores Greek mythology and feminist retellings, I went into Atalanta with high hopes—and while it wasn’t a favourite, it still had its merits. Jennifer Saint is undeniably skilled at giving voice and agency to ancient women, and I appreciated how she portrayed Atalanta as both mentally and physically strong—something that felt refreshingly different from the usual depictions of “strong” female characters. I especially enjoyed the sections set in the forest with Artemis and the Nymphs, and Atalanta’s role as the only female Argonaut was a fascinating and empowering angle. That said, the story often dragged and felt flat in places, and the writing style just didn’t quite click for me. It’s a solid feminist take, particularly for a lesser-known myth, but overall the experience was... just okay.

Jennifer Saint never disappoints!! Another captivating retelling, this time of of the Greek myth of Atalanta, a fierce and independent warrior who defies traditional gender roles. Saint's writing brings depth to Atalanta's character, exploring her struggles with identity, love, and destiny. The novel blends rich historical detail with emotional depth, making Atalanta's journey both empowering and poignant. Saint’s portrayal of ancient myths through a modern lens makes this a compelling read for fans of mythology and feminist fiction alike.

My first Jennifer Saint, but certainly not my last, as she lives up to every last bit of the hype that's created around each of her releases.
ATALANTA was simply breathtaking - lyrical in prose, and very strong in terms of voice, this did feel like an epic being breathed new life into.
I was in two minds about the pacing, as I felt events that felt monumental were breezed past quickly, but at the same time that does work with the idea that they were mere moments in the larger life of a great woman whose story encompasses much more.
Overall a success, and I'm sold on both Saint as an author and Beth Eyre as a newly found favourite narrator.

Many thanks to Netgalley, Headline Audio and the author for the ALC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A princess abandoned as she was supposed to be a prince, left to die and raised by a bear under the protection of Goddess Artemis to be a celibate, we follow Atalanta's journey through her eyes in vivid description. When she finally gets the chance at adventure she has always yearned for in the form of joining the Argonauts to track down the golden fleece, Atalanta see a side of the world she was shielded from. Slowly settling down into the 'worldly ways' of men having to prove her might, strength and talent in every step of the way, Atalanta begins to questions the world she knew, she now knows and the possibility of what it could be for her, in spite of the ire of the Goddess waiting for her.

Atalanta is a story about breaking the glass ceiling, the boundaries set by men, often followed even in defiance by women as a form of protection and how everything and anything starts and ends with restrictions for the whole gender. But as always with Greek mythology there is aspects I don't morally agree with like cheating, sexual assault but they are unavoidable as the source material is full of them and worse. Having consumed a lot of retelling, I will maintain this is one of the good one's.

The narration was a bit hard to get into in the beginning and got better as the story progressed.

I think the vivid descriptions of the scenery and the way Atalanta saw things was amazing. I like that the story was detailed from the start so that the reader can know all of the information needed for who she is and how she got to where she ended up. I liked the description of Artemis and her personality of a ruthless goddess. I also feel like the nymphs were well thought out and I liked getting a few of their story lines. I liked this description from her point of view of her journey and how she met important characters and joined the argonauts. I loved the stories from the mission getting to the golden fleece and the challenges and losses along the way, it was detailed, had a lot of strategy and action and friendships. I think Atalanta is an interesting character as her approach to relationships with people is altered by how she grew up and it is interesting to see someone who disconnects from people the way she does. I also like that it was written to bring back certain parts to lead into something from the beginning to the end and how Atalantas choices changed things. I was not expecting how they ended up at the end but I find it interesting the ways her thoughts changed and the affects , as well as it being a somewhat nice ending. I know this is based on a Greek Myth/tragedy and the main point was Atalanta but I would be intrigued to know more about Hippomenes, there was obviously a lot of thought and research into writing because of how well executed this was.

Jennifer Saint has found a great niche in Greek mythology, and she does it quite well. Overall, I found this story to be fascinating, even if I knew about Jason and the Argonauts before. A truly beautiful story that finally does justice to a character ignored during centuries.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for a review.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ALC. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Having read and loved Ariadne and Elektra I was looking forward to getting stuck into Atalanta. Admittedly, I wasn't familiar with this story so was very intrigued to read a book that has her as the central character. This is told in the first person format and the fluidity of the narration done by Jennifer Saint doesn't disappoint. It was interesting to see well known stories such as the Argonauts and the Calydonian boar being told from Atalantas perspective. I enjoyed hearing her take on her fellow Argonauts and seeing how she had to continuosly prove herself over and over again to prove she was the same in terms of skill and intellect, if not better, than her fellow men. However, Atalanta lacked the intensity that both Ariadne and Elektra had. Atalanta came across a lot more passive to the circumstances around her, despite this being a feminist retelling. It also seemed like most of Atalantas narration was heavily dominated by the mens exploites in her life.

Overall I enjoyed this, it just wasn't what I expected from Jennifer Saint, 3.5 stars.

I am not a huge fan of greek mythology retellings so it took me a while to get through this audio book. I did end up liking it but it is just not my cup of tea. However I think people who like these kind of stories would really enjoy it.

Whilst the market has, arguably, been oversaturated with Greek Mythology retellings, Atalanta is actually my first! I'm very glad this was my entry into these retellings. Atalanta isn't a tale I was familiar with before picking up the book and so I was really enjoying learning more about the original mythology throughout the book. I had hoped that Atalanta had been a bit stronger, a bit more fierce and fire-y. A lot of her life is dominated by the men in it and their choices, with Atalanta herself being fairly passive. Whilst this might be true to the original myth I feel like a retelling would be the place to break that mould. But I did still enjoy reading about her adventures and I'm excited to read more from Jennifer Saint in the future. The audiobook was a great way to dive into this book and Beth Eyre does a great job at narration.

A fan of all things relating to classical mythology, I was really excited to listen to the audiobook of Atalanta by Jennifer Saint.

Born in the wilderness and raised by animals, Atalanta strives to prove herself in the world of the male Argonauts.

Unfortunately, for me, the narrator's accent and inflections, especially when giving voice to some of the characters, was just too jarring and I wasn't able to finish the book. DNF.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a copy of the audio book in exchange for an honest review.

Great historical fiction and works really well as an audiobook.

Thanks so much to NetGalley and the publishers for letting me read an advance copy of this book in exchange for my review.

An interesting story about Greek mythology - refreshing to follow a less famous Argonaut, and the audiobook was a great way to become immersed in the world. Jennifer Saint’s writing style is lovely and compelled me to keep reading.

I can see why some people found this dry and a bit hard going. Most would have heard of Jason and the Argonauts, but probably not Atalanta, who was abandoned at birth, raised by a goddess as celibate, and then joined the Argonauts’ quest for the Golden Fleece. I know this story is based on the myth, but I can’t say the affair with the married man, or the ending, enamoured me of Atalanta. It was just not the book for me in the end.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review. Apologies for the delay in providing this.

Unfortunately had to DNF around 35%. I love the story of Atalanta so I had a lot of hope going in. Part of me thinks its how the audiobook is done as it’s probably a great book, but just wasn’t the best audiobook that kept me wanting to listen. I am grateful for having access to the early access, and I will likely give it another go.

I always adore Jennifer Saint's work, and to have it narrated to me was exceptional.

Heroines from Greek mythology, being reframed, told from the female point of view, will always capture my attention.

To hear the tale of the only female Argonaut, a true warrior, was wonderful.

I really enjoyed this one, i am not normally a fan of books based on mythology but this one had me hooked throughout!

The audiobook really help you become immersed in the story too so I would highly recommend it if you listen to them!

Will definitely be reading more from this author

A huge thank you to Netgalley and Headline audio for giving me the chance to listen to Atalanta by Jennifer Saint as an audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

A perfect read be it audiobook or not, I loved Atalanta with all my heart. A greek mythology heroine getting her story told the way it does her justice is always a good choice, but to be able to listen to the story -almost like a fable from times of old- makes it all the more good.
The heroic tale of the only female Argonaut makes not only for a compelling story that comes more so alive and vivid thanks to Beth Eyre's narration. Every character comes to her so smouth, the changes between them so smooth and yet distinct, it makes for a beautiful experience as an audiobook.
I would definetely recommend this to readers who are new to reading/listening to audiobooks, because its easy to fall into the story's rhythm and enjoy it as if the way the would by reading the book in a physical copy

I loved reading this tale about a female warrior from Greek mythology. I'd previously only been peripherally aware of Atalanta as a character, so I enjoyed seeing her story fully fleshed out here - from her abandonment as a baby to her voyage with the Argonauts and beyond. This is the type of myth usually reserved for male heroes, and so is set apart from many other retellings of women from Greek mythology. The struggles she faces to be taken seriously in a man's world, including at the hands of well-known heroes such as Jason and Herakles, still resonate. The fierceness, determination and independence of her character was well developed throughout. A satisfying read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Headline Audio for the advance audio copy.