Overall I did enjoy the romance and the writing style. It took me a while to get into the story and I think that the gender-swapping was well done. However I found the genders to be portrayed too black and white. All women are good and awesome and all men are bad pigs really bothered me. I need more nuance than that. Also how the goods and their power levels were portrayed was a bit unbelievable, but that might have just been because in any story or myth Zeus was always more powerful than Hera and Hera could also be really really nasty.

Altogether it was a nice read, but for me it didn't stand out enough in all the other mythological retellings that are so popular at the moment. I'd say it's better if you don't know the myth the story is based on.

Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a gender-swapped re-telling of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth - Orphia, daughter of Apollo, discovers her strength and skill at the art of poetry, and falls in love with Eurydicius, a gentle shield-maker. The story touches on the basic points of the myth (well, keeping in mind that my knowledge of the Orpheus and Eurydice story is mostly based on the Hadestown musical), and adds a lot of extra depth - I am mostly not a poetry sort of person, and consequently the poetry sections didn't really work for me at all (but that's very much a me thing, I'm sure other readers would get more out of it).

Orphia and Eurydicius is a gorgeous retelling and retake of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth. Putting a gender bent twist on the classic story Elyse John guides readers through a beautifully tragic tale with gorgeous prose.

I adore Greek myth retellings and am glad to add this to my list of favourites. Its uniqueness really shines amongst the stack of more traditional takes.

I found the beginning of the novel a little slow but am very glad I pushed through.

Overall, it was a wonderfully queer adaptation and I cannot wait to see what Elyse John gives us next!

I absolutely adore this gender swap retelling of the Greek myth. The story was beautifully told with such poetic language that really evoked the character of Orphia.
The story was well paced and easy to follow. This was definitely a book that I couldn’t put down and I am excited do read whatever this author writes next

A genderswapped retelling of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice. beautifully written it was easy to get involved in this story from the start.

Thank you, NetGalley, HarperCollins Publishers Australia, and HarperCollins AU for the early access to this book.

As a classical history geek, this book felt like a fantastic reimagining of the myth in a very lyrical way which compels the reader to keep reading. I enjoyed this so much I have preordered a copy

Book Title: Orphia and Eurydicius
Author: Elyse John
Genre: Mythology
Publication date: 03 May 2023
Rating: 4/5
“The story of Orphia and Eurydicius flows from ear to ear, and as mortals absorb it, they learn not only what it is to die, but also what it is to be fully alive.”
Orphia and Eurydicius is an enjoyable retelling of the Greek myth Orpheus and Eurydice. It was an interesting take swapping the genders of the two main characters.
Overall, this was a great book. The writing was lovely and flowed in a very poetic way. The characters were written originally, and the descriptions were great. Reading it was like you were there in that mythical land.
While I enjoyed this retelling a lot, I did struggle a little bit with paying attention to the storyline as I would get somewhat lost in the beautiful descriptions. I would absolutely recommend this book though, especially to fans of other mythology retellings like Circe, or The Song of Achilles.

Thank you so much @harpercollins and @netgalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.
I was immediately intrigued by the title of this book. The Greek Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is honestly one of my favourite myths and previous to the musical Hadestown, was often an unknown myth. But, knowing this myth so well, I was intrigued yet hesitant to know how the author adapted it to fit the story.

I think it was really interesting to see a gender swap of the roles in this story. It told a unique take on gender roles in Ancient Greek times. Which funnily enough is something I am currently researching for an essay I’m writing for University.

I love that the author didn’t just leave it at swapping the genders, but also highlighting the sexist nature of Greek mythology and the unfair treatment of women in the myths which was a direct reflection of the treatment of women at the time.

It was nice reading a story where not only Zeus wasn’t venerated and worshipped, but also Hades. For once there was a story where he wasn’t romanticised as a nice guy. Don’t get me wrong, I love a good Hades x Persephone romance, but it is nice to see a truer, more realistic representation of him.

I did find it a slight struggle to get into the beginning of the story, but I think that was mostly due to me reading multiple books at onetime, and also just adjusting to the writing style.

I think the ending of the story surprised me because I knew how the original myth ended but was thoroughly surprised by the authors choice and liked it a lot.

Overall I enjoyed the concept of this book but did find its execution a slight struggle. The writing style was a bit hard for me to adapt to per my own taste but luckily the plot and overall story was so interesting I couldn’t help but find out what happened next.

Thank you, HarperCollins Publishers Australia, HarperCollins AU, for allowing me to read Orphia and Eurydicius early!

An incredible retelling of the reknown myth that will captivate its audience with lyrical writing and compelling characters..

Orphia and Eurydicius was an incredible read! I loved the gender swapping aspect of the book (in relation to the original myth and characters) and the way the author created such striking characters. Orphia and Eurydicius were both complex characters, but written in a way that felt natural and compelling. I really liked the emphasis on Eurydicius and how gentle and kind he was, and the way he performed masculinity according to his own rules, not according to societal norms. Equally, Orphia was a splendid example of a strong, independent woman, who knew there was more out there for her, than a life living in the shadow of her husband, being the submissive wife. The portrayal of sexuality as being fluid was one of my favourite aspects of the book