"How different would the world have been had this never come to pass? How would female power, female spirituality, female-centred philosophies have shaped the world, had they not been suppressed? What would a religion freed from androcentrism, equally influenced by women, look like?"

Questions that so many of us are still seeking answers to. This was a great book and new perspective on Lilith's role in history. Would recommend. Thanks NetGalley.

This books is exceptional! Lilith is a must read for all you Madeline Miller loving… smash the patriarchy type of readers.

“For Women everywhere. Be your own gods. Your mother commands it.”

Although this book may have started off a bit slower for me by the middle of the book I was completely enraptured. This is a retelling on the Hebrew myth of Lilith, the first woman who was exiled from the garden for refusing to lie beneath Adam. This book’s touches on how religion was used to manipulate women into becoming subservient to men instead of equals and how Asherah was essentially glossed over. I really appreciate the feminine narrative and how that it reframes something that is so uniquely female, like creation, into something that was shifted into man being made in “his” image.
The book follows Lilith from her exile from the garden into present day; sharing stories of Noah, Jezebel, and Mary Magdalene without ever feeling disjointed.

Actual Rating: 3,5 ⭐️

My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had me intrigued since I found it. I have heard of Lilith's name before. She was Adam's first wife, but I have always heard of her in a witch/demonic way. This was actually a very unique portray of her.

Plot

Lilith is expelled from Paradise for defying Adam's wishes. She has a secret: after tasting the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge, she is aware of Asherah's disappearance, who is God's wife and equal. She has a strategy to save Eve, track down Asherah, put the world back in balance, and reclaim her rightful place in paradise. From the time of Ancient Sumer to the courts of Queen Jezebel and Roman Judea, her pursuit of justice has driven her. Lilith is aware of what needs to be done today to make up for the injustice done to women and the entire human race before the dawn of time.

Like I said before, this book shows us a feminine perspective of this story. In here, Lilith defies Adam because she is herself as his equal, who doesn't want to be submissive to him. When she is expel of Eden for defying his wishes, she goes in search for a way to bring balance and harmony back to the world. I really liked the plot, it was a very unique way of telling this old story.

Characters

Lilith is the most developed character and I really liked her. She is strong, she is brave, is always trying her best to make up for the injustice done to women during the centuries.

However, while Lilith was a very developed character, sometimes the secondary ones were a bit two-dimensional, but I still loved seeing Jezebel and Mary Magdalene.

Writing

In general, I really liked Nikki's writing. I think probably the only thing that upset me was the dialogue. There were times when it felt to modern and that would take me away from the story. Ah, and the pacing. The pacing was a bit off, especially the middle with Noah's ark. It was really slow.

World-Building

I really loved the world-building in here. I come from a Christian family, I was born a Christian. This world-building was really well done. I loved how she portrayed Eden. It was interesting to see that according to Lilith, there was a Holy Mother, but because the man didn't want women to be equal and felt threatened by them, they change the loving message of the mother.

I have to say, it was a very interesting concept.

Final Thoughts

While this book still has some flaws, in general I have to say this is actually good for the fans of Circe by Miller.

This is the best book I have ever had the pleasure of reading. It healed parts of me I didn't know were broken. It spoke to me on levels I don't even know now to describe. No amount of words can accurately tell how much this story means to me. The prose is beautiful and every single sentence lands with a weight that hits me hard. I hung on every word and I will be re reading it many more times. I don't think I have ever marked up a book so much. I feel this book has become a part of me that can’t be separated. I’m literally a new person after reading this and I will hold its meaning with me always. Thank you a million times.

I was super intrigued when saw was a story about Adam’s first wife Lilith. I had heard the name before but always in a witch/ devils bride sort of way. I really enjoyed this retelling of biblical stories and how there was a heavenly mother and how because of men being threatened by women they held them down and how things became how they are.
I will be honest and say I am agnostic, so do I believe this could have happened, probably not. I do though can see how some things could have occurred and how bad men with bad intentions can cause a whole uproar and change the coarse of a loving message.
I really enjoyed the begging, jezebel, Mary Magdalene story and the ending. The section with Noah to me did drag on but it was needed.

Some have compared this to Circe which I do agree with on how you get Lilith POV of event with a bit of modern dialogue thrown in.

Thank you to NetGalley, Nikki Margery and Alcove Press for a eARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

I know I am not the target audience for this book, which is why I chose to read this Advanced Read Copy. It's always good to read books that challenge your beliefs. I am pretty confirmed in my Judeo-Christian beliefs and this book takes a whole new look at how patriarchal roles have existed and formed since the literal beginning of creation. While it reads as a work of fiction, the end notes of this book reveal that a lot of research went into this book.

God had a wife, Asherah, whom the Book of Kings suggests was worshiped alongside Yahweh in his temple in Israel. Asherah's connection to Yahweh is found in an 8th-century B.C. inscription on pottery found in the Sinai desert at a site called Kuntillet Ajrud. It is from this union that both Adam and Lilith were created. However, according to the myth, Yahweh wanted to be God alone and so divorced his wife. Lilith mirrored her actions by wanting to be equal to her husband Adam and thus was cast from the Garden of Eden.

Lilith strives throughout the entire book to restore the goddess and bring back the dignity of women under the rule of men. Since Lilith is immortal, this struggle lasts millennia from Eve, Noah, and Jezebel, to Mary Magdalene.

Although this book is well-written and engaging, I really struggled with this content. There are portions of the book at the beginning that almost seem anti-semitic and misandrist. While I know the ultimate point of the book is to demonstrate that women have been and always will be equal to men, there are portions of this book that seem to argue that men are lesser because women are divine through their life-giving abilities. Traditional Jewish and Christian figures such as Adam, Noah, Jesus, and Peter are seen as weak or evil.

Ultimately this book ended up sounding like a radical feminist tirade, but perhaps that is the point of the entire book. Nikki Marmery makes it extremely clear that when women preach or go against the grain they are seen as radicals, whores, or demons. My negative gut reaction could only be emphasizing the point she is making all along.

While my religious beliefs stay the same, this book is great food for thought! I am glad that I took the time to read this and grateful to Nikki Marmery for taking the time to write this.

My rating: A 3

Overall, I will say I did like this book.
However, I do agree with many criticisms on here of it. At times the dialogue was both strangely modern and archaic, I did have trouble getting through some parts and Lilith is seemingly just an observer in her own book.
But it did have me looking back at many Bible stories I heard and never thought twice of again like huh, that is wildly misogynistic. Which I know, many of them but it pulled some stories I just never thought of. This book will have get you into a female unity spirit and for that I like it.
Would I recommend it? Maybe to some but this book is for a selective audience imo.
Thanks to NetGalley and PRH for the ARC!

This was a DNF for me. It had potential, but the story didn't keep me interested. I very rarely don't finish a book.

I loved this take on the story of Lilith, the woman who in Jewish myth is Adam's first wife. I've been wanting a good Lilith novel for ages, and this is a great one. Author Marmery has clearly done a lot of research into the various aspects of ancient female goddesses, and it pays off--Lilith is a smart tale that blends archaeological history, the myths of the Bible, non-Biblical myths, Judaism and non-Jewish religions and more into Lilith's autobiography, full of compassion and sass. I get the feeling that Marmery wasn't quite sure where this story would go when she began it, but that it unfolded itself as she went, giving it a feeling of anticipation and openness and true grappling with ideas of how gods work and live and die. A treat to read, and a treat to ponder.

I love how the author writes from Lilith's perspective, it starts with her beginning and continues until her ending. I would recommend this to anyone who has a fascination with Lilith and wants to know more about her.

There were so many highs for this book. The descriptions and writing truly just draw you in and Marmery has a really good grasp of culture, archaeology, and ancient texts to make this story of Lilith believable and mythical at the same time. The story follows Lilith who was originally in the Garden of Eden with Adam, and was later cast out due to her disobedience to Adam. I am a Christian, and I had zero understanding of who the mythical Lilith was until this book. I fiercely resonated with the stark divisions of patriarchy that is a main running theme within this book, who repeatedly abused, shunned, and villainized women to protect their own patriarchal goals and world-view. One sore plot point I felt the book had was that there were literally ZERO good male characters. Now, that may have been the point, but it was honestly a bit tiring to read and it felt really long and desperate (which I think was again a very intentional theme of the book). I really liked the perspectives of Eve, Noah's family, Jezebel, and Mary Magdalene. Truly we would have a radically different world (and Christianity) if there were more writings of a female God (Heavenly Mother), or book of scripture of other biblical women (like Mary Magdalene in this context).

Three stars goes to how the book lagged for me and that while I do recommend it, I don't know how many would really enjoy it.

Thank you to Net Galley for an advanced copy of this book!

This book is odd, but not in a bad way.
The writing style is simple and easy to understand, but sometimes it's a little too crude for me. Some scenes needed more elaborate writing, and the story kinda lost a bit of its epicness because of that.
I did love the way that several different cultures and religions were included and explained.
It's interesting that the forbidden fruit was also the fruit of Knowledge. I really liked the idea that Yaweh was trying to keep his humans uneducated and that Asherah was trying to free them.
I love how the references for the facts are included at the end. It shows how the Cult and Asherah was destroyed hy the Church. The historical facts will surprise many people and give a new sense of understanding of the book.
I'm fond of the take of Yeshua and Maryam both worshipping the Goddess as well. They were partners, equal in every way and both fo them wanted the world to be balanced and in peace. There are many paralels between Maryam and Yeshua. Both are preachers and they have followers, both are betrayed and turn into martyrs. Peter, of course, ruins everything with his sexism (which is also documented historically).
Lilith is obviously the star of the book! She's a symbol of equality and empowerement - she was turned into a demon in the Bible for choosing not to have sex with Adam. She wants to restore the Goddesse's words and ideals, os that the world is an equal place for men and women. I also enjoy her relationship with Samael, who treats her kindly and would do anything for her.
This book is interesting to read and I really like the feminism included, as well as the preaching for kindness and equality, but some thing are a little unrealistic. The characters have sex literally the moment they meet, Samael's relationship with Lilith could've been a lot more explored. It lacked depth. I think the main problem with this book is the pace. There are many plot points but they all get resolved so fast that they stop feeling important.

TW:sexism, violence, rape, abusive relationship, pregnancy, miscarriage, sexual content.

While I was greatly looking forward to a feminist retelling of Lilith, this one did fall a little flat for me. I am not Christian, but I have always enjoyed biblical retellings, so I was intrigued by this version of Lilith. While I did enjoy the storytelling within the book, I did have issues with some of the dialog and writing; The way the characters spoke and the inner dialog of Lilith would vacillate between modern and archaic which became confusing and took me out of the story.
I did appreciate the feminist retellings of some very well known biblical stories, and how the female characters in those stories, who are typically minor side characters, were the main focus.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of Lilith in exchange for my honest review.

Lilith is a theme, character, story, that has always intrigued me, so as soon as I heard about this book, I knew I wanted to read it.
It wasn't what I expected. That doesn't mean it isn't good...it just caught me off guard, but the intrigue was there and I couldn't stop reading.
There is an underlying theme that never really gets dealt with...it is just always there, in the background, how women are treated, have been treated and as you read this story, you realizing there is an underlying level of anger within all of us regarding this treatment.
While the story starts at creation and follows along with the stories we've read in the bible, there's a lot of leeway too , where the author takes you on a journey.
Like I said, I was intrigued enough to finish the book.

This book was odd. Right off the bat, I loved the cover and the description really sucked me in. Overall though I had trouble getting up the motivation to pick this one up. I really thought this new take on what happened in the garden of eden was going to blow me away but it did not meet expectations. I think the author's writing style was part of that.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an oppression to read an ARC of this book.

Not for me. I think I was hoping for a more elegant historical fiction/fantasy and the modern tone was just too much.

I think this is a perfect book for someone. I think I just must not be smart enough cuz I struggled to follow the story with the writing style

I was first drawn to Lilith by the fierce description. The premise was clear: a decisively feminist retelling of the Hebrew creation myth. Finally, a chance for Lilith to reclaim her story and power. An epic journey throughout the stories of history all to right the wrongs down to woman. As someone who grew up hearing these stories as part of my religion, and has always struggled with a lot of the blatantly misogynistic aspects of them, I was enraptured by the story. The plot itself was inspired and triumphant.

However, despite my strong desire to be sucked in by this story and be a part of the reclamation, I struggled to make my way through it due to the writing. It was filled with lush, descriptive details, but when it mattered most (when characters were interacting or plot was being moved forward) the writing read as very simple, out of place with the time, and undemanding. I had hoped that it would develop as the characters and plot did, but it did not and it did the story a disservice.

This novel is a stunning and riveting story inspired by ancient myths and suppressed scriptures. It narrates how women came to be suppressed and controlled by men, focusing on the character of Lilith, the first woman who was banished for believing she was equal to Adam. The novel covers several biblical characters and events, including the building of the Ark, but the story is less about the origin of man or religion than the beginning of the subjugation of women. The story is beautifully written, with a balance that shows how much and how little things have changed, but it offers hope for our collective future. The novel takes the reader through millennia with Lilith as she tries to spread the word that only she knows to be true, that the religion that many flock to is fraudulent. The characterization of some characters needs work, and the beginning of the novel moves too fast, which can be overwhelming. However, by the middle-end, the story is perfect, and the reader is able to form connections with the characters. The novel is a masterpiece that deserves a place alongside Circe and is perfect for those interested in mythology, religion, and women's rights. Overall, it is a stunning, enlightening, and riveting story that the reader will not forget

Lilith was really beautifully written. I really enjoyed this different perspective of well know stories. At times, the story could be fast and difficult to follow, at others, slow. Overall, I enjoyed this book!