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ClareR (6256 KP) rated Hera in Books

Nov 1, 2024  
Hera
Hera
Jennifer Saint | 2024 | Fiction & Poetry, Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I really enjoyed this retelling of Hera’s story. She wasn’t a woman to be messed with - and Zeus pushed her to her limits on many occasions. While she couldn’t punish the King of the Gods, she could certainly punish the women that he cheated on her with.

In the original stories, Hera is vilified, portrayed as unreasonably vengeful, spiteful even. In this version, we can see her motivations. She can’t possibly direct her revenge on her monarch - that would endanger her position and Zeus would deal with her like all those who acted against him.

Hera is complicated woman, and she acts in the only way she knows how to. Her anger has centuries to mature and grow, and there’s a real sense of the passage of time. It’s just that that passage is pretty meaningless to a God!

This novel doesn’t excuse Hera’s behaviour, but it certainly gives the reasons for it. I love Greek mythology, and Jennifer Saints retellings have been excellent. This is another great addition to the series.
  
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Morgan Sheppard (1037 KP) created a post

Aug 14, 2026  
It's #FolkloreFriday 🌿

This week's folklore focus — the hazel in Welsh and Celtic mythology, and why its symbolism is more coherent and more interesting than it might first appear.

Nine hazel trees overhang the sacred pool at the source of wisdom. Their nuts fall into the water and feed the salmon that carries knowledge upstream. The bubbles rising where the nuts fell are called the bubbles of mystic inspiration. The hazel is the origin point of the whole chain — without it, the pool is empty, and the salmon has nothing to carry.

The same tree was used for water-divining across the Celtic and Welsh traditions, its forked branches sensitive to water beneath the surface. The tree that feeds hidden wisdom also finds hidden water. The associations are consistent, pointing toward the same quality — a sensitivity to what lies beneath ordinary perception.

The Celtic tree month of Hazel runs now through August, and this week feels like exactly the right time to sit with what the tradition understood about it.

#FolkloreFriday #WelshFolklore #CelticMythology