Even Monsters Have Families: ‘Medusa’s Sisters’ by Lauren Bear

My lifelong love of Greek mythology is always rekindled when a new retelling comes my way, especially when that re-telling comes from the perspective of overlooked characters. Medusa’s Sisters is the debut novel of Boston author Lauren J. A. Bear, and follows the lesser known sisters of Medusa from birth and past the death of their beloved sister.

Medusa, Stheno, and Euryale were born to Phorcys, god of the sea’s hidden dangers, and Ceto, goddess of sea monsters. They were born before Zeus overthrew his father, and they witnessed Prometheus and the eagle, and the dawn of mankind as we know it. They were immediately a disappointment to their mother, as none were born with fangs or talons, they were simply ordinary. But none more ordinary than Medusa, the only one of the three born mortal. Initially believed to be dead, they quickly realize that only her “immortality was still born.” Those assembled for the birth argue over a mercy killing before she is named Medusa, and allowed to live by her mother. Her older sister Enyo then poses a question that drives the entire narrative of the book. She asks, “What can a life mean for one who will die among those who cannot?” And while Medusa is usually the focus of her story, in Medusa’s Sisters, the focus is definitely on what can a life mean for those who will not die, loving so feverishly one who will?

All three sisters are curious about mortals and their lives, and so they enter the human world in search of a place to belong. Eager to observe, they are quickly embroiled in the lives of not only the humans, but also the Olympians. They find themselves always on the outskirts of greater stories than their own. Watching their story reminds me of watching a disaster movie from the perspective of a side character, and it is a captivating perspective. Their lives are so important, and nuanced, and interesting, yet so marginal to the thrust of the major stories we remember.

“Monsters, but not monstrous,” Stheno and Euryale come to the forefront in this story for the first time to tell of how all three lived and were changed by each other. Bear explores the struggles of individuality and sisterhood, and where the individual stands between myth and truth. I find myself enjoying this in the same way that I enjoy the relationship of Glinda and Elphaba in Gregory Maguire’s Wicked, and with the same joy that the act of true love saving Arendelle was that of the sisters, not the lovers. While love is a central theme in Medusa’s Sisters, it is how those relationships affect the sisters that we are focused on.

The story begins with a prologue, and so the ending we all know of Medusa’s decapitation is revealed immediately. This has us asking on page one what this story is actually going to be about, if not about the most often cited part of Medusa’s story. I am usually irritated by the use of time in this fashion, but loved that this story began in this way so as to re-direct our focus away from Medusa’s main story into contemplation of the tangential straight away. Bear addresses the elephant in the room immediately, and now we can focus on the sisters and not the ending.

Of the three sisters, only Euryale and Stheno are given a narrative voice. Euryale above all else seems to crave experience. She wanted to experience love, she wanted to experience the mortal highs and lows, and above all else she wanted to experience Poseidon. Her love of the sea god drives so many of the joys and disasters that come her way. This is not Percy Jackson’s dad, this is the vengeful, selfish being of disaster. Stheno does not crave closeness to humanity in the way her sisters do, but craves her sisters. In many ways, she is the link between the mortal Medusa, and the experience-seeking Euryale. The love among the three, the jealousy, the familial complications, all are explored as the sisters move from one mortal experience to another.

Whilst some of this story felt inevitable, there are parts of this narrative that absolutely broke my heart. Bear writes female stories with such passion and such a finely tuned sense of the myriad of ways to be a woman. She explores so many aspects of the sisters’ sexuality, from a simple crush to a an all consuming desire. I absolutely loved how Bear explored the relationship of these sidelined characters to their more famous relatives, and how that changes who they are. There is an Olympian party scene with Eurayle skirting the edges, that feels like a regular family wedding. These are complicated women, and becoming gorgons is probably the least interesting thing about them. I cannot wait to see which characters Bear decides to re-imagine next.

It’s a retelling of Greek Myths so there is a lot in this book that could be triggering. This book depicts prostitution, rape, and childbirth. 

GeekMom received a copy of this book for review purposes.