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Historical person

Circe

Circe is a divine enchantress in Greek mythology, usually described as the daughter of the sun god Helios and the Oceanid Perse. She lives on the remote island of Aeaea, where she possesses extensive knowledge of herbs, potions and transformative magic. Although ancient tradition frequently presents her as dangerous and unpredictable, she is also intelligent, independent and capable of offering protection and guidance.

Her character combines the roles of goddess, witch, host, lover and adviser. In Homer’s Odyssey, Circe transforms Odysseus’s companions into animals before being compelled to restore them and later becomes a guide who advises Odysseus about the journey to the underworld and the dangers ahead. Later Greek and Roman writers made her a model of enchantment, dangerous sexuality and divine knowledge.

Madeline Miller’s Circe is born in the palace of the sun god Helios, where her mortal-sounding voice and apparent lack of power make her an object of contempt. Drawn towards mortals and dissatisfied with the cruelty of the gods, she discovers an ability to transform the world through herbs and spoken magic. In Homer’s The Odyssey, Odysseus later recounts his earlier adventures among the Cicones and Lotus-Eaters, his blinding of the Cyclops Polyphemus, the destruction of his fleet by the Laestrygonians, his year with Circe and his descent into the land of the dead. In Rosemary Sutcliff’s The Wanderings of Odysseus, the Cyclops, Circe, the Sirens, the dead, Scylla and Charybdis turn the voyage into a ten-year struggle against monsters, hostile gods and the hero’s own curiosity and pride.

Series

Historical novels and book series featuring Circe (1 series)

Penguin Classics: Ancient World in Order

by various authors 32 books 4.6(13,212)

Penguin Classics: Ancient World brings together foundational works of literature, history, philosophy, drama and poetry from the earliest civilisations through classical Greece and Rome. The wider Penguin Classics series began in 1946 with E. V. Rieu’s translation of Homer’s Odyssey, reflecting its original aim of making important texts…

All books in this series

Standalone books

Standalone books featuring Circe (2 books)