Review: Once a Monster

Once a Monster by Robert Dinsdale
My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Glad to be done with this rather disappointing read.

I was in it for the mythology retelling, but apparently this was also an Oliver Twist retelling? Which honestly is probably why I hated it.

A Minotaur washes up on the shore and a poor kid, Nell, finds him. They form a bizarre friendship, while Nell's greedy overlord tries to work out how to make money off it so he can once again lift himself from the slums.

I cared nothing for Murdstone and the mudlarks, so that being most of the story meant I was very bored. Nothing much really happens, and there is a lot of musing on the state of things for every single character which really slowed the story down. All the ideas are spoon-fed, rather than allowing the reader to contemplate such topics through the story itself.

None of the characters held any interest to me at all. They seemed really flat, with very little personality.

The whole idea of the minotaur being THE creature from the myths, having lived aeons and somehow survived, was completely squandered. There's nothing here for the lovers of mythology - just the familiar myth transported to a bizarre setting then mostly ignored.

I really couldn't find anything about this to like. The single reason I persevered and finished it was because I requested a copy from the publisher. Sadly, it was a huge disappointment for me.

Not recommended for those hoping for a mythology retelling, but perhaps fans of Dickensian tales will appreciate it more.

With thanks to Macmillan for a copy

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