Authorpreneur Dashboard – Luciana Cavallaro
Aphrodite's Curse
Literature & Fiction
A powerful family is brought to ruin, the consequences unforeseen and irreparable. The trouble begins with King Mino who asks the gods for a bull to be sacrificed so that he may become ruler of Kretos and surrounding lands. Poseidon sends him a gift of a white bull and instead of sacrificing it, King Minos keeps it. Poseidon is angry by his supplicant’s actions and as punishment glamour’s the king’s wife, Pasiphae to lust after the bull. The story is told by PHAEDRA, Theseus’ wife, who witnesses first-hand, the rise and fall of her family. She grows up in a privileged environment, a princess and daughter of King Minos. From a very early age she knows the power her father wields, but is also aware his actions may have precipitated the misfortunes that followed. She reflects on the different and disturbing events from a detached perspective. Her tone can sometimes be one of a spoilt child, then at other times resigned and on occasion shows an uncanny insight. This retrospective musing comes from her sighting of Hippolytos, her husband’s son from a previous marriage. She falls in love with him and finds it difficult to contain this secret and eventually tells her nurse. Phaedra asks for Aphrodite’s help, even builds a temple, however Hippolytos spurns her advances. Shamed by her actions and by his revulsion, she poisons herself, leaving a letter to her husband writing that Hippolytos had raped her.
Book Bubbles from Aphrodite's Curse
A letter to the reader
Unrequited love, one of the most difficult and heart-wrenching emotions to deal with. As humans we are programmed to love and be loved, yet what happens when it is not reciprocated? People react in different ways. In most cases, we deal with it and move on. It hurts yes, but we do our best to heal. So what happens if you can't or won't? Some take extreme measures, though that never solves the issue.
The Curse of Troy
Literature & Fiction
Helen of Troy! The most beautiful woman in the world. Her face launched a thousand ships. Betrayal, greed and power unfold in this compelling Greek tragedy. It was a war renowned throughout times gone by as the greatest and bloodiest of them all. It was a romance between two star-crossed lovers. Helen, Queen of Sparta, home-wrecker and whore, flees with her lover Paris, Prince of Troy… That’s the story known to history. But is this all true? History is told by the victors, and facts can be changed to twist the truth. Is it possible Helen of Sparta never went to Troy? Could she be a scapegoat in a devious plan and organised by the power hungry Agamemnon? Perhaps. This is Helen’s story in her words, as told to a wandering historian.
Book Bubbles from The Curse of Troy
The story behind the myth
Before writing came on the scene, telling stories was sung, a form of poetic verses with repetitive phrases and words to remember the lines. The most famous of oral works was The Iliad sung by Homer. The story was recounted about 400 years after the event and penned later when the Greeks used a form of writing called Linear B passed down from the Minoans, and then adopted the Phoenician alphabet. Did the events happen as Homer recited? There is evidence to suggest a war did occur at the site of Ilion (Troy). Whether Helen was the reason behind it we'll never know.
A Goddess' Curse Amazon
Literature & Fiction
Hera, Queen of the Gods, is the most powerful goddess on Mount Olympos. Beautiful, sensual, and merciless, she is a goddess renowned for her jealous rages and for inflicting horrors on hapless victims. She’s the protector of women, virtue, family and marriage yet her husband, Zeus, has had countless affairs. She puts up with it. Why? Is she really malicious or a product of circumstance?
Book Bubbles from A Goddess' Curse Amazon
Will the real Hera stand up?
While researching about Hera, I used a number of print and non-print sources. The mythologies varied as did the articles about her by historians. Everyone had an opinion about Hera and most of it comes from male orientated histories. Even though she was a highly regarded goddess, her human behaviour painted her as vindictive, jealous and emotional. Traits we are all familiar with.
Boxed in a Curse
Science Fiction & Fantasy
She was created by the gods as a gift to humanity. Then there was the urn. Pandora, the first woman on Earth, was endowed with many gifts: beauty, intelligence, domesticity, and curiosity. She was at once lover, sympathiser and nurturer. Zeus presented an urn as her wedding dowry. Neither she nor her husband, Epimethos knew what it contained inside, and Hermes, the Messenger, warned them never to open it. So the story goes… according to Grandpa. Two precocious children visit their grandfather and beg him to tell a story. It wasn’t ‘on a dark and stormy night’ or ‘once upon a time’ type of story either.
Book Bubbles from Boxed in a Curse
Was it Pandora's Fault?
While researching for the story, I was surprised to learn Pandora didn't open a 'box'. In fact, it was an urn. The word was mistranslated by Erasmus of Rotterdam in the 16th Century. He translated the word pithos, a large storage jar to pyxis, meaning box. The myth began with Hesiod's 'Theogony' a tale about the rise of the gods and then explained further in his 'Works and Days'. Hesiod didn't hold women in high regard and more or less blames Pandora for all the ills in the world. The myth begins with the war between the Titans and the Olympian Gods, and how Zeus wanted to teach man a lesson.
