Temptresses: The Virago Book of Evil Women

Description

Evil Women. Every culture has them. Religions have banned and branded them. Men find them terrifying and fascinating. Women secretly admire them. An eye cast over the impressive if frightening array of characters reveals baby-thief Lamia, a fertile deity from Greek mythology with a serpent's tail who seduced mortals and bred beautiful monster-children; Morgan le Fay, fairy sister to King Arthur, who according to Celtic legend tried to wrest the throne from him using her black magic powers; Medea who wreaked terrible revenge on Jason when he left her for a younger woman; Lilith, Eve, the Queen of Sheba, Delilah, Jezebel, Kali - all wicked women whose names have been with us for centuries as demons and sirens and troublemakers.

Shahrukh Husain is a folklore and fairy tale expert.

'Fresh and suggestive ... her subject is a good one' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'A highly readable retelling of ancient myths suffused with the modern conundrums of relationships between the sexes' INDEPENDENT 'A good way to brush up on one's classical education - and pick up a few tips on how to become a temptress along the way' FRANK