• Published: Wildfire, April 2022
• Amazon / Goodreads

The House of Atreus is cursed. A bloodline tainted by a generational cycle of violence and vengeance. This is the story of three women, their fates inextricably tied to this curse, and the fickle nature of men and gods.

Clytemnestra
The sister of Helen, wife of Agamemnon – her hopes of averting the curse are dashed when her sister is taken to Troy by the feckless Paris. Her husband raises a great army against them, and determines to win, whatever the cost.

Cassandra
Princess of Troy, and cursed by Apollo to see the future but never to be believed when she speaks of it. She is powerless in her knowledge that the city will fall.

Elektra
The youngest daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, Elektra is horrified by the bloodletting of her kin. But, can she escape the curse, or is her own destiny also bound by violence?

Review: If I thought Ariadne, Jennifer Saint’s debut novel, was tragic, this book really hits a whole other level. It was difficult to see these women trying to fix the mistakes of men and yet fall into the same traps as them, their determination yet inability to escape the curse of the House of Atreus and the cycles of violence.

 I was captivated by the questions of morality, revenge and the control you can have over your own life that were central to the story and loved how, again, Saint has turned a well-known narrative and turned it on its head. Whilst stories of the Battle of Troy so often focus on the men, or on Helen, I loved reading about its impact on the three women who are left to deal with the fallout.

• Published: Wildfire, April 2021
• Amazon / Goodreads

Synopsis: In the tale of Theseus and the Minotaur the character of Ariadne often gets overlooked, even though she is the one who betrays her family to help Theseus slay the Minotaur. This story however places Ariadne and her sister Phaedra at the centre, focusing on them as they deal with the horror of their family and the subsequent fallout. In Ancient Greece, the women are inconsequential, voiceless, and traded like commodities. But the story of Ariadne shows they are much more than that – her complicated feelings towards her mother, the Minotaur (her brother), and her duty are explored as she learns the power she holds and attempts to discover where she belongs.

With romance, betrayal and tragedy, this story breathes life into the women that are often forgotten. Travelling from the labyrinth of the Minotaur, to the shores of Naxos, and the city of Athens, it explores the relationship between women, men, and the ever vengeful gods, and uses women’s voices to take familiar stories in a new direction.

Review: I was really excited to read this book. I grew up reading Greek mythology and was so interested to see how this book retold a familiar story but from a female perspective. And I have to say I wasn’t disappointed. Although it did take me a while to connect to Ariadne as a character, her feelings for Theseus in particular could have been explored in more depth to feel less superficial, I was drawn in by the beautiful descriptions and strength of emotions that drive the story.

The various tales of Greek heroes and Gods were well woven in, helping to create a rich atmosphere and a clear sense of the mythological world this story takes place in. As someone quite familiar with the different myths, it was nice to hear them told as stories by the different characters as it reminds you how interconnected the different stories are.