The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller. 4 out of 5 stars. Retelling. Historical. Fantasy/fiction. LGBTQ+/romance.
As I've stated before I only prefer LGBTQ when written well. Madeline Miller wrote LGBTQ+ extremely well.
Link to buy (This link does give me a kick-back but is the only way I make money from reviewing): https://amzn.to/3kWtyQ7 (Paperback) https://amzn.to/2Wpxf6T (Digital) https://amzn.to/36Zzpfq (Hard-back) https://amzn.to/3zDDW3n (Audiobook)
Summary:
Achilles, "the best of all the Greeks," son of the cruel sea goddess Thetis and the legendary king Peleus, is strong, swift, and beautiful, irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland after an act of shocking violence. Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods' wrath.
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows. Little do they know that the cruel Fates will test them both as never before and demand a terrible sacrifice.
My Review:
The Song of Achilles was a solid 4 star. No less. No more. I'm not one to usually read LGBTQ+ mostly because I just can't stand the way people write it. But with Madeline Miller. She wrote it in the exact way I do like. It's historically accurate which is something I love. Especially when it comes to retellings. Retellings often miss some of the accuracy and she didn't miss a single historical accurate part. I adore retellings, but it's usually hit or miss..and this was a hit. Now, it may not be 5 stars but that's just simply because there were a few parts I questioned.
Chapters and sections that just didn't make any sense. But other than those I really loved the way she wrote this book. The Iliad is one of my favorite books. I own it in a special edition cover, which is gorgeous by the way. When I kept getting this recommended to me I knew I just had to get it, but I didn't even have time to buy it! I was gifted this book by a good friend from instagram! Castle_Books. I thank her for gifting this to me because I absolutely adored this book!
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who thoroughly enjoys retellings, lgbtq+, history and the greek gods. (I mean..who doesn't love the greek gods)
My Pros:
Historically Accurate! Like I said above, retellings are a hit or miss with historical accuracy. This one was a hit.
LGBTQ+ was written in a way I truly did enjoy and I think many others would too.
The end was absolutely beautiful. I know some people said it had them sobbing, but for me it didn't. But that's not a con. I will still remember that end for probably all of eternity.
Even though the characters are not her own creation she did an amazing job of writing them and creating a wonderful book out of it.
My Cons:
In a few chapters and sections there were some parts I questioned. I didn't understand the point of them being there as I felt they slowed down the story majorly. Other than this con it was amazing!
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Good job to Madeline Miller. You did a wonderful job of bringing this retelling to life and creating such a wonderful well-loved story!
Link to buy (This link does give me a kick-back but is the only way I make money from reviewing): https://amzn.to/3kWtyQ7 (Paperback) https://amzn.to/2Wpxf6T (Digital) https://amzn.to/36Zzpfq (Hard-back) https://amzn.to/3zDDW3n (Audiobook)
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Goodbye for now!
Sincerely,
M.K Queen
aka Queen Book Reviews