About this book
(via 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?
My thoughts
My thoughts“Can’t you see that it just goes on, over and over? The gods demand their justice, but we suffer for it, every time.”
Set in ancient Greece, this retelling is true to form and location. I’ve always been interested in Greek Mythology, even more so after a visit to Greece years ago, but I also realise that whatever I know, is probably the bare minimum – only the more well-known myths. I do need a copy of The Dummy’s Guide to Greek Mythology – wait, is there a book like that?
“Let him come back so that I can see his eyes as the light drains from them. Let him come back and die at the hands of his bitterest enemy. Let him come back so that I can watch him suffer. And let me make it slow.”
The book is titled “Elektra”, which is a bit puzzling, seeing that she is only one of the three women presented and she only starts to feature later in the book. I also found her the least likeable….
The story is told from the three protagonists’ first person point of views, alternating between chapters. If you take the time lapses and the extended period of the story line into account as well, I really struggled to get into the flow of this retelling. I really wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, I didn’t. This is a typical Greek tragedy with shock, heartbreak, grief, jealously, revenge and ruthless family dramas, but it was just another story to me, I could not get invested in any of the characters. What a pity! Maybe my expectations were just a bit too high, especially after the hype of “Ariadne” (which I have not read)
I am adding extra points for the gorgeous cover design though – it is stunning!
RRR (Roelia Reads Rating) = 3/5
Thanks to Jonathan Ball Publishers for the gifted copy
About the author: https://www.jennifersaint.com/
