Reviews with content warning for Trafficking - The Song of Achilles

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The Song of Achilles, by Madeline Miller

56 reviews

tsar's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional lighthearted sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

“I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell; I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”

I've been putting off The Song of Achilles review for weeks because I have no idea what to say, honestly. It feels like a blank page every time I want to write it down, and I think the book hangover is strong with this one, so I will be making this review as brief as possible.

If any of us is familiar with the famous Homer's Iliad, then The Song of Achilles is the modern, reimagined adaptation of the Greek epic poem. The story is set during the Trojan War, recounting the subsequent quarrels between King Agamemnon and warrior hero Achilles during the ten-year siege of the city of Troy. While the dialectic poem is written from the outsider's view, the retelling novel by Madeline Miller sees the events through the eyes of Patroclus.

In retrospect, I have dived into a Miller novel before; Circe, her second book, was my first introduction to her writing style, so I have an idea of what kind of retelling she would offer in her debut novel. Miller establishes a distinctive manner in narration compared to her peers in the fantasy and mythology genre, especially regarding a reimagined myth. It is evident in both works that she has a penchant for adhering to the original source instead of simply treating it as a mere inspiration, transforming her stories into a dynamic bridge between fictionalized recount and a true story.

Its tumultuous dynamic in The Song of Achilles is credited to Miller's characterization of Patroclus as the protagonist in the novel. Patroclus is a sentimental narrator who spends the course of the tale attempting (and succeeding) in convincing the readers that his version of Achilles, from his adolescent age to the years of siege, is the authentic version of the story. Miller has no qualms in alluding to Patroclus' prominent adoration for Achilles, more often than not downplaying his own strength to magnify Achilles' power beyond the prophecy bestowed on the golden boy. In return, the notion of keeping his admiration afloat towards Achilles often renders Patroclus' own narrative to be inferior and seemingly disposable, despite the obvious hints and appreciation from his Greek peers, especially Achilles himself, that Patroclus is a pivotal key player in their journey and subsequent war as a confidant.

Much like any first-person point-of-view novel, the usage of the perspective transcends the narrative into a reading of a personal journal—it feels more honest and unfiltered as if the readers are participating in the story as the narrators' companions or the narrators themselves. However, if Circe serves as a semi-autobiographical piece that maintains neutrality in almost all chapters, The Song of Achilles presents a more arousing recount thanks to the sentimentality that Patroclus exudes in his story. The intimacy in the tone of the novel is hard to miss, so substantial to the point where the readers feel like they are intruding on Patroclus and Achilles' time together and disturbing their much-needed peace.

As a result, Miller succeeds in gauging the readers' reactions as they follow through with Patroclus and Achilles' story until its ending; we have experienced the emotions of happiness and joy in seeing them together, giddiness in watching them sneaking out to kiss and realize their intimacy, forlorn and frustration towards the unfairness of their situation and the harsh rejection that Thetis keeps demonstrating, and lastly, heartbreak towards their devastating fate. Seldom can a novel bring out so many emotions at once, particularly since its initial introduction, but Miller proves that her debut is one of those novels.

While the narrative is dripping in subjectiveness, the characters shown in the novel mostly stay true to the mythology that Miller pays homage to, such as Achilles' arrogance and aloofness as well as his apparent favoritism towards Patroclus. The kings' portrayals, including their horrendous habits in claiming anything as war prizes, are bluntly described without watering them down—neither a hero nor villain in Miller's point of view, just merely men filled with greediness and bruised ego. Even Thetis' incredulous vicious tendencies fit right with her status as a minor goddess with an extreme need to prove herself, seeing that her son was born out of non-consensual mating with prophecy looming on her baby.

Miller instead gives further elaboration on the characters' conclusions and deeper reasons that encapsulate the development of their personalities—an expansion akin to behind-the-scenes glimpses that go beyond the archetype myth. Brises, as one of the supporting characters provided with this treatment, is a highlight in the novel. Miller succeeds in illustrating her tenacity, even in the earliest introduction where Briseis was still dreading her fate as a potential comfort woman. Moreover, her striking friendship with Patroclus and Achilles helps her bloom as a character even more; she has the rare chance to be the only woman considered as the protagonists' dear companion and equal, and in return, allows her to learn about them and regard them as her dearest friends as well.

Perhaps, it is in the ending where we could see the narrative writing echoes the dialectic and rhythmic writing of an epic poem; Patroclus' lamentation of his death and the fate of Achilles' pre-teen years are filled with self-agonize, mourning over his inability to follow Achilles to the afterlife and possibility to be bound forever on earth. But Miller isn't cruel enough to end their story on an utmost tragic path like most Greek stories do, so she settles in a bittersweet one that reminisces the memories of them together and promises a joyful reunion of the two lovers after countless efforts to do so.

With its woeful romantic journey, it is also nostalgic, passionate, yet sincere—thriving in inciting a barrage of emotions as we keep reading the story of Patroclus and Achilles. Respectively, through The Song of Achilles, Miller has created a significantly timeless classic in the current modern times that deserves its spot as one of the best offers in the fiction genre as it goes.

I don't think it's going to be easy to recover from this book. It hurts. In a good way.

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froggybex's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.75

i cried. i loved it. the only reason of the docked .25 is bc i preferred pat barker’s depiction of brieses

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chetanaisreading's review

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adventurous emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

i did not really cry and I was expecting that to happen, so that made the rating drop. Also, Achilles got really irritating later on. the writing is without a doubt 5/5

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anime917's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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kt2e56's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Beautifully written. There is no doubt about Madeline Miller’s skills as a writer. I actually think from a technical standpoint, she’s one of the most gifted writers we currently have. She has just such a way with words and even as someone fairly well-versed in Greek mythology who knows how this all ends, I was hooked as if this was a cast of characters I’d never heard of before.

I read Circe first and I found it to be much, much more relatable due to my own personal history and experiences but this book was just as spectacular. I love that this was all told from the point of view of Patroclus. He’s compelling and it’s lovely to see his own story fleshed out. His love for Achilles is touching but I think Achilles eventually becomes so unlikeable that it’s hard to see what Patroclus still sees in him and why he still so readily would give up everything for him.

And Achilles himself is seen as complex here! Which is fine! Complex is good and I’m glad that he wasn’t always the attentive, loving, nurturing boy that Patroclus fell for and believed in. I think the story of Achilles here (and eventually Pyrrhus although he’s a much more extreme example) is a fascinating look at masculinity. Achilles is beautiful and sensitive and kind. He loves music and pretty things and nature. We see this throughout. But it isn’t until he starts demanding the treatment he believes he deserves and stamping out all that’s beautiful and tender about him that he could be seen as great and powerful by the world around him. He believes he’s entitled to greatness and he reaches a point where he really buys into his own hype and doesn’t care who he’s harmed as long as he gets what he believes he deserves as this pinnacle of masculinity, the best of the best. He can only become a hero by embracing cruelty and he’d rather be a hero and be remembered by everyone than remembered only by his love, Patroclus: the only person who ever really knew him at all.

I’ll be thinking about this book for awhile. It’s hard not to. It’s so rich and textured. I’m giving this a 4.5 instead a 5, only because I started to grow a bit numb from reading cruelty after cruelty and atrocity after atrocity but I can absolutely recognize that that has nothing to do with Miller’s skill as a writer, and has everything to do with my own personal preferences.

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emselders's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Beautifully written, expertly paced, and emotionally provoking. The spoiler section of the review is only spoiling it if you aren't familiar with the Illiad.

Spoiler
I've never actually read the Illiad besides short excerpts for English classes, but through cultural osmosis I had a rudimentary understanding of what it was about enough that I knew this book would not have a happy ending. In spite of my forewarning, this book wrecked me. I often cry about books, but very rarely to the extent that I cried over this one.

Due to my not having read the Illiad, I cannot comment on this book's effectiveness as an adaptation of that work. What I can say is that one of the reasons I haven't previously read it is that my knowledge of it made me believe I would dislike it, but this reworking of the story made me instantly and completely fall in love with this world and these characters. The ideas of what it meant to be honorable in the times of Homer are so foreign and backward to me. It was not about being a good person or living by your values in the face of social opposition; it was about how you were treated and viewed in relation to a strict social hierarchy. Instead of being about morals, it was about pride and vanity. This book made it easier for me to sympathize a lot more with the dilemmas this cultural lens brought on. It also I think humanized Achilles in a way that makes him a more readable character for modern audiences.

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fanboyriot's review against another edition

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sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.0

Finally finished reading this after having it on my physical TBR for at least five years.

The hype of this was high. Seeing great reviews and positive comments about how amazing the writing was and how sad but good it was.

I’m not gonna lie I only bought it because it was queer and it had Greek mythology in it. I thought despite the angst and it being a historical fiction that I’d like it.

The short review is that I did not like it. I wanted to DNF it so many times but thought maybe I just wasn’t giving it a chance.

I don’t know if it was because of the slower paced chapters or because it was a historical fiction but this book was so boring. I could not wait to be done with it.

There were so many moments that it was cringey or just uncomfortable to read. All the spicy moments were awful to get through. And while I understand it was back when people were a lot younger when they were married off or forced to have children but it was just so uncomfortable to read lines like: “Her body, he said, was soft and small as a child’s.” (Chapter 13, page 147)… why is that necessary?? How did that make it into the final edits??

I will say the positive about this was that through everything Achilles and Patroclus had a healthy, honest, and trusting relationship for the most part.

And while the ending was sad it wasn’t as bad as I expected. I think that what Thetis ended up doing in the end helped with that. It was the sweetest thing she had done in that whole book.

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sacredgayometry's review

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emotional inspiring sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

One of the best romance reads and a very beautiful rendition of the classic myth, although a tad predictable at times. There are moments in this book that make me wonder if I’ve ever truly experienced love, because I get so emotional about it, more than even thinking about my own partners. There are also moments in this book that are incredibly frustrating to read due to the characters often being willfully obstinate and prideful, but it wouldn’t be a green tragedy if that weren’t the case. Overall a wonderful book, the language is beyond poetic and I loved the characters, but the plot is sometimes slow and there are some very annoying bits that tarnished the overall feel, for me.

Spoiler

for example, the scene in which Patroclus is killed was infuriating to read, as it seemed so out of character for him to do

Spoiler

I would recommend that you read it once, but for me once is enough.

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