Reviews with content warning for Sexual assault - House of Odysseus

House of Odysseus is the second book in Claire North’s The Songs of Penelope trilogy. It continues to follow Penelope’s struggles with managing Ithaca in Odysseus’ absence, and without stepping over the line of what society views her place as a woman and queen should be. Told from Aphrodite’s point of view, the book kicks off with Elektra returning to Ithaca with a seemingly insane Orestes. When King Menelaus tracks his nephew to the island under the guise of concern, Penelope’s role becomes much more complicated.

If you love mythology that gives a glimpse into what the women went through and showcases their strength and intelligence, this trilogy is perfect. Each character is so distinct. Penelope is perfectly written, walking the fine line between meek and mastermind; Menelaus is repulsive and boorish; Laertes is witty and entertaining; and the misogyny that oozes out of the male characters is perfectly counteracted by the sly and strategic females they continually underestimate.

Though I typical do not like modern language in my historical fiction, in this series I found it amusing without detracting from the story, if anything it adds just the right amount of zest! I also loved watching Penelope blossom into her queenliness and just being an overall bad a**.

As with the first book, it took a little bit for me to get into. However, unlike the first book, there was a lot more action and plotting that drew me into the story sooner. I do think I preferred Hera’s narration over Aphrodite’s (I found it more humourous, as well sometimes finding Aphrodite’s sexual descriptions a bit to explicit for my taste), but each of them offer different perspectives and it is such a creative way to write a story! I am not sure if the change to the story of Paris and the goddesses was intentional and a nod towards the differing versions of Greek mythology or if it was a missed error, so that was a bit confusing to me.

Overall, this is a great book for anyone who is enjoying the resurge of mythology retellings, especially ones from a female voice.

*thank you Redhook Books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

Content Warnings

libraryofaphrodite's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

Narrated by Aphrodite, House of Odysseus follows the story of the women of Greek epic and tragedy.

Penelope is besieged by suitors, her husband Odysseus still some time from returning and her son, Telemachus, searching for news of him.

When Elektra and her brother, Orestes, arrive seeking help with his illness, Penelope and her band of women set about ensuring that Menelaus of Sparta doesn't take Orestes' throne.

This was a wonderfully lyrical reimagining of myth - the prose excellently suited to the original source material. At times there were some more modern turns of phrase and Aphrodite's character makes her domain very clear. There was some lovely vocabulary used throughout, again very fitting for something inspired by epic.

I hadn't read Ithaca before this and could easily dive straight in - the dramatis personae was helpful in filling in a few blanks. I will, however, be adding Ithaca to my TBR so that I can continue the story.

I really appreciated the female focus of the story, as well as the interaction between the mortal and divine. This too, has a female lense.

I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys myth retellings and wants to hear more from the female characters of the these stories.

Please do check the content warnings.

Thank you to NetGalley and Little Brown Book Group for the ARC in return for an honest opinion.

Content Warnings

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