A Thousand Ships review

Synopsis:

In the middle of the night, a woman wakes to find her beloved city engulfed in flames. Ten seemingly endless years of conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans are over. Troy has fallen.

From the Trojan women whose fates now lie in the hands of the Greeks, to the Amazon princess who fought Achilles on their behalf, to Penelope awaiting the return of Odysseus, to the three goddesses whose feud started it all, these are the stories of the women embroiled in the legendary war.

Powerfully told from an all-female perspective, in A Thousand Ships Natalie Haynes puts the women, girls and goddesses at the centre of the story.

Review:

“A war does not ignore half of the people whose lives it touches. So why do we?”

A brilliant retelling of the Trojan War from the unique perspectives of all the women involved, some which you will have heard of and others which you will not.

Compelling written from many different narratives that are all equally as interesting, to fully show all the emotions and tensions that raged on both sides of the war.

I particularly enjoyed Penelope’s chapters written as letters to Odysseus because she is often remembered as the yielding wife that accepted Odysseus home after 20 years, with no thought to what happened to her while he was gone.

Definitely recommend for anyone to read, but especially those who are into Greek mythology

Rating: 10/10

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