Reviews with content warning for Infidelity - A Thousand Ships

I have loved mythology since I was a young, young child. Greek myths hold a special place in my heart and in particular the stories surrounding the Trojan War and its outfall, such that even my high school courses in Ancient Greek were a joy. I adore mythological retellings, but they are sometimes hard to perfect. So, I was apprehensive: I assumed I would love this book, be entertained, but definitely not blown away.

Natalie Haynes has perfected the art of proving me wrong. At every turn, this book positively surprised me. I don't know how much of my admiration and love for her work is due to me being familiar with the stories she is telling - I would love to experience them for the first time like this - and thus not being as overwhelmed with the various storylines, plots, and characters. But I don't really care. I thought this was a piece of pure brilliance, that takes familiar narratives and approaches them afresh, somehow without losing the essence of earlier renditions. Her imaginings of Athene, Penelope, Cassandra, Odysseus, and Calliope in particular blew me away.

A Thousand Ships weaves the stories of mortal and immortal women alike into one book, that covers both the Trojan War, its aftermath, and its origins. It is stunning and I truly cannot recommend it enough.

Oh, and would absolutely recommend the audiobook read by the author!

Content Warnings

withlivjones's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

5.0

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

THIS is how you do a retelling. Natalie Haynes expertly weaves together a tapestry of narratives to provide us with a detailed picture of the Trojan War from the perspective of the women who were affected by it. And it is commendable how many women she includes, from the well-known Cassandra to the more obscure Laodamia and Oenone. I would recommend prior knowledge of the Trojan Cycle in order to get the most out of this book, just because of the amount of detail Haynes has managed to pack in, but the novel still feels accessible enough that one would probably still understand it with minimal knowledge.

There are so many fantastic lines throughout that really pack a punch, and the novel discusses the different things that can define womanhood, what it means to be a hero (because the heroes of the Trojan War weren’t just the ones fighting), and the lasting effects of war. Haynes draws from a wide range of ancient sources, and I particularly enjoy the inspiration from Ovid’s Heroides in Penelope’s letters to Odysseus that gradually get more and more impatient and sarcastic. My favourite parts by far, though, are Calliope’s chapters that suddenly become rather meta, as if she is wrenching control of the story from the male poet who is entreating her in a display of feminine solidarity - in order to give her fellow women the spotlight. I sometimes feel like Haynes is speaking directly to female readers through these characters who are suffering at the hands of the patriarchy and saying ‘I see you, and you are not alone’. It’s enough to inspire a bit of female rage in all of us.

There are a few other perspectives I would have loved to see: Helen’s, for example, since I still believe she is grossly misrepresented in many interpretations of the Trojan Cycle. Haynes also expresses a wish that she could have included a chapter on Dido, which I also would have thoroughly enjoyed. But if anything, this is just a sign that I wish the book were longer!

Overall, this is definitely going to the top of my list of favourite Greek mythology retellings, and in the future I will be recommending it to anyone who expresses an interest in the Iliad. Why read the Catalogue of Ships when you can read a catalogue of reasons why men suck? (jk jk…)

Content Warnings

xlivjones073's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

jessieka's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

careinthelibrary's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional mysterious sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated

3.5

I liked this! I picked it up because of a recommendation from a friend and she definitely knew me well. I already know and love the story of The Trojan War and The Odyssey and this retelling satisfied my <i>dissatisfation</i> regarding the misrepresentation and underrepresentation of women in the ancient Greek stories. This gives those figures on the outskirts a voice and more agency.

My favourites would be Penthesilia, Cassandra, and Penelope (oh my God, I never thought of so much of The Odyssey from her perspective and I'm hooked!). I wish we'd had a chapter from Helen's perspective, it's conspicuous that we don't.

I think having so many perspectives did stretch the narrative a bit too thin. I would have loved a few of these culled to give more space to the others to be deepened and more explored at length. I'm looking forward to reading more from this author, perhaps with a focus on ones with fewer PoVs.

Content Warnings

nagoatsis's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark emotional sad fast-paced

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

5.0

Content Warnings

readerette's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

Reading through the experiences of so many women and goddesses attached to the Trojan War was a fascinating journey. I learned a lot about the details of the battles and the characters.

Reminiscent of Madeline Miller, but a different emotional tenor because Miller's stories hone in more on specific characters, in my experience. The many voices on both sides lend this book a sense of telling the unbiased, unvarnished truth of the war. A heavy topic, and dark themes reign, but most things of a graphic nature are only mentioned, rarely laid out in great detail.

Calliope felt like a strange inclusion since she wasn't directly affected by or involved in the war like everyone else in the book. Penelope's letters were distracting in my opinion, as often they took a meandering approach more like a train of thought than a letter.

I still enjoyed reading very much!

Content Warnings

More...