Reviews - The Song of Achilles

111k reviews for:

The Song of Achilles

Madeline Miller

4.35 AVERAGE

king_ink's review against another edition

3.75

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

ivereads's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

elizabethmoon's review against another edition

4.75

adventurous emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

reliahs's review against another edition

5.0

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

dhadouchka's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous emotional sad fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

agrimm22's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous dark informative sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

deborahwithanoh's review against another edition

Enjoyed this one a lot. I only read parts of the Iliad in school, and it was cool to see how the parts I remembered slot into this story, as well as parts I was previously unaware of, such as Achilles' sojourn on Scyros. The entire ending section, from when Patroclus regains agency and starts taking some real initiative, had me unable to put the book down. It was like puzzle pieces being laid into place, starting Achilles as a completely different character whom you couldn't imagine as he is by the end of the story, and then tracing the journey that leads him there, which by the end seems perfectly natural and even inevitable, as if it could only be this way (fated, right?). I loved the friendship between Patroclus and Briseis - the Achilles and Patroclus love story I was expecting but this was an unexpected surprise. The love scenes had a bit of a YA feel to them, but there were only a few and I didn't find them particularly obtrusive. Worth the read!