Reviews - The Song of Achilles

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109k reviews for:

The Song of Achilles

Madeline Miller

4.35 AVERAGE

iluminouse's review against another edition

5.0

It took me a while to pick this one up again because i had to focus on school and work BUT.

I don’t think i’ve ever cried this hard over a book before :’)

kliyanage's review against another edition

5.0

Really phenomenal story. The winding language felt exactly like a modernized epic with the same rhythms and patterns of speech.

I feel a little insane but when I started reading this book, I was excited to get to the quote that has been floating around the internet for the longest time.

"I would recognize you in total darkness, were you mute and I deaf. I would recognize you in another lifetime entirely, in different bodies, in different times. And I would love you in all of this, until the very last star in the sky burnt out into oblivion." Supposedly Achilles says this to Patroclus.

But I couldn't find it anywhere in the book even after extensive word searching. I have no idea if it was just taken out of the book in later publications, but I could not find anything close to this quote anywhere in the book????

EDIT: It's from a SOA fanfic: https://cityelf.tumblr.com/post/720215602661294080

yuhanpenguin's review against another edition

4.0

The Iliad fanfiction 👌
4.5 stars because although heartbreakingly beautifully written, it suffered from some pacing issues and dragged quite a bit in the Trojan War arc.

simmog's review against another edition

4.0

If you love mythology or you just love a beautiful heartbreaking story then please give this wonderful retelling of Homer’s The Iliad a try. It will not disappoint.

mervederya's review against another edition

4.0

Still as heartbreaking as the first time but I think rereading made me appreciate the journey more. In my previous review, I mentioned that the plot went by so fast at one point compared to the beginning but I slightly take it back. Only I wish we'd seen more of the relationship between Patroclus and Achilles. On the other hand, considering their union's core element was that they are different from the others and are supposed to be at war to win. I think seeing the hardship Patroclus went through without Achilles is one of the parts of this book. It's not Achilles' life story but his song. Even the song of Achilles is about Patroclus's childhood, their mother, and his worth in their society. The war they fought was not for nothing but also was in a way because everyone was greedy in the end and cared nothing about each other. The slave girls and girls were sacrificed for the warrior's pleasures. Just like in the war, no one respects each other enough as much as they respect fame and glory. I think the part when Achilles was blinded by his desire to gain fame is when everything turned darker. But that's mythology in a nutshell. So strange to think how this modern retelling shows another side of these mythological stories filled with sexism and greed of "men and gods". These are my thoughts from the second reread. I'm not sure but I might reread again in the future with someone maybe because I cannot deal with this alone!

mervederya's review against another edition

3.0

First thoughts: I truly enjoyed the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus but there was a time period where the two had nothing to do with each other. I feel like the first half of the book was so long and I was enjoying how descriptive the writing style was until we reach the war period. Then it was down the hill with the time slot; everything happened so fast that I couldn't catch my breath. Right at the end Miller came back to her usual writing style and showed us Patroclus's love for Achilles once again.

The Gods are still Gods: typically playing with humans and what happens to them. I used to enjoy these kind of stories but now I was completely annoyed with the whole business of "fame and glory". Regardless of how Gods hated people, who were against their traditional beliefs, Patroclus and Achilles still fought the odds together in eternity. That love story is what I truly enjoyed in this novel but I could only wish we had more of them instead of their separation most of the time. Surely they spend time together in that 9-10 years at war.

emahknee's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional sad medium-paced

i really liked the first half of this book a lot (like the pre war stuff idk) i still enjoyed afterwards but not as much. One of the last few chapter definitely was annoying me😭 but overall i did enjoy this, as i was finishing i thought i wasnt going to cry but a certain part did make me tear up a bit! i am now in the mood to watch any movies based on greek mythology esp the ones they made us watch in school (idk i kinda loved them) (i have always been kindve into greek mythology too)