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4.35 AVERAGE
4.35 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
actually devastating
I was not planning to read this book. The reviews were too polarized - people either hating or loving it - and I tend to stay away from books like this. But on my family trip to Romania I saw that one cover everyone was going crazy over. The blue hardback with the golden leaves and white bow. When I saw it I knew I had to buy this book and read it. It was destiny. So here we are.
~ Spoilers ahead ~
My thoughts at the end of the book: "... either Madeline Miller and Disney or Rick Riordan and my memory are lying to me because I was SURE Achilles did become a god."
Anyways, this book hurt me. Not as much as heaven official's blessing did, but I usually don't feel pain for a character's suffering but for descriptions of stuff like someone slowly losing everything they cared for, such as Xie Lian losing his reputation. That is why I was mostly upset at how bad Achilles ended. How miserable he was. That hurt me. Not Patroclus' death. Not everyone crying over him.
As much as I sound sick for saying this: That part made me happy. I liked that part. It made me smile.
But I enjoyed this book a lot and I do not regret reading it at all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go practice my Latin then reread my copy of the Illiad and the Odyssey.
~ Spoilers ahead ~
My thoughts at the end of the book: "... either Madeline Miller and Disney or Rick Riordan and my memory are lying to me because I was SURE Achilles did become a god."
Anyways, this book hurt me. Not as much as heaven official's blessing did, but I usually don't feel pain for a character's suffering but for descriptions of stuff like someone slowly losing everything they cared for, such as Xie Lian losing his reputation. That is why I was mostly upset at how bad Achilles ended. How miserable he was. That hurt me. Not Patroclus' death. Not everyone crying over him.
As much as I sound sick for saying this: That part made me happy. I liked that part. It made me smile.
But I enjoyed this book a lot and I do not regret reading it at all. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll go practice my Latin then reread my copy of the Illiad and the Odyssey.
Tears stream down my face!
Beautiful, lyrical prose. FML!
That being said I literally have zero knowledge/ background on Greek Mythology (I never read Percy Jackson FML!!!!) so I was pretty lost on all of the names/ why these dudes were out there snatching ladies and going to war for 10 years over it.
The ending was SO strong and honestly one of the better endings to a book I have read.
F M L I LOVE LOVE
Beautiful, lyrical prose. FML!
That being said I literally have zero knowledge/ background on Greek Mythology (I never read Percy Jackson FML!!!!) so I was pretty lost on all of the names/ why these dudes were out there snatching ladies and going to war for 10 years over it.
The ending was SO strong and honestly one of the better endings to a book I have read.
F M L I LOVE LOVE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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:
N/A
“I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell; I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”
Told from the perspective of Patroclus, you see them growing together the admiration and the growing of souls to one. Beautiful written until the end, though some things were only touched briefly and have not gotten quite the attention like his healing from the trauma of killing that boy
Enjoyed it still like Circe.
June 2024:
“He is half of my soul, as the poets say”
I’m so glad I decided to revisit this for Pride Month. The Song of Achilles is one of my favorite LGBTQ+ books and a rich and beautiful love story. I want to live inside Madeline Miller’s prose, because every sentence is layered with emotion. I don’t have enough good things to say about this book.
September 2020:
Beautiful book. I never really cared for the Illiad, but the story comes to life in a gorgeous way here. The characters felt dynamic and the pacing was great. I was a big fan.
“He is half of my soul, as the poets say”
I’m so glad I decided to revisit this for Pride Month. The Song of Achilles is one of my favorite LGBTQ+ books and a rich and beautiful love story. I want to live inside Madeline Miller’s prose, because every sentence is layered with emotion. I don’t have enough good things to say about this book.
September 2020:
Beautiful book. I never really cared for the Illiad, but the story comes to life in a gorgeous way here. The characters felt dynamic and the pacing was great. I was a big fan.
adventurous
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
emotional
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I am not an expert on Greek mythology but there are a few things I know that I can expect from a Greek myth: flawed and proud men, strong and complex women, a pantheon of deranged and vengeful gods and an overwhelming sense of inevitability. This retelling had all this and at the center: a love that transcended life and was torn apart by war.
I loved this book. Right up with Hamnet for best book I’ve read in 2023.
I loved this book. Right up with Hamnet for best book I’ve read in 2023.