A review by elementarymydear
The Women of Troy by Pat Barker

challenging dark 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? It's complicated

5.0

 
“We women are peculiar creatures. We tend not to love those who murder our families.”

I absolutely loved The Silence of the Girls, so when I (somehow) got the opportunity to review The Women of Troy I jumped at the chance. Directly following on from the previous book, we follow Briseis and the other women who have been taken prisoner by the Greeks following the Trojan War.

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This book was – dare I say it – even better than The Silence of the Girls. From the very first page we are thrown into the action, in the belly of the Trojan Horse. My one criticism of the previous book was how towards the end we suddenly jumped to perspective to Achilles (who we had grown to hate) to advance the plot. That wasn’t a problem here; the ‘plot’ of the Trojan War, told through the men’s eyes, was interspersed with our main story, so it didn’t feel quite as jarring when we switched perspectives.

Briseis, now a married woman (though not by choice), is now in a position to help the other women in the camp, many of whom have gone from being the daughters of Trojan nobility to Greek slaves. We really got to see both the strength and flaws of her character in the way she interacted with the other women, and she has the self-awareness at one point to admit that the way the men view the women has influenced the way she does.

Once again Pat Barker does not shy away from the reality of war and its consequences for women, both in the violence that they experience and the way it shapes them as people. Briseis’ repeated statement that she hopes her sister is dead rather than enslaved captures the depth of trauma these women go through. That being said, there are still moments of joy, made all the more precious by the women’s day-to-day lives.

One touch I particularly enjoyed was Briseis’ interactions with Cassandra. Cassandra has the gift of prophecy, but is cursed that she will never be believed. The way this was written was fantastic; it would be so easy for the other women to be mocking and outright dismissive of Cassandra, but instead they were sympathetic and pitying. It made Cassandra’s curse even more heart-wrenching. When she made a prediction she was met with care but still with a total lack of belief.

This book was everything I hoped it would be and more. It’s the perfect sequel, both continuing the task the first book set out to do and achieving more. It is an absolute must-read.

I received a free ARC from the publisher. All opinions are my own.
 
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