It isn't often that a book comes along and takes me completely by storm. I was gifted The Song of Achilles two years ago by friends who know I'm into Greek mythology. We weren't sure what to expect, from the cover it looked like it could be a fan fiction of The Iliad, and I'm eternally wary of bestsellers. Perhaps that prejudice can be broken now, for I haven't had such a good time with a book in years. The reading experience was akin to binge watching a compelling TV series, I simply couldn't put it down. Madeline Miller is an accomplised classical scholar, and her knowledge of ancient customs and the source text came across strongly in the first few pages. I could therefore relax into the read knowing I was in capable hands and wouldn't be annoyed by pop culture inaccuracies. I did notice a few instances where she was obviously influenced by the 2004 film Troy, but as this is a guilty of pleasure of mine, I was fine with that.
The story interestingly focuses on exiled prince Patroclus as the narrator, Achilles' cousin, childhood friend, and lover. The language is direct, first person, alternately present and past tense from Patroclus' point of view. Although there is some attempt to keep things grounded in Ancient times, the language is modern enough to avoid alienating the reader, but not too modern to cause groans. There was one instance where Odysseus used a colloquialism which was quite jarring, but only once. The Greek world is vividly painted and Miller does a good job capturing the lusty boastfulness of the warrior culture. There are centaurs and gods, but somehow they fit within the text seamlessly without devolving into breathless fantasy and clattering of D20s. The depiction of Thetis (Achilles' sea nymph mother) and some of the other gods was genuinely terrifying. There are some rather strong passages of eroticism that could almost pass for a Mills and Boon novel, but I didn't mind them so much. I thought perhaps the book was one chapter longer than it needed to be, I'm not too sure if I liked the bittersweet ending, and after Patroclus dies, there's a chunk of novel left where he's observing things as a spirit trapped in limbo. Also notable is that Miller does not acknowledge the legend of Achilles' famous heel and I'd be interested to know why that was.
In all, a highly recommended read and I will certainly be seeking out her 2018 book Circe.
Rating: 4/5
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