I love books that transport me. This sparkling, deed-driven, gestural world, conjured up by Mary Renault, is a world I find profoundly attractive. In part, this is because these stories are so deeply embedded in my unconsciousness that although alien, they are also familiar.

That said, the Minotaur of the The King Must Die is not quite the same as the legendary half-man, half-beast of my childhood. As a character in the weave of this tale it is better and more subtle for Mary Renault's art, I think. But it raises questions about veracity, if that can apply to mythology?

Some books bleed into others and I’ve come to The King Must Die immediately after Sylvia Martin’s Passionate Friends; wherein women writers hide behind assumed names. Mary Renault was the pen name of Eileen Mary Challans who pioneered novels exploring same-sex love and desire. She and her partner, Julie Mullard, emigrated from Britain, to live in a South African community of gay and lesbian expatriates. However, she was wary of identifying herself primarily by sexual orientation and was hostile towards the gay rights movement.

No doubt there are learned texts about the influence of Renault’s sexuality on her writing style, but if a writer’s sexuality has any relevance, then, in my opinion, here, it serves to make the clear air that contributes to the unfamiliar atmosphere and the timelessness of these gripping stories where there are abundant forms of sexuality and sex. Some of the most moving scenes involve love making, but of course, there is much more.

There are as many powerful women as there are men in these stories. I say stories because while the overarching story is of Theseus’s journey from boyhood to kingship, there are many sub-stories several of which: Medea and Phaedra are not contained within the arc of the narrative.

Regardless of the currency of her Greek scholarship, I found Mary Renault’s invocation of the cosmology of the Attic world with its gods and heroes utterly absorbing. So much of the power of this book is in the detail. Nowhere more than where death occurs. Many kings die, as they must in this world where succession needs be god-sanctioned.

The relationships between men, women and gods is both utilitarian and dutiful. But it is humanity that shines through: Men are only men

But I was in no danger of over-eating. It killed ones hunger to see even great lords (some of whom I knew to hate him) fawning upon Asterion, changing their faces in time with his like soldiers drilling. While he cracked coarse jokes, his eyes missed nothing. I saw him watch guess out of hearing as if he could read their lips, and his stewards lingered like spies. p.251.

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I first read this book as a child (who was fascinated by mythology especially the Greek myths) and approached it with some trepidation this time around, remembering very little about it, apart from the fact that I'd been upset by the horse sacrifice near the start of the novel. However, I needn't have worried: for a book first published in 1958 it still holds up very well.

The plot isn't a mystery for anyone who knows something about the mythological story of Theseus, but the interpretation that Renault puts on it is unique. She tells the story from his own viewpoint, looking back over his life, as if it is historical fiction, drawing on all the - then recent - discoveries about Crete such as the Linear B language. For the main meat of the book is formed by Theseus' experiences in Crete.

The story begins in his childhood when he learns how to be a king from his grandfather, but always smarts under the stigma of not knowing his father's identity. He is the sole child of the king's daughter and sole surviving child - and comes to believe the story put around that the god Poseidon is his father. This seems confirmed when he starts to experience the kind of 'aura' that animals and birds receive as a warning of earthquakes - to the ancient peoples a sign of Poseidon's anger. But he remains small and light, outgrown by his contemporaries, unlike in the myth, because - more realistically - Renault takes the fact that Theseus later excels at bull leaping to indicate he must have been agile and shorter than average.

Then comes the revelation about his real father and the circumstances around his conception - plus the need to shift a massive stone and take the sword concealed underneath it to his father to claim his birthright. And so the tale gathers momentum. En route, Theseus learns skills and gains experiences that will later serve him well, plus changing for ever the nature of the goddess worship in an intervening town where the old practice of sacrificing the king annually has survived. And his experiences on Crete will change and inform his maturing character for the rest of his life.

I liked the way Renault came up with realistic explanations for all the oddities which myths take for granted, and made Theseus likeable despite the - to our age outrageous - treatment of women, something in which he was following societal norms. The goddess worship had been subsumed into the worship of male gods such as Zeus and Poseidon by this time, apart from in pockets where it survived less transformed, and was regarded with suspicion by men in general. Yet Theseus does gain an awareness while on Crete that the women who have to face the bulls - despite their being labelled always as 'girls' - are just as brave and capable as the men, and that the flighty behaviour of so many women is due to their conforming to what is expected of them in a male dominated society.

The one point which I didn't think Renault quite managed to make convincing was Theseus reason for not painting his sail on his return journey - unlike the myth, he doesn't just forget. But that is such a minor point that the book still deserves a 5-star rating. ( )

A 1958 episodic historical novel, the first half of a pair, that is an attempt to tell the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur in some realistic way. I recommend that you go to the back of the book and read the legend first, since some key points in the story are described very briefly, and sometimes with an odd sentence or two, as if the author assumed that the reader would know the myth well. Ultimately, I think attempts to explain religious myths as a distortion of a real event are unconvincing.

The author wrote two brief passages that seem to foreshadow Christianity. These are very short, but distracting, since the reader is trying to immerse himself in the time with all of its cultural peculiarities, and Christianity was a long way off in 1600 BCE. It is like the author is winking at you.

I liked the comment on p. 150 of this edition, "I learned...how much easier it is to move the many than the few." Έμαθα πόσο εύκολο είναι να μετακινήσετε το πολλοί από τους λίγους.[?, Google translate doesn't do linear A or B] ( )

A wonderful blend of myth and historical fiction, all told by Theseus as he progresses from childhood in Troizen, until he learns that his father is King of Athens. He starts for Athens by chariot, but is stopped in Eleusis, where he becomes the King who must Die. But this is not his fate (moira), and so he goes on to Athens where, having made himself known to the King, he gives himself the Cretan tribute takers, to honour Poseidon.
And so he comes to Minoan Crete, the Labyrinth and the Minotaur. A story splendidly reimagined.

I read Renault’s highly enjoyable Alexander novels about 35 years ago and I don’t know what has taken me so long to pick up this book. The language is slightly dated (published in 1958), but for me this captures the archaism when writing about the Bronze Age. [For example, She had that vein of wildness which stirs a man because it lies deep, like Hephaistos’ fire which only the earthquake loosens from the mountain.

Brilliant. ( )

I read this book for book club, and managed to slog through it, but I hated it. I don't know how she managed to make mythology so boring, but she did. I would not recommend this, there are tons of better books, if you are interested in Greek mythology. ( )

The story of the legendary Greek hero Theseus, told in exciting action-heavy prose, with a surprising eye to historical plausibility.

The myth of Theseus is particularly interesting from a historical perspective, because it was long thought that the Minoans of Crete were mostly mythological. Historical sources that tell the story of Theseus set the events in the ancient past. It wasn't until the 1920's that archaeologists dug up the palace at Knossos and documented the seat of Minoan civilization in detail.

This book, written in the 1950's, takes all of the details of the myth and imagines them through the lens of the available historical facts. There are very few anachronisms in this book. The ways that the people behave align perfectly with the world they are presented within. Theseus behaves like an ancient Greek, speaking and making decisions with the tone and priorities of a hero from the Iliad, but with the warmth and realism of a solid contemporary depiction. Theseus is bold, principled, honorable, and foolish. He is proud of himself and shamelessly absurdly horny, but with a layer of vulnerability and realistic self-awareness that comes across as charming. Theseus loves deeply and his perspective is usually generous, though some aspects of his character distance him from the modern reader: most notably his casual familiarity with death and killing.
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I've loved Greek (and Roman) myths since I was a kid. I remember fighting with a third-grade classmate over which of us got to check out D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths first when the school library bought it (I got to it; my friend went on to become a professor of classics... I should have let him have it first. Sorry, Paul.). I am not a scholar or a historian, but remember many of the tales well. Daniel Mendelsohn recently wrote a touching essay about what Mary Renault's novels meant to him when he was a teenager, smitten by the classics amidst personal angst. He wrote to her, she wrote back, and they sustained an affectionate epistolary relationship till her death. So I was eager to plunge in for myself, and see what Renault did to bring the ancient Greek world, its customs, beliefs, arts, and, in this case, the hero Theseus to life.

Which, for the most part, she does quite wonderfully. The writing is graceful, with a vivid feel for the country, the palaces, the mountains, and its people. It may feel a bit decorated, a bit mannered, which may date it for some tastes. I especially liked how she translated the "magical" episodes of monsters and miracles, gods and curses, into a believable, "natural" reality - Minos becomes an isolated king, disfigured from leprosy, who hides away deep in his palace, wearing a golden mask of a bull to cover his diseased countenance. The tales feel genuine, and a modern reader might easily say, yes, this could very well be how it happened.

The trouble is... Theseus. Theseus is a jerk. He is arrogant, condescending, egotistical, promiscuous, and is forever banging on about his sacred "pride." He kills without compunction, he ridicules other cultures not as macho as his. He believes in his heart he is the god Poseidon's chosen son, so whatever he does is fine because the god supposedly has approved of it. He is also smart, talented, strategic, clever, and brave. But when it comes to women.... Now, I *know* that this is fiction. I *know* that Renault's intent may have been to try to depict Theseus and his time as they were, complete with prejudices, and an appalling contempt for women everywhere he goes. Women are toys, or war booty (the "girls" are divided up along with the gold, the arms, the war horses, etc. to the victors). They are dismissed as entirely silly, selfish, cruel, superficial, cunning, helpless or just a nuisance... or childish, pretty, and f*ckable. The entire city of Eleusis is overjoyed to be "released" by Theseus from a horrible era where the government is run by women. Powerful women are either goddesses (and even then they are fickle, jealous, vengeful, and not to be trusted) or an abomination. So... I puzzle over Renault's intent. How does a woman writer - a gay woman writer - decide to depict women so dreadfully? Of course, we are being given Theseus's own thoughts and point of view throughout, but it's not clear whether this is meant to be an admiring portrait, a truthful portrayal of how women in that society were viewed and treated, or a cautionary tale. All told, I found Theseus to be very annoying company for many pages.

Well, all that said, there are some intimations of growth in the callow young hero. He gets a little smarter about persuasion and leadership. He actually learns to admire and value the skills that the young sacrificial "girls" bring to the bull arena. There are some moments when Theseus comments that now that he is old, with a string of tragedies behind him, he might not have done or said such a thing, or behaved in such a way. So perhaps, in volume 2, our hero's hubris receives its due, and he learns the hard way to be a better man. I'll stick around to find out. ( )

Unfortunately “The King Must Die” was a disappointment. I was expecting something more like [a:David Gemmell|11586|David Gemmell|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1202771023p2/11586.jpg]’s epic re-imagination of the fall of Troy; a masterpiece recast of a legendary myth.

Part of the novel’s problem lies with its one-man cast. Theseus is neither a conflicted nor complex hero -- he’s emotionally detached, a little bit narcissistic and adheres to a strict moral code, but not in the interesting “Dexter” way. The story really suffers from the first person POV and, perhaps, could have been stronger with the addition of other characters.

The second problem was the slow-moving plot-line -- things only spiced up after the half-way point of the book! Although, the first part was necessary to explain Theseus’ actions in Crete, it was a boring necessity. And even when the plot picked up some pace, it spluttered into a halt, never really reaching a climax.

However, “The King Must Die” is not an overall failure. Moments where the myth shines through -- the Minotaur, the string, Ariadne’s fate -- were imaginative and inspirational. ( )

He wrestles, he sings,
dances with bulls, saves the girl!
Tad forgetful, though. ( )

This was a formative book in my childhood- if you count Junior High as Childhood. How wonderful to have protagonists who are young. How wonderful to read about people who accept that the gods are real and have them respond when addressed. Was this the earliest of the historical fictions I read? I don't know, but I've never stopped. And also read every other Mary Renault book. ( )

A man is at his youngest when he thinks he is a man, not yet realizing that his actions must show it.

Theseus grows up as the youngest in the royal House of Troizen, but as much as he loves his mother, he is from an early age interested in the identify of his father that is very much a mystery. He thinks, and hopes, that he is a son of Poseidon, but when he is sixteen years of age; his mother explains that in order to learn his father's identity and take on the role as his heir, he must remove a stone by himself to reveal the items hidden underneath.

The knowledge about his father's identity is so much more than just a father, it is the start of an adventure that in time will become one of the most beloved and praised myths in all the Greek world. This is the story of Theseus, the bull-dancer.

I'll admit. I'm extremely torn when it comes to Renault. Her writing is poetic and she truly manages to capture not just the story but the overall setting. I often forget not only that it's not a "non-fiction" myth but also that I'm not actually in ancient Greece. That being said, it's hard to enjoy the characters... or at least her protagonists. Theseus is interesting but he's ridiculously prideful and quite... awful.

So, while it's a fun read regarding the myths of Theseus and the ancient world itself... it's hard to enjoy it as much as I'd want to. It's good knowledge, and was very nice to read while playing Assassin's Creed: Odyssey, in the way of archaeology and getting into the mindset of pre-historical Greece but man, it's hard to enjoy as a story. It's hard to care for a man who literally can't handle a society where women are in charge and rants about how oppressed the men are (to be fair, it's not equal, but considering Athenian women barely had any social status or worth on their own.... it's hard to compare).... and decided to take it into his own hands to make sure men are the rulers and women are well, nothing.

It's good and it's not so good. But in my experience, that is usually the way it is with ancient Greek history and myths. In that way, Renault's work is a masterpiece that truly makes you forget it's written in 1955, or during historical time at all. ( )

A retelling of the tale of Theseus - killing the Minotaur, Ariadne's thread, etc. Renault is a great storyteller! This book just flowed - I couldn't put it down! It's a real swashbuckler, sword fights and beautiful damsels, but it didn't get ridiculous. Anybody's guess whether Renault's version is getting close to whatever historical foundation the story might have. It made for a good book, anyway! ( )

This was an interesting take on the story of Theseus and the Minotaur. It makes the story almost plausible. ( )

I read a bunch of Mary Renault's books, including this one, as a teenager more than 30 years ago, and remember liking them a lot. Reading Circe by Madeline Miller recently - which features a cameo from Theseus and Ariadne - made me go search out a copy of this from my local library. It definitely holds up, as a forerunner for our current crop of re-telling myths and classics, and on its own as an insightful novel that provides one plausible version of the reality behind the legend. ( )

An Amalgam of Myths Written as History

This book had been on my list to read for some time. After a short struggle to get into the rhythm of the writing, I finally found myself getting used to the names and stories contained in this very good retelling of the myth of Theseus. The author does a great job of integrating the seen and unseen worlds of Ancient Greece.

The novel is a series of stories following Theseus' life from his early years, travel to Athens to meet his worldly father, and his arrival in Crete as a sacrificial Bull Dancer. This last section was extremely well written and riveting to me.

Once or twice, I found myself a bit confused as to the meaning or outcome of a section and wondered if I'd missed something, or perhaps the author was being too subtle. Overall, though, I enjoyed the book and will be reading its sequel as well. ( )

Written in 1958, this is an interesting take on the story of Theseus, mythical founder of Athens. Occasionally slow, it was nonetheless a good interpretation of the story, sticking close to all the salient points but presenting a very human side to Theseus. 3 1/2 stars. ( )

One of the more fun ones. Bull dancing and all that. ( )

Theseus grows up in Troizen, though to his mind he doesn't actually grow anywhere near enough, believing himself to be the son of Poseidon. This turns out to not be literally true, but Theseus is a devout and sincere matter-of-fact believer, and he hears the voice of the god, so he has two fathers, one a god and one the beleaguered king of Athens. On the way to join his father, he becomes part of a yearly ceremony where an old king dies and a new one marries the queen. Theseus knows that he himself will die when the year is out, but submits to the logic of the rites and sacrifices. Avoiding his fate, he eventually joins his father, only to find himself, for similar reasons of rite and sacrifice and obligation, to volunteer himself as part of the annual tribute to Crete. There as a slave he is made into a bull dancer, and because of his pride and confidence and inner certainty, he becomes a supreme bull dancer while remaining true to himself and his sea-god father.

This is told in the voice of Theseus, tough, matter-of-fact and generally straightforward except when he tries to deduce the reasoning of the gods and obey their will and do them honour. He is proud and fierce and pragmatic, but also clear-sighted and sensible. An unusual hero for his grounded sense of his own importance and the profound responsibilities that go with it, particularly his acceptance of the probability that at some point he will have to be made into a human sacrifice. This is a theme that recurs through the book, and the inherent corruption rotting the heart of Crete and bringing down the wrath of the gods is their failure to make this due observance.

A strong, sturdy, sensuous, earthy book, this is an amazingly vivid and fascinating retelling of the old myth as a series of historical events that are nonetheless drenched in the everyday reality of belief on the gods. Brilliant. ( )

Brilliant retelling of the story of Theseus! I started this novel more as a duty than as enjoyment, but was soon plunged into the world of ancient Greece. I can see why this novel has survived all these years and why Renault is a classic. However I have to ask myself, were this novel published for the first time today, would it be as popular as it was when first published?

In Troizen, Theseus finds out he is heir to the king of Athens, by his strength in lifting a sword [similar motif as King Arthur!] He travels there through Eleusis. The inhabitants are worshippers of a Mother Goddess, and a matrilineal society. When is Athens, he is recognized by King Aegius and cursed by the priestess Medea, who tries to poison him.

Her chilling words:
"You will cross water to dance in blood. You will be King of the victims. You will tread the maze through fire, and you will tread it through darkness. Three bulls are waiting for you, son of Aigeus: The Earth Bull, the Man Bull, and the Bull from the Sea."

Her prophecy begins to be fulfilled when he becomes part of tribute to Crete; he travels there with a band of young people from Athens and Eleusis. He becomes a bull-dancer and leader of the little group. the "Cranes". While there, the Earth Bull is aroused resulting in a severe earthquake. After he kills the Minotaur, he and many other bull-dancers escape Crete to Naxos. Ariadne is left there--not abandoned cruelly as the original myth has it, but the culture there is close to the Cretan. The young people journey homeward, dropping off bull-dancers at their homes on the way.

The book was much better than I thought it would be. It has not aged, in my opinion. I liked the author's taking elements from the myth, such as the Minotaur, the Labyrinth and Theseus's leaving Ariadne on Naxos and using them in her story in new, logical, completely unexpected ways. Her language was nothing short of marvelous. To me, there was a perfect balance of description and dialogue. I plan to read the sequel, The Bull from the Sea. ( )

A retelling of the story of Theseus from his boyhood through to his escape from captivity as a bull dancer in Crete.

Mary Renault has taken pains here to retell a myth as if it actually happened. She retains all of the famous elements of the minotaur story--the labyrinth, the bull, Ariadne's thread--but reworks them so that they have plausible, realistic explanations. While there is nothing overtly supernatural or fantastic in this version of the story, the gods are highly influential; Theseus believes that the gods, and Poseidon in particular, literally guide every choice he makes. It is left up to the reader to decide whether the divine are truly present, or whether, for instance, Theseus is unusually adept at predicting earthquakes.

The beginning of the story drags somewhat, as Theseus grows up wondering who his father is and eventually sets out on a journey fraught with danger to Athens to reunite with his father, Aigeus. The writing also feels very formal and stilted. The story really picks up once Theseus and his compatriots are sent to Crete to learn to be bull dancers. This is an exciting segment, fraught with danger, palace intrigue and suspense, culminating in a terrific battle and escape scene. Renault does a particularly good job of blending the trappings of the myth with a realistic story line that refreshes and reinvents the familiar story.

A recurring theme throughout is that of the sacrificial king and whether the ancient tradition of symbolically killing a king after one year of rule to ensure a good harvest should be discontinued. Theseus becomes one of these kings, and obviously feels that it should. Theseus is an aggressively male character, who revels in his sexual prowess and other masculine characteristics, and the gender politics of this retelling are pretty troubling, which is why I can't give this book higher marks. Theseus believes that not only should the old traditions be stopped, but that power should be taken away from all women, and the three major women he encounters--the Queen of Eleusis, Medea and Ariadne--really have no redeeming qualities to counteract this view. The first two are power-mad, violent and devious. And Ariadne is clueless, naive, weak-willed and corruptible. Renault must be true to the story, so she has Theseus abandon his great love Ariadne by sneaking off in the middle of the night, but her explanation as to why he must do this is completely unsatisfactory. After she participates in the ritual of Dionysus, in which the king is sacrificed, he sees something in her hand while she is sleeping that so disgusts him, it destroys his love for her. What it is he sees, we can guess--but Renault doesn't tell us, which makes it frustrating. And this reader can't help wondering how Ariadne felt, waking up alone without a word of explanation the next morning, finding her betrothed gone.

I enjoyed the story, but I didn't like Theseus much, and I really didn't like how women's power was presented. I am trying to read more books written by women, but The King Must Die shows that women writers are not immune to issues of gender bias. ( )

Audiobook... My fist time reading anything by Renault!

I did enjoy this, though I found sections of it deeply problematic (specifically, the political structures of the different cultures and Theseus's reactions to those in which women held power). But I really enjoyed the vividly detailed look at these ancient cultures, and the way in which the traditional legend was turned into a believable real-world story.

Mary Renault conjures a tale of the King Theseus and his journey from Trozizen to Eleusis. He learns to be a bull leader and the king of the captives who must perform with him. ( )

“The voices sank and rose, sank and rose higher. It was like the north wind when it blows screaming through mountain gorges; like the keening of a thousand widows in a burning town; like the cry of she-wolves to the moon. And under it, over it, through our blood and skulls and entrails, the bellow of a the gong.”
- from Mary Renault’s “The King Must Die"

Mary Renault weaves a tale so mythic in scope, that the story itself is only outshone by her fabulous prose. Beyond a vague awareness of the Minotaur, I was not familiar with the ancient Greek tales of Theseus. Renault takes the myth and works her narrative like Hephaestus works metal; into a believable and credible story.

The novel is flush with gods and goddesses, though not in a true physical sense nor are they metaphysically present, but they persist within the psyche of the Greek people (note: there was no ‘Greece’ in this period, but for the sake of saving space, I’ll generalize). Theseus believes fully in their existence and his fate that's tied to their whims.

Is he human? Is he a god? Or did he spawn from something in between? He certainly believes in the supernatural, and that he has an exceptional relationship with Poseidon. He is driven by fate and faith. His entire existence is colored by the mythical hands from above (and below) that guide his life’s path.

He is crushed when Ariadne, the daughter of Crete’s King Minos, shockingly relates the planning involved prior to her reading of oracles, “We have ninety clerks working in the Palace alone. It would be a chase every month, if no one knew what the oracles were going to be.” Ariadne’s pragmatic revelation that creates a crack in Theseus’ fate…one, though, that he’s able to keep from spreading.

The mythic themes provide the outline for Renault’s story. Medea, the mistress of Theseus’ (human) father, spits this curse, which touches on the well-know elements of the Theseus myth: “You will cross water to dance in blood. You will be King of the victims. You will tread the maze through fire, and you will tread it through darkness. Three bulls are waiting for you, son of Aigeus. The Earth Bull, and the Man Bull and the Bull from the Sea.”

Within this context, the ‘historical’ aspect to this ‘historical' fiction is very realistic and true to its age and time. The historical misogyny is appropriate in the world and age of Theseus and is often chivalric in it’s own way. The battlefield amongst male and female gods is a significant theme and Theseus travels between societies who sometimes favor the gods and others who favor the goddesses.

Theseus remembering an exchange with his Grandfather when he was still a boy, explaining a violent animal sacrifice to a young boy grappling with it’s meaning. “I had no word to say to him. The seed is still, when first it falls into the furrow.” Like Theseus’ Grandfather, Renault prose plants seeds which grow over time to expose their full meaning and understanding.

I highly recommend this book. ( )

The King Must Die is one of the very few novels in my personal pantheon. It’s so compelling because Renault uses her profound understanding of antiquity and archaeology to offer rational explanations of the Greek myths. She focuses on the tale of Theseus: the young heir to the throne of Athens, chosen as one of seven youths and seven maidens from the city sent as tribute to King Minos of Crete, to be devoured by the fearsome Minotaur in his Labyrinth. In Renault’s version the Labyrinth (literally the House of the Axe) is Minos’ sprawling palace at Knossos, with its warrens of halls, courts and storerooms. The only monsters are all too human; but the bulls, at least, are real...

For the rest of the review, please see my blog:
https://theidlewoman.net/2014/02/22/the-king-must-die-mary-renault/ ( )

My opinion of this book was highly unfavorable until the main character ended up as a bull dancer on the isle of Crete. That was when the author really hit her stride. Or perhaps I just became interested enough to overlook the overly-affected dialogue and constant emphasis on Theseus's maleness. There are plenty of female writers out there who can write convincing male characters without having them metaphorically cupping their junk on every other page. (I'm sorry, but that's the impression I got from the first part of the book.) The move to the action of the Bull Court shifts the emphasis from "My main character got them man-parts" to "Holy Zeus! How's he going to get out of this!" Thank the gods for that, because this book went directly from an F grade to a solid B and I decided I'd be willing to try other books by Renault. After all, she seems capable of some truly stellar moments of poetic description. Worth a look for those who enjoy re-imagined mythology, lush depictions of ancient Greece, and lots of machismo. ( )