Elektra Review

Hello, all!

It's no shock to anyone that if there's a Greek mythology retelling, I'm going to read it. I loved Ariadne by Jennifer Saint (review here), so I was so excited to receive her latest release, Elektra. Big thanks to the publisher for the copy!

Pub Date: 5-3-22
Adult - Historical Fiction

Everyone has heard stories that the House of Atreus is cursed. How a long time ago, one of its members insulted the Gods, and now their wrath has poisoned each generation. But no one knows of its curse better than Clytemnestra. As the wife of Agamemnon, Clytemnestra is expected to sit back and go along with whatever her husband says. But when Clytemnestra's sister, Helen, is taken to Troy and Agamemnon sacrifices their eldest daughter to aid in his war efforts, Clytemnestra decides enough is enough.

Cassandra is a princess of Troy who was cursed by Apollo to see the future, but for no one to believe anything that comes out of her mouth. Cassandra can see the fall of her great city, can see the harm that one woman will bring upon them, but she's powerless to stop it. When her city finally falls after years of fighting, she's brought back as a trophy by Agamemnon. Cassandra thought the war was over until she glimpses the future waiting for Agamemnon on his return. Elektra is the daughter of Agamemnon and has waited years to finally see her father again, but is robbed of that chance due to her bloodthirsty mother. Will Elektra be able to stop the curse that plagues her family before it destroys her too?

If you're familiar with the Trojan War, or have read retellings of it, then you'll know how violent it was both during and after. We always hear about the lengths the men went to enact their revenge, but the women were just as cutthroat. One aspect I've always felt was underrated in its brutality was the story of Clytemnestra and Elektra. I was so intrigued to see how Saint was going to put her spin on this tale, and I thought she did a fantastic job. Saint just has this mesmerizing way of retelling these myths. Her writing is so vivid and lush that it feels as if everything is playing out in front of you. I loved following all three women on this journey. They're all so different, but have each been affected by this war in such traumatic ways. You feel for each one, and your heart breaks for them. The only issues I had were that I would've liked to have seen a little more from Cassandra's point of view and that there were times the pacing felt a bit slow, but neither lessened my enjoyment any. I thought this was a beautifully dark story of family and revenge and would recommend checking it out if you love mythology retellings.

Rating: 4/5