4.5 stars. I really loved this book. I did literally just read the women of troy and there have been a lot of Greek retellings recently but it still felt fresh – I think that was mainly due to the writing style and great characterisations. Elektra’s pov did drag a little for me especially near the end, however the first two thirds/three quarters were well balanced. It definitely means something that this is the quickest I’ve read a book for months.

This is a Greek mythology retelling of the story of Troy from the perspective of three women: Clytemnestra, Cassandra and Elektra. Jennifer Saint's prose is lyrical, and even though it's a story I'm familiar with, I enjoyed the different points of view offered in this novel. I'll be looking out for Saint's next novel, Atalanta, and have added her to my list of auto-buy authors where Greek mythology is concerned, alongside Madeline Miller and Natalie Haynes.

I absolutely loved this book. I had high expectations of it after reading Jennifer's previous title 'Ariadne' and Elektra did not disappoint!

Despite the title this is actually the story of three women whose fates are inextricably tied to the cursed bloodline of the House of Atreus and the fickle nature of men and gods.

Clytemnestra is the sister of Helen and wife of Agamemnon. The oath that her husband had taken compels him to support Menelaus in his war against Troy after Helen is taken by Paris.
Cassandra is a Princess of Troy, who was cursed by Apollo to see the future but never to be believed. She knows that the city will fall yet is powerless to change this.

Finally, Elektra is the youngest daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon. She is fiercely loyal to her father. Can she escape the curse?

A spectacular story, that demands concentration but pays back in the quality of the story being told

This book was good, don't get me wrong, but I will say, if you have already read the story of Troy countless times, then maybe this book isn't for you.
There wasn't really anything new to say regarding Troy, and maybe felt a bit repetitive at times in that regard.
But none the less, I do love Greek mythology, and do enjoy Jennifer's writing, so there was something to attach to regardless.

Whilst I don't doubt this is a great book, this was my first time diving into Greek mythology retellings and I've found this is just not a genre that interests me. By no way is this a reflection on the author, it just didn't interest me enough to keep me reading and I would get easily distracted from it.

The House of Atreus’ bloodline is cursed by violence and revenge. Clytemnestra, the wife of Agamemnon and sister of Helen, who is taken to Troy by Paris. Cassandra, cursed to tell the truth but to never be believed, powerless to stop the horror of the future. Elektra, daughter of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, hell-bent on avenging her tyrant father while avoiding the curse herself. I was completely immersed in Jennifer Saint’s intricate world-building and simply couldn’t stop reading. Full of darkness and gore, Elektra is packed with complex and fascinating characters caught up in blind loyalty, the underestimation of women and the tragic scars of war. A highly compelling, extremely powerful tale.

Perhaps it's just because I've read a few retellings of the story of Troy, including Daughters of Sparta which I thought was fantastic, but this book felt like it didn't have much new to say, it felt very 'over done'. It's a shame as I loved Ariadne so much and I like Jennifer Saint's writing.

If the story of Troy is still new-ish to you I'd recommend it as the writing style is lovely

I thoroughly enjoyed my reading experience of Elektra, just as much or perhaps even a little more than Ariadne. I think even in the relatively short amount of time between the two publications, Jennifer Saint's writing has grown from strength to strength. Her prose is hard-hitting and heart-felt but without being over the top flowery.

I loved that again we got to see multiple POVs of classical women, namely; Clytemnestra, Cassandra and Elektra.
I thought this choice of characters gave the reader a clever and subtle window into both Greek and Trojan sides of the war. Also I enjoyed that Cassandra's POV felt very in step with what we know as a reader (if you already have some knowledge of the Trojan war or have read other retellings), because she knows what's the future holds, I felt it eliminated any repetitive over-explaining of events.

One of the overwhelming themes I felt this book had was exploring how we are different things to different people, and that these facets of people can and do contradict each other yet still exist in the same space. For example, for Clytemnestra, Agamemnon was a murderer and a betrayer of trust, yet to Elektra, he had always been a gentle father who had always had time for her when others had not.
How Helen of Troy became almost mythlike, more story than woman by the end and Clytemnestra struggled to hold both that knowledge and the fact that she was also just her sister.

Clytemnestra and Helen's relationship in this retelling really fascinated me, because while Helen may not have harmed Clytemnestra's daughter herself, she is the precipitating event that led to Iphigenia's death. How do you process that within a sisterhood? Helen always seems to remain somewhat aloof and unknowable, I really enjoyed the scene where even Clytemnestra, who's grown up with her, shares her blood, does not know why or if she chose to go with Paris willingly.

Unlike many other Trojan war retellings, I enjoyed that this novel started a little further back. Through Clytemnestra's POV we see her come of age before the war starts, she sees Helen first married and we see who Agamemnon is before he rallied the Greeks to war. I really appreciated this insight into his character to perhaps better understand his motivations in what was to come.


This book also massively deals with grief and mother/daughter relationships. The dynamic between Elektra and Clytemnestra was also one of my favourite aspects of this book. Their whole relationship devolved in such a tragic set of circumstances. Clytemnestra in her grief for her murdered daughter closes herself off to anything other than revenge and her anger. In her mind this is what she must do to protect her remaining children from her husband. And yet in doing this she pushes away her other children, who then grow up to resent her and finally actively plot against her.

The curse upon the house of Atreus is also heavily discussed in both Elektra's and Clytemnestra's POVs, with them both becoming consumed with it in different ways.
I found it a really intriguing character flaw in Elektra that she absolutely shunned any recognition or commonality with her mother and yet she basically repeated her cycle of being obsessed with vengeance for years upon years and shutting out every other part of her life. (Gerogios deserved better, just saying)

This book definitely deals with heavier themes such as; rape, loss/loss of a child, grief, violence, so that may be something to keep in mind before reading if you are particularly sensitive to such topics.

An enjoyable greek myth retelling. I did feel we didn't get quite enough of Elektra, but I love the characters of Cassandra and Clytemnestra. Jennifer always does great job of bring Greek Myths to life and I cannot wait to read what she does next.

every character was written so well and i generally loved the writing, it was beautiful and poetic. also, it was just a great retelling of the trojan war, probably one of my favourite greek mythology retellings now.

Very inconsistent pacing, at points it felt like it was almost a list similar to Homer's ship list; this with a focus more on the event which are happening external to the POV, ultimately undermine the narrators. I additionally felt that the narrators did not have enough independent voices - very disappointing versus Saint's other novels.

Have not post the review anywhere, out of respect for the free copy. Many thanks

Elektra is a pretty straightford retelling of The Iliad from three perspectives. It was well written and stayed pretty close to the original myths in covered.

That said, I was a bit disappointed that it didnt attack this story from a different angle. I was really hoping to get into the mind of Elektra in this story, but sadly she barely featured until the last third of the book, and I never felt that I truely understood her motivations.

I think that for someone who is less well versed in greek myth, this would be an excellent retelling of the main story of Troy, however, for me, I felt like I had read it before. I also had very high expectations going in, based on my experience reading Ariadne last year, which perhaps put unfair pressure on the reading of this book.

Overall a solid book, just didn't blow my socks off.

An absolutely stunning read, as beautiful as Ariadne, which I had never thought possible. It was soooo good that I still went out and bought the hardback anyway. Jennifer Saint has a way with words and the classics that parallels even the likes of Madeline Miller.

Jennifer Saint, author of Ariadne is back with an all new Greek myth retelling that focuses on Clytemnestra – wife of Agamemnon, Cassandra – princess of Troy and Elektra – Clytermenstra’s youngest daughter. Saint weaves a spellbinding tale of these three women and the horrors they face.

I read Ariadne last year and really enjoyed it, so I was very intrigued to pick this one up. The story sounded so intriguing and combined with that absolutely stunning cover, I knew I couldn’t resist. Just like Ariadne this story is so beautifully written and captivated me right from the very beginning. I honestly did not want to put this book down. The story is exquisitely crafted and was at times quite harrowing. I must admit I do not know a lot about the Greek myths so there were a few moments that I did not expect.

The story revolves around three particular women and I felt that Saint did a brilliant job of creating these well fleshed out characters. Each one had such a vivid voice in the story. It was fascinating to see the way Saint portrayed them and I was particularly interested in the Clytemnestra and Elektra’s relationship and the way this develops over the course of the story. I really enjoyed the way Saint gave a voice to such well known characters.

Elektra is a beautiful and moving tale, one that I enjoyed immensely. If you’ve read Ariadne or looking for a Greek myth retelling with gorgeous, vivid writing, this is definitely one to pick up. Elektra was a really fantastic read and I can’t wait to see what Jennifer Saint does next.

Absolutely loved this! Jennifer Saint writes about this time period beautifully and her switches between characters' points of view are seamless and help move the story onwards. I don't know what else to say about it other than that I couldn't put it down I just wanted to keep reading and I look forward to more by her.

4 of 5 stars
https://lynns-books.com/2022/06/06/elektra-by-jennifer-saint/
My Five Word TL:DR Review: Greek Tragedy from Female Perspective

Elektra is the second book by Jennifer Saint in which she brings to life those characters from Greek myth that are usually overlooked or play only a small role. The first book by this author was the story of Ariadne, a tale I really enjoyed and so I couldn’t wait to tuck into this one. I’m really enjoying these stories and think Jennifer Saint does a great job of bringing the characters to life. For the record I will say that I’m not an expert on Greek myth and that could be a reason why these stories hold so much appeal to me because a lot of the content is new. Also, from the outset I will say that the characters here are not really having a great deal of fun for the most part. The Trojan wars provide the backdrop, two of the characters spend the majority of the book thinking of nothing but revenge and let’s be honest, Greek Tragedies are not famed for their light and breezy nature. And, again, I would mention that these stories are not intended to alter the tales of old so much as shine a spotlight in a different direction and provide a perspective that is little seen. So, with that in mind.

The story actually follows three characters whose tales are brought together in a fascinating story of love and betrayal..

Clytemnestra – wife to Agamemnon (whose house is cursed). Sister to Helen, whose famous beauty sparked the infamous Trojan war and the sacking of Troy. Mother to a number of children one of which led to her all consuming desire for revenge whilst one of the other daughters developed feelings of hatred.

Cassandra – A Princess of Troy, daughter to Priam and a priestess of Apollo. Cassandra sought the gift of sight from Apollo and having been granted it refused his advances and incurred his wrath. He cursed her so that although she could see the future no one would believe her prophecies. People instead assumed she was striving to be important and when that failed they thought she’d had a mental breakdown.

Elektra – daughter to Clytemnestra and Agamemnon. A young woman devoted to a father she barely knows. Saviour of her brother and complicit in his role in killing their mother. Talk about a tragedy.

I don’t want to over elaborate on the plot. Basically, Clytemnestra is tricked by Agamemnon into taking her eldest daughter to be wed to Achilles. Instead, Agamemnon sacrifices his first daughter to ensure a fair wind for his armies ships to sail to Troy. I mean, I can’t deny I’d probably see the red mist myself in such circumstances. From that point forward, stricken with grief and besotted with the desire for retribution, Clytemnestra can think of little else other than the safe return of the King so that she can take her revenge out upon him. During this time it is fair to say that she neglects her younger children a little. Elektra develops a fixation on her father, believing he can do no wrong, she was too young to be affected by the death of her eldest sister and she puts Agamemnon on a pedestal. Her devotion sets her at odds with her mother. Meanwhile, Cassandra gives us the inside view of what’s taking place at Troy. Unable to make anyone take heed of her dire warnings she can only watch with dismay as her dreadful prophecies come to pass.

As with Ariadne the writing really stood out for me. Saint manages to conjure a place easily with an almost casual inclusion of small everyday things such as food and clothing without resorting to heavy descriptions.

The dilemma of course is that this isn’t a pleasant story, the characters gradually spiral into obsession. Elektra’s excessive devotion to her father, who was actually disliked by many, is almost impossible to understand. I was aghast that she had so little regard for the sacrifice of her sister and her mother’s grief. On the other hand her mother was so careless about her children that she really didn’t help the situation at all. She positively fixated on the need to avenge her first daughter, to the point that the rest of her family paled into insignificance. It’s like she couldn’t see what she still had in front of her and so before you could say ‘Greek Tragedy’ an insurmountable rift had come between mother and daughter.

Cassandra’s role here, as I mentioned was really to give a view of sorts on the progress of the war and the eventual destruction of Troy. She didn’t feel quite as deeply drawn as the other two characters. The curse of Apollo was enough to drive her crazy, her mind constantly barraged by sights of the future, none of which she was able to relay to others in a meaningful way. I confess I had a good deal of sympathy for her plight.

In terms of criticisms. Well, as with Ariadne the ending felt a little rushed. I think I was expecting a bit more of a drawn out intrigue and had a mounting sort of tension as the dreaded deed approached but the eventual act was so swiftly carried out that it took me a minute to realise that we’d moved swiftly on. Also, there is of course the grim reality of actual life for women from Ancient Greece. The characters we predominantly follow are of course very privileged but regardless their lives are still squandered cheaply.

Overall, I’m thoroughly enjoying these books, I feel like I’m getting a little glimpse into life from the female perspective and although these stories are quite often tragic I would love to read more.

I received a copy through Netgalley, courtesy of the publisher, for which my thanks. The above is my own opinion.

Born into the House of Atreus, Elektra knows her family is cursed but she is helpless to prevent further tragedy occurring. Clytemnestra marries into the house of Atreus and when her husband commits an atrocity she is bound for vengeance. Cassandra cursed by the god she spurned is unable to prevent the horrors of Troy.
This is a brilliant read. I loved Saint's first novel and, if anything, this is even better. There is a trend for re-imagined Greek myths from a more feminist perspective but this is no cliche. Each of the three female characters has a personality and motivations for their actions yet all is set into the context where women are mere chattels of the men around them. The writing is appealing to the modern reader, the plot complex but beautifully put together and the whole is just a joy from start to finish.

This book is an interesting take on a classic Greek myth, but was it really a retelling?

Let's start with the positives. I'm absolutely enthralled by Jennifer Saint's prose, the way she translates a woman's grief, hate, or anger into syntax is almost personal. So real I would attempt any writing by Saint despite, or in spite of, its content. I live for those pure moments when beautiful writing transforms me into the characters themselves.

But what about the retelling? Were we RETOLD anything in a new way?

For readers of classics, it was obvious that Saint decided to stick close to the original story of the House of Atreus. Too close, if you ask me. As for a reader of retellings based on Greek myths, this is by far the least eventful retelling I've ever read. The beginning reminded me a little of the Silence of the Girls (Briseis does get a mention in this book). While the "Girls" stood watch in Pat Barker's book, here the women listlessly waited and waited and waited. It was all our titular character, Elektra, did until a little before the end.

The curse of the house of Atreus represented the main plot. Its repetitiveness exhausted the story arc. Brother kills brother for the throne of Mycenae and banishes the nephews to a faraway land. The nephews grow into men and seek revenge by killing their uncle and banishing their cousins. Cousins return seeking revenge killing the usurping cousin and banishing his children. On and on it went. And I couldn't help but feel drained by it. At some point, I set this book aside for a while loathing Elektra with her endless wait, first for the return of her father and then for the return of her brother, all the while nursing her grudges and anger, did absolutely nothing to deserve to be put on the title page. Not to mention her selfish acts at the end of the book. This book was better suited to be called the Fall of the House of Atreus.

One other thing that made this book less enjoyable to me was that imbuing a classic with modern feminist concepts isn't a prerequisite to retelling a story and doesn't work for every retelling. It makes feminism more of a trend rather than a social issue. I get the part where authors aspire to give voice to the female side characters who have been marginalized throughout history. But I'm really tired of the "Men are bad/monsters/killers " message retellings try to get across. Yes! Women have been/still are marginalized. Yes! Men can be bad/monsters/killers, but so can women. All I'm asking is for authors to consider the context and employ modern social theories when appropriate. There's no need to lash out our modern complexities into historical contexts unnecessarily.

Many thanks to Headline Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to review this book.

Elektra is a tale from 3 different women's perspective of the battle depicting Agamemnon war to take Troy. I did DNF this at 48% not because it's terrible it definitely isn't it just isn't to my taste. What I did read was well written but I know the tale well and nothing new was happening for me I felt like this was a pretty basic retelling and it just wasn't grabbing my attention unfortunately.
2.5⭐️