Title: The Heroines
Series: -
Author: Laura Shepperson
Publisher: Hachette
Release Date: February 9th 2023
Pages: 344
Source: ARC gifted by the publisher
Rating: ✰✰✰✰
CAWPILE: 7.86/10
Synopsis
In Athens, crowds flock to witness the most shocking trial of the ancient world. The royal family is mired in scandal. Phaedra, young bride of King Theseus, has accused her stepson, Hippolytus of rape.
He’s a prince, a talented horseman, a promising noble with his whole life ahead of him. She’s a young and neglected wife, the youngest in a long line of Cretan women with less than savoury reputations.
The men of Athens must determine the truth. Who is guilty, and who is innocent?
But the women know truth is a slippery thing. After all, this is the age of heroes and the age of monsters. There are two sides to every story, and theirs has gone unheard.
Until now.
Review
I’m back again with another Greek myth retelling review, this time The Heroines by Laura Shepperson. I’d like to start off by pointing out how completely gorgeous the cover is, the deep red and the gold foiling work so well together, and I’m very jealous of anyone who managed to get their hands on the Goldsboro edition I’m very jealous!
Shepperson sets out to put her own spin on Phaedra’s tale, one that really leans into the tragedy of her situation, alongside the tragedy that the women of the ancient world, those with no voices faced. Along the way we also learn of the tragedies faced by Ariadne, Pasiphae and Medea, women of the same blood all trapped in a society that reviles and disbelieves them.
‘Any man can throw words up into the air, and it is women who must pay when those words land.’
Undoubtedly my favourite part of the novel was the Night Chorus, the voices of women in the Athenian court who are being abused by the men, who attempt to warn one another of the specific men they should avoid and offer advice. I loved the way that Shepperson painted them, I also liked how despite all that they had been through they were still taken by the patriarchy of the time they lived in, believing the rumours.
I think The Heroines perfectly demonstrates the violence against women in the ancient world, not just in the physical violent acts but also the way their stories are told, the way that they have to protect their reputations and the mental/emotional aspects of the lack of respect for how society treats them.
My only struggles with the book would be that at times the voices of the characters seemed to meld together and I struggled to separate them, and that the naivete of Phaedra was at times very annoying which made it hard to read.
Overall, it was a quick read and a compelling tragedy that I struggled to put down. It is a sad story, one that does not offer much hope in the way of Athenian society, one that shows the men of the time were awful. I hadn’t looked too much into Phaedra’s story before, rather focusing like many others on her sister, Ariadne. However, this has intrigued me to start with and now I’d like to hear more of Phaedra’s story. I would recommend it if you wanted to look more into Phaedra and love Greek myth!
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