Review: The Song of Achilles

The Song of Achilles
By Madeline Miller

Published By: Bloomsbury
Publication Date: September 20, 2011
Date Read: March 4, 2024
Genre: Adult – Retelling
Source: Bought
Format: Audiobook
Pages: 352

From Goodreads:
Greece in the age of Heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the kingdom of Phthia. Here he is nobody, just another unwanted boy living in the shadow of King Peleus and his golden son, Achilles.

Achilles, “best of all the Greeks,” is everything Patroclus is not—strong, beautiful, the child of a goddess—and by all rights their paths should never cross. Yet one day, Achilles takes the shamed prince under his wing and soon their tentative connection gives way to a steadfast friendship. As they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine, their bond blossoms into something far deeper—despite the displeasure of Achilles’ mother Thetis, a cruel sea goddess with a hatred of mortals.

Fate is never far from the heels of Achilles. When word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, the men of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause. Torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows Achilles into war, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they have learned, everything they hold dear. And that, before he is ready, he will be forced to surrender his friend to the hands of Fate.

Profoundly moving and breathtakingly original, this rendering of the epic Trojan War is a dazzling feat of the imagination, a devastating love story, and an almighty battle between gods and kings, peace and glory, immortal fame and the human heart.

The Song of Achilles is a book that has been on my radar for years. I have always been a big fan of Greek Mythology so any retelling is always going to end up on my wishlist or on my TBR. This book has sat on my shelf for such a long time before I picked it up. I am so glad that I finally got around to reading this one, but honestly it didn’t live up to the hype for me.

The Song of Achilles is such a majorly hyped book. It doesn’t matter what sort of bookish platform you go on, I can guarantee that you are going to end up hearing about it. Due to this I went into this book with very high expectations. I had heard how amazing it was, and also how heartbreakingly sad it was. Yes, this book is very good and I really enjoyed reading it, but I ended up just feeling a little deflated after reading it… like I was just expecting more.

I listened to the audio edition of this one, and I highly recommend it. The narrator truly did a fantastic job of bringing these characters and this story to life. After I got a few chapters in, I realised that I didn’t really know much about the Achilles’ history and myths as I do with other Greek mythology. Maybe this is why I didn’t connect with this one as much, I’m not sure. There were moments where I felt like I needed to go and read up on the original myths for me to really connect with this story. Having said that, I really enjoyed the character of Patroclus and his dedication and love for Achilles was immense. I really loved their relationship and it was such a moving relationship to read about. Their ending is indeed a tragedy but I was fully expecting this, so I didn’t find it as heart breaking as other people did. I didn’t cry… and believe me, I am a crier!

I am really glad that I read A Song of Achilles. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Greek Mythology retellings. It was truly a beautiful story. Was it as amazing as I was expecting based on the hype? For me… no. I liked it, but I definitely wouldn’t read it again. For me, that’s the sign of a favourite book for me, so as much as I did really enjoy this one, it did fall a little bit flat for me.