Clytemnestra: The spellbinding retelling of Greek mythology’s greatest heroine

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Some of my favourite books are The Secret History, The Song of Achilles, Alias Grace, The Book of Longings, and Half of a Yellow Sun.

If you do recall her name, you might immediately associate her with the archetype of the “bad wife”. If you’d like to read something that turns history on its head, offers a completely different take on the mythic tale of the Spartan Clytemnestra and her sister, Helen [of Troy], have I got a book for you.Guilt, betrayal, sisterhood, and mothering are all strong themes throughout the book. Although some parts were hard to read (especially as someone with young kids), it never felt gratuitous. The characters are well-written and give us a different perspective on a well-known story.

Huntress. Warrior. Mother. Murderess. Queen. You are born to a king, but marry a tyrant. You stand helplessly as he sacrifices your child to placate the gods. You watch him wage war on a foreign shore and comfort yourself with violent thoughts of your own. You play the part, fooling enemies who deny you justice. Slowly, you plot. Clytemnestra is heartbroken, and full of rage. She plots revenge while Agamemnon is away in Troy. In his absence, she allies herself with her husband’s cousin Aegisthus, Agamemnon’s sworn enemy who had staged the coup years before. Upon Agamemnon’s return, she and Aegisthus kill Agamemnon, and they take rule of Mycenae for themselves. A massive thank-you to Netgalley, the publisher, and the author of Clytemnestra for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this outstanding book! I appreciate it so much! This book is absolutely bewitching. It is fiery and dark and painful and retributive in all the best ways, exactly what I’d hope for in a retelling of Clytemnestra’s story. Clytemnestra not only does justice to its source material but also transforms it, adding complex perspective and depth to its characters, themes, and events. Its spiral into tragedy is compelling. A blaze of a novel, fiery and furious - and alight with murderous revenge. Like Madeline Miller and Jennifer Saint, Casati offers the female perspective on the old, patriarchal tropes of the Greek myths Daily Mail As for queens, they are either hated or forgotten. She already knows which option suits her best...

Strong-Willed Princess

The following version of this book was used to create this guide: Casati, Costanza. Clytemnestra. Penguin Random House, 2023.