The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller is a retelling of Homer’s epic, Iliad. However, Miller’s book is less of a modern depiction of the epic and more of a romantic tragedy between Achilles and his male companion Patroclus. In other words, the story is centered around Patroclus’ admiration for Achilles, who then turns into his romantic interest. Patroclus is the narrator, so readers are able to read about the events that lead up to the Trojan War and his inevitable death.
While Miller follows most key points that are present in Homer’s epic, The Song of Achilles reads like a fanfiction that undermines one character to uphold the other.
About the Book
The Song of Achilles (2011)
Author: Madeline Miller
Genre(s): Action, Fantasy, Fanfiction, Greek Mythology, LGBT+, Romance
Trigger(s): sex, violence
Summary
Achilles, “the best of all the Greeks,” son of the cruel sea goddess Thetis and the legendary king Peleus, is strong, swift, and beautiful, irresistible to all who meet him. Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland after an act of shocking violence. Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods’ wrath.
From Goodreads.com
They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the heroes 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, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows. Little do they know that the cruel Fates will test them both as never before and demand a terrible sacrifice.
My Review
I give this book 3 out of 5 stars: ⭐⭐⭐
I can see why many people enjoyed this book. Madeline Miller is descriptive; she incorporates an array of vivid imagery and makes the Trojan War a more personal matter for Patroclus. However, the story is not just a retelling of the Trojan War through Patroclus’ eyes: it is a fanfiction of Homer’s epic, Iliad. This is a fanfiction of the Iliad where Miller recounts the events, but mostly focuses on the romantic tension between Achilles and Patroclus. If you haven’t read this book yet, keep in mind that the story is vastly different from the epic. For instance, readers are given a better insight of Patroclus’ life as an exiled prince.
My only critiques are that the story’s pacing is a little slow at some points; Patroclus’ characterization is diminished to uplift Achilles’; and that the story depicts minors having sex with explicit, descriptive wording.
The pacing of the story is something I had issue with. The book itself is not that long (my copy only had 369 pages), but the magnitude of the events that were covered were significant. We follow Achilles and Patroclus from boyhood to adolescence. And within that timeframe, we are given Patroclus’ quiet admiration of Achilles before the two’s friendship blossoms into a more romantic and sexual one. The romance in the book is a slow-burn, but we could say that the Trojan War plot is given similar attention. The shocking events of the war don’t transpire until about the last quarter of the book. The pacing of the war itself is a bit jarring, given the amount of attention that was given to the warriors’ relationship issues. The Trojan War serves as a subplot rather than an initial plot for the two. After all, Patroclus meets his death in the midst of the war, and Achilles’ death follows a little after. In short, the beginning and middle of the book make the story seem much longer than it actually is. It’s a shame that the great Trojan War is diminished to a few chapters, and even then, the focus remains on Patroclus’ worry for Achilles and his inhumanity.
In Miller’s book, Patroclus has almost no skill nor strength in combat. It was also frustrating that Patroclus had almost no personality of his own, since Miller had him only existing for Achilles. Given the sexual and sexuality themes of her work, Miller writes Patroclus a step too close of becoming a stereotypical gay (or bisexual) teenager. In this book, Patroclus doesn’t like violence, he lacks any talent in combat, and he lives for the sake of another man. This is the complete opposite of his canonical characterization; Patroclus is supposed to be a notable warrior.
I should also mention that Miller depicts a young Achilles and Patroclus having sex. It is important to note that they’re both teenagers when they begin having a sexual relationship. This is something I wouldn’t care about; however, it was descriptive. It wasn’t uncommon for Patroclus to fetishize Achilles for his god-like body and beauty, so reading his sexually charged thoughts was off-putting for me. This is something that Miller had been criticized for by the less vocal readers of the book. The sexualization of two teenage boys could be seen as the fetishization of an entire group of individuals, an issue that still plagues many LGBT+ stories that are written by straight authors.
Final Comments
I think that the story is decent for what it is. Miller’s book is an emotional rollercoaster ride. Despite my critiques, I think that people who are interested in the book should read it at least once. If you haven’t read Miller’s book or Homer’s epic, I suggest that you read Homer’s epic for the war and originality, and then read Miller’s book for the romance.
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