Wrath Goddess Sing: A Novel

HIGHLIGHTS ~do not read if you’re looking for Achilles/Patroclus ~do read for epically deadly trans woman Achilles ~and amazing Egyptian sorceresses ~never trust a god ~or a dolphin There are books that strike you like a hammer against bronze, making you reverberate with their glory. Making you peal out your fierce, wild joy like the greatest and sweetest of shining bells. Wrath Goddess Sing is one of those books. * It is theoretically possible than some other author could have put in the years of work and research that clearly went into every detail of Wrath Goddess Sing. But no one else could have made this story as beautiful and as bold, as extraordinary and as entrancing, as poignant and powerful and profound as Deane has done. With prose like a wine-dark sea, she sweeps us away into a rich, complex world like no other Trojan War retelling we’ve ever seen: one anchored in real Bronze Age history, weaving together so many unexpected threads, peeling back the…the polish, the Anglicisation of the tale we all know, to get at a story that’s never been told before. Because we do all know this tale, don’t we? At least vaguely? Via any one of the dozens of film adaptions if nothing else? Maybe you’ve read other retellings; maybe you even studied The Illiad at school or at uni, like I did, and thus don’t really think Deane can take you by surprise. Not really. Not much. She still has to make Wrath Goddess Sing recognisably the story of Achilles, right? How different…

The plot of this book closely follows the Illiad, but this is not just any retelling of the same old story. Maya Deane deftly works her way through the classic poem, hitting all of the same notes, but places the emphasis on new and fresh beats. Recasting Achilles as a trans woman is a revelation. She maintains all the faults and foibles of the original vanity and pridefulness of the classical depiction, but here Achilles' pride is not mere hubris, but rather a shout of defiance against the expectations placed on her by both humans and the gods. Her pride is her refuge, her safe port, where she can withstand the buffeting of the world around her. As the protagonist to a novel, Achilles is a delight--a lively, funny character who's faults are all too understandable. The supporting cast is equally well depicted, from Achilles' oldest ally patroclus--one of the few to accept her as a woman in her youth--to Merapi, an Egyptian sorceress who steals every scene she's in. Do not mistake this as a book that only queer audiences will appreciate. Maya Dean weaves an incredible new take on the classic story with humor, wit, heartpounding action scenes, and an ending that will stick with you long after you've turned the final page.