Thank you so much for this e-arc!

Elektra was or well is one of my most anticipated releases this year and I can tell you Jennifer Saint did not disappoint at all. I might even get to call this one of my favorite Greek mythology books. I absolutely loved the writing style, the flow of the story and just everything overall. Ariadne had blown me away, but Elektra even more. This is a book I would even recommend to people who aren't into Greek mythology because I know for sure they will be after reading this masterpiece!

I enjoyed Elektra and I’m glad: I have a nagging feeling of failure about my response to Jennifer Saint’s previous novel Ariadne; perhaps I should re-read it. Despite being called Elektra, the story is narrated equally by her, Clytemnestra and Cassandra, each of whom has been overlooked in favour of a sibling or siblings. Initially separated, in Cassandra’s case by distance and in Elektra’s by her mother’s inability to see past the loss of her eldest daughter, they are brought together in Mycenae, albeit for a short time. The passage of time is dealt with gently so it never feels like a whistlestop ride over twenty years and while the events depicted are no surprise to anyone who’s familiar with Homer and spin-offs therefrom, it’s not too heavy-handed with the foreshadowing.
We know what’s going to happen but it felt realistic for 16-year-old Clytemnestra to be at once excited at marrying Agamemnon yet pondering that it could be worse. I love that when she’s trying to work out how to behave she wonders ‘what would Helen do’? The twin relationship (indeed their being related at all) is little explored in other versions of this story I have come across. Elektra is so wretched that she even envies Iphigenia because she died pressed against her beloved father’s broad chest. Cassandra is sympathetically drawn. The explanation of why Apollo, having blessed her with foresight, cursed her to be ignored is as old as the hills: she denied him sex so he punished her. She’s brave, too, making a thwarted attempt to stop the invasion of Troy.
These different perspectives allow us to see more than one side of the story: is Agamemnon an irredeemable brute or a mighty leader? It’s easy to take sides but if you buy in to the power of the gods then the humans are mere puppets – Paris having to choose the fairest goddess a case in point. That said, Agamemnon was always a peevish bully, not caring what the Mycenaeans thought of him, so I reckon he deserved everything he got.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4,5☆

Oh gods, this was glorious
I had already read "Ariadne" by the same author, and liked it a great deal, but this is incredibly even better. There has beel a clear improvement in Saint's writing style, so that the mechanism involving the characters' pshycologies and their strict relationships with the plot that we already saw in "Ariadne", here are deeper and more developed, and the bond between characters and plot even stronger.

Even if I could condamn at least two of the protagonists because of their actions, I loved all of them, mainly because of their characterization, so linear and coherent throughout the whole book. In every page we could feel the hatred of Clytemnestre and Elektra, and the hopelessness of Cassandra, while the events of the before, during and after of the Trojan War unrolled in front of their eyes.
Clytemnestre's want of revenge against the husband who stole from her the first of her children and later brought her to lose the other three too; Elektra's blinded way of acting because of her love for her father and the disain and rage towards her own mother because of his death; and Cassandra's unbereable curse and her desperation in not being able to help her family and her kingdom because of it, despite her being the only one who could, were all so perfectly written and carried out until the end of their lives that I couldn't do nothing but being amazed at it.

The idea of using three povs by three different women with diverse intents, ideals and parts in the same war, gave us the possibility to see these divergent sides of the war, the Greek and the Trojan, and also the differring opinions and hopes of mother and daughter regarding the end of the war.

I really have not much more to say about this book except that it is beautifully written and structured, and conveys in the best way the initial idea of an ongoing curse, of a cycle that cannot be broken, no matter how hard we try. But despite everything, almost against all odds, and the reader's belief, all the protagonists gain the peace they all hoped for.

Exploring the tragic consequences of the curse on the House of Atreus, ELEKTRA tells the stories of three interconnected women. Clytemnestra was my favourite POV as she was such a sympathetic character even when she lost her way. Her daughter, Elektra, was a harder character to sympathise with but the author ensured the reader at least understood her (sometimes frustrating) motivations. Cassandra represented all the silenced and ridiculed women of Greek mythology; all those that are seen as less than men and gods.

Together, a tale of vengeance, grief, and suffering is woven around these characters. The prose is beautifully constructed and it's one of those books you find yourself reading in a single sitting as you luxuriate in its lyricism. I'm a sucker for Greek mythology retellings so I hope we see another from this talented author in the future.

An amazing follow-up to the also fantastic Ariadne from Jennifer Saint - I genuinely did not think Elektra could live up to Ariadne in my estimations, but Clytemnestra's story has got to be my one of my favourite of the Greek myths, and Saint captured it perfectly! The gore and horror and revenge wrought throughout while still leaving room for the reader to weave empathy into each and every character's perspective astounds me! Saint will definitely be an auto-buy author for me!

This is an exquisite novel following the lives of Elektra, Clytemnestra and Cassandra, spanning the many years of the Trojan war and the years following. It is heartbreaking, gut wrenching and divine. The way it deals with the complex and emotive themes of grief, love, hatred and brings to life the critical moments and feelings of girlhood through to wifehood and motherhood. This book is moving, thoughtful and mesmerising, such a careful retelling of the fierce women of Greek history and an absolute must-read.

Thank you to Headline for the ARC! This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I am a big fan of Ariadne (I have two copies already!) and I can't wait to get my hands on a real copy of this. It made me laugh and cry and I felt very moved reading about these women struggling constantly to rectify the wrongs of men, on top of juggling their own mistakes and misfortunes. The characterisation was beautiful, the story was wonderfully done and very moving, and felt very real. As always, the writing was gorgeous. I am so excited to read this again.

Such an interesting, feminist take on the tragic lives of the women of the House of Atreus. Each of the main characters were well written and their chapters were all interesting. Even Elektra, who definitely wasn't the most likeable character, got my interest, and I enjoyed reading through her chapters too. The writing is beautiful and I enjoyed the way the author weaved through the years and the connections of the women with each other. Would definitely recommend this to anyone who enjoys Greeky mythology or to anyone who wants to read more about it, as well as to the people interested in the Trojan War.

If I thought Ariadne was tragic, this book really hits a whole other level. It was difficult to see these see these women trying to fix the mistakes of men and yet fall into the same traps as them, their determination yet inability to escape the curse of the House of Atreus and the cycles of violence.

I was captivated by the questions of morality, revenge and the control you can have over your own life that were central to the story and loved how, again, Saint has turned a well-known narrative and turned it on its head. Whilst stories of the Battle of Troy so often focus on the men, or on Helen, I loved reading about its impact on the three women who are left to deal with the fallout.

The characterisation of Elektra and Clytemnestra were expertly done. Depending on the point of view you could sympathise with them and hate them. Although the women of this story sit in opposition, there is no ‘bad guy’. Instead, the narrative is driven by complex questions about morality and loyalty and gives such detail to the difficulty of Clytemnestra and Elektra’s mother-daughter relationship and to the figure of Agamemnon who, despite being absent for most of the story, has a presence that looms over every page.

I loved that each character had a really clear personality and perspective. However, I did feel that Cassandra’s perspective felt disjointed to the narrative as a whole, possibly because we do not spend as much time with her character as Clytemnestra and Elektra or because she doesn’t have the same connection as the other two have with each other. This being said, Cassandra’s point of view was definitely needed to fill in the gap of the direct impact of the battle and the moment between Clytemnestra and Cassandra when the latter is brought back to Mycenae is incredibly powerful, demonstrating how the battles they are fighting at home have stretched to include others.

I absolutely loved reading Ariadne, but I loved Elektra even more. It’s darker, the characters are more complex, and they are the ones driving the story and making these tragic decisions.

Jennifer Saint delivers another mesmerizing story. I have enjoyed Ariadne last year and I was looking forward to read her next novel. And she didn't disappoint. With a compelling writing style, Elektra tells the story of three women: Clytemnestra, a mother driven by her vengeance against her husband. Elektra, a daughter who wanted to avenge her father's murder. Cassandra, princess of Troy, cursed by Apollo and destined to never be believed. Their fates interweave together in this tale of revenge and tragic relationships. Each character was well written, with their virtues and flaws, and I was immediately captivated by their stories. If you love Greek mythology, I totally recommend this book.

Thank you so much @neygalley for providing me this arc and i enjoyed it as much as I loved it. The pride of reading arc is able to read novel that is not out yet into the world and can give mt honest opinions about the book.

Greek mythology always tell the story about the heroes yet the women (their wives) behind them always remain their story unheard and infamous. This book focus on exactly their woman which is not much known in Greek mythology but their role plays important as much as their husband.

The story focus on trojan war which is one of the most memorable wars of Ancient Greece. We can see the struggle of these three women in the world of wars and gods. One of them are Clytemnestra which is infamous sister of Helen and the wife of Agamemnon which had to face a terrible curse of losing her daughter and the deadly decision she has to take in name of vengeance. Then there is her daughter Elektra which is close to her father and her life is changed when she lose her father which she also have to take a decision which will forever ruin her life and dignity. Cassandra is a priestess of Apollo and cursed to utter true prophecies, but never to be believed. These three cursed women soon crossed their path together in this tragically tale of love, friendship, sisterhood, vengeance and matricide. It's haunting as a tale could be.

Elektra is another brilliant reexamination of a familiar tale and mythology, through the lens of the women often marginalised and pushed into the shadows.

I absolutely adored Ariadne when I read it last year. It was a fascinating, beautifully written re-imagining of classical mythology with a feminist edge that systematically exposes and destroys the toxic masculinity embedded at the heart of Greek myth. What I’ve discovered from Elektra is that this was no outlier for Saint’s writing, as Elektra delivers this once again.

I am endlessly fascinated by the unwritten sides of classic stories, especially those that promise to show a hidden and unspoken aspect. Saint’s brand of this type of feminist reclamation of culturally embedded narrative is endlessly fascinating for me and I know I will be needing any other stories she creates in this vein. In particular, I love the way she handles the gods. They add this extra element of danger and the cruel embodiment of fate, but remain distant from the consequences of their actions and most of the narrative itself.

Right from the opening of Elektra, you are once more set inside the familiar tale but from a wholly new perspective. This is a layered tale that combines three prominent voices: those of Clytemnestra, Cassandra and the titular Elektra. Each of their tales is woven with suffering and woe, highlighting the unwritten costs of war so often forgotten by history. Saint ensures to bring this to light, adding a real sense of heart and soul to each of these women. Her writing is just so captivating and illuminating. The way their narratives all captivated me so completely is a testament to Saint’s skill. This is a book that conveys every last drop of blood spilt and every tear shed, every unheard cry and scream at the numerous forgotten injustices.

Elektra wrenched my heart straight out of my chest in this emotional examination of family and the forgotten cost of war.

I was unsure of how I would find this book, being multi perspective (Electra, Clytemnestra & Cassandra) and also another retelling of Troy.
The latter had me worried based on another review but it wasn’t as much as I thought. I particularly liked how the stories were being shared and were reaching the house of Atreus and not just from Cassandra’s point of view.
The multi perspectives were actually fine to me. It’s three women who are wholly complex with different but very similar goals. It’s also the first Greek retelling that I felt made Cassandra relatable and more than just a crazy woman (obviously due to her POV) and gave Helen an actual identity and personality.
I appreciated the introduction of the cursed House of Atreus, though a little info dump. It’s a great foreshadowing of what is going to happen.
But undoubtedly the best thing was how well Saint portrayed the desire and the anguish of these female characters. I found myself frustrated at both Clytemnestra for her blinded revenge and Elektra’s clouded devotion to her father.
A great book that circles around the Trojan ‘hero’ Agamemnon to look at the three women that played roles in his life.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for an advanced digital copy.

I’m going to start by saying this book is incredible. Compelling, harrowing, full of drama and tragedy, and so brilliantly written.

This is Saint’s second book, focusing on the women affected by the Trojan War. Unlike other recent retellings, whilst we do have the point of view of Cassandra, the lead voices are of the women left behind in Greece, notably Clytemnestra and her daughter Elektra.

Elektra is the daughter of Clytemnestra (twin sister of the acclaimed Helen) and King Agamemnon. Born into a family cursed by the murder of family members, Elektra is the youngest daughter, and very young when her father leads the Greek armies to Troy to reclaim Helen.

Through the different points of view we travel through the years of the Trojan War with perspectives from Troy and Greece. I found Cassandra’s sections particularly gripping as the war develops and Troy falls, but honestly so much happens in Greece that I couldn’t put it down.

There is treachery, subterfuge, and murder, but also deep seated love, friendship and loyalty.

It’s a 5* from me and I’d definitely recommend it!

A bloodline forever cursed to murder their own. Can three women linked to the family by marriage, enslavement or birth escape their doom?

A faithful retelling of the myth of the House of Atreus, told from the perspective of three key female characters: Clytemnestra, Cassandra and Elektra.

Saint's expertise in classical mythology is evident.

While the narrative for all three of the main characters is in the first person, their voices are not sufficiently distinct. and lack emotional depth. Even when in a murderous frenzy, the voice is too clinical. Saint doesn't resist the 'crowd-pleaser' moments, such as the myth of Achilles' heel.

4****

The house of Atreus is cursed- through generations of murder, usurping’s of the throne of Mycenae, and cannabalism. We are introduced to this house of Atreus in the generation of Menelaus and Agamemnon. First through Agamemnon’s marriage to Clytemnestra; then his daughter Elektra; and then his slave and captive, Cassandra.

This book starts us off with before the Trojan war; Helen is in Sparta looking for a suitor and men from all over Greece have heard of her beauty and want her for a wife… apart from Agamemnon who meets Clytemnestra (and Odysseus, who finds interest in Penelope, Helens cousin). We witness Clytemnestra’s journey to Mycenae, the birth of their children… and of course the start of the Trojan war, as well as many more events that take place.


Despite the title being “Elektra” this actually has 3 perspectives: Elektra, Clytemnestra and Cassandra. We see Elektra as a young girl with her love for Agamemnon as a father, (which in parts reminded me so much of the Oedipus complex by Freud- which was rather disturbing to read) and her hell bent on revenge for the murder of him by her mother. We see Clytemnestra as she spends 10 years of the Trojan war planning her murder of Agamemnon, especially after he murdered their first daughter, Iphigenia. And lastly, we see things from Cassandra’s POV; a Trojan princess with the gift of prophecy.. but the curse of no one believing in her.

Jennifer Saint has jam-packed this full of myth and plays in only under 400 pages. You can see how the author has done her research: retelling the Orestia by Aeschylus; covering Troy and parts of the Odyssey from Homer; the plays “Helen”, “Iphigenia in Aulis”, “Helen”, “Elektra” and the “Trojan Women” by Euripides; and “Elektra” by Sophocles. She has done this all so smoothly through the voices of our three main characters.

Now onto the characters:
I found Elektra really hard to sympathise with at times- she is a selfish character and her empathy for others is hardly there. She chooses not to see things from Clytemnestra’s POV where her father, Agamemnon (Clytemnestra’s husband) purposely murders and sacrifices Iphigenia for a wind to take the army to Troy. Instead as Elektra takes the view of the sacrifice being god ordained- she cannot understand why Clytemnestra is grieving and hating her father. She then spends her time on out thinking about revenge. She also doesn’t seem to care about others around her- especially how she treats her friend Georgios and has a weird Oedipus complex about Agamemnon.

Clytemnestra I loved to read about!! I found her to be super fascinating. Jennifer Saint also wrote the death of Iphigenia with so much sadness from the point of view of Clytemnestra, that you are grieving with her (this is the scene that made me cry).
She then spends the next 10 years planning to murder her husband when he comes home from Mycenae and see her trying to hold power in court. But we also get to see her as a mother before Troy and after, providing Cassandra with death to escape her torment (this scene was wrote really beautifully too despite it being about death).

Cassandra was one of my favourites to read about. We read her terrible curse from Apollo as she refuses him to rape her (literally whenever Apollo appears on the scene in any myth you know someone will be sexually assaulted). How she’s tormented by visions and people choosing not to believe her- how she’s an outcast. Her inability be believed and stop Troy from destruction. Reading about Cassandra was probably my favourite.


There was much of this that I loved- Jennifer Saint has wrote another fantastic retelling and I enjoyed how certain aspects she’s twisted to suit her own narrative. I especially love her inclusion of the Erinyes as they are my favourite!

The only issue I have is that there have been many of retellings featuring Troy and Clytemnestra/Helen recently and so nothing particularly new came to light of me.

Thank you to NetGalley for the Arc!

A retelling of the Greek myth of the cursed House of Atreus, told from the points of view of three women: Cassandra, Clytemnestra and Elektra, covering the period before, during and after the Trojan war. The novel handles the complex timeline well, and made the tangled family history quite accessible and easy to follow. It is readable and engaging.

I absolutely loved 'Ariadne' and was so excited to start reading 'Elektra'. However, I did not enjoy this one as much. There were almost too many characters and it did not feel like Elektra's story, she does become important towards the end but for it to be called after her, I feel she should have been in it a bit more.
I did enjoy Saint's re-telling and we get to explore the Trojan war and the impacts of that. The characters are described well and I enjoyed reading about them and the stories they have to tell. The book did not seem to flow particularly well for me and I did lose interest in the middle section of the book which was a shame.
The cover is stunning again and I do hope for more books from Saint.

Jennifer Saint returns with another exceptionally crafted retelling, a fantastically detailed and feminist take on The House of Atreus—focusing on three interconnected, long overlooked and powerfully rebellious women whose lives are plagued by grief, anger, war and vengeance.

The House of Atreus is cursed, a bloodline tainted by the cycle of violence and death. Following the lives of three women whose fates are entwined by the fickle nature of men and gods : Clytemnestra—sister of Helen and wife of Agamemnon, Cassandra—Trojan Princess cursed by Apollo to see the future but is never believed when she speaks it and Elektra—the youngest daughter of the House of Atreus, whose own destiny will also be bound by the cycle of violence that plagues her family, unless she can find a way to break it.

I really enjoyed reading Saint’s debut, Ariadne last year so was really excited to read Elektra. And I have to say, I absolutely loved it! It’s definitely her best book to date with a darker, more intricately detailed,evocative (and dare I say bloodier) story that I couldn’t put down. Honestly the first 100 pages alone had me an emotional wreck—I literally SOBBED but, the skillfull portrayal of grief, pain and festering anger was absolutely phenomenal.

It is told through three POVs and each chapter alternates between each woman as they tell their (often tragic) version of events. As far as characters go,Clytemnestra, Elektra and Cassandra were all deliciously complex and experiencing all of their (somewhat varied) perspectives was really fascinating. I did find myself drawn more to Cassandra and Clytemnestra than Elektra who I personally didn’t feel any emotional attachment too her (but that’s probably due to my soft spot for Clytemnestra and my absolute dislike of Agamemnon.)

As one of the main perspectives we encounter, Clytemnestra is probably the one I was the most hesitant about as soo much of her story (in Greek mythology) revolves around her seeking revenge, which could’ve so easily fallen into the villainous caricature category. But, I can safely report that she’s a phenomenally crafted character and the depth of emotion conveyed through her POV chapters was both endearing heartbreaking.

She also (alongside a couple scenes from Cassandra’s POV) provides insight into the elusive and often vilified Helen whose brief appearances portray her as a rather enigmatic and rather kind person, who makes some very human mistakes—which is very different to the sinful temptress she’s usually visualised as, which I really loved.

The entire plot does revolve heavily around the theme of vengeance and the psychological aspects of each woman’s rage towards or on behalf of the men and gods in their lives was utterly fascinating, though there is Trigger warnings for: death (including child death), murder, rape, slavery, animal cruelty and war.

Overall, Elektra is a truly rebellious and feminist take that fans of Madeline Miller are bound to enjoy.

It’s not a genre I would say is my favourite but I’ve recently realised that any Greek mythology books I read I always really enjoy. Elektra was no exception.

Centred around the Trojan War and the after effects of this, we follow three women’s POV (Clytemnestra, Elektra and Cassandra) we get an amazing feminist retelling of Greek mythology. I definitely enjoyed Clytemnestra’s chapters the most and really loved her character.

One criticism I do have, which is no fault of the author, is that I do find reading Greek mythology takes sooooo much concentration for me and I don’t find it an easy read. It is quite lyrically written IMO which I sometimes personally struggle with. However, I did really enjoy it, it just took me a while to get though.

This one is out on 28th April! Thank you so much to @netgalley and @headlinebooks for the ARC of this book!