The Song of Achilles in Ranters and Reviewers

May 05, 2021 Bryce Rocks My Socks rated it it was amazing

Shelves: have-2-pry-out-of-my-cold-hands, lgbtqia, fav, made-me-cry

why did it take me this long to find out about a gay greek mythology book? seriously I'm disappointed in myself. I'm better than this ...more

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Jun 02, 2021 Unknown Reviews rated it really liked it

Shelves: lgbt-reads, 4-star, female-author, 2021-reads, characters-were-meh

The Song of Achilles is a book that has been everywhere recently. If I stumble across a Youtube video titled “books I recommend to everyone!” The Song of Achilles tends to end up in there somewhere. Sadly, my knowledge of Greek mythology is minimal. I haven’t read the Percy Jackson series (yet, I will do it soon, I promise.) And while I didn’t connect with everything in this book, I must admit, I came away in awe of the beauty and the prose I read.

Patroclus, a young prince, has been exiled from The Song of Achilles is a book that has been everywhere recently. If I stumble across a Youtube video titled “books I recommend to everyone!” The Song of Achilles tends to end up in there somewhere. Sadly, my knowledge of Greek mythology is minimal. I haven’t read the Percy Jackson series (yet, I will do it soon, I promise.) And while I didn’t connect with everything in this book, I must admit, I came away in awe of the beauty and the prose I read.

Patroclus, a young prince, has been exiled from his kingdom after a tragic accident. Moving to the court of King Peleus, he meets his son, Achilles. Achilles is golden, perfect, a god in the making. Yet, when he takes interest in Patroclus, a bond between the two boys is formed, deeper and more intense than anyone can imagine.

There really is something about Miller’s writing. I was captivated by her prose while simultaneously being infinitely jealous of it. She really does have a way with words. The first half of the book I adored. The growing relationship between Patroclus and Achilles was raw and genuine, two teenage boys slowly become infatuated with each other, but reluctant to admit anything that shows their love. It kind of works that they’re opposites. Patroclus is weak, shy, socially awkward while Achilles is outgoing and beloved by all who meet him. It is technically the adult version of Nerdy Boy gets with Popular boy, but it works. I was really rooting for those first moments between them, especially considering the divide in social status. Achilles is destined for greatness with the potential to evolve from demi-god to god provided he achieves monumental glory. Patroclus is the unwanted exile and thus appears an unworthy match for Achilles, particularly to Thetis, Achille’s mother who is devoid of emotion (I’m not exaggerating. Wow, she is cold).

Watching all this occur as they grow up together makes them a cute couple to follow, at first. I loved the section of the book when they were with Chiron, a centaur, who assured both their skills developed and encouraged the bond between them. But, then of course, I entered the main body and event of the book; The Trojan War.

And I think that’s where I lost interest a bit.

From Chiron out, I somewhat liked and disliked the pacing. There is the gathering up of troops which is quite prompt (besides a few odd excursions which I guess is just Greek Mythology for you?), but then when we drift to the war, it takes up another chunk of the book. The war lasted ten years, so it makes sense that Miller delved into how the lives of the soldiers changed overtime. And the thing is, I found that interesting but at the same time it removed urgency from the book and not much advancement was made. I thought the ending was explosive and excellently done (especially those last few pages), but I didn’t weep though everyone promised me I’d need a tissue box near me when I finished this. Why, I think? Because I never connected to the characters and found them the least interesting aspect of this book.

In theory, I liked them as personas. How Achilles is this stellar, unbreakable demi-god and Patroclus is shy and caring – those types of people tend to work for me. Unfortunately, I feel they were quite thinly drawn. Patroclus is incredibly passive at the beginning. He has little motivations or desires besides Achilles, and I literally mean all he cares for is Achilles. To me, he felt like someone just narrating the story while not participating in it. He wasn’t witty or interesting, and it was hard to find why Achilles was invested in him. Likewise, I found Achilles to be a symbol of perfection at the beginning. He rarely did wrong or lashed out, and his lack of flaws made him uninteresting.

But then when we move to the Trojan War, this flipped. I grew to like Patroclus more as he assimilated into life at the camp and genuinely went out of his way to help people. I wasn’t as indifferent to him as I was at the beginning and felt he had some form of development. Yet, Achilles slowly grows worse as the book goes on. I understand that’s the point. Even Rick Riordan (the guy whose books I haven’t read yet) pointed out in his review he considers Achilles to be a “brat” and a “bully,” before explaining Miller painted Achilles in a new light. Perhaps it’s my unfamiliarity with the source but since I didn’t find Achilles a captivating character at the start, his devolution just looked like a series of bad character choices. The kind you see in films you know, where someone’s stubborn for the sake of being stubborn because the plot requires it. After finishing the book, I texted my friend, and said “Achilles is an idiot.” They replied, “yes.”

I admit, it’s not necessarily true I have zero knowledge of Greek Mythology. I read a big book years ago and came away with one conclusion; the majority of Greek gods are petty and annoying. So, technically, yes, this book concluded as expected! Ignoring how Achilles’ and Patroclus’ personalities (or lack of them) hindered the plot, I want to go further on and say it sadly also let down the relationship for me. When you have two characters that are quite bland and mesh them together, it’s hard to feel a genuine connection besides being told it through prose. I just wasn’t invested in their relationship and as Achilles’ worsened, I realised I wasn’t sure what this book was giving me. Like I said, it felt like Achilles was being stubborn for the sake of being stubborn. But that is actually just Greek Mythology, so Miller wasn’t being inaccurate in keeping it in. I just think that even ignoring that aspect, the characters weren’t well done. They both mostly remained two-dimensional and as a result, character development for certain events didn’t feel earned.

I don’t know how much of this review makes sense. I do think it’s a good book, but I unfortunately never felt the connection between the characters that I strived to find (besides a beautiful ending). I think I’d re-read at some stage, but less for the relationship and more the prose. I feel this is an unusual opinion, considering the love the book has, and for good reason, but it just didn’t work for me this time! :)
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Apr 21, 2021 n* rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: hello-darkness-my-old-friend, standalones

...more

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Mar 26, 2021 Fini (Hozier’s Version) rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: physical-book, read-2021, i-brought-you-myrrh-mur-der, audiobook-playing-in-background, ma-god-they-were-roommates, i-like-pain, still-staring-at-the-ceiling, lgbtqia-plus-rep, diverse-rep, mythology

07/25/2021
Update:

Wait, why didn't I rate this 5 stars in the first place?? It's literally all I could ever ask for!
(fixed it).

03/23/2021
1st read:

★★★★★

“He is half of my soul, as the poets say.”

Characters:

I love that we followed Patroclus and Achilles from an early age.
I feel like the portrayal of them was amazing. Achilles is oftentimes portrayed as an unlikeable character, but his motives in this book seemed even more realistic to me, personally. Chiron was one of my favs too!

Plot:

Know ...more

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May 29, 2021 Cass (all too tired) rated it really liked it

Shelves: lgbtqia-rep, the-hype-train, tears-were-shed, historical-fiction

“And perhaps it is the greater grief, after all, to be left on earth when another is gone.”

This book is like a storm that passes right through you and is gone just as quick. I did cry and used a couple of tissues, but it wasn't gutwrenching. It isn't 'I'm going to cry every time I think about them'. I feel sad, but not broken. Other than the emotions I was told I was going to feel, this is a wonderful book with an amazing writing style, a good plot, and characters that I enjoyed reading abou
“And perhaps it is the greater grief, after all, to be left on earth when another is gone.”

This book is like a storm that passes right through you and is gone just as quick. I did cry and used a couple of tissues, but it wasn't gutwrenching. It isn't 'I'm going to cry every time I think about them'. I feel sad, but not broken. Other than the emotions I was told I was going to feel, this is a wonderful book with an amazing writing style, a good plot, and characters that I enjoyed reading about.

"No man is worth more than another, wherever he is from.”

The writing style is on the 'telling' side, but the way it was written and how it was used to describe scenes was beautiful and I loved it. Just look at the quotes, they feel like lovesick poems and wise words disguised in the dialogue and Patroclus's thoughts. (view spoiler)

“I will never leave him. It will be this, always, for as long as he will let me.”

The plot was slow at first, but it picked up very quickly once they went to war. I loved the little moments between Patroclus and Achilles, the moments that strengthened their relationshiop and developed their characters further. I would say that this book is much more character driven than plot driven. There aren't any huge plot twists (view spoiler), but it's still gripping and interesting.

“We reached for each other, and I thought of how many nights I had lain awake loving him in silence.”

The characters are probably the best part of this book. I love Patroclus's fall for Achilles and the way Madeline Miller showed both the bad and the good side of Achilles, the gentler side and not just the harsh edges. (view spoiler) I have a soft spot for Odysseus, I really like the Odyssey and how he was portrayed in this book was nice. (view spoiler)

In conclusion, this is a great book and though it didn't destroy me, it made me feel so many emotions and I would recommend to anyone who loves greek mythology or action filled romance.

“I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell; I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”

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May 23, 2021 Juuso rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: rep-lgbtq-plus, age-young-adult, 2021, mythologies

I am sorry to say this, but I was pretty disappointed by this book. It started well but it got worse and worse and I did not find the ending THAT sad or satisfying. I think I would have enjoyed this book more if I read it in english but I decided to read the Finnish translation and it was not great. It felt like the translator took few scenes which she focused a lot on and put all her effort on and everything else she just put in google translate.

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Mar 25, 2022 ♡May ♡ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Wow soo this book

Literally a masterpiece, the writing style, the characters and the history itself.Everything works.

I’m devastated but so in love with the book it surprises me.
Patroclus I love him so much, the perfect man, the greatest, the kindest and the best.
Achilles I forgive u for your pride and I love u so much as well.

Their relationship is everything, so we’ll done, it’s not rushed it makes sense and their bond is beautiful
The last paragraph 💕

Once again thanks Izzy for giving me such a p ...more

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Mar 21, 2021 jasmine ₍⸍⸌̣ʷ̣̫⸍̣⸌₎ rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, march-tbr, romance, action, 2021, online-copy, watery-eyes, lgbtq, mythology

SONG OF ACHILLES

Rating: 4.95 (-0.05 for no tears shed)
will be futher refining review later on

Overview:

- Beautiful writing
- Easy to comprehend writing
- Perfectly crafted romance
- Fast-paced
- Very interesting
- Page turner
- ~~Sad ending~~
- Character development
- Loveable main character
* added to favourites list

- Many many names and new words (there is a glossary included I just want to warn anyone who has trouble digesting lots of new words)
- Didn't make me cry
- Would have liked more romance ...more

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Dec 08, 2020 maria ♥ marked it as to-read

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Dec 27, 2020 Sophia Rowe rated it it was amazing

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Feb 01, 2021 amanda ☽ rated it it was amazing

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Jan 27, 2021 Aya marked it as to-read · review of another edition

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Shelves: fantasy-sci-fi-dystopian-tbrs, immediate-to-be-read, historical-fiction-tbrs

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Apr 18, 2021 bookishcarli rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, books-i-have-a-copy-of, romance, this-book-made-me-cry, historial-fiction, amazing-protaganist, adult, queer

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edit: reread this and the previous review still stands. hand to resist the urge to cry in multiple classes. amazing book. ...more

39 likes · Like · see review