Reviews
Troy is in ruins, but the gods are not done playing games with men and women.~~~The last in Greenwood's Delphic Women series (Cassandra, 2013, etc.) again presents exciting, cleverly detailed ancient stories from a feminist viewpoint that seems just as likely to be accurate as the versions that came before., The middle book of Greenwood's Delphic Women trilogy (originally published 1995-97) is the last to appear in the U.S. It is also the strongest, a sort of revisionist look at the aftermath of the fall of Troy. King Agamemnon returns, heroic, to Mycenae, only to fall victim to the murderous plot of his queen, Clytemnestra. Electra, the royal couple's daughter, is swept out of the city by Cassandra, the Trojan slave (and the focus of an earlier book in this series), hoping to get her safely to Delphi. Ancient Greek mythology is usually told from the point of view of the male characters, but Greenwood's three-book series focuses on the female players. This allows her to examine previously underexplored characters, motivations, and events. Known for the strong female protagonists, Phryne Fisher and Corinna Chapman, in her two mystery series, Greenwood does an excellent job here of giving the ancient Greek story a modern flavor, using lean, unadorned prose and dialogue to make it seem as though the story could be taking place today., "The first of her three Delphic Women series to be available in the United States is an enthralling, sensual, tragic tale packed with historical detail."- Kirkus Review of Medea "Greenwood offers interesting riffs on familiar figures of myth, and impressively buttresses her biggest departure from the usual story in a scholarly afterword. She also makes the most of the dramatic potential in the journey of the Argo through dangers that anticipate Odysseus's perilous return home after the Trojan War. The Medea-centric sections serve as a welcome counterpoint to Robert Graves's Hercules, My Shipmate."- Publishers Weekly starred review of Medea "In the first volume of her "Delphic Women" historical series set in ancient Greece, Greenwood has taken the ultimate dysfunctional mother and created a character of depth and complexity who betrayed and was betrayed, was lost and, ultimately, redeemed. Greenwood, a prolific and popular writer in her native Australia, is best known here for her humorous Phryne Fisher and Corrina Chapman mysteries. Readers who enjoy such literary reinterpretations of classical myths as Ursula Le Guin's Lavinia or Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad will snap up Greenwood's fresh take."- Library Journal starred review of Medea "Compared to Greenwood's more well-known fiction, this book is a bit of a curiosity, but it's definitely worth checking out."- Booklist of Medea , Greenwood fans will welcome her thoughtful second reinterpretation of a well-known Greek myth (after Medea). Among Greenwood's other talents, she displays a gift for writing songs of the period. (starred review), ""The first of her three Delphic Women series to be available in the United States is an enthralling, sensual, tragic tale packed with historical detail.""- Kirkus Review of Medea ""Greenwood offers interesting riffs on familiar figures of myth, and impressively buttresses her biggest departure from the usual story in a scholarly afterword. She also makes the most of the dramatic potential in the journey of the Argo through dangers that anticipate Odysseus's perilous return home after the Trojan War. The Medea-centric sections serve as a welcome counterpoint to Robert Graves's Hercules, My Shipmate.""- Publishers Weekly starred review of Medea ""In the first volume of her "Delphic Women" historical series set in ancient Greece, Greenwood has taken the ultimate dysfunctional mother and created a character of depth and complexity who betrayed and was betrayed, was lost and, ultimately, redeemed. Greenwood, a prolific and popular writer in her native Australia, is best known here for her humorous Phryne Fisher and Corrina Chapman mysteries. Readers who enjoy such literary reinterpretations of classical myths as Ursula Le Guin's Lavinia or Margaret Atwood's The Penelopiad will snap up Greenwood's fresh take.""- Library Journal starred review of Medea ""Compared to Greenwood's more well-known fiction, this book is a bit of a curiosity, but it's definitely worth checking out.""- Booklist of Medea , Regarding Medea: "This is a book I didn't want to end. I dreamed about the characters for days afterward."
