The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller is a retelling of the love between Achilles and Patroclus from Greek mythology. The entire book is told in the perspective of Patroclus, and it tells his story from his birth. If your familiar with Homer’s Iliad, The Odyssey, or just their story in general then you know what happens. However, it was never explicitly stated that they were lovers and Miller brings that concept to light. The book shows Patroclus’s love for Achilles bloom along with the growth of their friendship and eventual relationship. The story starts in Patroclus’s childhood and takes readers all the way to the battle of Troy. Miller explores different gods and immortals found in Greek mythology but puts her main focus on Patroclus’s love for Achilles.

First of all, the writing of this book is impeccable. Miller writes like a poet, it’s all beautiful and descriptive and you’ll feel every emotion Patroclus goes through. The writing, for me, really was the best factor because it was so hard to get bored of the book. It’s nearly impossible to pick up this book and only read a few pages. If you’re starting to get into retellings of Greek myths, I would 100% recommend this one. I have nothing but love for this book, honestly. It’s sweet and romantic but it’s also a tragedy but every page of it is magnificent.

The only relatively “bad” thing I could ever say about this book, however, is that the first few chapters are a bit too slow paced for me. Obviously, don’t skip anything because it’s important to the rest of the plot but I wasn’t super engaged with chapters 1-3. However, once you hit chapter 4 it completely transforms the story and it’ll have you in a grip. It’s just very easy to fall in love with any one of Miller’s novels.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller can be found in the young adult section in bookstores and is in the fantasy/romance genre. For more reviews and information, go to Goodreads.com!