The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

4.8 (183)
$17.99

Product Details

Web ID: 12622416

A New York Times Bestseller“At once a scholar's homage to The Iliad and startlingly original work of art….A book I could not put down.” —Ann Patchett, author of The Dutch HouseA thrilling, profoundly moving, and utterly unique retelling of the legend of Achilles and the Trojan War from the bestselling author of CirceA tale of gods, kings, immortal fame, and the human heart, The Song of Achilles is a dazzling literary feat that brilliantly reimagines Homer's enduring masterwork, The Iliad. An action-packed adventure, an epic love story, a marvelously conceived and executed page-turner, Miller's monumental debut novel has already earned resounding acclaim from some of contemporary fiction's brightest lights—and fans of Mary Renault, Bernard Cornwell, Steven Pressfield, and Colleen McCullough's Masters of Rome series will delight in this unforgettable journey back to ancient Greece in the Age of Heroes.“A captivating retelling of The Iliad and events leading up to it through the point of view of Patroclus: it's a hard book to put down, and any classicist will be enthralled by her characterisation of the goddess Thetis, which carries the true savagery and chill of antiquity.” — Donna Tartt, The Times.

  • Product Features

    • Author - Madeline Miller
    • Publisher - HarperCollins Publishers
    • Publication Date - 08-28-2012
    • Page Count - 416
    • Hardcover
    • Adult
    • Fiction
    • Product Dimensions - 5.3 H x 7.9 W x 1.2 D
    • ISBN-13 - 9780062060624
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Ratings & Reviews

4.8/5

183 star ratings & reviews

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30 days ago

umm

this totally mischaracterizes both patroclus and achilles... keep in mind that this is totally a fanfiction and achilles and patroclus's relationship in the actual iliad was kinda undefined. it's pretty entertaining i guess, just not my cup of tea

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

1 month ago

MAGNIFICENT

Of all the books I’ve read, this is HANDS-DOWN my number one favorite. It’s a soft love story as sweet as flowers and tragic in all the right ways. The Song of Achilles is also the most chest-aching, heartbreaking book I’ve ever read. I absolutely love the storyline the author chose to pursue in this retelling of The Iliad, emphasizing the relationship between Patroclus and Achilles. It takes places over the span of ages 9 to 27, and the author did a splendid job blending the story out across the span of those 18 years. The book is split in half - before the Trojan War and during. And it all boils down to one question: Is glory more important than love?

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

2 months ago

This book broke me. Absolutely beautiful.

I didn’t know how a book could impact me so much until i read this one. I have never cried harder over words on a page. Madeline did such an amazing job with writing this book, and captivating every emotion of Patroclus and Achilles. Without Patroclus, Achilles has lost the one thing keeping him soft. The unspoken word of love keeps the gentle intimacy. Just the development that happens throughout this book is absolutely beautiful, but I do wish it was a happily ever after. I cannot lie I did look up if they are together in the after life or not and it did bring me some closure on the death of both of them. Please read this book if you see this. This book changed me. Love is beautiful even when you don’t speak the words ‘I love you’

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

3 months ago

It's not a bad book I swear

It's a good book it's just the middle was a little lagged and boring but that it. I would recommend just listening to the audiobook because then you can listen to it faster and get it over with. The ending was really good and the beginning to,they were my favorite parts if the book. I love the plot the wording and main characters . The romance was really good a loved the connection ❤️ and the Greek mythology!!!! The Greek mythology ate

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

6 months ago
from IL

Solid mythology retelling

The audiobook narrator was easy to listen to, I was invested in the early life of Patroclus and Achilles, and I found some of the battle scenes engaging. I liked that this story is told from the perspective of Patroclus, a lesser-known player. The pace was a little slow, but there was tenderness in these pages that appealed to me—in their love story and also in the friendship between Briseis and Patroclus. If you like mythology, this might be a great read for you.

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

9 months ago

The English language fails me

(Slight spoilers ahead⚠️⚠️) Words cannot describe my emotions I after the completion of “The Song of Achilles.” This book was the worst book ever(I rated it 5 stars) , it has destroyed me. Even after Patroclus died, there were at least 30 pages of the text left. 30 pages of pain. 30 pages of devastation. As Patroclus’ soul begged to be reunited with his lover, his only anchor, my tears couldn’t and wouldn’t stop. I repeated the word please over and over as if Madeline could hear me. Finally, finally they were together once again in the underworld and yet I couldn’t stop crying. I sat on the floor at 1 am with a pillow tight in may arms as I cried into it. 5/5 stars would recommend

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

9 months ago

beautifully written

i love greek mythology so much and this honestly lived up to the hype but there were times i was bored but still amazing, i sobbed

Recommends this product

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com

10 months ago

Overhyped

I read this book after seeing rave reviews online but after i finished it, I couldn't help but be disappointed. The characterizations of Achilles and Patroclus were one dimensional and seemed to be playing into the gay relationship stereotypes. In the Iliad, Patroclus is one of the greatest of the Myrmidons- a warrior rather than a pacifist content to hide in the shadow of Achilles. In this retelling, Patroclus is stripped of his strength as a warrior. Most of his personality is devoted to his infatuation with Achilles. His talent with healing is described at the beginning of the book very briefly and then suddenly, years into the war, he is a healer? It just doesn't make any sense. There is a distinct lack of character development and one of my main issues with this book is Patroclus' role as a trophy husband to Achilles, feeding into the harmful herteronormative stereotype that there is always a feminine and masculine one in a gay relationship. In addition, for a book entitled 'Song of Achilles', Achilles is never really explored as a character. We never do find out why he loves Patroclus. The very beginning and very end of this book are the best parts, even if the end does feel rushed. The middle is uninspired and bland- your average YA romance. My favorite part of this book was probably Briseis. I enjoyed reading about her character more than the two main characters. A lot of people were saying SoA was emotional, but I just couldn't connect to the characters. Their deaths didn't affect me all that much, simply because of that. In fact, I felt more of an emotional impact reading Homer's complicated verse than I did this. At times, the prose can be lovely but then it returns to reading like a mediocre fanfiction. (Not that I have anything against fan fiction, some of the best literature I have ever read has been on AO3) Overall, I was disappointed with Song of Achilles. There coud have been so much more done with this story, but I am sad to say that it fell short. Hopefully someone else will one day rewrite the love of Achilles and Patroclus into something more worthy of their greatness. Until then, I will stick to Homer and will be paying much less attention to the recommendations of Tiktok.

Customer review from barnesandnoble.com