Book
The Song of Achilles
First published 2011
Patroclus is an exiled prince sent to the court of Peleus, where he forms an unlikely bond with the king's brilliant son Achilles. Their friendship deepens during training under the centaur Chiron and becomes a love that neither Thetis nor the expectations placed upon a future hero can easily separate. Achilles knows that the pursuit of glory may make his name immortal, but also that it will shorten his life.
When Helen is taken to Troy, the oath sworn by the Greek kings draws Achilles into Agamemnon's expedition and Patroclus follows him into the long siege. Rivalry over honour, the enslavement of women and the ambitions of commanders gradually expose the human cost behind heroic reputation. Told through Patroclus, the novel recasts the Iliad as the story of two men whose private loyalty is tested by prophecy, pride and a war determined to turn love into legend.
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