Costanza Casati's CLYTEMNESTRA retells a redeeming story of Clytemnestra, a woman who is vilified to no end in mythology. Casati provides so much more dimension to her character than we are given in the ancient Greek epics. While I was never completely swept away by the prose, it didn't feel dull to me either. Clytemnestra's characterization and motivations felt 'right'. Definitely for fans of stories that give narrative space to marginalized characters, like Madeline Miller's CIRCE. I loved the ending (Clytemnestra's thoughts there are so powerful and fitting).

SPOILER AHEAD: My only wish for this novel is that it had ended when Orestes avenges Agamemnon's death, but I realize that would have made the (already quite long) novel even longer.

This well written take on Greek mythology follows Clytemnestra, the daughter of the Spartan king and the wife of Agamemnon. Other than reading Circe, by Madeline Miller, it’s been ages since I read up on any Greek mythology. The names were familiar but the stories had faded in my memory. This book does a fabulous job of taking the reader to the time and place and bringing all the stories alive.
Spartan women were raised to be warriors and to fight. Clytemnestra was one of the strongest and thus, Agamemnon was determined to have her. He enlists her father’s help to kill her first husband and baby son. From then on, she lives for revenge. This is a woman who was prepared to wait to get even; she could have created the phrase that revenge is a dish best served cold. Agamemnon continues to give her reasons to hate him. Casati did such an excellent job making Clytemnestra come across as a living, breathing woman, I wanted revenge for her as much as she did. The myths about Clytemnestra speak of what she does. This book provides the reasoning for her actions. While she is despised in the myths, here she is a sympathetic character (at least to me).
This book doesn’t read like a debut novel. It is polished and taut. For a book with almost 450 pages, it read quickly.
My thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for an advance copy of this book.

This was a ten out of five star read for me! Clytemnestra is a debut novel that is incredibly and beautifully written, and accessible to a reader who loves Greek Mythology and the tough language that goes with it. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and actually lost myself and surroundings while I was reading as the story immersed me into the culture, scenery, and characters.

The story centers around Clytemnestra's point of view vs being a side character. Her story is heart-wrenching, at times, and the true strength and bravery of a woman speaking her mind when it was not welcomed.

This book will be one to watch for in 2023, and I am grateful to NetGalley, SourceBooks, and Costanza Casati for an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review. Looking forward to future works by this author, she is now on my favorite list!

I am an absolute sucker for mythology retellings, and this one was one was no exception. It was so good! Clytemnestra might be my favorite mythological female lead that I’ve read about so far.
 
Coming into this book, I knew next to nothing about her character, Sparta, and even Troy/the Trojan War, so not only was I entertained throughout, but I learned a lot. It was on the longer side, but it was paced well so I was never bored.
 
There’s no sugarcoating it, Clytemnestra went through it. She faced multiple tragedies (be prepared, it’s messed up), but instead of crumbling… she chose to reach for power and revenge. It was inspiring and just generally badass.
 
This was my first book by Casati, but it certainly will not be my last. Her writing is superb. Highly recommend this one for lovers of Madeline Miller (Circe, The Song of Achilles) or Jennifer Saint (Ariadne, Elektra).

The Greek retelling of the life of Clytemnestra. The novel begins with her as a young woman growing up in Sparta with her parents and many siblings, a princess. She was a strong and smart woman with a hard life, but she soon meets and falls for her first husband. The two get married and have a child together, a son. Her happiness is soon ripped from her hands because two visitors in Sparta, the two brothers from the Atreus line, have come for her fathers help to retake their kingdom. One, Agamemnon, has eyes for her. He decides his best option is to kill her husband and new baby son. Heartbroken and angry Clytemnestra is forced to marry this man and is taken to be queen in his lands. They do not have a happy marriage, she refuses to break or submit, but they have many children whom Clytemnestra loves with all her heart. After some more time in her life of trying, happiness is taken once more from her as Greece goes to war with Troy.
This novel shows us Clytemnestra’s life, how she is forced to the edge consistently, her happiness ripped from her, and she decides to fight back, she will not show her weakness because she is a daughter of Sparta, a warrior and queen. I enjoy historical fiction, especially about ancient Grecian times. This book about Clytemnestra’s life shows her anger and her love lain out for us, we see her struggle and fight not to give in to the world around her. A strong willed spartan princess capable of greatness, just biding her time. She waits for freedom, and to do that she must build and groom her patience for the day she can achieve such before death comes to claim her at the end of her life like all other humans.
I really enjoyed the writing style, it was so open and honest and heart wrenching. The author, Casati, absolutely put everything into this between historical research and her love. The use of the Greek terms was also very interesting, including a glossary for them in the back. The front also has a family tree for the two families, Clytemnestra’s, and Agamemnon’s. The history of Sparta and the rest of Greece is given to us in a very digestible form, including their war with Troy for Helen, from the eyes of a woman that sees it all. As Casati’s debut novel she makes a bright path for herself. I will be happily looking forward to more novels by her in the future.
This digital advance reading copy given to me by NetGalley and Sourcebooks, for an honest review.

I really wanted to like this book because I am such a huge fan of "Circe" and "Ariadne" and many others of the genre. I don't really know a ton about Clytemnestra's story, so I was looking forward to the education as well as being swept up in the intrigue and drama of a well-written fictional story.

Unfortunately, this really fell short for me. It's not that the writing is BAD, but it's not entertaining, which is almost worse to me. I couldn't even finish the book. It felt like every sentence began with "Clytemnestra", which became extremely overdone very quickly. Within the first chapter I was already just about done. I know the book is about Clytemnestra. It's the name of the book. I know to whom you are referring. You don't need to start every single sentence with her name. My other holdup with this book is that it read like a Wikipedia article. It was informative but the drama and the character building just wasn't there.

I wanted to like this but maybe this author's style just isn't for me!

Ever since I read Circe (and then Song of Achilles) I have been itching for more like those stories, and this book delivers exactly what I was looking for! With a strong female lead, and so much that is also taken from the Greek myths, I loved this so much! Definitely hope that there's more coming, especially to highlight other strong females from the myths.

A woman's view of the Trojan War, as told by Clytemnestra, wife of Agamemnon, who sacrificed her beloved daughter for a bit of wind. There are no Greek heroes in this book, only villains and a queen bent on revenge. Perfect for fans of "Circe" or "The Firebrand."

This wasn’t a story I was familiar with, but it was engaging and interesting. The writing was not as soft as other writers in this genre - I found it to be somewhat hard and rough. It was a bit long and drawn out in places, but overall I thought it was a solid read.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this book - very enjoyable!

Clytemnestra is a princess of Sparta; her parents are Tyndareus and Leda (of Leda and the Swan fame). The royal family includes Helen (of Helen of Troy fame), supposedly beget from the rape of Leda by Zeus in the guise of a swan, and several other children. In Sparta, women are taught to be warriors, and Clytemnestra, seeking the approval of her parents, becomes a great fighter. She overcomes the starvation, the beatings, and mental cruelty her parents inflict on her. When Clytemnestra is young, a priestess predicts that Leda’s daughters will be twice and thrice married. And they will all be deserters of their lawful husbands. Clytemnestra’s first betrayal comes early when her father conspires with Agamemnon to kill Tantalus, the husband she loves—and her still-unnamed newborn son. She is then forced to marry Agamemnon.

In her debut Costanza Casati’s shows that Clytemnestra has the traits of a great woman. From the point where her family is murdered, she’s subjected to the whims of men and, somehow, finds the inner strength to persevere and attain both revenge and a kingdom of her own. She has many traits of a wise woman, is capable of ruling, and deserves all she achieves. She is a strong, though flawed, female protagonist in a book worthy of the revisionist genre, which tinkers with and subverts past conventions in an attempt to speak to later generations.

I enjoyed this book but, though close, the prose never quite rose to the poetic, musical heights of Madeleine Miller’s The Song of Achilles or Circe.

Clytemnestra is remembered as the wife who killed Agamemnon after the Trojan war, but her story is so much more than that.

Cosati’s debut novel takes us through Clytemnestra’s life from being a young woman, Princess of Sparta and the grief she experiences at a young age. To her becoming wife and Queen to Agamemnon and the hatred she feels for him. There is so much depth to her character and all of plays to her killing her husband. There are no surprises to this novel if you have read her story before but this take on her story shows the reasoning behind everything that she does.

There are no excuses in her story but that makes Clytemnestra a strong woman and ruler. She is a badass, and spends 10 years plotting her revenge. Though she builds of up a wall, you still get glimpses of the pain she feels and it all creates such a compelling character.

I think reading this and Electra provides such great inside into this family and how each woman deals with the curse and lose in their family.

This is a great debut and I’m excited for this to be released to everyone! Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC!
(Review will be posted to my Instagram, bookishlyshan, closer to release date)

“She will bow to no one. Her destiny will be what she wants it to be.”

“Clytemnestra” tells the story of a princess of Sparta, turned queen of Mycenae, prophesied to take power amidst tragedy as she navigates being a powerful and cunning woman in ancient Greece.

I loved the development of Clytemnestra’s character and her relationships, especially with her sister helen. we get to see a different side of the “Helen of Sparta” that is often overshadowed by the “Helen of Troy” and I enjoyed exploring the complexity of the sisters’ relationship. I also enjoyed the nods to other greek stories such as Theseus, Odysseus, the curse of Atreus, and of course the Trojan war. This is definitely a fun read for readers who are well versed in Greek myth, but can also be enjoyed by casual fans!

The pacing slowed me down once the trojan war began and clytemnestra was left to fend for herself and her children (around 70%) but Casati’s writing is beautiful and weaves magic into the simplest of scenes!

This story has the heartbreak, character depth, and vengeance that readers seek in greek retellings, and i recommend it to lovers of Jennifer Saint and Madeline Miller!

An extremely fascinating and gripping feminist retelling featuring women from the Trojan War. Would recommend for any and all fans of Greek Mythology. Casati’s prose is phenomenal and kept me interested the entire time.

I know very little about Greek mythology, and this was my first read in this genre. But I enjoyed it! Clytemnestra was a tough cookie, and after reading this I went in search for more retellings of Greek mythology.

4.2 (rounded down to 4) out of 5 stars.

The pacing for this book was a bit strange. At some points, especially in the beginning, it was slow and as the reader goes through Clytrmnestra’s life, there are varying lengths of skips in time to progress to different chapters of it. This slow pacing at first, though, is also due to the heavier introduction to the princesses in Sparta and how Clytemnestra grew to become who she was later in life.

That’s something I thoroughly enjoyed about this book as well though- the peak into Princess Clytemnestra’s life that detailed truly who she was growing up and how these life events totaled up to her being the Queen of Mycenae that she was by the end.
What Costanza Casati did so beautifully is give life to Clytemnestra and the people who directly affected her. We see how bonded she was to Helen before lies and love slipped in between. We see how her mother builds them to be strong even if it’s not all good progress forward. We see her connections to her brothers, her other sisters, how she handles her pain and her traumas, and how she sharpens her blades for retribution.

I’m biased because I always felt Clytemnestra’s rage even when I read the Oresteia for the first time. In my Greek and Roman Tragedies class, I was one of the few if not the only student who defended the queen in my essay and class discussions. So to see this version of Clytemnestra painted out, the one that is justified in taking matters into her hands- I fell in love with it all. Costanza Casati truly did an amazing job capturing everything spiteful me imagined Clytemnestra being.

Clytemnestra, by Constanza Casati

Review by Deborah Cherniss

This is a weighty, gripping story of a woman finding inner strength in a world that values physical strength, and that is ruled by men and war.

One need not know Greek myths to appreciate this tale of a young Spartan princess, finding her way to political power and control. The characters’ names may at first seem foreign, but they are so vividly drawn – some noble, others despicable, some a combination of these – that they become real and recognizable players in this mythic story.

Close to her sister, Helen (of Troy), raised as her father’s confidante, married young and for love, Clytemnestra’s world is destroyed when her father betrays her, using her to form an alliance with the powerful King of Mycenae, Agamemnon. Loving mother to her children, she remains fierce and focused on revenge for her losses and on gaining power over her country and the people who both support her and those who wrong her.

I wonder about endowing ancient people and stories with modern feelings and attitudes, toward love, personal insight, family bonds and more. However, this does make the novel universal, turning Clytemnestra, a figure who is typically viewed as cruel and vengeful, into a sympathetic and complex person.

The writing is lovely, even when describing distressing scenes and situations, and both drama and pathos emerge, making this book an absorbing and highly recommended read.

I received an eARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

3.75 stars. I enjoyed this book and wrote down a lot of quotes. I love Greek mythology and retellings, but some thing in the pacing of this book, made certain parts of it harder to get through than others. What got me through the slow parts is the fact that I already know the story of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon. I am unsure if anyone who is unfamiliar with their story would be as willing to push through the slow parts of the story. However, I do feel that the writing is very well done. I was cheering Clytemnestra on even while I recoiled at some of her antics. The author does an amazing job of portraying Clytemnestra as an actual woman not just an evil character of legend. Clytemnestra is flawed, but she also is very relatable and very human. I finished this book feeling like I would have probably done exactly what she had done had I lived her life and experienced these things.

It’s going to take a long time to get this novel out of my head. Clytemnestra, Queen of Mycenae, is given a fresh perspective, along with the other numerous famous Greeks of her time. I came to know Helen, Leda, Timandra, and all of the amazing women of her family in a new and refreshing light. Each character, even the ones I am meant to despise, truly come alive and I found myself attached to them. This was a truly beautiful and moving novel that I will earnestly recommend to friends and podcast listeners. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

This novel will be featured on an upcoming episode of Books Are Magical podcast.

https://open.spotify.com/show/6d2Y4FA6LRS0LxFHh9L8Z2?si=DJ7m5R0DQNObvSke1oNhzg

THIS! This is the retelling we needed and deserved! Clytemnestra is full of righteous rage, a survivor, a queen, a loving mother and sister, a brilliant woman, a woman on fire. If anyone is familiar with the variations on the myth, we’re given the Euripides treatment, so it’s extra ragey but it works so amazingly well.
I loved the picture we got of Clytemnestra, Helen, Castor, Polydueces, and Timandra as siblings. And then later the picture we get of Clytemnestra and her daughters. There is love throughout, and that love fuels her along with her vengeance.
The end is both poignant and triumphant. I can’t emphasize enough how amazing this book is. I would beg for this author to do a Medea retelling next (she’s actually mentioned in the story).

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing a requested copy for review. All opinions are my own.

An original take on the Clytemnestra myth that nonetheless didn't engage me sufficiently with its uneven pace. The story seems to move either very quickly or very slowly, with large gaps of time in-between sequences of action. It is always tough to navigate a lifetime epic, but I feel like the novel as a whole could have been shorter. However, I did really enjoy the inclusion of the lesser-known aspects of Clytemnestra's story, including her past with Tantalus and the violent reputation of Agamemnon . Casati has found a way to make an incredibly ancient story feel unique and novel, which cannot be said for all of the Greek myth retellings present in the modern conciseness of late.