Book Review: Elektra - Jennifer Saint

 

This is the first Jennifer Saint book I picked up, although this was the third of her series in Greek mythology. I had never heard of Elektra before but the blurb of this book absolutely encapsulated me. 

The way I have described this book to anyone who will ask is 'the Trojan war from the female point of view'. It is so true. We follow three of the most important women in the Trojan war - Clytemnestra (wife of Agamemnon) and their daughter, Elektra. We also follow Cassandra, who is the sister of Paris of Troy. 

If you don't know the history of the Trojan war, here's a basic overview. Clytemnestra had a sister called Helen. Helen married Agamemnon's brother Menelaus. Helen was stolen from Sparta by Paris of Troy and kept in troy. Agamemnon and Menelaus rage war (in the name of Sparta) in Troy. 

Elektra follows the stories of 3 important women who we don't know so well. Clytemnestra is a woman living without her husband for years as war rages on. She develops a deep anger towards her husband following a tragic act and the book follows what happens following this act. 

We follow Elektra who dotes on her father. She grows up during the war and changes a lot and we get to see all of it. 

Finally, we follow Cassandra who has a premonition about Paris but is not taken seriously. Disaster ensues. 

The book is written so eloquently and everything is so easy to understand although it is a historical book. The read was easy and I finished the book fairly quickly. The whole story is so brilliant I would highly recommend this book to anyone, even if you are not interested in Greek mythology! 5⭐️