House of Odysseus by Claire North is a feminist retelling of Greek mythology, and the second book in The Songs of Penelope trilogy (5/5 stars)

House of Odysseus by Claire North is a fantasy with historical fiction elements, and the second book in The Songs of Penelope series. The audiobook is narrated by Catrin Walker-Booth.

Orestes and his sister Elektra return to the isle of Ithaca, hoping Penelope can house and hide them for a time. And then his uncle Menelaus, the war-tough king of Sparta, also arrives, salivating at the thought to steal Orestes’ throne. To save her island, and to protect it for a husband who may never come home, Penelope rallies her allies (all but one of which are women).

I liked the first book in this series, Ithaca, but I LOVED this one. I read through it in just two sittings; the plot had me on the edge of my seat for most of the novel. The first book was more character-driven, but this one had a larger overarching plot.

I’m always a fan of feminist mythology retellings, especially because I minored in Classical Mythology in college. The first book in this series was narrated by Hera, queen of the gods and wife of Zeus. This installment is narrated by Aphrodite, the goddess of love. We still see other meddling goddesses, like Athena and Artemis.

I’m super excited for the final book of this trilogy.

If you were a fan of Elektra by Jennifer Saint or The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec, you should definitely check out this series!

CW: mentions and descriptions of sexual assault, murder, death, violence, gaslighting, domestic abuse

I received a copy of this book to review. All opinions contained herein are my own.

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