Daughters of Sparta: A Novel

By Claire Heywood

THE NATIONAL BESTSELLER! For millennia, men have told the legend of the woman whose face launched a thousand ships—but now it's time to hear her side of the story. Daughters of Sparta is a tale of secrets, love, and tragedy from the women behind mythology's most devastating war, the infamous Helen and her sister Klytemnestra. As princesses of Sparta, Helen and Klytemnestra have known nothing but luxury and plenty. With their high birth and unrivaled beauty, they are the envy of all of Greece. But such privilege comes at a cost. While still only girls, the sisters are separated and married to foreign kings of their father's choosing—the powerful Agamemnon, and his brother Menelaos. Yet even as Queens, each is only expected to do two things: birth an heir and embody the meek, demure nature that is expected of women. But when the weight of their husbands' neglect, cruelty, and ambition becomes too heavy to bear, Helen and Klytemnestra must push against the constraints of their society to carve new lives for themselves, and in doing so, make waves that will ripple throughout the next three thousand years. Daughters of Sparta is a vivid and illuminating reimagining of the Siege of Troy, told through the perspectives of two women whose voices have been ignored for far too long. "Required reading for fans of Circe, and a remarkable, thrilling debut." —Fiona Davis, New York Times bestselling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue “[A] gorgeous retelling of the classic Greek myth... Absolutely riveting!” —Alka Joshi, New York Times bestselling author of The Henna Artist

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Published Jun 22, 2021

400 pages

Average rating: 7.94

16 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

crabbyabbe
Mar 16, 2022
9/10 stars
I am thoroughly enjoying these novels about mythological figures. So many myths are rather dry and read like a textbook. Historical fiction allows the author to imagine exactly how that character felt or what in her story led to her committing whatever acts she committed (like killing your 1st husband to stay with the 2nd one). I found myself enveloped in Helen's and Clytemnestra's lives and suffered right along with them. I wish these novels had been available when I was teaching THE ILIAD to my honors freshmen; they would have benefited from having the background but also in caring for the individuals in the story (except Agamemnon; he's horrific no matter what story or myth he is in). Heywood's writing style is personal and keeps you close to these two female heroines, who were only seen as prizes in their day but with this modern retelling are their own forces wielding their own powers as best they can in the patriarchal hellhole they live in.

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