Daughters of Sparta

A Novel

By: Claire Heywood

Narrated by: Mira Dovreni

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 - Helen remains in Sparta to be betrothed to Menelaos, and Klytemnestra is sent alone to an unfamiliar land to become the wife of the powerful Agamemnon. 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 3,000 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.

©2021 Claire Heywood (P)2021 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"Heywood’s wondrous retelling of the lives of two ancient princesses struggling for independence and agency in a patriarchal society resonates deeply in today’s imperfect world. Required reading for fans of Circe, and a remarkable, thrilling debut." (Fiona Davis, New York Times best-selling author of The Lions of Fifth Avenue)

“Helen of Troy and her sister Klytemnestra are reimagined in this gorgeous retelling of the classic Greek myth - not as women defined by their husbands and lovers but as battle-weary survivors of a patriarchal society who take control of their own destiny. Absolutely riveting!” (Alka Joshi, New York Times best-selling author of The Henna Artist)

Not much different than the story you already know

I’ve been obsessed with the retellings of the classics for their reimagining of the characters - especially female - and giving them more texture and voice. This one gives a little more insight into Clytemnestra’s and Helen’s personalities, but not enough to warrant an entire retelling of the same stories we already know.

Great read

It’s good to read about the other side of the story and the impact the war had on them.

I expected stronger female characters

I really enjoy Greek mythology and especially those that tell the tales from a different perspective. Knowing both of Helen and Clytemnestra, I was excited for Daughters of Sparta. However, I expected stronger female characters and instead they were portrayed in more traditional ways and acted (with the exception of murder) the way women were expected to act.

Excellent

I love mythology and this perspective / storytelling was worth the read. Definitely captures the darkness of a lot of the myths while showing the complexity of the characters

Interesting Depiction

these characters have very little agency in the classics. so this perspective is much needed and very interesting.

Interesting perspective on a classic Greek tale.

Well crafted story that held my attention throughout and the reading is very good.

I walked away with more questions?

Did Helen and Klytemnestra ever see each other again? Did their stories end well? There was not as much resolution as I was searching for, I guess.

The grueling reality that women of the age had to endure as conveyed by the story and how they had to try to overcome all this.

I loved the prose, the story development and the characters. I enjoyed the glints of progress from some of the male characters that would show decency in a time where macho culture was at its height.

loved it!

this was a great retelling! the female perspective was really interesting, for me I especially enjoyed thinking of it in the same universe as Song of Achilles

I couldn’t stop!

At first I thought it started out a little slow. But like 3 chapters in I couldn’t stop listening to this book. I was so hooked.