Trojan Women A Novel of the Fall of Troy

In the "Iliad" Homer tells the story of the last days of the War at Troy, and of the men who fought in it. "Trojan Women" creates previously unheard voices of the brave women of Troy, for whose possession the war began and tells their intimate, passionate, and tragic story. Helen, for whom the war was fought, Cassandra, the mad daughter of Priam King of Troy whose prophecies were dangerously ignored until the all came true, Hecabe, Queen of Troy who saw her world destroyed and her husband, King Priam, slain, and Andromache, perhaps the most tragic figure of all who lost parents, husband, and child. Through the eyes of the principle characters, Chryseis and Briseis, captured by Achilles as spoils of war and held for ransom, for slavery, or as playthings for men's pleasure, we see the last terrible days of battle and the capture and final destruction of Troy, the richest city in the world. Written in the tradition of Mary Renault's "Bull from the Sea," Yourcenar's "Memoirs of Hadrian," and Vidal's "Julian," reader/ reviewers have said of "Trojan Women," "I read it non-stop; I could not put it aside until I had finished it."