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The Songs of Penelope #3
The Last Song of Penelope
The third book in award‑winning author Claire North's Songs of Penelope Trilogy, a "powerful, fresh, and unflinching" reimagining (Jennifer Saint) that breathes life into ancient myth and gives voice to the women who stand defiant in a world ruled by ruthless men.
Many years ago, Odysseus sailed to war and never returned. For twenty years his wife Penelope and the women of Ithaca have guarded the isle against suitors and rival kings. But peace cannot be kept forever, and the balance of power is about to break . . .
A beggar has arrived at the Palace. Salt-crusted and ocean-battered, he is scorned by the suitors - but Penelope recognises in him something terrible: her husband, Odysseus, returned at last. Yet this Odysseus is no hero. By returning to the island in disguise, he is not merely plotting his revenge against the suitors - vengeance that will spark a civil war - but he's testing the loyalty of his queen. Has she been faithful to him all these years? And how much blood is Odysseus willing to shed to be sure?
The song of Penelope is ending, and the song of Odysseus must ring through Ithaca's halls. But first, Penelope must use all her cunning to win a war for the fate of the island and keep her family alive, whatever the cost...
Many years ago, Odysseus sailed to war and never returned. For twenty years his wife Penelope and the women of Ithaca have guarded the isle against suitors and rival kings. But peace cannot be kept forever, and the balance of power is about to break . . .
A beggar has arrived at the Palace. Salt-crusted and ocean-battered, he is scorned by the suitors - but Penelope recognises in him something terrible: her husband, Odysseus, returned at last. Yet this Odysseus is no hero. By returning to the island in disguise, he is not merely plotting his revenge against the suitors - vengeance that will spark a civil war - but he's testing the loyalty of his queen. Has she been faithful to him all these years? And how much blood is Odysseus willing to shed to be sure?
The song of Penelope is ending, and the song of Odysseus must ring through Ithaca's halls. But first, Penelope must use all her cunning to win a war for the fate of the island and keep her family alive, whatever the cost...
397 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 4, 2024
156 people are currently reading
11078 people want to read
About the author
Claire North
28 books4,238 followersClaire North is actually Catherine Webb, a Carnegie Medal-nominated young-adult novel author whose first book, Mirror Dreams, was written when she was just 14 years old. She went on to write seven more successful YA novels.
Claire North is a pseudonym for adult fantasy books written by Catherine Webb, who also writes under the pseudonym Kate Griffin.
Claire North is a pseudonym for adult fantasy books written by Catherine Webb, who also writes under the pseudonym Kate Griffin.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 456 reviews
June 24, 2024
"I am Athena, and my love is marble within my chest."
Three queens there were in Greece:
One beloved of Hera, who killed her husband and died (Ithaca),
One who belongs to the goddess of love and her name will live for as long as there is love (House of Odysseus),
And here it is at last, The Last Song of Penelope, One who wed to the beloved of Athena...
"Let his name be remembered for ever, let his story outlast the high temple upon the mountain peak, let all who hear it speak of Odysseus. And when you tell his story, remember: though he was lost, he was not alone. I was always by his side. Sing, poets, of Athena."
This trilogy was indeed worth reading, I am not saying it is perfect... Still, I enjoyed it. It was so smart, each book narrated by a goddess...
In this last conclusion, the story of Odysseus and Penelope after 20 years, after bloodshed, her beloved husband came back, was he beloved at all, loveable now?!
I always wonder in Penelope's story if she is so much in love with her husband and waiting for him so long, or is it just for the sake of her son?! Or only it was Homer building 3 women and each one chose a different path!
And now this book, The Last Song of Penelope:
"Listen closely, for this is the only time I will tell it. A whispered secret, a hidden tale – this is the story of what actually happened when Odysseus returned to Ithaca."
I always said Athena is the tricky one, do I in love or hate her?! Claire North did a smart thing, actually she did in all three books...we all choose between bad and worse, choose for the greater good, and sometimes mistaken
"Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Perhaps, if I were not also the lady of war, I would be wise enough to be content."
I said before in the last book that I also was among others who didn't enjoy the first book, as much as it deserved, but the story improved in the next two, and with some leniency, this deserves 5 stars!
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK (Orbit) via NetGalley for giving me a chance to read The Last Song of Penelope (The Songs of Penelope #3) by Claire North, I have given my honest review.
few long fav quotes:
I made myself like a man of Olympus. I thought , if I did so, that I would finally be able to show my power, to blaze – not as some silly woman, but as wisdom and war incarnate, bright amongst the gods. In some small ways, it worked. I was not mocked, as Aphrodite is; not dismissed so readily as Hera or Demeter when they speak. It was never quite enough, but it was something – and something was all I could grasp. I did not then appreciate what else would come from making myself a man. For these are the things a man may not be: frightened, ashamed, guilty, doubting, hurt, ignorant, full of need. The need to be seen. The need to be touched, the yearning to be held . The need to belong when broken as well as whole, in this ever-changing world.
Ares, of course, loves nothing more than a reckless charge into near-certain doom, the valour of the bloody man who must hold, hold, hold. He loves to cradle a warrior in his arms as he dies, one who did the impossible – and as soon as the life has faded from the dead man’s eyes he stands, shrugs and moves on without a care. War has no time, he says, to remember the names of the dead – that is a problem for peace. Nothing will get done if we stop to linger. This moment – just this – is the only thing that matters.
I have done everything in my power to be . . . relevant. To make the world about me wise, to make wisdom greater than war. I have failed. Men fight and die, and for what? Glory and power and spite and pride – nothing more. Gods and kings spin their stories, and in their stories it is good to die for one man’s pride and to give thanks for the chains that are put about the necks of every child born less than a king. And I thought . . . if I could not wield power through wisdom, or mercy, or justice, then perhaps I could take power in this other way. Perhaps if I became like these men of blood and cruelty, that would be enough. So I banished from my heart all hopes of tenderness, compassion, longing or kindness. I turned away friends for fear of being wounded, laid aside love as a danger, punished women for the things men do, denied my loneliness and refuted my fears.
Three queens there were in Greece:
One beloved of Hera, who killed her husband and died (Ithaca),
One who belongs to the goddess of love and her name will live for as long as there is love (House of Odysseus),
And here it is at last, The Last Song of Penelope, One who wed to the beloved of Athena...
"Let his name be remembered for ever, let his story outlast the high temple upon the mountain peak, let all who hear it speak of Odysseus. And when you tell his story, remember: though he was lost, he was not alone. I was always by his side. Sing, poets, of Athena."
This trilogy was indeed worth reading, I am not saying it is perfect... Still, I enjoyed it. It was so smart, each book narrated by a goddess...
In this last conclusion, the story of Odysseus and Penelope after 20 years, after bloodshed, her beloved husband came back, was he beloved at all, loveable now?!
I always wonder in Penelope's story if she is so much in love with her husband and waiting for him so long, or is it just for the sake of her son?! Or only it was Homer building 3 women and each one chose a different path!
And now this book, The Last Song of Penelope:
"Listen closely, for this is the only time I will tell it. A whispered secret, a hidden tale – this is the story of what actually happened when Odysseus returned to Ithaca."
I always said Athena is the tricky one, do I in love or hate her?! Claire North did a smart thing, actually she did in all three books...we all choose between bad and worse, choose for the greater good, and sometimes mistaken
"Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Perhaps, if I were not also the lady of war, I would be wise enough to be content."
I said before in the last book that I also was among others who didn't enjoy the first book, as much as it deserved, but the story improved in the next two, and with some leniency, this deserves 5 stars!
Many thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK (Orbit) via NetGalley for giving me a chance to read The Last Song of Penelope (The Songs of Penelope #3) by Claire North, I have given my honest review.
few long fav quotes:
I made myself like a man of Olympus. I thought , if I did so, that I would finally be able to show my power, to blaze – not as some silly woman, but as wisdom and war incarnate, bright amongst the gods. In some small ways, it worked. I was not mocked, as Aphrodite is; not dismissed so readily as Hera or Demeter when they speak. It was never quite enough, but it was something – and something was all I could grasp. I did not then appreciate what else would come from making myself a man. For these are the things a man may not be: frightened, ashamed, guilty, doubting, hurt, ignorant, full of need. The need to be seen. The need to be touched, the yearning to be held . The need to belong when broken as well as whole, in this ever-changing world.
Ares, of course, loves nothing more than a reckless charge into near-certain doom, the valour of the bloody man who must hold, hold, hold. He loves to cradle a warrior in his arms as he dies, one who did the impossible – and as soon as the life has faded from the dead man’s eyes he stands, shrugs and moves on without a care. War has no time, he says, to remember the names of the dead – that is a problem for peace. Nothing will get done if we stop to linger. This moment – just this – is the only thing that matters.
I have done everything in my power to be . . . relevant. To make the world about me wise, to make wisdom greater than war. I have failed. Men fight and die, and for what? Glory and power and spite and pride – nothing more. Gods and kings spin their stories, and in their stories it is good to die for one man’s pride and to give thanks for the chains that are put about the necks of every child born less than a king. And I thought . . . if I could not wield power through wisdom, or mercy, or justice, then perhaps I could take power in this other way. Perhaps if I became like these men of blood and cruelty, that would be enough. So I banished from my heart all hopes of tenderness, compassion, longing or kindness. I turned away friends for fear of being wounded, laid aside love as a danger, punished women for the things men do, denied my loneliness and refuted my fears.
June 2, 2024
3.5 Stars
This is a solid conclusion to the Greek myth fantasy series that started back with Ithaca. I enjoyed book one but I struggled with book two. Thankfully this finale entry returned back to the elements that I loved at the beginning of the series.
This is another feminist character driven entry with strong interpersonal moments. Like the previous entries, this one continues to be slow paced. This kind of story is very dependent on the complexity of the characters. I felt these characters were interesting, but could have been stronger.
This book would have a higher rating if I loved mythological retellings more. I suspect other readers who can’t get enough of this fantasy subgenre will love this trilogy even more than I did. I liked it, but I felt it played it a bit safe and I would have loved a more creative approach to the source material.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
This is a solid conclusion to the Greek myth fantasy series that started back with Ithaca. I enjoyed book one but I struggled with book two. Thankfully this finale entry returned back to the elements that I loved at the beginning of the series.
This is another feminist character driven entry with strong interpersonal moments. Like the previous entries, this one continues to be slow paced. This kind of story is very dependent on the complexity of the characters. I felt these characters were interesting, but could have been stronger.
This book would have a higher rating if I loved mythological retellings more. I suspect other readers who can’t get enough of this fantasy subgenre will love this trilogy even more than I did. I liked it, but I felt it played it a bit safe and I would have loved a more creative approach to the source material.
Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
June 6, 2024
The Last Song Of Penelope is the final book in The Songs Of Penelope trilogy by award-winning, best-selling British author, Claire North. Odysseus is secretly back in Ithaca, posing as a filthy, smelly beggar while he checks out what Penelope’s been up to during his twenty-year absence. Telemachus has returned from his year-long search for his father empty-handed, from which the hundred suitors for Penelope’s hand deduce that Odysseus is dead: now is their time!
Odysseus and his son are plotting: the suitors must die. But Penelope isn’t fooled by the beggar rags or the act, and she’s quickly worked out what Telemachus and his father are up to. The odds look terrible, and even if they manage to slay all the suitors, that isn’t going to go down too well with their families and leaders. It’s bound to be a bloodbath with few survivors among them. So the clever Queen of Ithaca consults with her midnight council of women, and they make some contingency plans.
Some of the suitors describe Penelope as “tricksy” (there was that thing with the burial shroud for Laertes) and one of those tricks makes it easier for Odysseus, Telemachus and their tiny band when they carry out their massacre. Of course, the inevitable happens and soon they’re holed up at Laertes’s farm when the angry fathers turn up for revenge with mercenaries in tow.
All this time, Penelope is furious, about his distrust of her, and about the fate of some of her maids, so she’s denying Odysseus, never actually accepting that this man is he, referring to anything about her husband in the third person, which makes for some interesting conversations as she gets to comment on his twenty-year absence, and his poor behaviour, with some impunity.
It does take him some time to realise just how canny his wife is: “She was a woman alone, a widow in all but name, and Ithaca needed a strong king to guard its shores. This being so, naturally she would not turn away anyone who sought her hand, not least because if they were busy wooing, they would not be busy plundering, raiding or enslaving her peoples.”
There’s plenty of humour, especially when Laertes or Priene are participating: Priene tells Odysseus “Penelope is right – the isles need to have a king. You are the least awful choice. The one with the greatest story.” There’s also a bit of heartache when Penelope has to send the Egyptian packing, and her moving eulogy for one very close to her can’t fail to bring tears to the reader’s eye. And there are battles, with plenty of bloodshed despite some clever tactics.
This time, North uses the goddess Athena as her narrator who, with her emphasis on war and wisdom, offers quite a different perspective from that of Hera and Aphrodite. Odysseus may have been her favourite for a long time, but she’s coming to respect Penelope and see her intelligence and her worth.
North’s quick summary of the situation that many other poets describe is refreshingly frank, and quite delightful, at times almost tongue in cheek. Athena’s commentary on events and players, on the affairs of gods and mortals, is irreverent and often darkly funny, but also insightful. She observes: “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Wisdom is rarely easy, too often an unwelcome guest.”
Even novices to the Greek myths and legends will be able to, with perhaps only a cursory check of Wikipedia, thoroughly enjoy North’s treatment of Penelope’s story. This is Greek myth at its most palatable and entertaining. Highly recommended!
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK.
Odysseus and his son are plotting: the suitors must die. But Penelope isn’t fooled by the beggar rags or the act, and she’s quickly worked out what Telemachus and his father are up to. The odds look terrible, and even if they manage to slay all the suitors, that isn’t going to go down too well with their families and leaders. It’s bound to be a bloodbath with few survivors among them. So the clever Queen of Ithaca consults with her midnight council of women, and they make some contingency plans.
Some of the suitors describe Penelope as “tricksy” (there was that thing with the burial shroud for Laertes) and one of those tricks makes it easier for Odysseus, Telemachus and their tiny band when they carry out their massacre. Of course, the inevitable happens and soon they’re holed up at Laertes’s farm when the angry fathers turn up for revenge with mercenaries in tow.
All this time, Penelope is furious, about his distrust of her, and about the fate of some of her maids, so she’s denying Odysseus, never actually accepting that this man is he, referring to anything about her husband in the third person, which makes for some interesting conversations as she gets to comment on his twenty-year absence, and his poor behaviour, with some impunity.
It does take him some time to realise just how canny his wife is: “She was a woman alone, a widow in all but name, and Ithaca needed a strong king to guard its shores. This being so, naturally she would not turn away anyone who sought her hand, not least because if they were busy wooing, they would not be busy plundering, raiding or enslaving her peoples.”
There’s plenty of humour, especially when Laertes or Priene are participating: Priene tells Odysseus “Penelope is right – the isles need to have a king. You are the least awful choice. The one with the greatest story.” There’s also a bit of heartache when Penelope has to send the Egyptian packing, and her moving eulogy for one very close to her can’t fail to bring tears to the reader’s eye. And there are battles, with plenty of bloodshed despite some clever tactics.
This time, North uses the goddess Athena as her narrator who, with her emphasis on war and wisdom, offers quite a different perspective from that of Hera and Aphrodite. Odysseus may have been her favourite for a long time, but she’s coming to respect Penelope and see her intelligence and her worth.
North’s quick summary of the situation that many other poets describe is refreshingly frank, and quite delightful, at times almost tongue in cheek. Athena’s commentary on events and players, on the affairs of gods and mortals, is irreverent and often darkly funny, but also insightful. She observes: “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Wisdom is rarely easy, too often an unwelcome guest.”
Even novices to the Greek myths and legends will be able to, with perhaps only a cursory check of Wikipedia, thoroughly enjoy North’s treatment of Penelope’s story. This is Greek myth at its most palatable and entertaining. Highly recommended!
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK.
August 20, 2024
This was a great ending to a wonderful tale.
This series has become in a very short time one of my favorites.
This has become the standard to what I will hold all greek mythology retellings from now on.
The way the author portrayed Odysseus and Penelope relationship was pure genius,it was exactly what I wanted and I'm beyond happy that I got it.
I liked how the author handled the whole situation with Calypso and Circe and while I would have liked it even more if it was not so subtle,I understand why she made it this way.
Honestly my favorite parts of this book were the times the author would let us see into Odysseus mind cause he was such a well written character,he had such a charm around him when he talked that even I fell for it(still not the best man but he could have been worse).
I wished that Telemachus drowned cause the hate I had for him while reading this whole trilogy went beyond just hatred and entered the territory of wanting to kill him with my own hands.
He was from the very beginning till the end a coward,not in battle but in all the other ways that matter.(I still wished that the author had made his relationship with his mother a loving one like it was in some versions of the myth but we don't always get what we wish for).
Penelope was amazing from start to finish,I have no more words for her,she impressed me so much that I would feel like a proud parent every time she won the game.
Athena narrates this one and she really surprised me,she made me change my opinion of her and I'm happy that I was wrong about her.
Artemis once again stealing the spotlight every time she appeared.
In conclusion this was a brilliant way to end the story of Penelope,my only complaint is that I did not want this to end .
This series has become in a very short time one of my favorites.
This has become the standard to what I will hold all greek mythology retellings from now on.
The way the author portrayed Odysseus and Penelope relationship was pure genius,it was exactly what I wanted and I'm beyond happy that I got it.
I liked how the author handled the whole situation with Calypso and Circe and while I would have liked it even more if it was not so subtle,I understand why she made it this way.
Honestly my favorite parts of this book were the times the author would let us see into Odysseus mind cause he was such a well written character,he had such a charm around him when he talked that even I fell for it(still not the best man but he could have been worse).
I wished that Telemachus drowned cause the hate I had for him while reading this whole trilogy went beyond just hatred and entered the territory of wanting to kill him with my own hands.
He was from the very beginning till the end a coward,not in battle but in all the other ways that matter.(I still wished that the author had made his relationship with his mother a loving one like it was in some versions of the myth but we don't always get what we wish for).
Penelope was amazing from start to finish,I have no more words for her,she impressed me so much that I would feel like a proud parent every time she won the game.
Athena narrates this one and she really surprised me,she made me change my opinion of her and I'm happy that I was wrong about her.
Artemis once again stealing the spotlight every time she appeared.
In conclusion this was a brilliant way to end the story of Penelope,my only complaint is that I did not want this to end .
February 22, 2025
Once again North continues the theme of using a goddess to narrate the story. This time it is Athena. Athena was the perfect choice with Odysseus finally arriving back at Ithaca. Odysseus has always been Athena’s favourite.
Once again Penelope and Ithica are fighting for their life. Once again Penelope, and the women she has surrounded herself with, must save the day.
North turns the famous poem of heroes and heroics into a pragmatic battle for survival. Odysseus killing all the suiters by himself not just an embellishment of the truth, but a fairy tale told by the poets to immortalize his name.
After the slaughter of the suiters, the fathers of Antinous and Eurymachus band their men together, hire a mercenary captain and decide to kill Odysseus and his entire family line in one swift battle.
Bloody vengeance for the massacre of their sons. Odysseus does not have the men to hold them off and for maybe the first time in his life he cannot think or scheme his way to victory and survival.
Penelope is the one who saves them, Penelope keeps them alive and plans a way to survive.
The trilogy concludes as it started, Penelope has always been the true ruler of Ithaca. During the twenty years she has ruled she has overcome almost impossible obstacles, defying the odds. Survived where many would have fallen. Even with Odysseus’s return, it is Penelope who realizes what must be done and sees the only path that leads to their survival.
I loved all three books of this trilogy. North has given Penelope a voice and brought her out of the shadows of The Odyssey. She has turned Penelope from a grief-stricken wife toiling over a shroud for years into an intelligent powerful Queen.
Once again Penelope and Ithica are fighting for their life. Once again Penelope, and the women she has surrounded herself with, must save the day.
North turns the famous poem of heroes and heroics into a pragmatic battle for survival. Odysseus killing all the suiters by himself not just an embellishment of the truth, but a fairy tale told by the poets to immortalize his name.
After the slaughter of the suiters, the fathers of Antinous and Eurymachus band their men together, hire a mercenary captain and decide to kill Odysseus and his entire family line in one swift battle.
Bloody vengeance for the massacre of their sons. Odysseus does not have the men to hold them off and for maybe the first time in his life he cannot think or scheme his way to victory and survival.
Penelope is the one who saves them, Penelope keeps them alive and plans a way to survive.
The trilogy concludes as it started, Penelope has always been the true ruler of Ithaca. During the twenty years she has ruled she has overcome almost impossible obstacles, defying the odds. Survived where many would have fallen. Even with Odysseus’s return, it is Penelope who realizes what must be done and sees the only path that leads to their survival.
I loved all three books of this trilogy. North has given Penelope a voice and brought her out of the shadows of The Odyssey. She has turned Penelope from a grief-stricken wife toiling over a shroud for years into an intelligent powerful Queen.
June 15, 2024
THE LAST SONG OF PENELOPE (THE SONGS OF PENELOPE #3)
BY: CLAIRE NORTH
This was my first reading experience with Claire North, as an author and I have mixed feelings about this last installment. I read this a couple weeks ago and it's the longest time that I have let a novel simmer in my mind after reading it and writing my review. I always write my review while a book is fresh in my mind with this being the exception. Anyone that takes the time to read my reviews, I'm pretty sure knows that I love Greek Mythology feminist re-told tales. My favorite are the two by Madeline Miller which the clear winner is Circe, followed by her former which served as an introduction to her gorgeous prose many years earlier called, The Song of Achilles. I didn't in all honesty find The Last Song of Penelope, which is the final installment in Claire North's trilogy as beautifully written as Madeline Miller's two of the novels which Circe being the clear favorite. If you are familiar with Greek Mythology this can be read as a standalone. I did find Athena's voice and guidance in the narration to be the most compelling written aspects of the novel which Claire North executed brilliantly.
The first book in this trilogy is called, Ithaca, which is narrated from the Greek goddess, Hera's perspective who was Zeus's wife. The second in this trilogy is called, House of Odysseus, which is narrated by the Greek goddess named, Aphrodite with some of the Greek goddess Artemis, as well. This one being reviewed is called, The Last Song of Penelope, which as I said is narrated by the Greek goddess, Athena. Athena is known in Greek Mythology as the goddess who represents: war, wisdom and military victory, but also includes a representation of the arts. The second half of this novel was my least favorite part of the book since it is when Penelope realizes that the shabby looking man who had disguised himself as a beggar is her husband, Odysseus. The reason I didn't feel as engaged in the writing was because it featured battles where they took place at Odysseus's father's farm where Odysseus has followed Penelope's ideas, which didn't feel organic. Because I've studied this subject matter on a scholarly level extensively, I didn't feel as connected to the characters as I should have.
In this re-telling in the feminist representation starts out with descriptions of Ithaca being an Island that was thought inferior since the land is scraggy, scrub brush and rocky, who most of the other kingdoms of Greece felt it less desirable to inhabit. Penelope has reigned by her strategic fashion of not alienating the vast amount of suitors who wish to marry her. One Egyptian King is given more focus in the narrative which was instrumental in his involvement with Penelope and Odysseus's son Telemachus learning to fight. Odysseus has been absent for nearly twenty years which if you are familiar with Homer's "Odyssey", and, "The Iliad," in short where he spent ten years fighting in the Trojan War to simplify it. It actually contains much, much more. For the sake of this novel and review I have omitted a wealth of information. Odysseus took with him all the strong men of fighting age off with him to fight with the other kings and mortals. This left Penelope in a vulnerable position to deal with the suitors who think that she is a widow because of Odysseus's long absence. She has had to deal with an enormous burden being young when he left. There are other men who were also hoping to replace Odysseus as king which Penelope had to outwit such as pirates and King Menelaus, Helen's husband.
What is the difference between, "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey"? They are both epic poems written by Homer, with the scholarly texts that I studied and both contain more than twenty volumes each. I'm going to give a quick and short explanation. "The Iliad," should be read first since they are sequential. The Iliad is the epic poem about the Trojan War which Odysseus was fighting among the other kings of Greece which accounts for ten years of his time away from Ithaca. While the epic poem of "The Odyssey," is the story about the survivor of the war and his attempts to return home. For purposes of this trilogy, and "The Odyssey," it is Odysseus who takes from seven to ten years finding his way back to Ithaca. In this novel, and trilogy, this leaves Penelope utilizing all of her wits to keep other men from and kings from conquering Ithaca with the help of her trusted maidens and women. She has kept her suitors at bay and her son Telemachus who is now a grown man has just returned from searching for his father by which he doesn't have any news of whether Odysseus is alive or dead because he was unable to locate him. We the reader know, that Odysseus is safe and hiding on Ithaca disguised as the beggar, who is watching Penelope in trying to ascertain if she is/has been faithful to him.
The first half was more engaging for me than the second half by which I have already said was largely about battles of which there is retribution from some of the fathers of the suitors fighting Odysseus for something that he did. Actually, there were two things that he did in Claire North's version that has enraged Penelope and were the catalysts for her going to find safety to shelter with her father-in law, who is at Odysseus's father's farm. Before Odysseus makes his presence known Penelope is feeling guilty towards herself, in her view she feels responsible for Telemachus's indifference and hostility to her. She blames herself since she reasons within that she was neglectful of Telemachus's upbringing since she was always preoccupied with saving the kingdom of Ithaca. She is angry at Odysseus for reasons I won't say because they would be major spoilers. It has more to do with acts he did after he revealed who he was, making his presence known upon his return, than the twenty years he spent away.
In the parts of fighting that I found tedious and slow, but then again someone else who reads this may love it for its action driven plot. Odysseus and Telemachus who follow Penelope to the farm, with a small number of men will find themselves fighting for their lives. It is here that I noticed Claire North's writing infused in the empathetic voice of Athena's narration to be stunning. Athena who is created by North to employ her voice of reason, and fighting for just causes. as the goddess of war and wisdom. Athena is seen as a civilizing influence with her wisdom of war, in sharp contrast to Ares who is seen as representing the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter. I did like this part when I felt the author's love of her central characters. One part of this is going to appeal to women as Penelope's is seen as the feminist icon who saves the the main characters by having her maidens and more warriors arrive within Elektra's army fight in an important battle. By bringing in women reinforcements where Odysseus, his father and Telemachus are outnumbered with each battle fought. As the battles proceed, and both sides rest and bury the dead. Next they regroup, and strategic decisions are made when their size of men left are greatly outnumbered by the opposition. As a feminist retelling having Odysseus portrayed as deferring to Penelope's decisions it works for this novel, but I found it unrealistic and that could've influenced my enjoyment of the first half to be more connected to the storytelling, characters and narrative to a greater degree.
In the final saga of Penelope, the song of Penelope is ending and the song of Odysseus's return to take his place as King of Ithaca again will happen if everybody is to be up to the task of cooperation. First it's up to Penelope to dig deep within her and with Athena's gentle guidance and voice it will test Penelope again to gather her wits and use her cunning to win a war for the fate of Ithaca. No matter what, or how grand the challenge, the lengths she will go to save her island and family, in ways that are unconventional and seldom done will surprise you.
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Thank you to Net Galley, Claire North and Redhook Books, Redhook for generously providing me with my eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
#TheLastSongofPenelope #ClaireNorth #RedhookBooksRedhook #NetGalley
BY: CLAIRE NORTH
This was my first reading experience with Claire North, as an author and I have mixed feelings about this last installment. I read this a couple weeks ago and it's the longest time that I have let a novel simmer in my mind after reading it and writing my review. I always write my review while a book is fresh in my mind with this being the exception. Anyone that takes the time to read my reviews, I'm pretty sure knows that I love Greek Mythology feminist re-told tales. My favorite are the two by Madeline Miller which the clear winner is Circe, followed by her former which served as an introduction to her gorgeous prose many years earlier called, The Song of Achilles. I didn't in all honesty find The Last Song of Penelope, which is the final installment in Claire North's trilogy as beautifully written as Madeline Miller's two of the novels which Circe being the clear favorite. If you are familiar with Greek Mythology this can be read as a standalone. I did find Athena's voice and guidance in the narration to be the most compelling written aspects of the novel which Claire North executed brilliantly.
The first book in this trilogy is called, Ithaca, which is narrated from the Greek goddess, Hera's perspective who was Zeus's wife. The second in this trilogy is called, House of Odysseus, which is narrated by the Greek goddess named, Aphrodite with some of the Greek goddess Artemis, as well. This one being reviewed is called, The Last Song of Penelope, which as I said is narrated by the Greek goddess, Athena. Athena is known in Greek Mythology as the goddess who represents: war, wisdom and military victory, but also includes a representation of the arts. The second half of this novel was my least favorite part of the book since it is when Penelope realizes that the shabby looking man who had disguised himself as a beggar is her husband, Odysseus. The reason I didn't feel as engaged in the writing was because it featured battles where they took place at Odysseus's father's farm where Odysseus has followed Penelope's ideas, which didn't feel organic. Because I've studied this subject matter on a scholarly level extensively, I didn't feel as connected to the characters as I should have.
In this re-telling in the feminist representation starts out with descriptions of Ithaca being an Island that was thought inferior since the land is scraggy, scrub brush and rocky, who most of the other kingdoms of Greece felt it less desirable to inhabit. Penelope has reigned by her strategic fashion of not alienating the vast amount of suitors who wish to marry her. One Egyptian King is given more focus in the narrative which was instrumental in his involvement with Penelope and Odysseus's son Telemachus learning to fight. Odysseus has been absent for nearly twenty years which if you are familiar with Homer's "Odyssey", and, "The Iliad," in short where he spent ten years fighting in the Trojan War to simplify it. It actually contains much, much more. For the sake of this novel and review I have omitted a wealth of information. Odysseus took with him all the strong men of fighting age off with him to fight with the other kings and mortals. This left Penelope in a vulnerable position to deal with the suitors who think that she is a widow because of Odysseus's long absence. She has had to deal with an enormous burden being young when he left. There are other men who were also hoping to replace Odysseus as king which Penelope had to outwit such as pirates and King Menelaus, Helen's husband.
What is the difference between, "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey"? They are both epic poems written by Homer, with the scholarly texts that I studied and both contain more than twenty volumes each. I'm going to give a quick and short explanation. "The Iliad," should be read first since they are sequential. The Iliad is the epic poem about the Trojan War which Odysseus was fighting among the other kings of Greece which accounts for ten years of his time away from Ithaca. While the epic poem of "The Odyssey," is the story about the survivor of the war and his attempts to return home. For purposes of this trilogy, and "The Odyssey," it is Odysseus who takes from seven to ten years finding his way back to Ithaca. In this novel, and trilogy, this leaves Penelope utilizing all of her wits to keep other men from and kings from conquering Ithaca with the help of her trusted maidens and women. She has kept her suitors at bay and her son Telemachus who is now a grown man has just returned from searching for his father by which he doesn't have any news of whether Odysseus is alive or dead because he was unable to locate him. We the reader know, that Odysseus is safe and hiding on Ithaca disguised as the beggar, who is watching Penelope in trying to ascertain if she is/has been faithful to him.
The first half was more engaging for me than the second half by which I have already said was largely about battles of which there is retribution from some of the fathers of the suitors fighting Odysseus for something that he did. Actually, there were two things that he did in Claire North's version that has enraged Penelope and were the catalysts for her going to find safety to shelter with her father-in law, who is at Odysseus's father's farm. Before Odysseus makes his presence known Penelope is feeling guilty towards herself, in her view she feels responsible for Telemachus's indifference and hostility to her. She blames herself since she reasons within that she was neglectful of Telemachus's upbringing since she was always preoccupied with saving the kingdom of Ithaca. She is angry at Odysseus for reasons I won't say because they would be major spoilers. It has more to do with acts he did after he revealed who he was, making his presence known upon his return, than the twenty years he spent away.
In the parts of fighting that I found tedious and slow, but then again someone else who reads this may love it for its action driven plot. Odysseus and Telemachus who follow Penelope to the farm, with a small number of men will find themselves fighting for their lives. It is here that I noticed Claire North's writing infused in the empathetic voice of Athena's narration to be stunning. Athena who is created by North to employ her voice of reason, and fighting for just causes. as the goddess of war and wisdom. Athena is seen as a civilizing influence with her wisdom of war, in sharp contrast to Ares who is seen as representing the distasteful aspects of brutal warfare and slaughter. I did like this part when I felt the author's love of her central characters. One part of this is going to appeal to women as Penelope's is seen as the feminist icon who saves the the main characters by having her maidens and more warriors arrive within Elektra's army fight in an important battle. By bringing in women reinforcements where Odysseus, his father and Telemachus are outnumbered with each battle fought. As the battles proceed, and both sides rest and bury the dead. Next they regroup, and strategic decisions are made when their size of men left are greatly outnumbered by the opposition. As a feminist retelling having Odysseus portrayed as deferring to Penelope's decisions it works for this novel, but I found it unrealistic and that could've influenced my enjoyment of the first half to be more connected to the storytelling, characters and narrative to a greater degree.
In the final saga of Penelope, the song of Penelope is ending and the song of Odysseus's return to take his place as King of Ithaca again will happen if everybody is to be up to the task of cooperation. First it's up to Penelope to dig deep within her and with Athena's gentle guidance and voice it will test Penelope again to gather her wits and use her cunning to win a war for the fate of Ithaca. No matter what, or how grand the challenge, the lengths she will go to save her island and family, in ways that are unconventional and seldom done will surprise you.
Publication Date: June 4, 2024
Thank you to Net Galley, Claire North and Redhook Books, Redhook for generously providing me with my eARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions are my own.
#TheLastSongofPenelope #ClaireNorth #RedhookBooksRedhook #NetGalley
June 22, 2024
I adore Greek myth retellings when they’re done well. Circe and The Song of Achilles, Clytemnestra and Stone Blind, Ariadne and Elektra and Atalanta are all examples of excellent retellings, beautifully written. Stone Blind and Circe are even among some of my very favorite books. But North’s Songs of Penelope trilogy has usurped them all on my shelf. It’s rare that a mythic retelling is not a standalone novel. It’s rare that such a story can stay so true to its source material while also being wonderfully original. It’s rare that every book in a trilogy merits five full stars. Songs of Penelope manages to do all three of those things brilliantly. There is nothing that I would change about any of this trilogy, but I believe this final installment, The Last Song of Penelope, is my favorite. What a note to end on.
Each of these three books is told by a different goddess. Ithaca came from Hera’s perspective. House of Odysseus, from Aphrodite. In The Last Song of Penelope, we hear from the third of Olympus’s most prominent goddesses: Athena. (Artemis is also present throughout the series, but she has no interest in sitting still long enough to spin a tale.) Athena is the goddess of war and wisdom, and she sees that the gods of Greece will someday become obsolete. She is determined to be timeless where they are not, and she knows that the best way to achieve that is through a different kind of immortality, that guaranteed by a really good story. She will not be the star of this tale; she will be on the periphery, but that will be more than the rest of the pantheon achieves. It will be enough. It is for the crafting of this story that she has chosen to patron Odysseus and coax him through the twenty years he is away from Ithaca, first in Troy and then on his decade-long journey home. In this book, Odysseus is finally home. And, through the eyes of Athena, we witness all Hades break loose in the court of Penelope.
The triumph of Odysseus as we see it in The Odyssey is tragic here. We see a man storm in and wreck everything a woman has built, as if he has earned that destructive privilege simply by being a man. But here, that destructive force is a hero of the ages, one that millennia of readers and listeners have respected for his canniness: Odysseus. We know him as wise and clever, a man who always thinks through every step in a plan. And here, we see him lose his grip on that cleverness. In the wreckage, he and his furious, devastated wife must figure out how to repair the damage. Or, at least, how to survive it.
I love the character work in this series. Penelope, who has always been portrayed has nothing more than a faithful wife with just enough of her husband’s cleverness to outfox the suitors who plague her halls, is a woman of great depth here. We see her grow as the series progresses, as the layers of her character are slowly peeled back. And then there’s Odysseus. Because he is so intelligent and canny, we see him regain his grip on the cleverness that failed him in the heat of the moment. We see him learning from those mistakes and putting serious effort into cultivating empathy, as that’s what he needs to understand Penelope. His responses are so different from those of other men and kings in this land, in this time. At first, these differences are solely because he refuses to be like other men; he is better. But as the story continues, he begins to see himself and those around him — especially the women — differently, more clearly. He changes. He learns. He grows. I found both husband and wife incredibly believable and exquisitely rendered.
North’s writing is fantastic. Her prose in this series is as close to flawless as humanly possible. It’s brimming with humor and emotion while also being absolutely gorgeous. This series is excellent in physical and digital form, because it’s just a wonderful, timeless story, very well told. But it’s absolutely brilliant on audio. The Iliad and The Odyssey were the zenith of oral storytelling, and North has woven that kind of cadence into her unique retelling. Catrin Walker-Booth also just does a phenomenal job on the audio narration.
The elements I loved in the first two installments in the series carry through The Last Song of Penelope, as well. Besides the aforementioned character development and phenomenal craftsmanship to the writing itself, I just love how this series is set up. The pacing and setting are very well done. But one of the highlights for me is all of the gender politics, both ancient and modern, that is woven into the narrative. This is a very feminist series, but it never felt preachy or like it had an agenda. The point was to tell the stories of the women and goddesses on the periphery of such a famous story, and North was very successful in her aim.
I love everything about the Songs of Penelope trilogy. It’s a unique but timeless take on a story that has shaped storytelling for as far back as collective memory can recall. The entire trilogy is now shelved alongside my favorites. It’s a story I’ll be revisiting often, and I’ll think of it whenever The Iliad or The Odyssey are mentioned.
Each of these three books is told by a different goddess. Ithaca came from Hera’s perspective. House of Odysseus, from Aphrodite. In The Last Song of Penelope, we hear from the third of Olympus’s most prominent goddesses: Athena. (Artemis is also present throughout the series, but she has no interest in sitting still long enough to spin a tale.) Athena is the goddess of war and wisdom, and she sees that the gods of Greece will someday become obsolete. She is determined to be timeless where they are not, and she knows that the best way to achieve that is through a different kind of immortality, that guaranteed by a really good story. She will not be the star of this tale; she will be on the periphery, but that will be more than the rest of the pantheon achieves. It will be enough. It is for the crafting of this story that she has chosen to patron Odysseus and coax him through the twenty years he is away from Ithaca, first in Troy and then on his decade-long journey home. In this book, Odysseus is finally home. And, through the eyes of Athena, we witness all Hades break loose in the court of Penelope.
The triumph of Odysseus as we see it in The Odyssey is tragic here. We see a man storm in and wreck everything a woman has built, as if he has earned that destructive privilege simply by being a man. But here, that destructive force is a hero of the ages, one that millennia of readers and listeners have respected for his canniness: Odysseus. We know him as wise and clever, a man who always thinks through every step in a plan. And here, we see him lose his grip on that cleverness. In the wreckage, he and his furious, devastated wife must figure out how to repair the damage. Or, at least, how to survive it.
I love the character work in this series. Penelope, who has always been portrayed has nothing more than a faithful wife with just enough of her husband’s cleverness to outfox the suitors who plague her halls, is a woman of great depth here. We see her grow as the series progresses, as the layers of her character are slowly peeled back. And then there’s Odysseus. Because he is so intelligent and canny, we see him regain his grip on the cleverness that failed him in the heat of the moment. We see him learning from those mistakes and putting serious effort into cultivating empathy, as that’s what he needs to understand Penelope. His responses are so different from those of other men and kings in this land, in this time. At first, these differences are solely because he refuses to be like other men; he is better. But as the story continues, he begins to see himself and those around him — especially the women — differently, more clearly. He changes. He learns. He grows. I found both husband and wife incredibly believable and exquisitely rendered.
North’s writing is fantastic. Her prose in this series is as close to flawless as humanly possible. It’s brimming with humor and emotion while also being absolutely gorgeous. This series is excellent in physical and digital form, because it’s just a wonderful, timeless story, very well told. But it’s absolutely brilliant on audio. The Iliad and The Odyssey were the zenith of oral storytelling, and North has woven that kind of cadence into her unique retelling. Catrin Walker-Booth also just does a phenomenal job on the audio narration.
The elements I loved in the first two installments in the series carry through The Last Song of Penelope, as well. Besides the aforementioned character development and phenomenal craftsmanship to the writing itself, I just love how this series is set up. The pacing and setting are very well done. But one of the highlights for me is all of the gender politics, both ancient and modern, that is woven into the narrative. This is a very feminist series, but it never felt preachy or like it had an agenda. The point was to tell the stories of the women and goddesses on the periphery of such a famous story, and North was very successful in her aim.
I love everything about the Songs of Penelope trilogy. It’s a unique but timeless take on a story that has shaped storytelling for as far back as collective memory can recall. The entire trilogy is now shelved alongside my favorites. It’s a story I’ll be revisiting often, and I’ll think of it whenever The Iliad or The Odyssey are mentioned.
January 3, 2025
The Last Song Of Penelope is the final book in The Songs Of Penelope trilogy by award-winning, best-selling British author, Claire North. The audio version is narrated by Catrin Walker-Booth. Odysseus is secretly back in Ithaca, posing as a filthy, smelly beggar while he checks out what Penelope’s been up to during his twenty-year absence. Telemachus has returned from his year-long search for his father empty-handed, from which the hundred suitors for Penelope’s hand deduce that Odysseus is dead: now is their time!
Odysseus and his son are plotting: the suitors must die. But Penelope isn’t fooled by the beggar rags or the act, and she’s quickly worked out what Telemachus and his father are up to. The odds look terrible, and even if they manage to slay all the suitors, that isn’t going to go down too well with their families and leaders. It’s bound to be a bloodbath with few survivors among them. So the clever Queen of Ithaca consults with her midnight council of women, and they make some contingency plans.
Some of the suitors describe Penelope as “tricksy” (there was that thing with the burial shroud for Laertes) and one of those tricks makes it easier for Odysseus, Telemachus and their tiny band when they carry out their massacre. Of course, the inevitable happens and soon they’re holed up at Laertes’s farm when the angry fathers turn up for revenge with mercenaries in tow.
All this time, Penelope is furious, about his distrust of her, and about the fate of some of her maids, so she’s denying Odysseus, never actually accepting that this man is he, referring to anything about her husband in the third person, which makes for some interesting conversations as she gets to comment on his twenty-year absence, and his poor behaviour, with some impunity.
It does take him some time to realise just how canny his wife is: “She was a woman alone, a widow in all but name, and Ithaca needed a strong king to guard its shores. This being so, naturally she would not turn away anyone who sought her hand, not least because if they were busy wooing, they would not be busy plundering, raiding or enslaving her peoples.”
There’s plenty of humour, especially when Laertes or Priene are participating: Priene tells Odysseus “Penelope is right – the isles need to have a king. You are the least awful choice. The one with the greatest story.” There’s also a bit of heartache when Penelope has to send the Egyptian packing, and her moving eulogy for one very close to her can’t fail to bring tears to the reader’s eye. And there are battles, with plenty of bloodshed despite some clever tactics.
This time, North uses the goddess Athena as her narrator who, with her emphasis on war and wisdom, offers quite a different perspective from that of Hera and Aphrodite. Odysseus may have been her favourite for a long time, but she’s coming to respect Penelope and see her intelligence and her worth.
North’s quick summary of the situation that many other poets describe is refreshingly frank, and quite delightful, at times almost tongue in cheek. Athena’s commentary on events and players, on the affairs of gods and mortals, is irreverent and often darkly funny, but also insightful. She observes: “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Wisdom is rarely easy, too often an unwelcome guest.”
Even novices to the Greek myths and legends will be able to, with perhaps only a cursory check of Wikipedia, thoroughly enjoy North’s treatment of Penelope’s story. This is Greek myth at its most palatable and entertaining. Highly recommended!
Odysseus and his son are plotting: the suitors must die. But Penelope isn’t fooled by the beggar rags or the act, and she’s quickly worked out what Telemachus and his father are up to. The odds look terrible, and even if they manage to slay all the suitors, that isn’t going to go down too well with their families and leaders. It’s bound to be a bloodbath with few survivors among them. So the clever Queen of Ithaca consults with her midnight council of women, and they make some contingency plans.
Some of the suitors describe Penelope as “tricksy” (there was that thing with the burial shroud for Laertes) and one of those tricks makes it easier for Odysseus, Telemachus and their tiny band when they carry out their massacre. Of course, the inevitable happens and soon they’re holed up at Laertes’s farm when the angry fathers turn up for revenge with mercenaries in tow.
All this time, Penelope is furious, about his distrust of her, and about the fate of some of her maids, so she’s denying Odysseus, never actually accepting that this man is he, referring to anything about her husband in the third person, which makes for some interesting conversations as she gets to comment on his twenty-year absence, and his poor behaviour, with some impunity.
It does take him some time to realise just how canny his wife is: “She was a woman alone, a widow in all but name, and Ithaca needed a strong king to guard its shores. This being so, naturally she would not turn away anyone who sought her hand, not least because if they were busy wooing, they would not be busy plundering, raiding or enslaving her peoples.”
There’s plenty of humour, especially when Laertes or Priene are participating: Priene tells Odysseus “Penelope is right – the isles need to have a king. You are the least awful choice. The one with the greatest story.” There’s also a bit of heartache when Penelope has to send the Egyptian packing, and her moving eulogy for one very close to her can’t fail to bring tears to the reader’s eye. And there are battles, with plenty of bloodshed despite some clever tactics.
This time, North uses the goddess Athena as her narrator who, with her emphasis on war and wisdom, offers quite a different perspective from that of Hera and Aphrodite. Odysseus may have been her favourite for a long time, but she’s coming to respect Penelope and see her intelligence and her worth.
North’s quick summary of the situation that many other poets describe is refreshingly frank, and quite delightful, at times almost tongue in cheek. Athena’s commentary on events and players, on the affairs of gods and mortals, is irreverent and often darkly funny, but also insightful. She observes: “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked. Wisdom is rarely easy, too often an unwelcome guest.”
Even novices to the Greek myths and legends will be able to, with perhaps only a cursory check of Wikipedia, thoroughly enjoy North’s treatment of Penelope’s story. This is Greek myth at its most palatable and entertaining. Highly recommended!
May 29, 2024
The final chapter of the Penelopiad and its been just as excellent as the first two. Claire North has managed a feminist retelling that has really told the possible story of the women in the Odysseus myth.
Penelope has been Queen of Ithaca for 20 years without her husband, Odysseus. She has managed the finances, outsmarted the suitors who told her that Odysseus was dead, she has (with her band of warrior women) beaten back raiders and those who would take her land. She is, in fact, more of a ruler than Odysseus had ever been (or had time to be what with the wars and the manliness etc).
And who comes here, into her Palace but a bedraggled beggar just wanting a crust from the table. Penelope is thankfully no fool and sees the badly disguised Odysseus for who he is immediately. However she also knows the situation needs handling with kid gloves. The suitors have been around for ten long years and their fathers are expecting one of them will be King of Ithaca at some point. They need appeasing. Telemachus, Odysseus' son) who came back from his travels with no news of his father needs his manhood protected and Odysseus needs to feel like the conquering hero. Penelope begins her softly softly approach to all these puzzles.
However Odysseus, being the conquering hero, decides on swift justice - the suitors are slaughtered, the faithless maids put to death and ... and then. Well then the trouble really begins.
The Last Song of Penelope is everything it's predecessors were. It is smart, funny, sympathetic and one of the best retellings I've read. Claire North has imbued Penelope with the perfect traits for any wife who has ruled without her husband for decades. And how else would you survive but on your wits and with your sisters to help.
I loved it. I loved the first two - Ithaca and House of Odysseus. I'd urge anyone even vaguely interested in Greek myth or just enjoys a really well written novel to read them. They are all extremely entertaining.
Thankyou so much to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group for the advance review copy. Very much appreciated.
Penelope has been Queen of Ithaca for 20 years without her husband, Odysseus. She has managed the finances, outsmarted the suitors who told her that Odysseus was dead, she has (with her band of warrior women) beaten back raiders and those who would take her land. She is, in fact, more of a ruler than Odysseus had ever been (or had time to be what with the wars and the manliness etc).
And who comes here, into her Palace but a bedraggled beggar just wanting a crust from the table. Penelope is thankfully no fool and sees the badly disguised Odysseus for who he is immediately. However she also knows the situation needs handling with kid gloves. The suitors have been around for ten long years and their fathers are expecting one of them will be King of Ithaca at some point. They need appeasing. Telemachus, Odysseus' son) who came back from his travels with no news of his father needs his manhood protected and Odysseus needs to feel like the conquering hero. Penelope begins her softly softly approach to all these puzzles.
However Odysseus, being the conquering hero, decides on swift justice - the suitors are slaughtered, the faithless maids put to death and ... and then. Well then the trouble really begins.
The Last Song of Penelope is everything it's predecessors were. It is smart, funny, sympathetic and one of the best retellings I've read. Claire North has imbued Penelope with the perfect traits for any wife who has ruled without her husband for decades. And how else would you survive but on your wits and with your sisters to help.
I loved it. I loved the first two - Ithaca and House of Odysseus. I'd urge anyone even vaguely interested in Greek myth or just enjoys a really well written novel to read them. They are all extremely entertaining.
Thankyou so much to Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group for the advance review copy. Very much appreciated.
Want to read
October 1, 2023I NEED THIS TO COME OUT RIGHT NOW. also is it bad that i ship kenamon (or whatever his name is) with penelope? 😭 i just want them to be happy bro. i predict that this book will be narrated by athena (as the last of the three goddesses who “helped spark” the trojan war)
February 9, 2025
Ik weet dat het zo moest zijn en dat de mythe gevolgd moet worden maar ik vond het geen leuk boek
December 3, 2024
Infuriating and shallow, this is a miserable read. The good is abysmal and the bad overwhelming. The author did not either like the Odyssey or sought to write a version so anti-, so insulting that if you like Greek Mythology, this book should insult you. If you like retellings with modern feminist undertones you should feel insulted, for this book slaps you with how little it believes in your intelligence. Men are evil--this book gives little exception, and the best it can do is shrug its shoulder and declare "Odysseus might not deserve redemption, but he's the best men can do in this time period so anyway, here's the end of the book!" That's how your great, "best of all the men" hero/character ends. No man is given the same grey morality or redemption as the women--all the women are excellent, save one stupid old maid, and you should feel only sympathy for these women who can do no wrong. Telemachus is the worst brat who the reader hopes will die; he's a woman hater who even his own parents become exasperated with by the end of the book. Penelope's wisdom and cunning and all the qualities that her husband loved in her in the original text? In this series, he's bitter and resentful of the fact she's not some dumb thing he can fuck. The bar is so low that Odysseus is "the best of men" because he alone realizes "Wow, maybe angrily raping my wife to show domination isn't a good idea? Or at least, there's a second option of...not doing that?" And Athena and the goddesses all nod and go "this is why he's the best of men!" Oh, is my review not mentioning Penelope enough in a book supposedly about her? It's because this series stripped her of all her clever womanly ways and made her best achievement being raising a female army--because the idea of a masculine-coded army, made up of women, is so much more interesting than her actual merits and accomplishments originally, like the abandoned loom shroud or the only hand-waved aside details of controlling the economy. I, much like Kenamon, wish I could've checked out of this book early and then be forgotten; he, our actual best character, was built up in the previous books but, as I feared, we couldn't do anything really with him as we strayed only so far from the source material in all the ways that matter, so he just leaves and bummer, I guess. Is this book written well? Well, no, because even all the philosophical waxing that Athena does is hypocritical at best--she is the least wise Goddess of wisdom and can't go more than a page before her statements and beliefs contradict either each other or reality. Also, we put a huge emphasis on stories and interpretations of them--the power of it as a weapon in its own right--and that is so ironic considering how badly this book butchered both the original message as well as whatever nonsense it's trying to portray.
June 20, 2024
Perfection.
June 9, 2024
Sometimes the hardest book reviews to write are the ones for books you completely inhale body and soul because what can you say that compares to how much you loved the book? That’s how I’m feeling with The Last Song of Penelope, the final book in Claire North’s The Songs of Penelope series. A fresh and feminist twist on a classic tale, this is a brilliant read and definitely one of my favorites of the year.
Claire North is a gifted storyteller with a beautiful (and poetic at times) writing style that transported me into Penelope’s world on Ithaca. From the first pages where the island is so deftly personified that it becomes a character in itself, I was submersed in Penelope’s story. She’s an amazing and complex protagonist, wise, shrewd, and brave, and this series created such a layered and fully realized woman. This is not Odysseus’s wife. She is her own woman – a leader, a strategist, a mother, and a friend – which she proves time and again. There were times in the book when her story broke my heart and others when I physically cheered for her. She is a force, and she is not to be dismissed. At one point in the story it says, “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked,” and I feel like this describes Penelope and her amazing council of women so well.
The series has been an in-depth character study of Penelope, but in this book, we also have a nuanced look at Odysseus. If you’ve ever read The Odyssey and remember Odysseus’s return home, you’ll be as captivated with The Last Song of Penelope as I was! It’s a fascinating character study of a deeply flawed man who has always been presented as a larger-than-life hero. While staying accurate to the original tale, we see a totally different, less glamorized version of the end of The Odyssey and after. North captures the vicious brutality of Odysseus and Telemachus, and it’s horrifying, as is what happens after.
I found Odysseus’s mess of thoughts throughout the novel to be illuminating. His feelings about the war, his time with other women, the loss of his crew and friends, and his ignorance of Ithaca and its inhabitants weigh heavily on him, and though he often acts rashly, he also acts with more patience and subservience than I ever expected. I love how his character changes and grows and learns to appreciate the people he continually disregarded and underappreciated. I also was so fascinated with Odysseus’s broken relationship with Penelope.
Unlike the original story, Odysseus’s reunion with his wife is less than amicable, and it’s no wonder. So much has happened over the twenty years Odysseus has been gone and in the time he’s been home, and many of his actions are unforgivable. The relationship between Penelope and Odysseus is stilted and complicated and hanging on by the thinnest thread in her loom. I’ve never read a story where their relationship was explored in such an intricate and layered manner, and we see it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly.
For much of the story, Penelope and Odysseus are distanced from each other, physically and emotionally, which is vastly different from the tales they both admit to spreading (he claims he’s desperate to get back to his only love, and she professes to be mourning the loss of the husband she misses when both are lies). It’s an interesting contrast and commentary on the unreliability of the spoken word, especially when tales are told over and over again, as they often change with the speaker. It’s also an immersive and hard look at a marriage in crisis and a couple fighting to maintain control, adjust to a new life after 20 years apart, and relearn to respect, depend on, and trust each other.
So the story is excellent, the characters are fascinating, and the writing is brilliant. But on top of that, this is the kind of book that really makes you think. There are so many thought-provoking scenes that shine light on issues like toxic masculinity, gender stereotypes and roles, masculinity vs femininity, marriage, love and loss, grief, and so much more. It’s the kind of read that sits with you and stays with you long after you finish it. And a special shout-out to Laertes for being a bright spot in an often dark story.
A massive amount of thanks to Orbit Books for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
Claire North is a gifted storyteller with a beautiful (and poetic at times) writing style that transported me into Penelope’s world on Ithaca. From the first pages where the island is so deftly personified that it becomes a character in itself, I was submersed in Penelope’s story. She’s an amazing and complex protagonist, wise, shrewd, and brave, and this series created such a layered and fully realized woman. This is not Odysseus’s wife. She is her own woman – a leader, a strategist, a mother, and a friend – which she proves time and again. There were times in the book when her story broke my heart and others when I physically cheered for her. She is a force, and she is not to be dismissed. At one point in the story it says, “Wisdom is not loud, is often unseen, unpraised, unremarked,” and I feel like this describes Penelope and her amazing council of women so well.
The series has been an in-depth character study of Penelope, but in this book, we also have a nuanced look at Odysseus. If you’ve ever read The Odyssey and remember Odysseus’s return home, you’ll be as captivated with The Last Song of Penelope as I was! It’s a fascinating character study of a deeply flawed man who has always been presented as a larger-than-life hero. While staying accurate to the original tale, we see a totally different, less glamorized version of the end of The Odyssey and after. North captures the vicious brutality of Odysseus and Telemachus, and it’s horrifying, as is what happens after.
I found Odysseus’s mess of thoughts throughout the novel to be illuminating. His feelings about the war, his time with other women, the loss of his crew and friends, and his ignorance of Ithaca and its inhabitants weigh heavily on him, and though he often acts rashly, he also acts with more patience and subservience than I ever expected. I love how his character changes and grows and learns to appreciate the people he continually disregarded and underappreciated. I also was so fascinated with Odysseus’s broken relationship with Penelope.
Unlike the original story, Odysseus’s reunion with his wife is less than amicable, and it’s no wonder. So much has happened over the twenty years Odysseus has been gone and in the time he’s been home, and many of his actions are unforgivable. The relationship between Penelope and Odysseus is stilted and complicated and hanging on by the thinnest thread in her loom. I’ve never read a story where their relationship was explored in such an intricate and layered manner, and we see it all – the good, the bad, and the ugly.
For much of the story, Penelope and Odysseus are distanced from each other, physically and emotionally, which is vastly different from the tales they both admit to spreading (he claims he’s desperate to get back to his only love, and she professes to be mourning the loss of the husband she misses when both are lies). It’s an interesting contrast and commentary on the unreliability of the spoken word, especially when tales are told over and over again, as they often change with the speaker. It’s also an immersive and hard look at a marriage in crisis and a couple fighting to maintain control, adjust to a new life after 20 years apart, and relearn to respect, depend on, and trust each other.
So the story is excellent, the characters are fascinating, and the writing is brilliant. But on top of that, this is the kind of book that really makes you think. There are so many thought-provoking scenes that shine light on issues like toxic masculinity, gender stereotypes and roles, masculinity vs femininity, marriage, love and loss, grief, and so much more. It’s the kind of read that sits with you and stays with you long after you finish it. And a special shout-out to Laertes for being a bright spot in an often dark story.
A massive amount of thanks to Orbit Books for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.
September 2, 2024
I just feel like I struggle to understand what the point of retelling a well-loved myth is to only gut it from the inside out and make a point that would have been better served through what the original myth held. I genuinely don’t understand the fascination in retellings of this myth in particular to completely erase the part of Penelope that loves her husband, and also erasing the clever acts that she actually does in the Odyssey, for acts that are ‘more cunning’, when they’re not? What is the merit behind Penelope raising an army of female soldiers who had been overlooked, when within the Odyssey, she is shown to be impressive through her ability to stand on her own? I just don’t understand many of the choices made, and the constant fourth wall-esq breaking where Athena as the narrator points out that ‘oh well the poets will tell you it this way, but I’ll tell you the truth’ was just odd, and it made it feel like North was actively shaking her fist at Homer and saying ‘fuck you, I can do it better.’ But I genuinely don’t feel like she did.
Is she a masterful storyteller? Yes, there are so many instances throughout this whole series where I’ve stopped and just stared into space after reading a particular line. But does that make me forgive the way she plays with these myths and seems to completely dismiss their souls in order for a ‘better, more accurate’ version? Absolutely not. I don’t understand the strange desire of her to make Penelope not love Odysseus in the slightest and to make Telemachus into a woman-hating boy (despite being raised in a female-only household???) who refuses to see logic and clings to his fantasies of what he believes a hero is.
Also I just genuinely didn’t enjoy Athena as a narrator, and it’s entirely because of the way she behaves with Odysseus, Penelope and Telemachus, where she’s just using them for her own gain, which doesn’t make sense in the slightest. I don’t enjoy the way the goddesses in these books have been portrayed as almost quite weak, with this happening with Athena because she relies upon Odysseus’ survival and his homecoming in order to remain relevant, which just doesn’t make sense at all? It’s just things like that which just really made this whole series that much more unenjoyable. I feel like if you don’t love the Odyssey or simply don’t care to read it, this might be a good introduction or maybe serve as a way for you to treat Odysseus as a punching bag, but I just can’t get behind it. The love I have for these characters is too much for me to like this series, because I just don’t agree with their treatment in the slightest.
I genuinely feel like if this book was written as its own concept where she drew inspiration from the narrative of the Odyssey, I would’ve been able to actually really enjoy this whole series, but instead I just felt like I was constantly bickering with the books and looking up in disbelief whenever something ridiculous was brought up from nowhere. It’s simply nothing like the Odyssey at all, and completely erased the heart of the Odyssey, and it just doesn’t sit right with me in the slightest.
Is she a masterful storyteller? Yes, there are so many instances throughout this whole series where I’ve stopped and just stared into space after reading a particular line. But does that make me forgive the way she plays with these myths and seems to completely dismiss their souls in order for a ‘better, more accurate’ version? Absolutely not. I don’t understand the strange desire of her to make Penelope not love Odysseus in the slightest and to make Telemachus into a woman-hating boy (despite being raised in a female-only household???) who refuses to see logic and clings to his fantasies of what he believes a hero is.
Also I just genuinely didn’t enjoy Athena as a narrator, and it’s entirely because of the way she behaves with Odysseus, Penelope and Telemachus, where she’s just using them for her own gain, which doesn’t make sense in the slightest. I don’t enjoy the way the goddesses in these books have been portrayed as almost quite weak, with this happening with Athena because she relies upon Odysseus’ survival and his homecoming in order to remain relevant, which just doesn’t make sense at all? It’s just things like that which just really made this whole series that much more unenjoyable. I feel like if you don’t love the Odyssey or simply don’t care to read it, this might be a good introduction or maybe serve as a way for you to treat Odysseus as a punching bag, but I just can’t get behind it. The love I have for these characters is too much for me to like this series, because I just don’t agree with their treatment in the slightest.
I genuinely feel like if this book was written as its own concept where she drew inspiration from the narrative of the Odyssey, I would’ve been able to actually really enjoy this whole series, but instead I just felt like I was constantly bickering with the books and looking up in disbelief whenever something ridiculous was brought up from nowhere. It’s simply nothing like the Odyssey at all, and completely erased the heart of the Odyssey, and it just doesn’t sit right with me in the slightest.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 13, 2024
An excellent end to an excellent series exploring the messages people have used the Greek myths for and taking a different spin on them often tackling the ways masculinity has been shown in them. A beautiful read taking surprising choices to end the series. Strongly recommended
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
Full review - https://www.runalongtheshelves.net/bl...
September 14, 2025
Un vrai coup de cœur cette saga, elle en vaut le détour❤️
July 30, 2024
A stunning end to Claire North's Song of Penelope trilogy - poetic, satirical, humane. One of those books that are so good it makes me consider revisiting recent books I've awarded five stars.
December 15, 2025
This book was absolutely beautiful. It was devastating and 1000% worth reading. I loved this interpretation of Penelope and Odysseus (even though Epic the musical version is top tier), Claire North's version felt very accurate to what she wrote this world to be like. I truly loved being in Athena's point of view, seeing how she reacted to all that was happening and how she grew and acknowledged the world for what it was.
If this weren't a library copy, I would have highlighted several pages, my favorites being pages 88-89, 239-240, almost all of page 251, 287-288, and so many more passages. Truly, any scene with Penelope and Odysseus had me yelling, the same for Telemachus.
Funniest off handed comments was on page 29 of Athena discussing all of the men that went with Ody' to Troy; One tripped and fell from the roof of the house of Circe in a manner that frankly even I struggle to find poetic valour in; some were plucked from their seats by many-headed Scylla as they rowed beneath her lair in the crashing cliffs. The rest drowned.
Pg 251; Penelope calling out Odysseus; "Perhaps my Odysseus died in Troy, and now you are come instead, a bloody, wretched ghost to take his place. Is a ghost my husband? What claim, I wonder, do the dead have on the living? Then again, it hardly matters if we are indeed to all did tonight, does it?'
Overall, I truly enjoyed all 3 of these books and look forward to having all of them on my bookshelf. It's a fantastic interpretation and I look forward to keeping an eye on whatever Claire North has out next.
If this weren't a library copy, I would have highlighted several pages, my favorites being pages 88-89, 239-240, almost all of page 251, 287-288, and so many more passages. Truly, any scene with Penelope and Odysseus had me yelling, the same for Telemachus.
Funniest off handed comments was on page 29 of Athena discussing all of the men that went with Ody' to Troy; One tripped and fell from the roof of the house of Circe in a manner that frankly even I struggle to find poetic valour in; some were plucked from their seats by many-headed Scylla as they rowed beneath her lair in the crashing cliffs. The rest drowned.
Pg 251; Penelope calling out Odysseus; "Perhaps my Odysseus died in Troy, and now you are come instead, a bloody, wretched ghost to take his place. Is a ghost my husband? What claim, I wonder, do the dead have on the living? Then again, it hardly matters if we are indeed to all did tonight, does it?'
Overall, I truly enjoyed all 3 of these books and look forward to having all of them on my bookshelf. It's a fantastic interpretation and I look forward to keeping an eye on whatever Claire North has out next.
July 8, 2024
nothing happy happened this entire book and that's fine but it was just not fun
August 2, 2024
I love womanhood.
November 8, 2024
-1 star for all the fighting (snooze) but solid ending
February 16, 2025
This book is my vindication that Odysseus is a loser
August 23, 2024
4.75 ⭐ rounded up
There is nothing so dangerous as the need to be loved, as the desire to be seen, to be held, to be known in all your failings and loved despite them all.
I am not someone who typically reads this genre. I actually need to be in the mood for it. However, when I do explore it, it never lets me down, and this book was no exception.
It was such a pleasure to catch up with Penelope and the people of Ithaca. This story was definitely an intriguing one. Odysseus' return and his struggle to regain control of his family, palace and home. Claire North crafted this story so brilliantly, complete with beautiful prose.
It's quotable and I really have a deep appreciation for the way it was written. Previously, in House of Odysseus. I struggled with that one a bit, finding it to be a bit slow in the middle. However, with this one, I was unable to put this one down. The story immediately grips you and you will find it hard to look away. I also really appreciate the little moments of humor to lighten the mood, in an otherwise very heavy book.
This is a tale not just of Odysseus' return but also of female strength, perseverance and unity. I got goosebumps reading this one and can say that is my favorite book in the series. A truly spectacular read.
Thank you to Netgalley, Little Brown Book Group UK and Claire North for my eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
There is nothing so dangerous as the need to be loved, as the desire to be seen, to be held, to be known in all your failings and loved despite them all.
I am not someone who typically reads this genre. I actually need to be in the mood for it. However, when I do explore it, it never lets me down, and this book was no exception.
It was such a pleasure to catch up with Penelope and the people of Ithaca. This story was definitely an intriguing one. Odysseus' return and his struggle to regain control of his family, palace and home. Claire North crafted this story so brilliantly, complete with beautiful prose.
It's quotable and I really have a deep appreciation for the way it was written. Previously, in House of Odysseus. I struggled with that one a bit, finding it to be a bit slow in the middle. However, with this one, I was unable to put this one down. The story immediately grips you and you will find it hard to look away. I also really appreciate the little moments of humor to lighten the mood, in an otherwise very heavy book.
This is a tale not just of Odysseus' return but also of female strength, perseverance and unity. I got goosebumps reading this one and can say that is my favorite book in the series. A truly spectacular read.
Thank you to Netgalley, Little Brown Book Group UK and Claire North for my eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.
June 30, 2024
This has been a truly enjoyable series to read and this finale lived up to my expectations - that last 10% was pretty great and kept me on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next.
The novel this time is told through Athena's point of view, and details how Penelope dealt with the return of her husband Odysseus. After lots of brutal murders and fighting, the two have to team up to ensure they continue to reign over their island. The character of their son Telemachus was extremely irritating and very well written to be like that after the last two novels. I felt very sad for Kenamon and how his story ended but I'm glad he left before the drama started.
Each novel in this trilogy was narrated by a different goddess but the authors sense of humour shined through them all and the way women were depicted was epic through them all.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Thank you to Netgalley, Little, Brown Book Group UK, and the author.
The novel this time is told through Athena's point of view, and details how Penelope dealt with the return of her husband Odysseus. After lots of brutal murders and fighting, the two have to team up to ensure they continue to reign over their island. The character of their son Telemachus was extremely irritating and very well written to be like that after the last two novels. I felt very sad for Kenamon and how his story ended but I'm glad he left before the drama started.
Each novel in this trilogy was narrated by a different goddess but the authors sense of humour shined through them all and the way women were depicted was epic through them all.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Thank you to Netgalley, Little, Brown Book Group UK, and the author.
June 23, 2024
“Nothing, I howl to the stars and sun, to the endless night and cruel breaking day. There is nothing so dangerous as the need to be loved, as the desire to be seen, to be held, to be known in all your failings and loved despite them all. Nothing as heart-cracking, as soul-sheering, as to love and be loved and be seen to laugh and seen to weep and known to be afraid and so away with it, let it be gone! It is cruel to be wise, and yet still to yearn”
Athena and her narration as a woman who is constantly repressing and is unable to properly express what she feels was so special to me actually.
The writing staying consistently beautiful - that scene with Penelope and Kenamon in the garden was so vividly described I could picture it so clearly and it had me welling up hard.
Marks the first time I’ve given a full trilogy five stars which is an achievement and a half given how steengy I am at giving them out. But much like when Craig Revel Horwood does it, you know when the full marks are given it means it was REALLY worth it.
Athena and her narration as a woman who is constantly repressing and is unable to properly express what she feels was so special to me actually.
The writing staying consistently beautiful - that scene with Penelope and Kenamon in the garden was so vividly described I could picture it so clearly and it had me welling up hard.
Marks the first time I’ve given a full trilogy five stars which is an achievement and a half given how steengy I am at giving them out. But much like when Craig Revel Horwood does it, you know when the full marks are given it means it was REALLY worth it.
May 22, 2025
I put off reading this final entry in The Songs of Penelope trilogy for several months. I knew Odysseus would come back, and I hate Odysseus. I also knew Athena was the narrator, and she's not my favorite goddess. I thought this would be a disappointing ending to the trilogy. I was wrong! This was glorious!
Yes, Odysseus returns, but this remains Penelope's story. Yes, there is a bloodbath with the suitors and some of the maids, but the book is so much more. Penelope is not what Odysseus expects, the situation on Ithaca is not what Odysseus expects, and we see his emotional journey in this book. But as always, we see the strength and brilliance of Penelope.
I have truly loved this entire series, and did not want it to end. I listened to the trilogy in audio, and know I will listen to it again at some point. It's that good.
Yes, Odysseus returns, but this remains Penelope's story. Yes, there is a bloodbath with the suitors and some of the maids, but the book is so much more. Penelope is not what Odysseus expects, the situation on Ithaca is not what Odysseus expects, and we see his emotional journey in this book. But as always, we see the strength and brilliance of Penelope.
I have truly loved this entire series, and did not want it to end. I listened to the trilogy in audio, and know I will listen to it again at some point. It's that good.
July 7, 2025
I enjoyed this series. Like the first book, this one also expects some background knowledge from the reader about Odysseus’ story. I think I enjoyed this one the most of all the books, because there is way more plot and feeling. I liked the idea of telling Odysseus’ story from a female perspective and also of telling Penelope’s story (which is not the same), although that part remains a bit superficial.
March 27, 2025
Finally a woman writes the women’s perspective on the 10 years past the Trojan War. Odysseus is told what an ignorant fool he actually is and Telemachus is confronted with the truth of being a spoiled, misogynist brat. One of the best series I’ve read concerning Ithaca.
September 1, 2024
This series is, for sure, one of my absolute favorite Greek retellings and having Athena narrate this final installment was perfect!
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