Murder at Mykenai

Odysseus #1

by Catherine Mayo

A voice slid like a knife into his ear. “You vermin,” it said. “In a moment you’ll be nothing, no more than a lump of dead meat. That will silence our little secret, won’t it?”

Friendship vs. treachery in Ancient Greece, a decade before the Trojan War. Menelaus, teenage son of the assassinated High King of Greece, Atreus, is skidding ever deeper into danger. Odysseus, his best friend, tries to help – but Odysseus’s great ideas have a tendency to backfire … Who should you trust when there is murder at Mycenae?

New Zealand author Catherine Mayo’s exciting debut book takes a fresh approach to Greek myths and legends, portraying the heroes of the Trojan War in their adolescent years. Young adult fiction readers and lovers of the Classics will be engrossed by this epic action-adventure Bronze Age novel, with its backdrop of political scheming and mystery.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Historical

233 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 2013

About the author

Catherine Mayo grew up in Auckland and was a compulsive reader and dreamer. With academics in her DNA (her dad was a research scientist and her grandfather a professor of philosophy) it was taken for granted she would follow the same path. She studied many things at Auckland University - history, philosophy, geology, French, music, performance violin and art history - before life took an unexpected turn and she began an apprenticeship in violin-making and restoration. About 10 years ago she started writing, urged on by the stories and dreams that filled her head since she was a child. She has since won several prizes in short story competitions. Murder at Mykenai is her first book.

Reviews

[Lorraine Orman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's the first book by this New Zealand author - here's hoping she's working on her next one! I thoroughly enjoyed reading a historical YA book instead of the usual paranormal stuff - it's set during the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, and focuses on the friendship between the young princes Menelaos and Odysseus. A great read for teens who like something a bit different.

[Nancy Eisenberg · Rating 4 out of 5]

My daughter and I both found it hard to put this book down. She's a mature reader, so even though she's 11, she doesn't recommend it for readers under 13. Zoe's review:

‘Murder at Mykenai’ is a very good book, set in Greece a bit before the Trojan War. It is about two boys, Odysseus and Menelaos. Odysseus is the mischevious son of Laertes, King of Ithaka, while Menelaos is the second son of Atreus, King of Mykenai. Menelaos lives in his older brother, Agamemnon’s shadow. The boys meet on the palace roof and become friends.

One night, Menelaos’s uncle, Thyestes, returns from his exile to beg King Atreus’s forgiveness. It is granted. During the three nights of celebration, Atreus is hacked to pieces in his bed while he sleeps. Thyestes claims the throne, despite Agamemnon being the dead King’s heir. Menelaos is forced to flee with his brother as Thyestes begins murdering anyone who might unseat him. Odysseus rushes to his friend’s aid, and together they descend into a maze of lies, secrets, and betrayal.

I recommend this book to teenage readers because it is a bit too violent for the younger ones. This book is a mix of ‘My story’ which are historical and tragic, and ‘Percy Jackson.’

[Alison · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book would have been really excellent, except I just don't know who I could recommend it to. At first it was a brilliant murder/mystery-action/adventure-historical fiction novel, and one that I wouldn't have hesitated to recommend to students from year 6-8. And then the author went down a path that means I would hesitate to give it to anyone that age.
The rape. What the hell? This book would have been great without the element of the emotional, physical AND sexual assault that one character subjects another to. I was horrified reading it. I can understand it as a plot device. I can even accept that this is something that may have happened a lot during the time period (that still happens now). But I cannot understand including it in a book that seems aimed at 12-14 year olds. Not appropriate, in my mind. And what happens to the rapist? *shudders*

This book has become the one I use to demonstrate how a seemingly appropriate and good novel can actually hold wildly inappropriate, violent and confronting scenes. Unfortunately, it went from a book I was really interested in to something I actively don't recommend, and even advise others to be wary of. Really disappointing. And, to my mind, inappropriate.

[Natasha Lumley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have an expanding love for ancient greece and other empires of the past. So this book was an instant attraction. However, the book turned out to be fairly disappointing.
The quality of writing was excellent however the storyline didn't have much depth. I thought this book would turn out to be a great mystery but no plot twist was delivered. The book just plateaued more or less. This book could have been taken in so many different directions but failed to be anything more than ordinary.
To conclude on a positive note, I did love the characters and the friendship between Odysseus and Menalaos was very moving. Their relationship kept me reading the book brought my rating up to a 3/5.

[Klee · Rating 3 out of 5]

“His life is a thread that fate could snap at any moment … Use your breath to pray. Not much else will help.”

Got to give props, kiwi author, debut, writing a retelling about Greek myth! Multiple reasons why I picked this one up.

This is the story of the friendship, pre-Helen and Trojan War, between Odysseus and Menelaus. It is set in the Bronze Age in Greece. This book could quite comfortably fall into the YA category (although it requires it's trigger warnings - because of course, the Greek weren't known for their placid, non-violent nature). This is ancient history brought to life.

My main criticisms is some of the vernacular didn't feel right, example, some was called a "nincompoop". The genre in itself is also hard to pin down - historical fiction but also a bit of mystery / murder / revenge.

[Books and Pans · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was really enjoying this novel, up until the rape scene. Prior to that, the author did such a great job setting the scene, developing an engaging plot and found a great voice for well known characters.

After the rape scene however, I feel like the story lost itself. It changed from being a thrilling tale of adventure and friendship, instead transforming into a story about a survivor. Which honestly, seemed like it came from nowhere.

I was really hoping we would see Agamemnon get back to Mykenai and reclaim his throne, but the story seemed to take a bit of a turn in direction.

Otherwise, the writing was really good and the light humour was welcome.

[Zoe Green · Rating 2 out of 5]

Couldn’t help but compare this to Madeline Miller’s fantastic novels (also based on Greek mythology), but kept reminding myself that it is targeted at younger audiences, hence the different style of writing and tone, but then the rape scene/situation occurred and the story changed dramatically and I could no longer think this was aimed at early teens??
Just didn’t really enjoy this one, though it is clear it’s well researched and does have somewhat of an engaging storyline.

[Penny Geard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this in my reading vlog here: https://youtu.be/l1MH_8NR_5Y

This was both more simple and more dark than I was expecting. But I shouldn't have been surprised given the target market and the source material. But I enjoyed getting a different perspective of these well-known greek heroes when they were teenagers, and I thought the darker elements were well handled.

[R2B2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was interesting. Good read

[Ethel Clark-Kistowski · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars: Well researched historical fiction exploring an obscure period prior to the Trojan War. Interesting exploration of gender despite the lack of female characters. Its not really a kids book however, so be aware. Content Warning: Rape and Child Abuse

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great pace, character development, and sense of time and place. I particularly liked the domestic detail and coming to understand the different characters' motivations. Set in the Bronze Age , it's complex political story, with a trusted Egyptian slave, uneasy alliances between kingdoms and an untrustworthy pair of spies, were intriguing. Plus the training of the two young boys, when it's by the caring and sympathetic older characters, gives a really interesting glimpse into how those enormous armies and the civilisations they supported were built.
There's traumatic physical and emotional abuse of one of the boys by a male relative, so it's not for very young readers, but those scenes are not gratuitous, they're thoughtfully managed.
All in all, I look forward to Book 2.

[Glenn Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a superb first book from Catherine Mayo. A wonderful blend of ancient Greek history and action in a tale that sees Menelaos and his friend Odysseus caught up in the assassination of a high king. The fact that the king happens to be Menelaos's dad adds to the drama and the plot races along as the treachery and intrigue surrounding the assassination twists and turns. At its heart though this is a story of the boy's burgeoning friendship and this is well handled and compelling. I found the prose descriptive and engaging and I look forward to the next book.

[Abbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

You think you know the Greek heroes of the Trojan war? Check them out when they're teens!

The first book in the series is fantastic reading. The characters are all true to what I imagined them to be from my readings of Homer's work and the details of places and objects are accurate to as much as they can be without describing something to within an inch of someone's boredom.
Can't wait for Book 2!

[Gillian Torckler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think this book was lost on me- I have almost no understanding of Greek history and as a result, this very well researched book didn't engage me as it has clearly engaged others. I'm sure if you are into Greek history, you will look it. It is well written and the story is believable.

[Josie · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book is a very thinly veiled comment on/tribute to child sexual abuse victims. Which is not to belittle sexual abuse victims, but it makes the book feel like a simple vehicle for making a statement about it, distracting from the actual story.

[Veronica Bagley · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF