The Mask of Apollo

by Mary Renault

Set in fourth-century B.C. Greece, The Mask of Apollo is narrated by Nikeratos, a tragic actor who takes with him on all his travels a gold mask of Apollo, a relic of the theater's golden age, which is now past. At first his mascot, the mask gradually becomes his conscience, and he refers to it his gravest decisions, when he finds himself at the center of a political crisis in which the philosopher Plato is also involved. Much of the action is set in Syracuse, where Plato's friend Dion is trying to persuade the young tyrant Dionysios the Younger to accept the rule of law. Through Nikeratos' eyes, the reader watches as the clash between the two looses all the pent-up violence in the city.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, Mythology, Classics, Greece, Greek Mythology

404 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Mary Renault was an English writer best known for her historical novels set in Ancient Greece. In addition to vivid fictional portrayals of Theseus, Socrates, Plato and Alexander the Great, she wrote a non-fiction biography of Alexander.

Her historical novels are all set in ancient Greece. They include a pair of novels about the mythological hero Theseus and a trilogy about the career of Alexander the Great. In a sense, The Charioteer (1953), the story of two young gay servicemen in the 1940s who try to model their relationship on the ideals expressed in Plato's Phaedrus and Symposium, is a warm-up for Renault's historical novels. By turning away from the 20th century and focusing on stories about male lovers in the warrior societies of ancient Greece, Renault no longer had to deal with homosexuality and anti-gay prejudice as social "problems". Instead she was free to focus on larger ethical and philosophical concerns, while examining the nature of love and leadership. The Charioteer could not be published in the U.S. until 1959, after the success of The Last of the Wine proved that American readers and critics would accept a serious gay love story.

Reviews

[Henry Avila · Rating 4 out of 5]

Knowledge of ancient Greek theater or if you prefer theatre ( blame the different spelling on American Noah Webster) may to many seem trivial pursuit in the modern world of cell phones, the internet and high tech Broadway plays more like special effects films than a live performance. However the remote beginnings of anything has a certain charm others call it quaintness, not I. To learn is to be human, darkness is just the lack of light....Back to our novel by Britisher Mary Renault; she was fascinated by the Greek people of long ago, the customs, culture and philosophers...yes and wars, before Alexander the Great conquered the quarrelsome city states never united... their weakness and ultimate destruction. Nikeratos a young actor in Athens his late father was one too so at a very early age became this, truth be said he had no choice. In the 4th century B.C. Greek actors wore masks on stage to play different roles, since women weren't allowed men wore them for characters both male or female, old and young , the problems increased because just three actors were permitted to speak with the exception of an extra a fourth who rarely did. Versatility was paramount for a successful thespian amidst all the many nonspeaking performers including the famous Greek chorus and musicians in an oval shaped outdoors amphitheater a structure for acoustics... some holding upwards of 15,000 enthusiastic viewers... Famous historical figures in the narrative are portrait warts and all such as Plato and his fabled Athens academy, Aristotle, Alexander the Great, Dion the Syracuse, Sicily ruler liberating the city from the tyrants Dionysios the Elder and even worst successor the son....Dionysios the Younger yet power destroys noble intentions. We are shown Delphi, the Olympics in Olympia the huge crowds and corruptions as Nikeratos tours the Greek cities around the Mediterranean Sea though shipwrecks are common, with fellow actors, gets involved with the conflicts and politics in Syracuse that Plato tries to solve there unsuccessfully, Dion was a disciple of his. Nevertheless things spiral out of control the old hates surface and the killings follow, the ground becomes soaked in red like it always does . Nikeratos is disillusioned... theory and reality seldom work. Still the career prospers, his skills become well known while not getting rich ( no twenty million dollar wages) unlike today, he is comfortable why risk his life on dirty politics? If you are curious about ancient Greece the fine writer will take you there....Oh I almost forgot...the intriguing mask of Apollo from the title, Nikeratos seldom wears on stage develops into a good luck token for his dangerous travels...

[mark monday · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's go back in time with the esteemed Mary Renault... back to Ancient Greece! Where people thought and battles were fought and women were seldom seen and men were busy being gay with each other. Renault provides an amiable and sympathetic protagonist, the actor Nikeratos, witness to the palace intrigues of Syracuse in Sicily, acquaintance to lord of philosophy Plato and austere, stoical Dion and wretched idiot King Dionysios the Younger. Although much of the book details Nikeratos' day to day life moving up the ranks of tragic actors, as he travels through various nation-states of ancient Greece and Sicily, those anecdotes are more the context provided than the actual purpose of the story.

This is a novel about ideas and conversation and whether art should reflect baseness or should aim higher and whether philosophy should impact government and what makes a good ruler. It is like Renault wrote this while reflecting upon and then mourning the lack of true intelligence (let alone dignity) in world leaders. Her prose is deliberate, sure of its effects, and subtle with the many points she is making. Renault telegraphs nothing, which is particularly laudable given that this is based on historical figures. Her descriptive powers are also excellent - it was very easy to imagine myself in this setting. Those powers were given a showcase near the end, during the sole sequence where lives may be in danger. Her description of the slaughter of Syracusians at the hands of mercenaries while our hero and a friend think outside of the box in saving themselves was a riveting, tense, and surprising sequence.

If there is a flaw in this otherwise splendid experience, it is the lack of women. That is, outside of our hero's friend Axiothea, a fantastic character: a student of Plato who disguised herself as a lad to enter his school and a person who throws herself into danger to support a good cause. In one amusing scene, Nikeratos is chagrined to learn that the fetching young man he's been drooling over is actually, in the modern parlance, a sporty lesbian. (Been there.) Besides Axiothea, women are basically off-page, which is a disappointment because that mainly leaves out anything to do with the interesting and tragic Arete - Dion's wife and Dionysus II's sister, subject of a painting by Perrin. Still, the book is excellent. A rich experience, carefully paced, deeply characterized, and dense with ideas. Full of philosophy to consider, ways of life to imagine, ways of being to ponder, and dudes who spend their free time banging each other.

[John Nevola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Most of the poor reviews for this book are from disgruntled schoolchildren forced to read it as a mandatory assignment. One must have a taste for this period and a desire to learn more about it before it could be fully appreciated.

Mary Renault immerses the reader in the art, culture, habits and times of ancient Greece. Told through the eyes and thoughts of an actor (all of whom wore masks on stage), Renault tells of the conflicts between logic and passion, good and evil and power and weakness. She does that so convincingly, one might suspect she stepped out of a time machine from that period.

[Clif Hostetler · Rating 3 out of 5]

This historical novel is set in Ancient Greece circa 360 to 340 BC toward the end of Plato's life and the beginning of Alexander the Great's life. The story is told in the first-person voice of a fictional character who is an actor. His theatrical profession leads him to travel through various parts of the Greek world and particularly between Athens and Syracuse. His life seems to always intersect with several historical characters and becomes a witness to the political conflicts of the time, particularly those of Syracuse. He is witness the death of Dionysius the Elder, the succession of Dionysios the Younger, and the rise to power and eventual assassination of Dion of Syracuse.

Plato not only wrote about what he considered to be the ideal city-state governance, he was quite willing to try to apply his philosophy to political practice. When Dionysius II came to power in Syracuse he traveled to Syracuse to mentor the new ruler on how to be the ideal "philosopher king." Things didn't work out as hoped. According this this story Plato came close to being assassinated by mercenary soldiers because they believed he was responsible for their reduction in pay (an early manifestation of the military-industrial-complex driving politics).

Near the end of the book this story's protagonist crosses paths with a young fourteen year old Alexander the Great and together they discuss the Iliad. The young Alexander indicates that in the future he plans to give an offering at the tomb of Achilles which is located in Asia and at the time controlled by Persia. Thus it's clear that this young man knows where his future will lead.

[Simon Mcleish · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Mask of Apollo is one of my favourite straight historical novels (using the word "straight" to distinguish it from crossover historical crime novels, which seem to have taken over fiction set in the past since the sixties).

Set in the fourth century BC, the narrator of the novel is a notable Athenian actor named Nikeratos, who travels to Syracuse (then a Greek city) and accidentally becomes involved with the city state's turbulent politics. Syracuse was ruled by a tyrant, Dionysius, who is dying as Nikeratos approaches the city from the sea, fresh from a triumph in Athens with a play written by the ruler himself. The problem is with his successor. Dionysius had a son, also named Dionysius, but kept him from any semblance of power during his lifetime , leaving him lacking in both judgement and confidence. He also has a nephew, Dion, who is highly respected and who was given many privileges by his uncle (including the right to appear in his presence armed, something no one else was allowed to do). But even so Dion is not likely to be named as the successor over Dionysius' own son, nor (with his suspicious involvement with the foreign "sophist" Plato) popular with other powerful figures in the Syracusan court.

The combination of theatre and politics works well. Renault makes Nikeratos a character based on ideas of what an important actor manager would be like in the twentieth century, a Terry or someone from that kind of acting family. I don't normally like the use of characters with a modern outlook in historical novels, but here it seems to fit in with the background. This is partly because nothing is really known about what an ancient Greek theatrical production was like backstage, and it seems likely that the concerns of actors then were similar to those of actors today: gossip about other people in the profession, upstaging and working together, the audience's lack of understanding, and, of course, sex. And in other ways, the character is not at all contemporary. Nikeratos is a proper pagan Greek, who believes that an old fashioned mask of Apollo given to him by another actor is periodically inhabited by the spirit of the god, and treats it as a kind of shrine.

The Mask of Apollo could be considered an archetypical historical novel. It is narrated by an (imaginary) character at the centre of a series of interesting historical events, who knows people the reader may well have heard of (Plato, Dionysius father and son, Dion; Aristotle and Philip of Macedon - the father of Alexander the Great - are also mentioned). Nikeratos isn't interested in politics, and becomes involved with the Syracusan power struggles unwillingly - and this is useful to the story, because he constantly needs things explained to him which would not be needed by a more involved politician but are going to also be unfamiliar to many readers. The history of Greek Syracuse is probably not terribly well known today, but it is eventful and has fascinating characters, so makes an excellent choice of subject for a historical novel. It also balances out the much better known Athenian characters (Plato in particular, as someone whose influence on the development of European culture is immense), even though Nikeratos is himself from that city. And even in the parts of the book set in Athens, Renault manages to combine the relatively unfamiliar with things which are much more likely to be obscure or unknown to a modern reader.

The background is meticulously researched yet made accessible to the reader without becoming a series of lectures on the ancient Greek way of life. In fact, I would say that the novel is one of the very greatest of its type, not just one I like personally. Renault does not indulge in the kind of literary games which can be seen in The French Lieutenant's Woman, almost contemporary, but still achieves a literate power without this postmodern slant.

One of the themes explored by the novel is the nature of personal pagan religious feeling. Nikeratos' attitude to the mask is one of several examples of devotion to a god or goddess to whom an individual worshipper feels a particular affinity. This is striking as it is a major difference to today's largely secular western world, where even those who attend places of worship tend to separate off their everyday life from their religious observances; the chosen deity was a major part of the worshipper's daily life, with an idol (like the mask) as a focus for the relationship. Evangelical Christians talk about a personal God, but the very fact of monotheistic belief makes this God seem much more remote and unconcerned than one who is a patron of your profession, or shares your name; and the Protestant history of deism (a God who is relatively uninvolved with His creation) in their theology makes this remoteness even greater. Ignoring the issue of whether or not either the pagan or Christian gods are real, this seems to me to be less appealing to the imagination.

So The Mask of Apollo is interesting, readable, thought provoking, well researched, and has good characters.

[Terry · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I am not sure if you could find a better, or more entertaining, tour guide to ancient Greece than Mary Renault. I am constantly surprised by Renault’s ability to balance the fine line between immersing me in a world that is ultimately foreign to my own, and yet one that still often feels surprisingly ‘modern’ and relatable given the era in which the stories are set. I never feel, on the one hand, as though the ancient Greece she has created is simply our world doing cosplay, and yet on the other hand (due largely, I think, to the urban - and urbane - nature of the protagonists and their world) I often find myself feeling very much at home here in spite the many obvious differences between our cultures and the gulf of time that separates us.

In this outing we are once again in the environs of Athens during the classical period (this time after the trials of the Peloponnesian War and just prior to the emergence of Macedon as a great power). Our story is that of Nikeratos, a tragedian of Athens whom we follow as he not only learns his trade, but also navigates some of the shaky political events of his day. It is also the story of the rise and fall of Dion, nobleman of Syracuse and sometime pupil of Plato, as he attempts to free his city from the grip of tyranny and institute the just maxims of his former teacher.

Nikeratos, or Niko, is a man born and bred to the theatre. Following in the footsteps of his father, Niko moves from being a mere extra to ascending the ranks of his profession until he is one of the leading tragedians of his day. Renault also leavens her story with a small bit of the supernatural (something not uncommon in her work, though never an overstated element) in the form of an antique mask of Apollo Niko comes to own. Through this mask Niko is sometimes touched by the god and inspired to acts that tend to further his career and reputation. In one such act Niko defies death at the hands of a jealous fellow actor to ensure that ‘the play goes on’ and as a result gains the adulation of the public and the notice of the upright and pious nobleman Dion. In a lesser writer of historical fiction the two would now become the best of friends, or perhaps lovers, and Niko would be dead centre in the political struggles of Syracuse in which Dion was to play such a large role. Renault, however, plays it slightly differently. To be sure Niko and Dion form a strong bond, Niko himself being somewhat overcome by the noble and virtuous character of the nobleman from Syracuse, but he generally remains a peripheral figure in Dion’s life…one who does participate in important events from time to time due to this connection (sometimes merely as a witness and at others as a peripheral participant), but who still more or less stands at the edge of these history-shaping events, watching from the outside.

I think Renault thus manages to balance the desire (or even need) of a writer of historical fiction to have her characters partake in the great events of history as they have come down to us, and even to hob-nob with some of the most famous personages of the day (Plato, and both Dionysios I and II, tyrants of Syracuse, are examples of such people that Niko meets in this book) without making the connection seem too forced (at least in my opinion). For the most part we remain very much grounded in Niko’s day to day life as an actor even as we circle the periphery of the ‘great events’ going on around him.

Renault had already written Sokrates into her novel The Last of the Wine and Aristotle and his influence would later feature in the Alexander trilogy, but here she scores a trifecta of famous philosophers, having Plato play a significant role in the attempts to rehabilitate the tyrants of Syracuse at the behest of his friend and former pupil Dion, with numerous mentions of his mentor and role model Sokrates, and even a walk-on by Aristotle (Aristoteles here) at small points in the story. I found this, in addition to Renault’s creative attempt to re-imagine the details of the life of ancient Greek theatre, to be entertaining elements of the story. This important role given to these foundational thinkers of western thought has allowed Renault to ruminate somewhat not only on their theories, but on their real-world application. Since our viewpoint character Niko very much views the life of the Academy from the outside, whatever his friendships with its members, one might say that she is thus able to view these tenets in an almost neutral way. Renault’s voice, as uttered by her characters, is always erudite and well-spoken and I found myself enjoying such gems as:

I thought, Perhaps it is impossible for a philosopher to be a king – at any rate, to be both at once. Perhaps that is only for the god

a response to Plato’s The Republic (a work whose precepts very much infuse the novel) with which I heartily concur; not to mention:

We are weary of ourselves, and have dreamed a king. If now the gods have sent us one, let us not ask him to be more than mortal.

or

Now he had all which if he had sunk his soul to evil could have made him glad. Old Dionysios had had it and died content. He suffered because he had loved the good, and still longed after it.

which both speak to the difficult political realities incumbent upon a king that may render even the best of intentions moot in the end.

Renault’s great love (one might even say worship) of Alexander shines through in an amusing scene at the end of the novel which also speaks to the power of art to move our souls and shape our lives in ways that can be both unexpected and transformative (a fact of which readers are acutely aware, I know I am always in search of such works):

It seemed that the god had said to me, “Speak for me, Nikeratos. Someone’s soul is listening.” Someone’s always is, I suppose, if one only knew. Plato never forgot it.

[Kuszma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ha egy görögökről szóló jó történelmi regény ismérve, hogy az ember egy picit görög akar lenni utána, akkor ez egy jó történelmi regény. Mary Renault a műfaj klasszikus hagyományaiból építkezik – regénye egyfelől útikönyv egy eltűnt időről és helyről, gusztusos időutazás, másfelől pedig egy jelentős (bár nem feltétlenül közismert) történelmi esemény eredeti interpretációja. És nem mellesleg celebspotting, amiben a jelenkori olvasó belebámulhat bizonyos azóta elporladt hírességek sorsába is. E könyv fő celebje maga Platón, a cselekmény gócpontjában pedig az áll, ahogy a kaporszakállú bölcs megkísérli filozófiai elméletét az államról a valóságba integrálni, és a vajgerincű, gyenge jellemű szicíliai zsarnok, Dionüsziosz mentoraként kialakítani a tökéletes kormányzatot. Itt már tetten érhető a kötet első ellentétpárja: a letisztult filozófia meg a racionális ész áll szemben az egyéni gyarlósággal, no meg a politikai machinációk, a kétszínűség futóhomokjával. Akik vettek részt ókortörténeti vagy filozófiai szigorlaton, talán emlékeznek, sikeres volt-e a platóni nekifeszülés, a többieknek meg elspoilerezem: nem. Hihetetlenül érdekes téma, remek diktátor-arckép, sallangmentes ábrázolása annak, mit tesz a hatalom az ember lelkével, és hogy rágja le róla mindazt, amit a jó szándéknak addig sikerült felépítenie.

Mindez azonban csak egy lyukas garast érne (lyukatlant semmiképp), ha az elbeszélő személye nem lenne ilyen jól megcsinálva. Renault hőse Nikératosz, aki athéni és aki színész – ezzel a két jelzővel pedig a szerző újabb ellentéteket is beemel a szövegbe. Egyfelől Nikératosz athéniként demokrata, és ösztönösen ellenérzésekkel viseltetik a zsarnokság mindenféle megnyilvánulása iránt (igen, még Platón esetleges zsarnoksága iránt is), másfelől meg színész, ami azért is praktikus, mert így 1.) van ürügye végigturnézni az akkori ismert világot 2.) módot ad Renaultnak arra, hogy fitogtathassa széles körű tudását a korszak színművészetéről, amely színművészet baromi érdekes dolog ám. De ami a legfontosabb: Nikératosz emellett talpig becsületes is, mentes az irigységtől, elkötelezett mind barátai, mind hivatása iránt – és ha ez a két elköteleződés szembe kerül egymással, akkor nem rest bátor döntést hozni, olyat, ami ha kényelmetlen vagy veszedelmes is, de mindig felismerni benne a lelkiismeret parancsát. Minden ízében szimpatikus fazon, én nagyon bírtam.

Jól össze van rakva a könyv, számos olyan síkot futtat, amiben öröm volt elmerülni. Ahogy az egyszeri moly-értékelő mondaná: „fogok még a szerzőtől olvasni”.

[Xia and the Giant TBR · Rating 5 out of 5]

Review later because I am so emotional right now I can't even...
And those last two chapters... gah!



Thanks a lot for the buddy read, Teal!

[Raquel Estebaran · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una novela ambientada en la Grecia antigua, en torno al s. IV a.C. narrada por Nicerato, un personaje ficticio, a modo de memorias. Nicerato es un exitoso actor de tragedias que en sus viajes ejerciendo su profesión se involucra y es testigo de los conflictos ocurridos en la ciudad de Siracusa, y tiene relación con figuras históricas de la época, como Platón, Dionisio el joven o Dión de Siracusa.

Una historia apasionante e inmersiva con una prosa muy bella y un protagonista que nos hace integrarnos en la vida cotidiana de la época, nos muestra el funcionamiento del mundo del teatro y su relación con su Dios, Apolo, con el que se comunica a través de su máscara teatral, mientras observa acontecimientos en los que participa de manera tangencial.

Muy buena novela.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the fourth century B.C. a gifted actor of tragedy, Nikeratos becomes involved with Plato and the fateful events which culminate in the bloody struggle for the city of Syracuse.



All across the Isthmus cities were being captured and freed in alternating times. Armies marched where they willed.
People are always saying what fine free lives we actors lead, able to cross frontiers and go anywhere. This is true, if it means that hired troops have nothing against us, and others respect the sacred edicts. You are likely enough to get where you are going with a whole skin, and can count there on roof and food at least from your choregos, always provided this sponsor is alive, and not exiled overnight. But for a company working its own way, to arrive is hardly enough, if you find that the men have taken to the hills, the women have battened themselves inside the houses, while a squadron of cavalry has hitched its horses in the orchestra and is chopping up the skene for cook-fires.



While performing at Phigeleia the theater was invaded by some oligarchs from Sparta.
Standing upstage center by the royal door, I was looking out beyond the theater at the hillside it was carved from. Suddenly I noticed a crowd of men coming down towards it. My first thought was that the citizens of some neighbor town had come to see the play, and got here late. When I saw they all had spears and shields I still did not think much of it, supposing they were going to do a war dance at the festival. Looking back, I find this simplicity hard to credit; but when you work in Athens, you get to thinking the world stops still for a play.
Lamprias went on with his speech; the men got nearer, till suddenly, down in the orchestra, one of the chorus gave a yell and pointed upward. The audience stared, first at him, then where he was pointing. Then chaos began.



Before meeting the tyrant Dionysios of Syracuse, Nikeratos worried.
“Leave me out,” I said. “He might want to read us one of his odes, as he did to Philoxenos the poet. He was asked for his opinion, gave it, and got a week in the quarries to mend his taste. Then he was forgiven and asked to supper. When he saw the scrolls coming out again, he clapped his hands for the guard and said, ‘Back to the quarry!’”

Nikeratos is on the sidelines of history as he sees the great men with their armies or philosophies strive to change the world. For lovers of Greek history this story is enthralling.


Enjoy!

[Alicja · Rating 5 out of 5]

rating: 5.5/5

I'm awestruck. In short, this is an (ancient Greek) political thriller. It is probably my new favorite from Mary Renault (although I always get excited when I pick up one of her books); I just couldn’t put in down. For days I carried it with me everywhere, reading every free moment I could find.

Nikeratos (Niko), a 4th century B.C. Greek tragic actor finds himself in a middle of a political drama involving among others the famous Plato and Dion. He carries with him a mask of Apollo, an old relic from the past as he travels performing (and carrying secret messages for political leaders).

Niko is such a wonderful fictional character; through his eyes we see city-states, ideas of democracy vs. tyranny, politicians, philosophers, and culture clash. Niko is born into a theatrical family, acting the only vocation he knows; it is his life. But being an actor in ancient Greece gave him the ability to freely travel between cities, bringing him straight into a the middle of a political drama which he never wanted to be a part (he never claimed to know anything about politics which is great for us because we get everything explained). He meets amazingly drawn historical figures such as Plato, Dion, Dionysios (elder and son) as they play for power and rule.

Filled with philosophical and political ideas (Plato’s) and a continuous questioning, this novel is a heavy read. I think I may need to read Plato’s Symposium and then re-read this one to have an even better understanding of the depth of issues brought to the reader. Also, there is a slight tie in with the Alexander the Great trilogy that is really amazing, putting the happenings of this novel within an even greater historical context.

Renault’s beautiful style of writing is present throughout; she seamlessly weaves descriptions of the ancient world with personal interactions/relationships. Her characters are real, complex, and compelling. They also give insight and deeper cultural understanding of ancient Greece and the vast differences between the city states. Among all this, she brings the ancient theatre to life and a perspective on acting that is unique.

[S. ≽^•⩊•^≼ I'm not here yet · Rating 3 out of 5]

A beautiful book about theater and an actor in 400 BC. I had pictured an exciting and adventure story before I started reading it. BUT, this was more history than I expected with a slow narrative and more or less similar to Plato's books, it was hard for me to finish it. However, I don't say any negative traits about this book, just I had imagined a different story.

[Txe Polon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Espléndida novela histórica, con una maravillosa ambientación y una interesantísima aproximación a los entresijos de las representaciones teatrales griegas. Personalmente me han interesado mucho más los pasajes relacionados con el desarrollo del protagonista y su visión teatral del mundo que los pasajes en torno a las cuestiones políticas de Siracusa, pero no es que sean malos pasajes. Y el final también me parece muy bueno.

[Cody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Niko, that is all.

[Liam Ostermann · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was immensely pleased that this novel has attracted, as of May 2025, over 200+ reviews on GR, rather a good total for a novel published in 1966 and not on a school curriculum. It is not even one of the author's better known works, but it is very, very good. I, like many readers of Mary Renault, came to her via her trilogy about Alexander the Great and his times, and I am old enough to remember being shocked that I could buy a book all about 'homosexuals' in a paperback in a corner newsagents (this was the 1970s I was a teenager but of an innocence inexplicable to anybody today). Of course reading 'The Persian Boy' was a revelation in terms of subject matter it was definitely short on the details I would have liked, I should have sought on the novels of Gordon Merrick but they definitely weren't sold in the newsagents of 1970s Dublin, at least not the ones I knew.

What 'The Persian Boy' had and which I have subsequently encountered in all the works of Mary Renault is a distinctive authorial voice and a depth of knowledge about, and sympathetic understanding, of ancient Greece, its culture and history. Her books are often praised for their detail but I would say that they are mercifully free of detail but suffused with atmosphere. There is nothing worse, for me, then those long fact-packed historical novels were you can feel the author forcing a vast amount of undigested research into the narrative to justify the no doubt excruciatingly dull hours spent gathering it.

'The Mask of Apollo' brings to life both the theatre, religion and history of Greece in the years post the overthrow of the 'Thirty Tyrants' up to the rise of Macedonia under Philip II. It is largely viewed through the interactions around Nikeratos, a fictional actor; Dion, brother-in-law of Dionysius I and his son Dionysius II, both tyrants of Syracuse; Plato, the Academy in Athens and on until an appearance near the end of a young Alexander and Hephaestion. That most or all of the real people may be unknown to you is utterly irrelevant. Mary Renault writes them as real people but, unlike many authors today, she writes them as ancient Greeks not as modern characters in an ancient setting.

I am sure that a modern historian of classical Greece will have quibbles with aspects of the story told in 'The Mask of Apollo' no author escapes the knowledge or limitations of their times. What is extraordinary is how readable and broadly true and sympathetic Renault's novels are. Having read many novels I can assure you that the number of novels that are worth reading after ten or twenty years, never mind fifty or sixty, is tiny. That so many of Renault's novels take a relaxed attitude, indeed an accepting attitude towards men having sex/falling in love with other men is praise worthy both for the time they were written and even now. Renault's novels are now often referred to as 'gay' but that is not really accurate. She was trying to represent Greece as it was, in a period before Christianity and before concepts like 'normal' had been thought of.

It is easy to say too much about the novels of Renault. The important thing is to read them. They are a delight and I can only hope that this poor review will encourage some of you to discover this or any of her marvellous novels.

[Jack Massa · Rating 5 out of 5]

In one quintessentially Greek moment from this superb novel, the narrator recalls the story of a father of two Olympic champions. At the moment when his sons are crowned, the crowd chants to him to "Die now," because, of course, no moment of his life could ever again be so good.

So, in finishing The Mask of Apollo am I tempted to chant to myself: "Give up reading historical fiction now."

'Nuff said.

[Christin · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first venture into non-Alexander Mary Renault. I can't help but be sucked in by the first page. Something about her work... it just takes you by the hand and gently leads you into the world and you never ever want to leave. At least, I don't.

[Gary · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's taken me a while to write this review, mostly because I'm not confident that I can really do this book justice. My first attempt devolved into a series of gushy praise, so I figured I'd best get a little distance before giving it another go....

Rather than leap into a bunch of blind admiration, I’m going to let you decide for yourself why Mary Renault’s version of Greek history through literature is worth reading. This is the speech attributed to Dion by Plutarch before the battle to retake Syracuse, and a little of Plutarch's narrative. I have no doubt Ms. Renault read her Plutarch–her scholarship is without question–as one of the core reasons she wrote this book:

“Men of Peloponnesus and of the confederacy, I asked for your presence here, that you might consider your own interests. For myself, I have no interests to consult while Syracuse is perishing, and, though I may not save it from destruction, I will nevertheless hasten thither, and be buried in the ruins of my country. Yet if you can find in your hearts to assist us, the most inconsiderate and unfortunate of men, you may to your eternal honor again retrieve this unhappy city. But if the Syracusans can obtain no more pity nor relief from you, may the gods reward you for what you have formerly valiantly done for them, and for your kindness to Dion, of whom speak hereafter as one who deserted you not when you were injured and abused, nor afterwards forsook his fellow-citizens in their afflictions and misfortunes.”

Before he had yet ended his speech, the soldiers leapt up, and with a great shout testified their readiness for the service, crying out, to march immediately to the relief of the city. The Syracusan messengers hugged and embraced them, praying the Gods to send down blessings upon Dion and the Peloponnesians. When the noise was pretty well over, Dion gave orders that all should go to their quarters to prepare for their march, and, having refreshed themselves, come ready armed to their rendezvous in the place where they now were, resolving that very night to attempt the rescue.

Here is Ms. Renault’s version of that same speech and narrative:

"I have called you here so that you can decide what you think best for you. For me, there is no choice. This is my country. I must go; and if I cannot save her, her ruins shall be my grave. But if you can find it in your hearts to help us, foolish and wretched as we are, you may to your eternal honor still save this unhappy city. If that is too much to ask, then farewell, and all my thanks. May the gods bless you for your past courage, and the kindness you have shown to me. If you speak of me after, say I did not stand by to see you wronged, nor forsake my fellow citizens in disaster."

I don’t think he could have gone on, but the cheering drowned his voice. They yelled his name like a war cry, then shouted, “To Syracuse!” I suppose Hellanikos made a speech of thanks; I think he embraced Dion. I could scarcely see for tears.

So, not only has she got a lot of chutzpah to take on Plutarch, I think she does a fine job of it. We might attribute much of the stilted nature of that original to the inadequacies of translation and the formality of the time, but even with that in mind her version reads much more smoothly to modern eyes and ears. It trips right off the page as if it’s being spoken aloud. Some folks might not find it as rousing as Shakespeare’s Henry V Agincourt speech, but I’d rank it right up there, especially when you consider that Dion was speaking to free men–or, at least, relatively free men who were prepared to leave, not men in a cornered army, under thumb of their social superiors living under the threat of death should they retire from the field. Shakespeare’s Henry is firing up men in servitude to a king (again, relatively) and whose concept of glory is less pure to modern thought. They will fight or die. Dion’s soldiers are fighting that others might be free, and that’s a tougher sell to the average guy behind a spear....

In that sense, she also summarizes the concept of kingship when her protagonist reflects

To me it seemed that Dion, though a king in exile, was still a king; he might lead no armies, but men would serve him with their minds, for by believing in him they could believe better in themselves.

Most people are looking for that.... Tragically, most seem to fall prey (and pray) to less than noble versions of that ideal, and it is that failure that is, I’m sure, at the heart of most human suffering. The tightrope of leadership’s role between selflessness and what we might call self-actualization is at the heart of the Greek philosophical struggle. I honestly can’t say that it is the heart of the modern one.

In this installment, Ms. Renault’s main character is an actor, Nikerators or Niko as he is most often called. Greek drama is itself a kind of metaphor for high drama in modern parlance, and on a surface level the juxtaposition of a lowly actor with one of the movers and shakers of Greek history like Dion might seem like a bit of a leap. However, her choice is an astute one. Who better to judge the merits of a speech than an actor on the Greek stage from which we derive many of our standards of public speaking? The word genius is often bandied about today to describe a particularly intelligent or gifted person, but the origin of that word has a spiritual connection that comes from the Greek concept. In the Greek sense, “genius” was the guardian spirit or tutelary deity that guided the person through life.

Where we have lost track of this concept is in embodying it in a biological function. To us, genius is organic. A person can be a genius; it’s a function of the number of crinkles in his/er cerebrum, a relative bump on the brain, or some hormonal hyperactivity. Genius meant something more external, spiritual and demonstrative to the ancients. It had intrinsic qualities like our version of the idea, but it was also extrinsic in that it that blurred the lines between faith, duty and daily life. When her lead character in Mask of Apollo speaks to his patron and is spoken to by the god through the medium of a dramatic mask (actors wore masks on the ancient Greek stage for anyone unaware of that fact) he is not engaging in a religious mania, a delusion, a flight of fancy or just an inner dialogue externalized onto a particular focus–he is in communication with his genius. Or, you could see it as the exactly opposite: he’s doing all those things (engaging in a religious mania, a delusion, a flight of fancy or just an inner dialogue externalized onto a particular focus) as a means of communicating with what we would now equate to something like meditation or an athlete’s mental focus training. It’s not either of those things exactly, however, because we’ve lost that sense of the genius as material and spirit.

Mask of Apollo is Mary Renault’s attempt to get that spiritual sense of genius back in the modern world. She gives it to us in the example set by Niko and that retelling of Dion's rousing speech. Her revision of Plutarch is done in order to update the speech that roused an army into something more rousing to a modern reader, and in doing so she shows us how Dion's genius manifested as a leader. (Plus, I think she just couldn't resist "fixing" Plutarch's version....)

In doing so, she once again covers the main historical points of the period that she describes and breathes them to life in believable and poignant ways. The physical peril of Plato’s “guest” status in various city/states and the social pressure that he is put under by leaders who really want him around as a trophy is a great example of how she manages to present the lives of the ancients in a way that is comprehensible to the reader, even if it is alien to our own time and values. That makes this period piece one just as strong as any other period writer that I can think of, and superior to most. Because of the primacy of the Greek world in the rest of the Western literary canon, in our history and throughout the culture, that makes this book an important achievement.

I highly recommend this one to anyone with a literary bent at all, let alone an interest in the period that she is describing.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

69th book read in 2025

This was the third of Mary Renault’s books I have read. She writes about Ancient Greece. In this case, she centers her story on Greek theater in the days of Plato during the time of the Tyrant of Syracuse in the 4th century BCE.

The narrator of the novel is Nikeratos, an actor, son of a famous actor in Athens. Niko serves as the commentator on the political drama of the times, including attempts by Plato to educate the son of the tyrant in the ideal of the “philosopher-king” after the tyrant’s death. Sons of tyrants rarely make good students, as was the case here.

I am not sure this arrangement of having a successful actor relate all of this from the wings, as it were, worked for me. But I enjoyed witnessing the lives of actors, the theater festivals, their rivalries and love affairs. All the parts in the great Greek plays, male, female and gods, were performed by men in those days and while some actors had wives, they also had serial affairs with men.

It was a stirring tale though. Since I have read Will Durant’s The Life of Greece, I could just barely keep track of it all. It was cool to read about those Greek plays being performed and to get an inside look at the ways and reasons that wars were fought.

Despite all the recent retellings of Greek heroes and gods, I got a unique flavor from Renault, who was educated at Oxford in the late 1920s, where she studied history, mythology, philosophy and ancient literature, as well as taught herself Ancient Greek

[Iset · Rating 4 out of 5]

If I said I was reading a historical novel by Mary Renault, written in first person, with a male protagonist who has an inauspicious start in life and an attitude of personal honour and excellence, I might be talking about any one of them. It’s true that Renault seems to have a defined pattern in the stories she tells and the types of main characters she writes, and The Mask of Apollo does not break the mould in that regard. As this is the last of Renault’s ancient Greek novels that I have finally got around to reading, dare I say that her protagonist is almost too predictable at this point? However, The Mask of Apollo does have its own merits. It is most similar to The Praise-Singer, in that it focuses on the story-teller, an eyewitness to key events, rather than on those in a position of power whose actions have the greatest effect. From both books together, I get the impression that Renault was not just interested in the ‘great men’ of history, but in the art of story-telling itself. The Praise-Singer explores one aspect – that of a bard recalling an oral history and composing poetry and song – but The Mask of Apollo explores a different method of story-telling, through plays and actors. The most memorable aspect for me was the subtle strand of humour and satire running through this book, which is a change from Renault’s usually straight style.

8 out of 10

[Roman Clodia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This fits in between the mythic novels (The Bull from the Sea, The King must Die) and the Alexander trilogy, and is set a little after The Last of the Wine which was mid-C5th BCE. It's now late C5th-early C4th BCE and Nikerator is a tragic actor travelling Greece with his golden actor's mask of Apollo. He meets Dionysios of Sicily and witnesses his relationship with Plato and political experiments and failures to create not just an ideal republic, but the ideal philosopher-ruler.

Drenched in sunshine and full of an actor's anecdotes (this is really quite luvvie in parts!) together with backstage gossip about the Greek theatre, this is still steeped in the atmosphere of ancient Greece (or at least the hygienic one that we tend to want to culturally buy into).

Fans of Alexander will be rewarded by the glimpse of the boy who appears towards the end, and the failed hope of Plato that here at last was the right raw material for the development of the philosopher-king.

As elegiac as her other books I would guess this is less accessible since it's much quieter, more domestic, despite the political eruptions on Sicily. So read the 'big' books first (the Alexander series, Theseus duo) and then come back to this.

[Rozonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Pagan book if ever there was one. Mary Renault confronts the joy of life and the joy of philosophy in the life of Niko, a Greek actor, who gets to meet Plato and his Academy, philosopher king Dion of Syracusa and , in the end, young Alexander the Great.
Packed with adventure and very deep at the same time, I consider it to be one of Renault's masterpieces.

[Christy English · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my favorite books of all time...re-reading it now and loving it yet again...

[Matt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a wonderful book! I read The Praise Singer, my first foray into Renault's novels of Greece, in September last year and loved it. I wonder why I waited so long to pick this one up! The story is a fleshing out of the history of Greece in the mid-4th century BCE. The main character (who is fictional, like much of the book, but not all!) is an actor. Having chosen such a character for her novel allows Renault to travel all over the Mediterranean and to explore life much more fully than if she had selected someone more conventional like a soldier, politician, or philosopher.

The plot spends a lot of time in Syracuse and folds in a good deal of the history of Plato's Academy. There are a myriad of famous personages that it is fun to see in this story (including one very famous, handsome young general, who makes for an excellent coda to novel). Although Renault takes liberties with some of the historical details that we do not or cannot know, the book smacks of reality and seems to capture the spirit of the age better than any dry history could. This, again, is largely thanks to the main character. Nikeratos is equal parts savvy, sensitive, and sage. Following him through the novel is a delight. He falls in love often, usually with men, which must have caused some stir when the book was first published in the 60s. The love is never a big part of the action though and it is treated as a simple matter of fact. Niko's motives are most frequently explained by his dedication to the gods Dionysus and Apollo and by his commitment to his art. In the service of these, we see him travel the Mediterranean, encounter many people from different backgrounds, and perform plays (some real, some imagined by the author).

Perhaps the best part of this novel is its ability to cut through all of the worldviews that appear (political, philosophical, hedonistic) to explore what really motivates people. The picture of Plato and his disciple Dion forms the centerpiece of the novel (as you could guess from the epigraph, which is Plato's eulogy of Dion). I don't know what else to say, except that I'm sad it's over. I haven't enjoyed a historical novel so much since The Red Tent. This is a real classic. You'll lose sleep to read it. Or at least I did.

[Doug · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. This is the first historical fiction I have ever read about ancient Greece, and I thought it was great. It was so exciting to see someone so learned about antiquity re-construct the political situation in Athens and Syracuse in the middle of the 4th century BC, and seeing real-life figures such as Plato, Dion, Archytas and Axiothea was endlessly rewarding.

The allusions and, often explicit, references to ancient tragedies and myths were awesome, too. I think that the author's decision to make the main character a made-up actor in tragedies was inspired. It might have tempted her to make the main character some historical character in the political drama (maybe Dion himself?), but I think that placing a character on the outside, looking in, was a great decision creatively: if nothing else, it allowed the reader's perspective to be naturally very similar to the character's perspective on everything that was happening.

My only criticism: this book makes use of a *lot* of subtext. Very frequently, things are not spelled out -- hardly even implicitly, really. It's one thing to ask the reader to piece together some character's identity or the motivation for some plot-points from clues or cues in the text. But in this case, the author omits even any clues or cues. You're literally clueless about why some events are happening or about who someone was or what they said. In this sense, it isn't even demanding of the reader: it's actually enigmatic. It would have been a stronger book if the motivations for characters were slowly revealed, instead of left undescribed altogether.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nikeratos is an actor in fourth century BC Greece, following in the footsteps of his famous father. Everywhere he performs, he brings a golden mask of Apollo, to which he goes for advice and guidance. After an impressive performance at Delphi, Niko meets Dion of Syracuse, who is a distinguished politician and a dear friend of Plato's, the inspiration for Plato's philosopher-king. Niko is drawn to Dion and because of this is also drawn into the political turmoil in Sicily after King Dionysios dies.

Renault is hands-down one of the best historical fiction writers I've read. Her sense of place is impeccable and seamless, nothing feels anachronistic, and her characters are perfectly of their time and place. She understands her setting so well that she can convey it to the reader without resorting to boring infodumps or overly long explanations in dialogue, or relying on the reader's knowledge of ancient Greece. Nearly all of her characters are historical (with the exception of Nikeratos himself), and her fictional portrayal of them chimes beautifully with their historical selves.

In The Mask of Apollo, Renault's use of an actor as the viewpoint character is brilliant. Niko understands how a crowd works, because he plays to them all the time, whereas the politicians, who ought to know, really don't. Yet Niko also understands what the politician-philosophers are trying to do, even as they can't quite accomplish it. The last little bit, where he meets Alexander and realizes that here is the student Plato needed and will never get, is simply perfect.

[Brenda Clough · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful book. Mary Renault is as good as your own personal time machine (if you do not mind only ever traveling to classical Greece). She is also a total whiz at taking you into a specialized world -- in this case, the theater -- and making its thrills and excitements your own.

[Sandra · Rating 4 out of 5]

mary renault i am in love with you

[Nigel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Following the life of actor Nikeratos and his various adventures touring the classical world, in particular his friendship with Dion of Syracuse and Plato the philosopher as they try to forge a Republic in Syracuse.

Once again Renault creates and inhabits a character who seems to in turn inhabits and evokes his world perfectly, and more than that who lives and breathes the theatre, which informs every aspect of his life and outlook. It's a breathtaking achievement, seemingly effortless, utterly absorbing the reader and bringing the ancient world to life. It's odd, though that the tone of a book about art and which views art as a mode of worship of he gods, should feel so pragmatic and grounded in the craft of the actor and the mechanisms and logistics of production and touring, in contrast with the Theseus novels, about heroism and kingship, which have an almost dream-like quality to them with the feeling that of the divine ready to manifest around every rock and tree. Niko communes with Apollo via an old mask, and often feels the eyes of the god upon him and receives oracles as he wrestles with issues of conscience and obligation, but Niko makes his offerings to a god, he doesn't feel and act as if he is half a god himself.

Niko is a good and decent man trying to do right by his own talents and maybe contribute something to the larger events he finds himself a small part of. His voice is bold and confident and self-assured and his first and second-hand accounts of the story of Syracuse and Dion and Plato are wonderful. Another brilliant book by Renault.

[Woody Burchett · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book has everything I look for in good historical fiction. It doesn't fall into the trap of projecting modern character motivations or storytelling tropes into a fundamentally different world, but instead concerns itself with the issues of the time period. What is the ideal system of government? Is the Platonic idea of a philosopher-king viable? Is it possible for a ruler to govern a base people without debasing himself? How should the gods be portrayed in the theater? Is it best for drama be realistic or aspirational?

It's also meticulously researched and brings to life important aspects of ancient Greek life, without getting into as much day-to-day minutiae as something like the Hellenic Traders series does. The logistics of organizing a traveling theater company, the details of the dramatic performances, the culture surrounding Athenian drama competitions, the unique sexual mores of the time, the religious beliefs of the characters, and the realities of ancient siege warfare are among the period details I enjoyed experiencing. The author even provides a reading list at the end of the book, for those wanting to follow-up with some non-fiction reading.

Plot-wise, the story follows an Athenian actor named Nikeratos from his youth, advancing through his profession and eventually getting entangled in Syracusan politics. Several historical figures make appearances, Plato chiefly among them, in addition to a memorable set of cameos in the last two chapters.

Highly recommended for those interested in the culture and people of this time period!