Ilios: The Fall of Troy: A Novel

by Byrne R.S. Fone

Ilios is a re-imagining of the oldest and the greatest story in Western literature, indeed what many have called the foundation text, the epic clash of cultures we call the Trojan War as first told by Homer in The Iliad—a title that Homer did not give to his poem. But all later readers, in Greek, called it the Poem of Ilios, the epic title derived from the city of Ilios--the city later called Troia, that we know as Troy. In a thousand ships, it is said, the Greeks came from all the corners of Hellas commanded by Agamemnon, King and lord of all the Achaean peoples. They came with the manifest intention of despoiling Troy of its uncountable treasures, razing its high walls to dust, and taking back the woman abducted by Prince Paris and now held there, she who was Queen of Sparta, wife of Menelaus, but whom all the world called Helen of Troy. For Homer, Troy was no myth and the war that destroyed it was real, an event that resonated down the ages from the time that Troy’s walls were razed by Agamemnon to Homer’s own, some four hundred years after the time that most in the ancient world believed that Troy fell. Nor did ancient authors doubt the historicity of Troy and the war that destroyed it. The Greek historian Herodotus assigned the date of Troy’s fall to about 1250 BCE, and a marble tablet called the Parian Marbledated the fall of the city precisely to June 5, 1209 BCE Indeed age after age has believed the story of Troy, and so over two millennia, in art, in music, and in literature, and lately in film and in shreds of popular culture, Troy and the terrible war that engulfed it and the names that made it an all-too human tale, has remained a story that is central to our understanding of those times and through them of ours. Ilios is a revised and re-written version of the original novel, War Stories. Sections of this book have been published separately as Trojan Women, and A Love Story.

483 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 27, 2018

Reviews

[Payal Sinha]

The novel Ilios: The Fall of Troy provides us individualistic viewpoints on the epic war. The story unfolds through various minor and major actors of the war and gives the participants' person viewpoints. For example, we come to know that towards the end of war Helen was not deemed very desirable by Prince Priam who in fact is aware of her fading beauty. The story sometimes takes us in the midst of the war and sometimes narrates us through the periphery from the eyes of a minor character. We know of many important incidents in passing as the narrator changes from one person to another. However, the clarity of the story and timeline is maintained and provides much pleasure to the reader. I have read several accounts of The Fall of Troy, and this one was also very entertaining.

[Pegboard]

Ilios: The Fall of Troy is an enticing read as Bryne Fone revives the adventure of the formidable fortress of Troy and the wisdom that brought down its walls. Historical facts woven within Greek mythology makes this an attractive read. Characters facing victories and obstacles brings this novel alive and allows the reader to enter a world in the past where they faced dangers of epic proportions.
 
I found Ilios: The Fall of Troy by Bryne Fone adventurous, bold, and daring, with a depth in its characters, giving them a realistic feel. I felt the author put much thought and study into each character and brought the story together with a powerful blend of events. Bryne Fone also captures the sinister view of warlords and their callous belief of casualties of war. I would highly recommend this novel to those who enjoy historical fiction with a touch of Greek mythology.   

[Jimmy Jefferson]

History and mythology meet in the fall or Troy

This is the story of an epic fortress and it unceremonious fall from power and control. This story takes historical facts and blends them with ancient mythology to create an experience that pulls the reader into the story and makes you feel like you are right there witnessing the events.
I found the story kept my attention and was intriguing. I am a fan of history and am always looking for a good book and this one is pretty good. There are a few editing issues but I enjoyed the story and the journey through the fall of Troy. Check out the story and let me know your thoughts.

[robert johnson]

For love of the gods, please hire an editor

This book was very l pleasing overall. I enjoyed the multi character accounts and perspectives of the narrative.

Unfortunately, this a book is also the sad victim of either poor or no editing. Quotation marks are missing or misplaced, periods forgotten, names confused or spelled incorrectly (pg. 476 "Patrols" instead of "Patroclus"), and words are just wrong (pg 458 "The soldier purses her." ).

As much as I enjoyed reading this, the overwhelming desire to red pen it to death put a huge damper on my enjoyment.

[Michellej]

“Ilios: The Fall of Troy” is a very understandable interpretation of Greek mythology and the famous story of the Trojan horse. I liked how the narrative put you in the middle of the different points of activities of a 1000-year-old story. This story, however, could do with more editing as there were parts that had incorrect sentence structure and lack of correct punctuation. Despite that, this Greek myth was brought to life for me. A very good read.