Queens of Themiscyra, Hannah Lynn

 

Queens of Themiscyra

Hannah Lynn

Storyline

Sisterhood is worth fighting for… In ancient Themiscyra, Hippolyte rules as queen of the Amazons with her sister Penthesilea at her side. Feared throughout Greece, their skills on the battlefield are unrivalled. But when a ship lands on their shores, it brings something more dangerous than the threat of war: Theseus, the legendary king of Athens. Swept away by a love unlike any she's ever known, Hippolyte leaves her people. In her stead, Penthesilea leads the Amazons with a ferocity that spreads terror across the Aegean. But not all men of myth are heroes, and, back in Athens, Hippolyte finds herself trapped in her new life. She's a queen without her people, a warrior without her army, and a mother separated from her family. But she remains an Amazon, and she's ready to fight. And across the sea, Penthesilea is ready to do the same… Perfect for readers of Madeleine Miller and Claire Heywood, this mythic retelling is a rich, thrilling story of war and peace, love and betrayal, and, most of all, sisterhood.

Review

This novel features the Amazons, daughters of Ares, the god of war, to whom all women born in Themiscyra, a city of warriors located in the region of Pontus on the shores of the Black Sea, are consecrated. "The Mystery of the Amazons" recounts the lives of Queen Hippolyta and her sisters Penthesilea, Antiope, and Melanippe, through stories of loyalty, betrayals, wars, and family ties of "real" and well-known characters, sketched masterfully and detailed from an emotional standpoint. The author not only recounts their heroic deeds but also explores their troubled love stories, characterized by great joys and deep sorrows. The reader is thus immersed in a whirlwind of conflicting emotions and feelings, made vivid by Hannah Lynn's smooth writing and incredible ability to engage.

Reading this book, I could sense a strong feminist theme emerging: the Amazons are portrayed as powerful, independent women who defy male authority and societal norms for Greek women, making them formidable figures. Referred to as the novel, signifying their reputation as men-killers, they evoke fear and dread. Nevertheless, the narrative also reveals their capacity for empathy and connection to universal human emotions.

Thanks to her extraordinary ability to transport us back in time to distant eras, Hannah Lynn allows us to rediscover the pleasure of reliving Greek mythology. I recommend reading this fascinating novel.