An Unexpected Ally: A Greek Tale of Love, Revenge, and Redemption
In this novel set during the archaic period of classical antiquity, Circe knows Odysseus must leave her soon. In her dreams and in the sailor’s stories, she learns about Glaucus. Glaucus shares similar interests and is an immortal. Hoping he may be someone to fill her heart after Odysseus leaves, Circe travels to his home. They meet, but it’s clear he’s in love with a mortal woman named Skylla, even though Skylla does not return his affection. Forlorn, Circe returns to her island of Aeaea. Yet, while she walked away from a love not returned, another immortal will seek revenge with disastrous consequences that only Circe will be able to mend.
While Circe’s story is well-known, the author offers readers a new twist in An Unexpected Ally. This re-spun tale is about how love changes a person—both figuratively and literally. Only a few moments shook me out of the narrative, one item being Circe quoting Sophocles’s Antigone, which was first performed in 441 BCE. Our tale is set at the time of The Odyssey, which (while debated) is hundreds of years prior. The second item is that eyerolling wasn’t a convention of annoyance until the 1980s.
Originally on a quest to win Glaucus’s heart, Circe instead journeys to save a woman who has suffered at the hand of a spurned god. Kouidou-Giles’s novella is a tale of women taking back their stories. The prose is mesmerizing and the journey heartfelt. Few legends of this time end well for women, and this novella is a refreshing glimpse of ancient world beauty, sisterhood, and new beginnings. Recommended!
