Fantasy
Best Greek Myth Retellings
The oldest stories, told again from the side that was never allowed to speak.
Updated September 2026 · By Sawyer V.
The short version
Start with Circe or The Song of Achilles, the two books most readers come to this shelf through. Then follow the Trojan War through its women in The Silence of the Girls and A Thousand Ships. If the original myths are hazy, read Mythos first — it retells them straight, and very funnily.
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How we picked
We chose retellings that add something the originals leave out — usually a woman's perspective — and arranged them roughly in the order of the myths themselves. We have not read all eight.
What we do on every list: read the publisher’s own description rather than a summary of it, check print length and first publication year against library catalog data (last refreshed September 11, 2026), confirm the book is still sold in the format we suggest, and write the match line before the blurb. What we do not do is claim to have read every book here cover to cover. The full method is published, and it is written so anyone can check it.
The short answer
Who each book is for, at a glance. Select a row for the full write-up.
| # | Book | Give this if | Where to buy |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  MythosStephen Fry · 441 pagesRead this first | the original myths are rusty | |
| 2 |  CirceMadeline Miller · 404 pagesThe one to start with | they want one book, not a shelf | |
| 3 |  The Song of AchillesMadeline Miller · 386 pagesThe love story | they want to be devastated | |
| 4 |  The Silence of the GirlsPat Barker · 315 pagesThe war from the captives' side | they want the Iliad without the glory | |
| 5 |  A Thousand ShipsNatalie Haynes · 368 pagesEvery woman's war | they like a story told through many voices | |
| 6 |  AriadneJennifer Saint · 386 pagesThe heroine left behind | they want a myth they may not know | |
| 7 |  Stone BlindNatalie Haynes · 378 pagesThe monster's side | they like dark humor | |
| 8 |  The PenelopiadMargaret Atwood · 191 pagesThe short, sharp one | they want an evening's read |
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Eight retellings, and one place to start
1. Read this first
Mythos
Stephen Fry
Give this ifthe original myths are rusty
The Greek myths from the creation of the world onward, retold as one continuous and very funny narrative. Not a novel, but the best preparation for everything else on this list.
- Print length
- 441 pages
- First published
- 2017
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
2. The one to start with
Circe
Madeline Miller
Give this ifthey want one book, not a shelf
The witch from the Odyssey tells her own story across centuries of exile, gods and monsters. Lyrical, angry and ultimately hopeful — the book that sent many readers to the rest of this shelf.
- Print length
- 404 pages
- First published
- 2018
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
3. The love story
The Song of Achilles
Madeline Miller
Give this ifthey want to be devastated
The Trojan War's greatest hero, told through his love for Patroclus from boyhood to Troy. Everyone knows how it ends, and it still hurts.
- Print length
- 386 pages
- First published
- 2011
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
4. The war from the captives' side
The Silence of the Girls
Pat Barker
Give this ifthey want the Iliad without the glory
The Trojan War told by Briseis, a queen taken captive and given to Achilles as a prize. Unsentimental and brutal about what war means for women.
One caveat: Contains sexual violence.
- Print length
- 315 pages
- First published
- 2018
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
5. Every woman's war
A Thousand Ships
Natalie Haynes
Give this ifthey like a story told through many voices
The Trojan War told through the women on every side of it, from Hecuba to Penelope. A mosaic of voices, and a quietly furious one.
- Print length
- 368 pages
- First published
- 2019
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
6. The heroine left behind
Ariadne
Jennifer Saint
Give this ifthey want a myth they may not know
The Cretan princess who helped Theseus defeat the Minotaur, and what happened after he abandoned her. Accessible and moving, and a good bridge from Circe.
- Print length
- 386 pages
- First published
- 2021
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
7. The monster's side
Stone Blind
Natalie Haynes
Give this ifthey like dark humor
The story of Medusa, the only mortal among the Gorgon sisters, told from her side. Angry, funny and unexpectedly tender about the most famous monster in myth.
- Print length
- 378 pages
- First published
- 2022
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
8. The short, sharp one
The Penelopiad
Margaret Atwood
Give this ifthey want an evening's read
Penelope, speaking from the underworld, tells her side of the Odyssey, including the hanging of her twelve maids. Short, witty and unsettling.
- Print length
- 191 pages
- First published
- 2005
- Formats
- print, Kindle and audio where the publisher offers them
Why myth retellings took off
Greek myths have always been retold, but the recent wave has a clear shape: stories told by the characters the originals silenced — captive women, abandoned princesses, monsters. It is a way of reading very old stories with modern eyes, and it has made the myths feel urgent again.
The books also work as a way in. Many readers who never read Homer now know the Trojan War through these novels.
An order to read them
- Mythos, if the myths are hazy.
- Circe or The Song of Achilles, the two most readers start with.
- The Silence of the Girls and A Thousand Ships, for the Trojan War from its women's side.
- Ariadne, Stone Blind and The Penelopiad, for the stories at the edges.
Related lists
Standalone fantasy has more complete-in-one novels, literary fiction for beginners suits readers who loved the prose, and books like The Lord of the Rings covers another mythic tradition. Myth retellings, with their strong single narrators, are excellent in audio, and the subscription panel on this page explains who that suits.
Two ways to read this list for less
If several books here appeal, a subscription usually beats buying them one at a time — but only for the right kind of reader. Here is who each one actually suits.
Audible Premium Plus
For anyone whose hands are busy
Driving, walking, cooking, cleaning. It converts hours that were never available for reading, which is a bigger effect than any discount. Books bought with a credit stay yours after you cancel — titles from the included catalog do not, and confusing the two is the most common complaint about the service.
See Audible plans and current pricingHow Audible actually works — credits, gifting and what happens when you cancel.
Kindle Unlimited
For fast readers who browse
It pays off from about three ebooks a month, in the genres the catalog covers well — romance, romantasy, cozy mystery, thriller, progression fantasy. It does not pay off if you are waiting on a specific new hardcover, because those are usually not included. Everything is borrowed, not owned.
See Kindle Unlimited terms and pricingIs Kindle Unlimited worth it? — the arithmetic, done on your own reading.
#ad — how we are funded. We print no subscription prices anywhere on this site, because they change and a stale figure sends you to a checkout expecting something that is not there. And if you read in silence in a chair, neither of these is for you — buy the book, or borrow it from your library.
What we would skip
Reading Homer first, as homework
The originals are wonderful, but a reader drawn in by Circe does not need to read the Iliad first, and many who try it as homework give up. Read the retellings for pleasure, and come to Homer later in a modern translation if they have made you curious.
Questions people ask
What is the best Greek myth retelling?
Circe is the usual answer, with The Song of Achilles close behind. Both are by Madeline Miller, and both stand alone.
Do I need to know the myths first?
No, but it helps. Mythos retells them all in one funny, readable book.
What should I read after Circe?
Ariadne or A Thousand Ships, both of which tell the myths from a woman's perspective.
Are myth retellings fantasy or historical fiction?
They sit between the two. Gods and monsters make them fantasy; the ancient setting and the war make them feel historical.
Sources
- Open Library Search API — First publication year, median print length and cover art for every book on this page. Queried 8 September 2026.
- Audible Premium Plus membership page — The only authoritative source for current Audible plans, prices and terms.
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