It’s so compelling because Renault uses her profound understanding of antiquity and archaeology to offer rational explanations of the Greek myths. The King Must Die is one of the very few novels in my personal pantheon. I’m pleased to report that I’ve infected her with my Renault enthusiasm and in fact she’s already finished the sequel, The Bull From The Sea. Our very informal joint reading was punctuated by excited whittering about myths (from me) and fascinating comments about narrative patterns and the question of consent in sacrifice (from her). Two books stood out particularly strongly in my memory: The King Must Die and Fire From Heaven, and I was delighted to hear that Heloise was also keen to read the former.
My planned project this year is a reread of Mary Renault’s classical history novels, which had such a huge impact on me as an impressionable teenager. Although I’m only posting about it now, I finished The King Must Die before embarking on Gates of Fire.
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