“The shriek of agony in our souls, which could only be soothed by one thing. Revenge.”

In Elektra, Jennifer Saint tells the parallel stories of Clytemnestra, her daughter Elektra, and Cassandra of Troy. Each of the women is tied together by the curse of the house of Atreus, and their stories are intertwined with each other while they themselves are at the mercy of the men in their lives.

Jennifer Saint’s writing breathes life to these characters that have been mostly footnotes in the stories of men. Clytemnestra becomes a sympathetic character, choosing to rebuild what was shattered by her husband, where in previous literature she has been painted as an adultress and murderer. Her relationship with Aegisthus and murder of Agamemnon are justified by motherly rage and heartbreak. Cassandra, previously portrayed as the tragic madwoman cursed by Apollo, becomes resolute. She understands that her visions will come true, regardless of her desperate attempts to save her city and her family. Her death is a mercy given by Clytemnestra, a release from her torment. Elektra is haunted by her mother’s betrayals, a small child when Clytemnestra returned from Aulis. She is desperate to do right by her father and honor her family’s legacy. What connects these women, these mythical characters, is their passion for what they believe. Jennifer Saint took these women and gave them back their voices. Elektra is a wonderful addition to the growing genre of mythical retellings. I recommend it for fans of Madeline Miller’s Circe, Vaishnavi Patel’s Kaikeyi, and anyone wanting to learn more about these characters and perhaps to see them in a different light.