Poetry of Reading

This is the third and final volume of David Gemmell's trilogy about the Trojan War. It is also his last book, completed and published by his wife, Stella, after his passing before its completion. In this context, the final scene in the epilogue is particularly poignant. It features an aging Andromache, surrounded by her children, as she bids a final farewell to the love of her life. She sets fire to the Xanthos, the ship on which her recently deceased husband lies, as it embarks on its last journey.

The author introduces some unique twists to the traditional story. Both Achilles and Hector meet their end, but under different circumstances than those depicted in the Iliad, and after experiencing betrayal. Helikaon (or Aeneas), like in the Iliad and Virgil's Aeneid, is the only Trojan prince to survive and seek refuge in Italy. He had already been trading there and sailing with his old friend and near-father figure, Odysseus, long before the war reached its climax.

For fans of epic fantasy, this volume offers plenty of heroic battles and intense stand-off confrontations.