Wings of Fury by Emily R. King is a Greek mythology retelling, following the years of Cronus's reign as king of the Titans. Cronus is a tyrant, known for taking women as he pleased and then swallowing any children born of those unions whole, as a means to protect himself against a prophecy. His wife, Rhea, hid her newborn son from Cronus on the island of Crete, where he would grow up in secret until one day he could return to Othrys and overthrow his father, like Cronus did to his father before him. It's a myth known as the Titanomachy, or War of the Titans.
This book is a unique feminist retelling of this myth, following three sisters: Cleora, Bronte, and Althea, the youngest. Althea is the narrator of this story. When she was eleven, her mother Stavra was taken to Cronus as a prize, and then died in childbirth ten months later, the half-Titan babe being whisked away the first hour she was born. Now, Althea is eighteen, and her fate is intertwined with the fate of Zeus, the last son of Cronus, hidden away on Crete. With the help of a deserted soldier, Theo, Althea makes her way to Crete, where she finds a tribe of women and a fifteen-year-old Zeus.
I rather liked this book. It got a 7.00 in the CAWPILE system, which equates to four stars. The writing style reminded me of Circe by Madeline Miller and Lavinia by Ursula K. Le Guin - it was straightforward but also somehow light and gauzy, not quite purple prose but almost. Althea was a fascinating character to be reading from, as she was a feminist in a time where women had no rights.
"...my mother told me I would learn that the pleasures of the night belonged to women. The gods gave us the most glorious form in all existence, not to be admired by men but for the simple appreciation of living."
One thing I was really surprised about was the fact that this book made me like Zeus. I know, right? It's kind of a running joke with mythology nerds that Zeus is the least liked Olympian, since in nearly all the myths he screwed over the rest of the gods because he put his dick somewhere it shouldn't be. And in Wings of Fury he is still definitely a womanizer, but his personality isn't terrible. He actually felt more human than any other Zeus I've read about before. He had fears and aspirations and hopes, like Althea and Theo.
I won't be going into spoilers for this review, but I will say that the twist is something I didn't expect at all, which is actually pretty impressive considering how much I know about the primary sources. Of course, this is the author's interpretation and she took quite a few rather large liberties, but I won't hold it against her, because by the end of the book I was itching for the sequel. I'm hoping to get it from the library soon.
Overall, a fascinating retelling. If you're interested in Greek mythology and don't mind a few tweaks for artistic license, then I say this book is for you. The sequel, Crown of Cinders, is also available anywhere you can get books.
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