Book Talk: Greek Mythology Recommendations

By the time this post goes up, I will have already been whisked away to the Mediterranean. While I'm there, I'm going to be spending a lot of time in Greece so I thought it'd be fitting to put together a list of my favorite books and series based on Greek mythology. I tried to gather a variety of series and the differences range from age appropriateness (middle grade through adult are represented) as well as series length (there's a stand alone, a handful of trilogies, and a couple longer series) and the actual myths these books are based on (you'll be seeing Pandora's Box, Persephone, and more). I won't be including the novellas and short stories within the series since those technically aren't required reading and it's more fun to discover those on your own. There's also a mini Visiting Voices in this post courtesy of Allison, so a huge thank you to her for helping me out with this book rec! Let's get to the books!

The Syrena Legacy by Anna Banks

Published: May 22nd, 2012 - May 13th, 2014

Series Length: 3 books

[Of Poseidon | Of Triton | Of Neptune]

Average Page Count: 300 pages

Before Mikaela had recommended I pick this trilogy up, I was skeptical about it. It seemed to me like it was going to be some angsty, poorly written teen romance. Boy, was I wrong. This was a pleasant surprise and I ended up enjoying it a lot. If the name of the trilogy doesn't give it away already, this series is loosely based off the Sirens of Greek mythology. In Banks' world, there are two underwater kingdoms -- the Poseidon and the Triton. She took some artistic license and created her own mythology, and it strays from the Sirens of traditional Greek mythology as well, but it is similar in that Emma, a human, feels a call towards the ocean and when she meets Galen, who just happens to be the prince of the Poseidon kingdom, she's drawn to him. I also really appreciated the romance in this. We don't really get a love triangle (thank goodness) but we see Emma and Galen face unique obstacles that not many outside of an inter-species couple would have. This trilogy isn't groundbreaking by any means but it'd definitely make a good beach read. 

Goddess Test by Aimee Carter

Published: April 19th, 2011 - February 26th, 2013

Series Length: 3 books

[The Goddess Test | Goddess Interrupted | The Goddess Inheritance]

Average Page Count: 300 pages

The Goddess Test trilogy can be best described as a Hades and Persephone retelling with a twist. The gods and goddesses now live amongst mortals and Hades, Henry in this world, has been trying to find a wife ever since Persephone died. Henry chooses Kate to take the seven tests to become his wife and a goddess. If she doesn't pass these tests, she dies -- just like all the girls before her. This time, however, the stakes are higher. Henry is too lonely to rule alone any longer so this is his last chance to keep his throne. Clearly, Carter has employed some artistic license here (similar to Banks' Syrena Legacy) but it's still a good read. There's plenty of drama, which is to be expected when the Greek gods are involved, and it's even got a little action if I remember correctly. I flew through these when I read them and I had a really good time with them.

Mythic Misadventures by Carolyn Hennesy

Published: December 26th, 2007 - June 11th, 2013

Series Length: 7 books

[Pandora Gets Jealous | ... Vain | ... Lazy | ... Heart | 

... Angry | ... Greedy | ... Frightened]

Average Page Count: 288.7 pages

The Mythic Misadventures is a middle grade series based off the tale of Pandora's Box in Greek mythology. Each installment in the series tells the story of Pandy and her friends' journey to capture the respective evils within the time frame the gods' gave her. These books are charming and incorporate other mystical elements into the story. You'll be cheering for Pandy and her friends every step of the way and sometimes you just can't help but laugh at the situations they get themselves into (warning: there's a lot of cursing in these books but they all come out as fruits). If you're looking for a light, easy read, the "Pandora Gets..." series (as I like to call it) is a fun one to pick up. The entire series also has gorgeous covers. Seriously, Pandy is my hair and toga goals.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller 

Published: September 1st, 2011

Series Length: 1 book
[The Song of Achilles]

Average Page Count: 384 pages

I actually haven't read this one but it would've been a shame not to include it because I have heard nothing but phenomenal things about it. All I know about The Song of Achilles is that it's based off of the Trojan War and the Iliad and that it's the only stand alone on this list! Thankfully, Allison read this book recently and was willing to share her review with us. Take it away, Allison!

The Song of Achilles has been on my "to-read" list for ...months. And many of my friends, both online and irl, have been absolutely raving about it for roughly the same amount of months. By the time I actually got my hands on it, the ante had been building to the point where it would be neigh impossible for the actual work to live up to its reputation. But it absolutely did.

Madeline Miller's ancient Greek tale is masterfully written. The prose is simple and beautifully to-the-point -- some lines are so poignant that they will stay with me for ages to come. It's easy to be sucked into the unique atmosphere that Miller creates as she reinterprets the story of a hero millennia old. The Song of Achilles expands on what we know of Achilles from the Iliad; the story of Achilles as he grows into aristos achaion, best of the Greeks, and the story of Patrolcus (the narrator of the story), spans nearly two decades. Thought the ending is bittersweet (as it still follows the events of the Iliad), it is well worth the read. It truly deserves the hype it has received. Given that this is Miller's debut novel, I am excited to see what she will do next.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians by Rick Riordan

Published: June 28th, 2005 - May 5th, 2009

Series Length: 5 books 

[The Lightning Thief | The Sea of Monsters | The Titan's Curse | The Battle of the Labyrinth | The Last Olympian]

Average Page Count: 346.8 pages

I really shouldn't have to pitch the Percy Jackson series to you because you should've read these masterpieces already, but since I know for a fact there are at least two people reading this who haven't read it yet (you know who you are), I have to add this to the list. You know how some people more than love Harry Potter because they grew up with that series? Well I grew up with Harry Potter, too, but it didn't resonate with me as much as Percy Jackson did. Percy Jackson is my Harry Potter. Everything in this series is perfect. Sassy characters, Greek gods, Camp Half Blood, Percabeth, I mean you really can't go wrong. Another aspect that makes PJO unique is that Riordan incorporates what feels like all the Greek mythology ever in a way that's seamless but also easy to follow. Words cannot describe how wonderful this series is. As long as you disregard the movies*, nothing short of fantastic has ever come out of this series. I get feels every time I so much as thing about PJO so if you haven't picked up The Lightning Thief yet, I don't know what you're waiting for. This year is actually The Lightning Thief's tenth anniversary! There's bound to be a deal somewhere.

If you've already finished the Percy Jackson series, chances are you've already read the Heroes of Olympus series, the spinoff to PJO, but if you haven't, it follows Percy and Annabeth on a new adventure with a new cast of characters and the introduction of the Romans. I won't go too much into it because we gotta walk before we can run so I'll just leave it at that. If you decided to only pick up one series off this list, let it be this one. 

When I first started compiling this list, I thought to myself, "This is gonna be a piece of cake. I read so many books based off Greek mythology," but once I actually got to digging up some series (because I couldn't very well list all five books in the Percy Jackson series and call it good), I discovered that a bulk of my Greek mythology books are written by Rick Riordan. I have plenty marked as to-read but I never actually get to any of them. I was surprised to find myself struggling to think of books I've read based on Greek mythology. Thankfully those first three series stood out to me when I read them so I didn't have to think to hard about them. I'm actually glad I had the idea to put this list together because it resparked my interest in Greek mythology. I definitely will be actively seeking out some more books based off of my favorite gods and goddesses.

If you have any Greek mythology recommendations of your own, feel free to leave those in the comments below. I'd love to check them out! Also, let me know if you have any themes or genres in mind for future book recommendations! I have a lot of fun putting these together and I'd love to know what you're interested in.

Talk to you soon,

xo, Yvette

*Note: The movies are awful but I can't help but love them because Logan Lerman is my everything and then some. Percy is also my everything and then some. Funny how that works out.