Heroes

I listened to all of three of the books in this series and absolutely loved it. Having the author, Stephen Fry, read his own words adds so much to the narrative. The writing is superb, easy to follow, and extremely entertaining. Highly recommend the whole series.

I bought all four of Stephen Fry’s Greek myth novels and I’m leaving this same review for each one … If you are looking for a thoroughly enjoyable and erudite retelling of the great Greek myths and heroes then you must not pass up this tetralogy by Stephen Fry. He loves the Greek myths and it clearly shows! I can’t recommend this series highly enough! I bought the hardcover edition of all four novels and they are just gorgeous and illustrated throughout with artwork inspired by the mythology. (Also, I listened to the audio versions of these books narrated by the author and they were even more entertaining with his first class narration!)

I enjoyed this book—and it predecessor, Mythos—a great deal. It tells the intertwined stories of the various Geek heroes clearly and amusingly, without either turning them into children's stories or getting bogged down in sources and complications. (It does not slight sources; it just does not overcomplicate the narrative with philological details.) The voice is contemporary, and that is usually an advantage. At times the references to popular culture seem a bit intrusive, but mostly they work. What could be a dryasdust report on ancient texts becomes a really good read.

If you are reading this you probably read Mythos first and know whether or not Heroes is for you. I personally loved mythos and remember vaguely wondering why the stories of the heroes weren’t included. It was a complaint I had that I didn’t think much about as the book was already a fairly good length and had a focused structure I enjoyed. I was pleasantly surprised when I saw the sequel had released and addressed my question. One of the reasons I picked up Mythos is that it appealed to me as a one off read rather than a drawn out series, so of course it turns out a trilogy was planned all along and I simply wasn’t paying attention. I don’t think these books are written for those who don’t already have an interest in mythology. They don’t shy away from the sometimes awkward or inconsistent points in the tales but Fry does a good job of always making sure the story is the star. My biggest complaint about the myths is one that I’m sure will have some rolling their eyes. Reading them back to back is a little depressing given that almost all of the stories end so tragically. Unlike in mythos the stars of this book are very human and suffer fates the immortals tended to avoid in the end. There’s nothing wrong with a classic greek tragedy, I guess I just didn’t think about what it would be like to read so many so close together. I still very much enjoyed the book and will of course finish the trilogy once the Iliad is released, I’ll just make sure the next book I choose to read is on the lighter and happier side.

I feel like I’ve been in a semester class on Greek mythology. I’ve read both Mythos and Hero’s and looking forward to Troy. Stephen Fry’s ability to make these myths come to life in all their grizzly details and in a humorous way has given me one of the most wonderful reads this year. Imagine a most interesting person sharing amazing stories with you, your family and friends in the familiar setting of your favorite space and you’d have Stephen Fry in your living room. Amazing story teller.

This book is amazing! It uses many heroes stories to entertain the reader, while still keeping Stephen Fry’s amazing character and charm. Two thousand out of ten rating!

I love Stephen Fry. His humor, his intellect and his books. Always informative and entertaining

Fry takes the core myths and retells them with wit and insight, using his prodigious talent as a writer to give modern audiences educational and engaging tales. Certain to become a foundational text for future generations of myth lovers.