The Amazon and the Warrior

Rating:
Summary: Good, but takes some liberties with history
Review: "The Amazon and the Warrior" is entertaining, but is a fairly broad interpretation of the legend of the Trojan War. Judith Hand is great for putting her characters in the middle of the action. It's great summer reading, but for a better view of the Trojan War from the women's point of view, I recommend "The Firebrand" by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

Rating:
Summary: average quality but she did research it
Review: As both a writer and a historian I am always pleased when it is clear that someone has done research. Unfortunately, while it is very obvious that Hand has done more than average layperson research into the Amazon legend, especially the Achilles & Penthesileia legend, she does not pull the story out well. For example, I could forgive the embellishments to the narrative, it is, afterall, a very short legend only truly expanded in Late Antiquity to anything than just the battle. But there are too many characters who get their own chapters in this book. Given the title I wanted the book to focus on Penthesileia and Damonides -- when it did, it was very well written and interesting to read. Instead we seem to spend time in several characters' heads and it gets distracting. Also in the first part of the book, Achilles et al take off for Amazon regions and the Amazons know they are there but nothing happens -- why was that even in there? Overall disappointed.