Review – Athena’s Champion by David Hair and Cath Mayo

Continuing on my historical fantasy kick, on the heels of Son of Zeus I now have fellow god-titled novel Athena’s Champion. After professing my love for Heracles in the earlier review, this follows the early exploits of another favourite, Odysseus.

For those who’ve read the Iliad and the Odyssey, or those who haven’t, some scholars believe the two stories to be social parables, detailing change in Greek society, and their argument is not without merit. Having read Athena’s Champion, the author also echoes some of those changes. .

We meet a young Odysseus, on the day when his fate will be announced by the oracle. Needless to say, it does not go according to plan, and Odysseus is forced to leave his home of Ithaca for the wide world beyond – and boy are his eyes opened. The times are changing. Some of the heroes of old are still kicking around, and they do not meet the standards of our young hero. We meet Theseus, for example, who is strong and brave, but also a drunkard, brutish and quick to anger, acting first and thinking later. Odysseus, on the other hand, Is short (by heroic standards), quick-witted and  asks questions incessantly, much to the ire of the old minotaur slayer.

This is no biography though. There is a plot here, and a fine one at that. In the vein of social change, the gods are at war too. Having maintained a tenuous alliance for millenia (or so), Zeus is making a power play for sole rulership of Olympus. Needless to say, the other gods take umbrage and fight back. With Zeus looking to consolidate his power (by gaining worshippers), the other gods fear they will fade away into non-existence like the gods of old. But the gods cannot interact with humans directly, hence they need us pesky mortals to do their dirty work on earth.

Odysseus receives his patronage from Athena, which comes with heightened senses and skills, faster healing and so forth, but he’s still young, and takes a few beatings from the more experienced theloi (god-blessed)along the way. However,his smarts keep him alive and kicking, and our hero starts on the journey that will lead him to his famous Odyssey, which I’ve only mentioned about 30 times.

Earlier I mentioned Son of Zeus,and this is very different in tone, far less dark, but also vaster in scope. The characters are great, from Odysseus and boorish Theseus, to the gods who are just as petty and cruel as the old Hercules TV show claimed. Even the future battle of Troy is set up as far more than an angry cuckold trying to maintain his ego. I really enjoyed this,and I’ve had some time to mull it over before I wrote this review. I’ve got to say, if I hadn’t already written my top 10 of 2018, this would definitely have made it.

An epic 5/5 stars.