Classical Myth Retellings

Due to my love of all things ancient I have decided to compile a list of books inspired by classical myth and history. Naturally, this list won’t be exhaustive but I hope to continue to expand upon it as I discover new titles. I have also provided a key with some of the information I think you may find most useful when trying to look through the list.

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A further resource you should check out if you are specifically interested in classical receptions in children’s and young adult literature is the Our Mythical Childhood project.

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Key: Adult, Young Adult, Children’s, Short Story Collections, Poetry, Graphic Novel, Ancient setting, Modern setting,

1st in a series & Queer characters.

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1. A. D. Rhine - Horse of Fire, A, Anc, (inspired by Andromache)

2. Agatha Christie – The Labours of Hercules (Poirot), A, Mod, (inspired by the Twelve Labours of Hercules)

3. Aimee Hinds Scott - The Virgin Brides, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Antigone and Achilles)

4. Alexandra Bracken - Lore, Y, Mod, (various)

5. Alexis Rune and Jeanette Rose - The Maiden and the Unseen, A, Mod, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

6. Ali Smith – Girl Meets Boy, A, Mod, Q, (inspired by Iphis)

7. Ali Smith – The Story of Antigone, C, Anc, (inspired by Antigone)

8. Alice Oswald – Memorial, A, P, (inspired by the Iliad)

9. Alice Oswald – Nobody, A, P, (inspired by the Odyssey)

10. Amanda Bouchet - A Promise of Fire, A, Anc, (various)

11. Anne Carson – Autobiography of Red, A, P, Q, (inspired by Geryon and Herakles)

12. Anne Fortier - The Lost Sisterhood, A, Mod, (inspired by the Amazons)

13. Annie Sullivan – A Touch of Gold, Y, Anc, (inspired by King Midas)

14. Anwen Kya Hayward – Here, the World Entire, A, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

15. Arthur Machen – The Great God Pan, A, Mod, (inspired by Pan and Helen of Troy)

16. Barbara Ann Wright - Coils, A, Mod, Q, (inspired by Medusa)

17. Barry Unsworth – The Song of Kings, A, Anc, (inspired by Iphegenia)

18. Bea Fitzgerald - Girl, Goddess, Queen, Y, Anc, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

19. Ben Alderson - King of Immortal Tithe, A, Q, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

20. Beth Greenberg - First Quiver, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Cupid and Psyche)

21. Bethany Babtiste - The Poisons We Drink, Y, Mod, (inspired by Venus)

22. Bimba Landmann - The Fate of Achilles, C, Anc, (inspired by Achilles)

23. Brynne Rebele-Henry – Orpheus Girl, Y, Mod, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

24. Caroline Lawrence – The Thieves of Ostia, C, Anc, 1st, (various)

25. Caroline Lawrence – The Time Travel Diaries, C, Anc, Mod, 1st,  (inspired by Londinium)

26. Carly Cane - Artemis and the Dating App, A, Mod, 1st, Q, (inspired by Artemis)

27. Chigozi Obioma – An Orchestra of Minorities, A, Mod, (inspired by the Odyssey)

28. Christine De Pizane - The Book of the City of Ladies, A, (various)

29. Christa Wolf – Cassandra, A, Anc, (inspired by Cassandra)

30. Christopher Logue – War Music, A, P, Mod, (inspired by Homer’s Iliad)

31. Cia Petrichor - Stranded in the Satyr's Garden, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by satyrs)

32. Claire Andrews – Daughter of Sparta, Y, Anc, (inspired by Daphne and Apollo)

33. Claire Davon – Gorgon’s Price, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by the gorgon Euryale)

34. Claire Heywood - Daughters of Sparta, A, Anc, (inspired by Helen and Clytemnestra)

35. Claire Heywood - The Shadow of Perseus, A, Anc, (inspired by Perseus)

36. Claire North - Ithaca, A, Anc, (inspired by Penelope)

37. Colleen McCullough – The Song of Troy, A, Anc, (inspired by the Trojan War)

38. Colm Tóibín – House of Names, A, Anc, (inspired by Clytemnestra)

39. Constance M. Burges – Soul of the Bride (a Charmed novel),  A, Mod, (inspired by Hades)

40. Costanza Costati - Clytemnestra, A, Anc, (inspired by Clytemnestra)

41. C. S. Lewis – Till We Have Faces, A, Anc, (inspired by Eros and Psyche)

42. Daisy Johnson – Everything Under, A, Mod, (inspired by Oedipus)

43. David Almond – A Song for Ella Grey, A, Mod, (inspired by Eurydice and Orpheus)

44. David Gemmell – Troy: Lord of the Silver Bow, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by the Trojan War)

45. David Hair & Cathy Mayo – Athena’s Champion, Y, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Odysseus)

46. David Vann - Bright Air Black, A, Anc, (inspired by Medea)

47. Djibril al-Ayad and Emma Bridges – Making Monsters, A, S, (various)

48. E. J. Mellow, Song of the Forever Rains, A, 1st, (inspired by the muses)

49. Eli Goldstone – Strange Heart Beating, A, Mod, (inspired by Leda and the swan)

50. Eliza Raine – The Power of Hades, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Hades)

51. Elizabeth Tammi – Outrun the Wind, Y, Anc, Q, (inspired by Artemis and Atlanta)

52. Elyse John - Orphia and Eurydicius, A, Mod, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

53. Emily Hauser – For the Most Beautiful, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by the Trojan Women)

54. Emily Roberson - Lifestyles of Gods and Monsters, A, Mod, (various)

55. Emma Hamm – Tempting Hades, A, Anc, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

56. Erin Kinsella - Olympian Confessions: Hera, A, (inspired by Hera)

57. Esther Friesner - Nobody's Princess, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Helen of Troy)

58. Fiona Benson – Vertigo and Ghost, A, P, (inspired by Zeus)

59. Francesca Lia Block – Love in the Time of Global Warming, Y, Mod, 1st, (inspired by the Odyssey)

60. Francesca Lia Block – Psyche in a Dress, Y, Mod,  (inspired by Cupid and Psyche)

61. Fran Ross – Oreo, A, Mod, (inspired by Theseus)

62. ​Gail Carson Levine - Sparrows in the Wind, C, Anc, (inspired by the women of the Trojan War)

63. Glyn Iliffe – King of Ithaca, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Odysseus)

64. Han Kang – The Vegetarian, A, Mod, (inspired by Daphne and Apollo)

65. Hannah Lynn - Athena's Child, A, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

66. Hannah Lynn - A Spartan's Sorrow, A, Anc, (inspired by Clytemnestra)

67. Hannah Lynn - Queens of Themiscyra, A, Anc, (inspired by the Amazons)

68. Heather Lyons – The Deep End of the Sea, Y, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

69. Helen Scott – Daughter of Persephone, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Hades, Persephone, and the Underworld)

70. Helen Steadman - God of Fire, A, Anc, (inspired by Hephaestus) 

71. Hilda Doolittle – Helen in Egypt, A, P, Anc, (inspired by Helen)

72. Holly J. Underhill – The Bone Way, Y, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

73. Ionna Papadopoulou - Winter Harvest, A, Anc, (inspired by Demeter)

74. Isabel Greenberg & Imogen Greenberg – Athena, C, G, Anc, (inspired by Athena)

75. Isabel Greenberg & Imogen Greenberg - Gaia, C, G, Anc, (inspired by Gaia) 

76. Jane Yolen - Atalanta and the Arcadian Beast, C, Anc, (inspired by Atalanta)

77. Jean Anouilh – Antigone, A, Anc, (inspired by Antigone)

78. Jean Menzies – Greek Myths: Meet the heroes, gods, and monsters of Ancient Greece, C, S, G, Anc, (various)

79. Jeanette Winterson – Weight, A, Anc, (inspired by Atlas)

80. Jen Calonita - Go the Distance, Y, Anc, (inspired by Megora and Hercules)

81. Jennifer Saint – Ariadne, A, Anc, (inspired by Ariadne, Theseus, and the Minotaur)

82. Jennifer Saint - Elektra, A, Anc, (inspired by Elektra)

83. Jennifer Saint - Atalanta, A, Anc, (inspired by Atalanta)

84. Jennifer Saint - Hera, A, Anc, (inspired by Hera)

85. Jesmyn Ward – Salvage the Bones, A, Mod, (inspired by Medea and Jason)

86. Jessie Burton – Medusa, Y, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

87. Jo Walton – The Just City, A, 1st, Anc, Mod, (inspired by Plato’s Republic)

88. John Spurling - Arcadian Nights, A, Anc, S, (various)

89. Josephine Angelini – Starcrossed, Y, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Helen of Troy)

90. Jules Watson – The White Mare, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Agricola and the Roman invasion of Britain)

91. Julie Berry – Lovely War, A, Anc, Mod, (inspired by Aphrodite and Ares)

92. Kaitlin Bevis – Aphrodite, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Aphrodite)

93. Kaitlin Bevis – Persephone, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Persephone)

94. Kamila Shamsi – Home Fire, A, Mod, (inspired by Antigone)

95. Karen Dudley – Food for the Gods, A, Mod, (inspired by Pelops)

96. Kate Bernheimer – XO Orpheus: Fifty New Myths, A, S, Anc, Mod, (various)

97. Kae Tempest – Hold Your Own, A, P, Mod, Q, (inspired by Tireseus)

98. Kae Tempest - Paradise, A, Anc, (inspired by Philoctetes)

99. Kate Fussner - The Song of Us, Y, Mod, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice) 

100. Katee Roberts - Neon Gods, A, Mod, 1st, Q, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

101. Katherine Beutner – Alcestis, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Alcestis)

102. Kalyyn Bayron - This Poison Heart, Y, Mod, Q, 1st, (inspired by Medea)

103. Kelly Keaton – Darkness Becomes Her, Y, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Medusa)

104. Kendare Blake – Antigoddess, Y, 1st, (inspired by the Olympian Gods)

105. Kika Hatzopoulou - Threads That Bind, Y, Mod, (inspired by the fates)

106. Kyleigh Castronaso – Ode to the Queen, A, Mod, 1st, (various)

107. Laird Hunt – Neverhome, A, Mod, (inspired by the Odyssey)

108. Laura Shepperson - The Heroines, A, Anc, (inspired by Phaedra and Hippolytus)

109. Laura Shepperson - Phaedra, A, Anc, (inspired by Phaedra)

110. Lianyu Tan - Captive in the Underworld, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

111. Lilliam Rivera - Never Look Back, Y, Mod, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

112. Linda Bostrom Knausgaard – The Helios Disaster, A, Mod, (inspired by Athena & Zeus)

113. Linda Sejic - Punderworld, Anc, G, 1st, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

114. Liz Lochhead – Medea, A, Anc, (inspired by Medea)

115. Liz Lochhead – Thebans, A, Anc, (inspired by Oedipus, Jocasta and Antigone)

116. Laura Gill - The Young Lion, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Orestes) 

117. Laura Gill - Danae, A, Anc, (inspired by Danae and Perseus)

118. Lucy  Coats – Beasts of Olympus, C, Anc, 1st, (various)

119. Luna McNamara - Psyche and Eros, A, Anc, (Inspired by Psyche and Eros)

120. Madeline Miller – The Song of Achilles, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Achilles and Patrocolus)

121. Madeline Miller – Circe, A, Anc, (inspired by Circe)

122. Madeline Miller - Galatea, A, Anc, (inspired by Pygmalion and Galatea)

123. Manda Scott – Boudica: Dreaming the Eagle, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Boudica)

124. Margaret Atwood – The Penelopiad, A, Anc, (inspired by Penelope and Odysseus)

125. Margaret George – Helen of Troy, A, Anc, (inspired by Helen of Troy)

126. Marie Phillips – Gods Behaving Badly, A, Mod, (inspired by the Olympians)

127. Mark Knowles - Argo, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Jason and the Argonauts)

128. Martin Miller – The Goddess of Buttercups and Daisies, A, Anc, (inspired by Aristophanes)

129. Mary Renault – The King Must Die, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Theseus)

130. Mary Renault – Fire From Heaven, A, Anc, 1st, Q, (inspired by Alexander the Great)

131. Mary Shelley – Frankenstein, A, Mod, (inspired by Prometheus)

132. Mary Tighe – Psyche, A, P, (inspired by Cupid and Psyche)

133. Matt Fraction – ODY-C, A, Mod, G, 1st, (inspired by the Odyssey)

134. Maya Deane - Wrath Goddess Sing, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Achilles)

135. Maz Evans – Who Let the Gods Out, C, Mod, 1st, (various)

136. Meg Cabot – Abandon, Y, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

137. Melinda Salisbury - Her Dark Wings, A, Mod, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

138. Michael Hughes – Country, A, Mod, (inspired by the Iliad)

139. Molly Ringle – Persephone’s Orchard, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

140. Naomi Mitchison – The Blood of the Martyrs, A, Anc, (inspired by the reign of the emperor Nero)

141. Naomi Mitchison – Black Sparta, A, Anc, S, (inspired by Sparta)

142. Natalie Haynes – The Children of Jocasta, A, Anc, (inspired by Jocasta and Ismene)

143. Natalie Haynes – A Thousand  Ships, A, Anc, (inspired by the Trojan War)

144. Natalie Haynes - Stone Blind, A, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

145. Nathanial Hawthorne - Tanglewood Tales, C, Anc, S, (various)

146. Nikita Gill - Great Goddesses: Life lessons from myths and monsters, A, Anc, P, Q, (various)

147. Nikos Kazantzakis - The Odyssey: A Modern Sequel, A, Mod, P, (inspired by the Odyssey)

148. Nina Kossman – Gods and Mortals, A, P, (various)

149. Pat Barker – The Silence of the Girls, A, Anc, (inspired by the Trojan Women)

150. Pat Barker – The Women of Troy, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by the Trojan Women)

151. Patrick Dillon – Ithaca, A, Anc, (inspired by Telemachus)

152. Pauline Gedge, The Eagle and the Raven, A, Anc, (inspired by Boudicca)

153. P. C. Cast, Goddess of Spring, A, Mod, (inspired by Demeter, Persephone and Hades)

154. P. C. Cast, Goddess of Troy, A, Mod, (inspired by the Trojan War)

155. Penelope Haines, Helen Had a Sister, A, Anc, (inspired by Clytemnestra)

156. Philip Freeman – Oh My Gods, A, Mod, S, (various)

157. Phoenicia Rogerson - Herc, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by Heracles)

158. Rachel Alexander - The Receiver of Many, A, Anc, 1st, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

159. Rachel Smythe - Lore Olympus, Y, Anc, G, 1st, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

160. Rani Selvarajah - Savage Beasts, A, (inspired by Medea)

161. Raven Kennedy - Gild, A, Mod, 1st, (inspired by King Midas)

162. Rene Goscinny – Asterix the Gaul, C, Anc, G, 1st, (various)

163. Rick Riordan – Percy Jackson and the Lightning Theif, C, Mod, 1st, (various)

164. Rick Riordan – The Hidden Oracle, C, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Apollo)

165. Rick Riordan – Heroes of Olympus, C, Mod, 1st, (various)

166. Robert Graves – Greek Myths, A, S, Anc, (various)

167. Rosemary Sutcliff – The Eagle of the Ninth, C, Anc, (inspired by the Roman Invasion of Britain)

168. Rosie Hewlett - Medusa, A, Anc, (inspired by Medusa)

169. Rosie Hewlett - Medea, A, Anc, (inspired by Medea)

170. Salley Vickers – Where Three Roads Meet, A, Anc, Mod, (inspired by Oedipus)

171. Sarah Diemer – A Dark Wife Y, Anc, Q, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

172. Sarah J. Maas – A Court of Mist and Fury, Y, (inspired by Persephone and Hades)

173. Sarah McGarry – All Our Pretty Songs, Y, Mod, 1st, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

174. Sarah Underwood - Lies We Sing to the Sea, Y, Anc, Q, (inspired by the Odyssey)

175. Sarah Ruhl – Eurydice, A, Mod, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

176. Sarvat Hasin - The Giant Dark, A, Mod, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

177. Sav R Miller - Promises and Pomegranates, A, Mod, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

178. Scarlett St. Clair - A Touch of Darkness, A, Mod, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

179. Sharma Shields – The Cassandra, A, Mod, (inspired by Cassandra)

180. Shelby Eileen – Goddess of the Hunt, A, P, Q, (inspired by Artemis)

181. Simon Armitage – The Last Days of Troy, A, Anc, (inspired by the Trojan Horse)

182. Simon Armitage - The Story of the Iliad, C, Anc, (inspired by the Trojan War)

183. Stacey Swann - Olympus, Texas, A, Mod, (various)

184. Stephanie Meyer – Midnight Sun, Y, Mod, (inspired by Hades and Persephone)

185. Stephen Fry – Mythos, A, S, Anc, (various)

186. Stephen Fry – Heroes, A, S, Anc, (various)

187. Steve Orlana and Fernando Blanco - Midnighter and Apollo, A, Mod, G, Q, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

188. Susan Stokes-Chapman - Pandora, A, Mod, (inspired by Pandora)

189. Tracy Barrett – Dark of the Moon, Y, Anc, (inspired by Theseus and Ariadne)

190. Temi Oh - More Perfect, A, Mod, (inspired by Orpheus and Eurydice)

191. Tera Lynn Childs – Sweet Venom, Y, Mod, 1st, (inspired by Medusa)

192. Ursula K. Le Guin – Lavinia, A, Anc, (inspired by Troy)

193. Ursule Molinaro – The Autobiography of Cassandra, A, Anc, (inspired by Cassandra and the Trojan War)

194. Various - Fit for the Gods, A, Anc, Mod, S, Q, (various)

195. Victor Pelevin – The Helmet of Horror, A, Mod, (inspired by Theseus and the Minotaur)

196. Wendy Higgins – Soul in Darkness, A, Anc, (inspired by Cupid and Psyche)

197. Will Boast – Daphne, A, Mod, (inspired by Daphne and Apollo)

198. William Shakespeare – Romeo and Juliet, A, Mod, (inspired by Pyramus and Thisbe)

199. William Shakespeare – Titus Andronicus, A, Anc, (inspired by Tereus and Philomela)

200. William Shakespeare – Troilus and Cressida, A, Anc, (inspired by Troy)

201. Yoon Ha Lee – Variations on an Apple, A, Anc, Q, (inspired by the Iliad)

202. Zachary Mason – The Lost Books of the Odyssey, A, Anc, (inspired by the Odyssey)

203. Zachary Mason – Metamorphica, A, S, (inspired by Ovid’s Metamorphosis)