Claire North does a fantastic job throughout this book on encompassing the many different ways in which a woman can be powerful. When I started reading, I did not realise straight away that the narrator was the one and only Hera, wife of Zeus, but more importantly, Goddess of women, children and family which becomes a crucial part of the plot when Hera’s narration becomes more centred on her feelings and opinions about the various characters in the book, but specifically her queens. The three queens she is most concerned with are Penelope, Clytemnestra and Helen. At times, her remarks can be witty, but equally there were some comments about womanhood and patriarchal society that were so impactful that they brought tears to my eyes. Sisterhood is a key theme throughout the book and it is certainly a very feminist take on what was thought to have occured in Ithaca whilst Odysseus was on his journey home. Claire North gives voice to all women in this book, and we see the character of Penelope developed fully into a strong, cunning and family driven woman who fiercely protects Ithaca in Odysseus’ absence. I think Claire North really wanted to show how women do not always need to be compared to one another and how each person can have their flaws, but this does not make one woman more superior to another, competition is not necessary. Hera does this by speaking about each queen in turn, shining a spotlight on them when they have achieved something and always giving them credit for every one of their strengths. This book is about lifting women up and celebrating them, allowing them to shine in a story in which they have previously been ignored.