Amber Princess

Wildly original and imaginative retelling of the Greek myth of Electra and the Fall of the House of Atreus. I feel this version compares favorably with the ancient Greek dramas on this subject and on the Strauss/von Hofmannsthal opera, Elektra. The author has taken the bare bones of the myth and pressed his own stamp upon it. He has concentrated on Agamemnon's family left behind in Mycenae. I appreciated the author's omitting the details of the Trojan War; I feel it's already covered enough in literature and film. Electra as an old woman tells her personal life's story to a Hittite physician. The life of the family and their fates are recounted through the passage of years. Aegisthus' insinuation of himself into the royal family and show more into a position of power, the devotion of Electra's eunuch slave to her, as well as the stories of Orestes, Hermione [Electra's cousin] and sister Chrysothemis are told. Each of the characters is a vivid personality. Electra's hero worship of Agamemnon turns quickly to burning hatred after the he has her sister, Iphigenia, sacrificed to gain fair winds to Troy. Electra's premonition of this in a fever dream is especially chilling. When Agamemnon returns from Troy, his wife Clytemnestra, Electra, and Aegisthus are involved in his brutal murder. Electra tells of the madness of her brother Orestes, her marriage to and love of her husband Pylades, Orestes' good friend. The House of Atreus is doomed. Mycenae suffers a Dark Age after the coming of the Dorians. After all the narrative, we are left to ponder: Is it really that of Electra or just the ravings of a mad old woman? show less