The battles with the Amazons and the Aethiopes that follow Hector’s funeral are epic stories in their own right and, by necessity, have been curtailed in my own version of them. The death of Achilles happened differently in different sources – some have him stabbed from behind while others say he was shot down with an arrow; in either case, he remained undefeated in individual combat, as befits a hero of his stature. Similarly, the only man who could kill Ajax was himself. He was driven to self-destruction out of pride, unable to bear the humiliation of losing the armour of Achilles to Odysseus. In the original myths, Odysseus wanted the armour for his own personal gain, but again I have tried to save his credibility by giving him a more worthy motive.
There are other threads in The Armour of Achilles that are entirely my own invention. The story of Eperitus and his ruthlessly ambitious father, Apheidas, is one of them. So is the romance between Eperitus and Astynome, though Astynome does appear as a minor figure in the original tales. Equally, the background events on Ithaca can be found nowhere in the myths, even if Penelope’s longing for her husband’s return is very Homeric. But unfortunately for her, she cannot be reunited with Odysseus until the Trojans are defeated and their city razed to the ground. For that to happen, Odysseus must first fulfil the oracles set down by the gods and find a way to breach the impenetrable walls of Troy.
Beware Greeks bearing gifts!
PRAISE FOR GLYN ILIFFE
‘A must read for those who enjoy good old epic battles,
chilling death scenes and the extravagance of ancient Greece’
Lifestyle Magazine
‘It has suspense, treachery, and bone-crunching action
. . . It will leave fans of the genre eagerly awaiting
the rest of the series’
Harry Sidebottom, Times Literary Supplement
‘The reader does not need to be a classicist by any means to
enjoy this epic and stirring tale. It makes a great novel
and would be an even better film’
Historical Novels Review
Glyn Iliffe studied English and Classics at Reading University, where he developed a passion for the ancient stories of Greek history and mythology. Well travelled, Glyn has visited nearly forty countries, trekked in the Himalayas, spent six weeks hitchhiking across North America and had his collarbone broken by a bull in Pamplona.
He is married with two daughters and lives in Leicestershire. King of Ithaca was his first novel, followed by The Gates of Troy.
Also by Glyn Iliffe
King of Ithaca
The Gates of Troy
GLOSSARY
A
Achilles
– Myrmidon prince
Adramyttium
– city in south-eastern Ilium, allied to Troy
Adrestos
– Trojan soldier
Aeneas
– Dardanian prince, the son of Anchises
Aethiopes
– black-skinned warriors from northern Africa
Agamemnon
– king of Mycenae, leader of the Greeks
Ajax (greater)
– king of Salamis, and Achilles’s cousin
Ajax (lesser)
– king of Locris
Alybas
– home city of Eperitus, in northern Greece
Andromache
– wife of Hector and daughter of King Eëtion
Antenor
– Trojan elder
Antícleia
– mother of Odysseus
Antilochus
– Greek warrior, son of Nestor
Antimachus
– Trojan elder
Antinous
– son of Eupeithes
Antiphus
– Ithacan guardsman
Apheidas
– Trojan commander, father of Eperitus
Aphrodite
– goddess of love
Apollo
– archer god, associated with music, song and healing
Arceisius
– Ithacan soldier, formerly squire to Eperitus
Ares
– god of war
Argus
– Odysseus’s hunting dog
Artemis
– moon-goddess associated with childbirth, noted for her virginity and vengefulness
Astyanax
– infant son of Hector and Andromache
Astynome
– daughter of Chryses, a priest of Apollo
Athena
– goddess of wisdom and warfare
Aulis
– sheltered bay in the Euboean Straits
B
Balius
– famed horse of Achilles, sibling of Xanthus
Briseis
– daughter of Briseus the priest, captured by Achilles at Lyrnessus
C
Calchas
– priest of Apollo, adviser to Agamemnon
Cassandra
– Trojan princess, daughter of Priam
Chryse
– small island off the coast of Ilium
Chryses
– a priest of Apollo on the island of Chryse
Clymene
– Trojan woman, hostage of Apheidas
Clytaemnestra
– queen of Mycenae and wife of Agamemnon
D
Dardanus
– city to the north of Troy
Deidameia
– wife of Achilles
Deiphobus
– Trojan prince, younger brother of Hector and Paris
Democoön
– Trojan prince
Diocles
– Spartan soldier
Diomedes
– king of Argos
Dolon
– Trojan spy
Dulichium
– Ionian island, forming northernmost part of Odysseus’s kingdom
E
Eëtion
– king of the Cilicians, allies of Troy, and father of Andromache
Elpenor
– Ithacan soldier
Eperitus
– captain of Odysseus’s guard
Eteoneus
– squire to Menelaus
Eupeithes
– member of the Kerosia
Euryalus
– companion of Diomedes
Eurybates
– Odysseus’s squire
Eurylochus
– Ithacan soldier, cousin of Odysseus
Eurypylus
– Thessalian king
Eurysaces
– infant son of Great Ajax