Free shipping on orders over $99
Orphia and Eurydicius

Orphia and Eurydicius

A Beautiful Compelling Story of Love and Creativity to Inspire Readers of Jennifer Saint, Madeline Miller and Natalie Haynes

by Elyse John
Paperback
Publication Date: 03/05/2023

Share This Book:

 

A stunning, enthralling story about unconventional love, the power of creativity and the courage of women who struggle to make their voices heard - for fans of Jennifer Saint, Madeline Miller and Pat Barker.

Their love transcends every boundary. Can it cheat death?

Orphia dreams of something more than the warrior crafts she's been forced to learn. Hidden away on a far-flung island, her blood sings with poetry and her words can move flowers to bloom and forests to grow ... but her father, the sun god Apollo, has forbidden her this art.

A chance meeting with a young shield-maker, Eurydicius, gives her the courage to use her voice. After wielding all her gifts to defeat one final champion, Orphia draws the scrutiny of the gods. Performing her poetry, she wins the protection of the goddesses of the arts: the powerful Muses, who welcome her to their sanctuary on Mount Parnassus. Orphia learns to hone her talents, crafting words of magic infused with history, love and tragedy.

When Eurydicius joins her, Orphia struggles with her desire for fame and her budding love. As her bond with the gentle shield-maker grows, she joins the Argonauts on their quest for the Golden Fleece. Facing dragons, sirens and ruthless warriors on the voyage, Orphia earns unparalleled fame, but she longs to return to Eurydicius.

Yet she has a darker journey to make - one which will see her fight for her love with all the power of her poetry.

ISBN:
9781460763032
9781460763032
Category:
Historical romance
Format:
Paperback
Publication Date:
03-05-2023
Language:
English
Publisher:
HarperCollins Publishers Australia
Country of origin:
Australia
Pages:
400
Dimensions (mm):
234x153x32mm
Weight:
0.53kg

'Like all enchanted books, the story of Elyse Johns' Orphia and Eurydicius is vivid, consuming, potent, and poetic. This gender-flipping, feminist retelling is not just a love story for the ages, but a moving, magical ode to the power of using our voices, and of being who we are in the world.'
HOLLY RINGLAND, author of The Seven Skins of Esther Wilding

'As I read, I imagined the muses beside Elyse John, focusing her mind and guiding her hand. The writing is poetic and evocative, and the story will thrill readers who have long suspected something is missing from the classics of Greek myth.'
PIP WILLIAMS, author of The Bookbinder of Jericho

'This book hooked me from its opening lines ... Music and poetry, art and magic are woven together in this dazzling fable which ultimately asks: how far are we willing to go for the ones we love? Elyse John has taken one of the most beautiful and tragic love stories ever told and infused it with a modern sensibility. Readers will swoon.'
LAUREN CHATER, author of The Winter Dress

'A timeless story told in rich, poetic language ... a book for lovers of myth, passion and transporting historical fiction. John brilliantly reimagines the past while crafting a moving tale of love that challenges outdated gender roles, and of grief drawn from the depths of experience. The mesmerising landscapes, the journeys of sea and fire, encircle this very human story in the evocative realm of legend.'
KATHERINE BRABON, author of The Shut Ins

'Highly polished and luminous ... A wonderfully ambitious, richly imagined tale of star-crossed lovers. Brimming with passion, wit and poetry Orphia and Eurydicius is a story of, and for, the ages. One that not only stands as a paeon to love, courage and acceptance but to every woman's desire, and right, to be heard. A triumph.'
LYN HUGHES, author of Mr Carver's Whale

'A gorgeous, sweeping tale that both evokes the feeling of classic mythology and intelligent and modern insight, this is a story of the boundaries we put on love and grief - I dare you to be unmoved by it.'
SAM HAWKE, author of City of Lies

Elyse John

Elyse John is a writer and a poet. She studied literature, writing and French at university, completing a PhD. Her poetry nominations include the Pushcart Prize and several major Australian prizes.

She has published a collection of poetry and her poems feature in journals in Australia, Europe, and Japan. Inspired by her late brother, she creates work in his memory. She lives in Melbourne, Australia.

Click 'Notify Me' to get an email alert when this item becomes available

Reviews

Be the first to review Orphia and Eurydicius.