Quite a decent historical novel from the POV of Cassandra which also deals with the subservient position of women at that time/culture.

***** 2023 update - re-read as part of a 'theme' read of Trojan War and other Greek mythology related novels. The style is more 'old fashioned' in that, although it is Cassandra's first person viewpoint, there is quite a lot of reportage where she recounts things she's been told about - mainly the fighting - by other people. However, the author has an interesting take on things. In a foreword, she was going by some then-current research, which was disputed even at the time, but which lends the story an interesting and more realistic background. For example, the Mycenaeans led by Agamemnon and Menelaus have been raiding cities adjacent to Troy for years while pretending that pirates are doing it. They want to seize its wealth in a rather stupid 'killing the goose that lays the golden eggs' attitude, as it is the success of the city as a trading hub for both West and East that has made it wealthy in the first place, and its destruction can only render both communities poorer. Helen is a self-centred primping woman who comes to Troy through the connivance of her husband and Agamemnon, who use her presence at the pretext for the war, when they are really only after the wealth.

This changed premise means that the actual fighting around Troy occurs over the space of a year, much more realistic for a state of siege warfare. Similarly, the Trojans send a lot of their non-combatants away to a remote stronghold before the Greeks can lay siege, and the bulk of those remaining are fighting men, both Trojans and their allies, with only the royal women and their servants remaining out of the female population. Even so, food is running short by the end. There is a very interesting take on Hektor's supposed cowardice in running away from Achilles, and circling the city three times, where it is revealed on the contrary to be an act of courage. And the downfall of Troy does not involve a wooden horse - that is a story later put around by the Greeks - but instead is tied in with the theories about the excavated site of the city.

Cassandra is an interesting character who is 'touched by Apollo' in the sense that she has premonitions and feelings about things. The gods however do not appear in the story: they are more a construct of their worshippers though there is definitely 'something' divine or supernatural in the background. So it is not Apollo who curses Cassandra's prophetic gift so that most people don't take her warnings seriously, but an abusive priest of his. Similarly, where certain characters are protected by gods on the battlefield in Homer's Iliad, here they are protected by brave heralds who hold the symbol of that god over the person, a protection mostly honoured by the opposition apart from Achilles who is a law unto himself.

The position of women is subservient but female characters, including Cassandra, are nevertheless strong and as far as they can carve out roles for themselves in the spaces they can find in such a patriarchal culture, especially when in captivity.

The story extends beyond the fall of Troy and Agamemnon's return to Mycenae with a lot of material that doesn't appear in the myth, but is an interesting take on things. I don't want to say more to avoid spoilers, but I found the ending very touching. I thoroughly enjoyed the re-read, especially in contrast to some of the other retellings I've encountered lately, and have managed to obtain second-hand copies of a couple of the author's other stories based on Greek mythology on the strength of this one. So I'm actually raising my original four star rating to five stars. ( )