Breakaway Books

Authored by Luna McNamara; Published 2023; Fantasy

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️🏖️🏖️

If you love Greek mythology, you will love Psyche and Eros. I recognized many of the names of Greek heroes, gods and goddesses that are scattered throughout the novel, but I did not know them well enough to grasp all the references—and I think the book would be richer for the touch points.

In the novel, as in the legend, the god Eros is sent by his goddess sister to cast his love spell on a mortal only to end up accidentally falling for mortal Psyche himself. Psyche is a warrior princess, eager to fight for her kingdom, when she is snatched away by Eros to live in his castle and visit him every night—because, as a punishment, Psyche can never lay her eyes upon him.

Predictably if you know Greek mythology, the jealousy and cruelty of the gods are front and center in this novel. I remembered how unlikeable the Greek gods are portrayed from my high school education, but this rendition of the story really brings home just how merciless they can be when it comes to human lives. It made it difficult to connect with the characters when so many of them are not in touch with the human concepts of love and mortality. But, I appreciated the somewhat human discussion of heroism that ran throughout the novel. Is it about the fantastic feats of bravery that are featured in so many ancient legends? Or is it something different that sets heroes apart? I liked that what makes Psyche a hero in the end is not what she expected, i.e. the stereotypical Herculean achievements of a champion. 

I didn’t quite understand the love between Psyche and Eros—it did not seem to deepen much beyond an initial month-long fling, as one may expect from a cursed romance. That’s really not the point of this ancient legend, where love stems from literal magic rather than a meet-cute. The heart of the legend isn’t so much about what makes a good pair, so this novel probably wouldn’t do much for romance lovers.

If you’re a Greek legend buff (or really, even if you’re just nostalgic for Disney’s version of Hercules), you’ll enjoy Psyche and Eros.