Since being released in March, Sweetbitter Song by Rosie Hewlett has stolen my heart. After growing up with Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series, I’ve had an affinity for Greek mythology retellings. If you enjoyed Madeline Miller’s Circe or Song of Achilles, I’d highly recommend Hewlett’s most recent novel. Sweetbitter Song is a sapphic retelling of the events in The Odyssey featuring Princess Penelope and Melantho, who is enslaved. I felt that reading both previously mentioned books by Miller gave additional context for the events in Sweetbitter Song. It wasn’t necessary, but I appreciated the knowledge all the same. The story takes place over the course of decades, and as such leaves some of the background out. Although they aren’t sapphic, I encourage you to look into Miller’s works before picking this book up!
Hewlett’s version of Penelope and Melantho meet as children who start a friendship that quickly turns sour. When they meet again many years later, they can’t help but continue to care for each other. Penelope’s husband, Odysseus, is called to war, the bond between the two women is given room to grow and deepen. Unconstrained by society’s rules and the men of the kingdom, Penelope and Melantho can have the relationship they’ve always wanted—until consequences come crashing down around them as the men return to Ithaca a decade later.
More than a retelling of The Odyssey or a sapphic romance, Sweetbitter Song is an ode to love of all types between women: familial, platonic, and romantic. Hewlett was able to create such depth of character for every woman named, each strong in their own way. Whilst living in a world that sees them more as belongings than people, the women of Ithaca create a utopia built upon love (rather than suffering) under the unique circumstances they find themselves in.
Like Miller, Hewlett writes breathtakingly romantic prose that somehow doesn’t turn tedious to read. Sweetbitter Song is full of heartbreak and love over and over again. A vicious cycle of hope and despair that does its title justice. The depth of feeling is ever present, especially in how Penelope and Melantho speak of each other:
“I have always felt as if I were looking at the world from a distance,” she said eventually. “But it does not feel like that when I am with you.”
and
Her voice was like rainfall—steady and soothing yet with a drumming intensity to it. It was the kind of sound that made you want to close your eyes and tilt back your head, letting it seep into your skin, your bones…
But beware, as beautiful as this book is, it’s also a tearjerker and comes bearing many heavy content warnings.
Content warnings: child sexual assault, sexual assault, slavery, childbirth, violence, death, homophobia (mentioned)
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