Laura Shepperson

The second novel from Sunday Times bestseller Laura Shepperson sees three women struggle to determine their destiny at the dawn of the Roman world.

The second novel from Sunday Times bestseller Laura Shepperson sees three women struggle to determine their destiny at the dawn of the Roman world.

This feminist retelling of Greek and Roman mythology reimagines the story of Aeneas and the women once left at the fringes of his story, perfect for fans of Madeline Miller and Natalie Haynes. To the world he's a legend. To her he's a liar. Lavinia never asked to be fought over. But now her childhood sweetheart has waged a war that threatens to destroy everything she holds dear, all because Lavinia's father has promised her to somebody else-Aeneas. Aeneas, rumored to be the son of Venus, is famed for his bravery, cunning, and his vision for a new great Empire. He is also secretive, slippery, and Lavinia wonders why he will never discuss the past he left behind. So when a stranger arrives in the camp with stories about Aeneas that suggest he is not what he seems, Lavinia realizes she has to take her future, and that of her people, into her own hands. With striking prose and an inquisitive eye cast back on mythology, The Heir of Venus is an impactful and relatable story of a fight for the truth, set in the rich world of Greek mythology.

The Sunday Times bestselling Greek retelling now in a beautiful paperback package

ANATOMY OF A SCANDAL meets ARIADNE in this thrilling, evocatively told debut novel, reframing the controversial trial of Phaedra for the modern reader.

DEBUT AUTHOR: A "powerful and compulsively readable" feminist retelling of one of the most maligned figures of Greek mythology--perfect for fans of Madeline Miller's Circe (Booklist). Phaedra has been cast to the side all her life: daughter of an adulteress, sister of a monster, and now unwilling bride to the much-older, power-hungry Theseus. Young, na ve, and idealistic, she has accepted her lot in life, resigned to existing under the sinister weight of Theseus's control and the constant watchful eye of her handsome stepson Hippolytus. When supposedly pious Hippolytus assaults her, Phaedra's world is darkened in the face of untouchable, prideful power. In the face of injustice, Phaedra refuses to remain quiet any longer: such an awful truth demands to be brought to light. When Phaedra publicly accuses Hippolytus of rape, she sparks an overdue reckoning. The men of Athens gather to determine the truth. Meanwhile, the women of the city, who have no vote, are gathering in the shadows. The women know truth is a slippery thing in the hands of men. There are two sides to every story, and theirs has gone unheard. Until now. Timely, unflinching, and transportive, Laura Shepperson's Phaedra carves open long-accepted wounds to give voice to one of the most maligned figures of mythology and offers a stunning story of how truth bends under the weight of patriarchy but can be broken open by the force of one woman's bravery.