Customer Reviews

The Bull from the Sea

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

"The Bull from the Sea" picks up from the moment "The King Must Die" ended, when Theseus returns from the destruction of Minoan Crete to learn that his father has committed suicide in his despair over his son's fate, and he is now king of Athens. The first chapters in the book seem fairly tame in comparison with the non-stop action of its predecessor, but the action picks up considerably with Theseus' invasion of Scythia and his battle with the Amazons and their queen Hippolyta, who turns out to be his soulmate and the one love of his life. When Hippolyta is killed in battle, Theseus is left with the legacy of their love, their son Hippolytos, and his other son, Akamas, by his wife Phaedra who he married strictly for policy, the sister of his first love Ariadne whom he abandoned at the end of "The King Must Die". Theseus's disillusionment in his sons and his betrayal by Phaedra reflect the growing cynicism of an aging king and shows us a sharply different Theseus than the intrepid young man of the first book. As usual, Renault's scrupulous research and her skill as a writer make her a joy to read; what makes me give this book four stars instead of five is its ending, which seems to be not so much an ending as a train wreck. It's as if somewhere in the last third of "The Bull from the Sea", Renault lost interest in her subject and just wanted to wrap the whole thing up and dispense with it. Perhaps the Theseus legend proved to be too much for one book, but not enough for two. Of all her historical novels, this one is probably her weakest; but when Renault is good, she is very, very good, and this book, while not her best, is very good indeed.

Mary Renault's "The King Must Die" presented the mythological hero Theseus as a cocky young man who leads a revolt, frees his fellow Athenian slaves, and becomes a king. In "The Bull From The Sea," Theseus confronts the rest of his life and the strange destiny foretold to him on his homecoming from Crete.

Theseus's homecoming is marked by tragedy. His father Aigeus dies on seeing his ship come in with a black sail, thinking Theseus is lost. An old crone warns him, "Loose not the Bull from the Sea!" and, thanks to an encounter with a fearsome white bull imported from Crete, Theseus believes he's met the curse and dispelled any danger to himself or his reign. He attempts to settle down, eventually betrothing himself to young Phaedra, daughter of the dead king Minos of Crete.

Unfortunately for Phaedra, Theseus's friend Pirithous (a wonderful scoundrel) leads him off on an adventure to the Black Sea. There, Theseus encounters Amazons--notably, their young leader Hippolyta, with whom he falls in love. And his life takes a strange turn, for better and for worse.

Theseus continues to be cocky, but as the story goes along his tone changes; he becomes wearier, more cynical, with the passage of time and grief. Hippolyta is vividly portrayed, a grave young woman full of honor and bravery, who helps Theseus create a life in Athens that keeps his restlessness contained. When the Amazons come to reclaim their queen, Theseus and Hippolyta make a believable pair; the depiction of the battles are Homeric, thrilling and poetic. But when Theseus wins the war and loses Hippolyta, he loses a vital part of himself as well--the king is swiftly replaced by the adventurer.

All the elements of the myth are accounted for. Pirithous's wedding feast and the battle of the Centaurs is like a train-wreck; we see it coming and can't look away for all the pain. So is the end of Oedipus at Kolonos. This is the most beautiful chapter in the book, and it foreshadows Theseus's end without giving anything away. Oedipus, the man who tried to outrun a curse, is the adventurer who also found a kingdom and lost everything in the end; Theseus, still young and powerful, is too horrified by what he must do for Oedipus to read anything into his fate for himself. But the episode of Hippolytus and Phaedra is the grimmest of all, a tangle of misunderstandings and lies that drives Theseus to curse his own son. That he justifies it to himself at the moment makes his epiphany later a bitter experience.

The epilogue, if it can be called that, is Theseus's reclamation from that act, and his atonement. The final paragraphs, melancholy yet wistful, are a fitting end to this story of a man who longed to be a legend and became one, only to be tripped up by his pride in the end.

They really must have people who review these books declare their age. This is without a doubt one of the greatest books I have ever read. I highly recommend it for anyone with an IQ over 120, or five years out of puberty. It is not a book that should be force fed to students in High School. It is such a shame they force feed books to us, isn't it? I remember having Huckleberry Finn shoved down my throat. I hated it. Later, around the age of 20 or so. I went back and read it again and was able to understand the depth of the novel. This book is much the same way. Children forced to read it in High School should really not be reviewing it.

The word "tragedy" is bandied about so much nowadays that it has become devalued. Any death, accident, or painful occurrence is routinely labeled "tragic". But if you want to understand the true meaning of tragedy, read this book! Theseus is a hero - a difficult idea for modern people to accept, in our prosaic times - and Mary Renault does a brilliant job of showing us his heroism, rather than just telling us about it. When danger threatens, when a firm hand is needed, Theseus instinctively takes over; and he always assumes, as he has done since early childhood, that one day the god Poseidon Earthshaker will demand his life in return for his people's safety.

The long series of disasters that, to us 21st century folk, just looks like the worst of luck, can in fact be traced directly to the flaws in Theseus' character: for, although heroic, he is far from perfect. His virtues are great, but so are his weaknesses; and pride is both the best of his virtues and the worst of his weaknesses. The phrase "train wreck", used by at least two other reviewers, is supremely apt because it connotes inevitability and terrible consequences stemming from an apparently slight cause.

Yet, just when things look blackest and he is sure of dying in disgrace, old, crippled, and forgotten by gods and men alike, Theseus is touched by a divine grace that fulfils his fate and completes the pattern of his life. The harmony of this novel is as perfect and satisfying, in its way, as that of a Bach cantata. If you can read the closing pages without at least wanting to cry, you probably have not fully understood the story.

First, let me take a moment to explain what this book is . . . and what it is not. Many people like historical fiction. To me, that genre means creating a modern novel that is set in an earlier historical period. It may or not not include well-known historical characters. The Bull from the Sea is not, by this definition, historical fiction. In fact, if you like historial fiction a lot, you may not like this book.

Instead, I would describe what is done in this book as literary restoration. Ms. Renault has taken well-known stories about a famous Greek character and made them more accessible to the modern reader. By staying within what is known about the character, that limits an author's ability to create a modern novel. For example, if Theseus was idle for many years (as he was on occasion), Ms. Renault is stuck with that as part of her story. By contrast, a historical novelist could simply invent interesting things for such a flat period, and not have to worry about dealing with any story limits other than general credibility.

Mary Renault has done an outstanding job of fleshing out the life of Theseus from the time he returned from Crete after escaping from the Labyrinth and became King of Athens until his death. We especially learn a lot about what kind of thoughts drove him as he united the Greeks, established law and order, and reformed religion.

The ancient Greeks always seemed larger than life to me as a child. They were playing on a cosmic scale, with gods and goddesses lurking behind every bush. Often with little room to maneuver, they suffered from complications of the gods' preoccupations with their own quarrels. The fate of civilization always seemed to be in the balance.

Yet these people did not seem real, despite their appeal. The story telling style of epics and plays leaves much to be desired for helping the modern reader understand the figures as people. Ms. Renault has done a skillful job of working within the outlines of those ancient tales and creating an understandable modern story out of them. For the first time, Theseus came alive for me in this book.

There is a lot of interesting material to work with in this part of Theseus' life. He finds the love of his life (Hippolyta), marries another woman (Phaedra) to secure his alliance with Crete, and fathers two sons (Hipplytos and Akamas) who could potentially vie to succeed him. Anyone who has ever lived in a step-family will soon recognize the potential for complications.

Theseus also liked to rove, and was often off acting the pirate. These tales make good adventure stories.

He was a central religious figure, constantly balancing the older religion of the Earth Mother with the newer religion of the Sky Gods (like Apollo and Poseidon). There is also a split between women and men involved in this religious tension that makes for interesting reading.

Although the gods make no more than cameo appearances (usually through causing Theseus to hear the sound of the ocean or be sick, or by omens), nature is a major character. Earthquakes and storms play an important role as irresistible forces that provide boundaries for Greek life at the time.

If you are like me, the most valuable part of this book will be your increased understanding of leadership though considering Theseus' decisions and actions. Theseus has much talent for leadership, and is constantly striving to be a role model. He is as concerned about slaves as he is about barons, and his concern for public opinion rivals that of any modern politician in a democracy. Undoubtedly, there will eventually be a book on the management lessons of King Theseus.

After you finish reading this book, stop to reflect on how your example and actions can make a difference in creating more understanding, communication, and cooperation. Then, go set that example!

Enjoy a life of inspiring purpose!

Although I enjoyed this book as I have all of Mary Renault's works that I have read, I found myself looking for a real plot through the first half of this one. Once it was realized, and the action set in motion, it was much more enjoyable reading through to the end. Unlike the Alexander novels, the scope of reign that Theseus had in Greece was much smaller, therefore the history is much easier to realize. His involvement with Hippolyta and their subsequent love seems a little forced, too much so to be described as the love of his life. The fear of rivalry between Phaedra and Hippolyta, and later with their respective sons, Akamas and Hippolytos, and Phaedra's betrayal of Theseus is much tighther, cleaner, and more enjoyable reading. The climax of the book is very exciting, and makes the meandering pace of the first half seem worthwhile to plod through. Overall, like her other novels of ancient Greece, this offers an excellent and well realized look at a culture that existed thousands of years ago.

This is a wonderful book that got me started reading Mary Renault's novels. In fact I am on my fifth one, and I still find them spellbinding. Two things really stick with me from "The Bull from the Sea": the exciting love story between Theseus and Hippolyta and the sensitive and respectful way that Renault treats the life of these characters within their ancient religion.

The second Theseus novel truly reflects upon the first,"The King Must Die". In this book the king does die. The king within Theseus dies because of the grief that accompanies the loss of love. This book truly identifies with changes people go through(even the greatest people) when they experience tragedy and loss. The hopelessness and isolation experienced by the main charcter, Theseus, is touching in its humanity and compassion for human flaw, error and regret.

I'll start off by saying I'm biased.

I love anything and everything ancient greek; if it were up to me I'd spend all my time studying and studying them: it's my passion.

So, if the thought of "Mycenaeans" running around in 1500bc absolutely disgusts you, this book is not for you.

But it's one of my favorite books ever. Occasionally you come across a book that just clicks, and seizes totally the imagination. The integration of history with myth is intriguing - the characters never fail to arose sympathy. The plot takes a little white to get going, but once it gathers momentum it's unstoppable. There is emotion here, leaping from the pages ready to strike any open human soul. These are words that transport me to another time and place, into the minds and feelings of fictional characters in an ancient environment that enthralls.

Vague praises may not sell it to you: but, everyone should read this, or at least give it a go. Even if the subject matter doesn't appeal, it is a superb book - touching, exciting, meaningful. At least try to pick up a copy - you will not regret it.

Renault brought me out of this world and into hers - and it is a beautiful one, if only you will dare to peek inside.

The Bull From The Sea tells the story of Theseus, the ancient Greek hero who defeated the Minatour and Crete. Mar Renault has written the finest "fictionalized" autobiography. Theseus struggles to become a man, then to stay alive, then to become free, then to do his duty - the thread of his life parallels those of every person. Renault is at her best in bringing to life the ancient story and making this ""fairy tale more real that any modern novel.