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Jenny Blackford

The Priestess and the Slave Paperback – April 20, 2009

by Jenny Blackford (Author)

3.3 6 ratings

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A tale of honor and dishonor, of love, pain, madness, and endurance, told with painstaking historical and archaeological accuracy. Set in Classical Greece in the fifth century BC, The Priestess and the Slave conveys the extraordinary history of the time through the eyes of two narrators - a Delphic Pythia deeply embroiled in the political turmoil earlier in the century, and a young slavewoman, some decades later, living through the terrible plague in Athens and the seemingly endless war against the invincible hoplites of Sparta. Vivid, gritty, and emotionally moving.

Print length

116 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Hadley Rille Books
Publication date

April 20, 2009
Dimensions

5.5 x 0.28 x 8.5 inches
ISBN-10

098192431X
ISBN-13

978-0981924311
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Editorial Reviews

Review

This elegant short novel ... The author, with degrees in Classics, brings authority and detail to this story of those so often neglected by history, those without power. --Pamela Sargent, Goodreads

Wonderful. It has the arc of a novel, brevity of a short story - quite a job of compaction. --Gregory Benford

Her work is of a high quality and is historically accurate to the finest detail... It is extraordinarily moving. --Ancient History: Resources for Teachers

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Hadley Rille Books (April 20, 2009)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 116 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 098192431X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0981924311
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 5.5 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.28 x 8.5 inches

Customer Reviews:
3.3 6 ratings

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Jenny Blackford

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I am a prize-winning poet who writes for kids, YAs and adults.

In 2009, Hadley Rille Books published my archaeologically-accurate historical novella set in Delphi and Athens, The Priestess and the Slave. Jack Dann wrote, "It's such a joy to read a historical novel written by an author who has such authority over her material." Alison Goodman said, "A compelling blend of vivid storytelling and meticulous research. Fascinating and thoroughly enjoyable." Greg Benford called it "wonderful", and said, "It has the arc of a novel, brevity of a short story - quite a job of compaction." And Kate Forsyth, wrote, "Completely fascinating - a vivid and evocative glimpse into the life of the past, with its terrors and joys so strange and yet so familiar."

My current project is a novel based on the improbably dramatic life of Bronze Age princess Medea, grand-daughter of the Sun.

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you do not need to be into historicals to enjoy this book

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 30, 2014

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First let me be clear, you do not need to be into historicals to enjoy this book. What I mean is, it works on all levels. The characters by themselves are compelling, and their stories are fascinating. So I've heard in other reviews all about how historically accurate this is, but really, what I want when I read are characters I can empathize with, become fascinated with, and along the way learn something about their wants, fears, etc. I want the human story.

This book delivers that. And more, it is very well-written. I also like the ancient Greek milieu.

This book contains two separate tales interwoven beautifully, and though the two stories never actually meet each other, they are quite inventively complimentary.

I still cannot decide which story I enjoyed most, or which main character is my favorite. The slave character, stuck in her routine with a future that will never amount to anything beyond the borders of her owners, is an intriguing, if sad, plight. The priestess who is past her prime but now wields a fascinating idol-like power she could never know in her culture outside that elevated role has a wisdom and point of view I most especially enjoyed because it was so unique. Her observations are less naive than the young slave's, and show a wisdom and heart that is refreshing in a world populated by so many teen and/or 20-something protagonists.

I highly recommend this book.

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on April 18, 2009

At 108 pages The Priestess and the Slave can be read in one sitting. The story is written with grace, talent and a clear understanding of the material. Jenny is well educated in the Classics (Greek and Latin) and has a passion for the ancient world that goes deeper than a fascination with rulers, wars and gods. She's in it for the little people, the ones who gave those rulers their power, the masses to fight the wars and the gods their pedestals.

The Priestess and the Slave is about two such people. Thrasulla, the priestess, witnesses her fellow Pythia at Delphi succumb to the bribes of the mad king Kleomenes, while some sixty years later in Athens, the slave Harmonia must tend to the family who owns her during a horrible plague. The two stories intertwine seamlessly and, even though they never meet, they resonate with each other.

Thrasulla's story focuses on Perialla's disgrace but isn't about corruption or politics. Instead it's about Thrasulla watching someone she trusted be seduced by madness, reflecting on her life before priestesshood and learning more about the nature of men and gods. Her belief in her god is, as apposed to Perialla's, incorruptible, but that doesn't mean she has no questions about Apollo's motives - especially when she sees how easy it is for man to manipulate the gods to suit his needs.

Harmonia, on the other hand, would be instantly forgiven for losing her belief in the gods. For starters, she's a slave, but we're given a story where the slave is a valued and cherished person in the family. The care Harmonia shows for those who own her is returned by their regard for her strength and companionship. Although we're never taken outside of the family house, we don't need to be because everything you need to know about the horrible plague is shown through this one family - the devastating effect of losing heirs and wives and sisters and how, when it is all over, life simply must go on.

The story of Thrasulla is the `intelligent' half of this tale. We see her mature and prudent assessment of Perialla's demise and learn the roots of this wisdom that serves her so well when others falter. Harmonia's story is the `heart' of the matter, deeply touching because of her grief at the slow, painful deaths of those she cares for and loves and, ultimately, the helplessness of the survivor. Together, these stories make a poignant whole, reflecting both on how the big decisions are made (and manipulated) and how they filter down to even the lowliest person.

Highly, highly recommended for anyone after a quick but great read, even if you're not interested in Ancient Greece. And if you are, then welcome to a refreshing view of a world most often shown from the lofty heights of the aristocracy.

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Helpful

Kimberly Wade

Quintessential archaeology-based fiction

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on June 28, 2011

In The Priestess and the Slave, Jenny Blackford masterfully juxtaposes the story of ancient Athens' most privileged female class with the story of its least. The priestess lives a life of relative luxury, dining in "the ornately-painted room that in any other house would have been reserved for men and their drunken dinner parties," while the young slave humbly serves her master "a handful of almonds and walnuts and a few olives." Blackford doesn't make the classic mistake of many historical fiction writers: her characters don't think like contemporary Europeans. Neither the priestess nor the slave questions her position in life or longs for something other. The priestess reflects, "People are mad when they cannot see what is, when they see instead only what they hope, or fear, or dread," leading one to suspect an ancient Greek would find much of modern thought pathological. The two stories told in this book are simple ones that touch on common themes of jealousy and betrayal, fear and grief. Blackford's uncommonly graceful prose strikes a perfect balance, never skimping on the archaeological details while at the same time not allowing them to overshadow the drama.

Helpful

Barbara Lamar

From the Viewpoints of Women

Reviewed in the United States 🇺🇸 on July 28, 2009

When I was a child, history was one of my least favorite subjects. Memorizing names of names of warriors and dates of battles was so boring! At some point in my childhood, I read the Laura Ingalls Wilder books, and it began to dawn on me that this was history too: growing and cooking food, tending the ill or injured, raising a calf so one would have milk, all with the tools and knowledge available, within the framework of the laws and cultural constraints of the time.

*The Priestess and the Slave* is the fascinating kind of history. Jenny Blackford brings to life two women of ancient Greece, one a slave in a relatively unpretentious household, the other a privileged priestess of Apollo who lives among precious works of art, who dines on the finest foods and is served by slaves but who has had her own share of sorrow, including being abandoned intellectually by her father when she married, simply because she was female. Both women must deal with society-shattering events; both are strong enough to survive.

I feel as though all my senses have been taken on a tour of ancient Greece by an able guide. My only regret is that the book is not longer. I was sorry I could not have spent more time with Thrasulla and Harmonia. I look forward to reading more by Jenny Blackford.

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