The result of the latest Classics Club Spin has been revealed today.
The idea of the Spin was to list twenty books from my Classics Club list, number them 1 to 20, and the number announced by the Classics Club represents the book I have to read before 5th July 2026. The number that has been selected is…
9
And this means the book I need to read is…
The Persian Boy by Mary Renault
Bagoas, abducted as a boy and sold as a eunuch, has been transported to the heart of the Persian court as courtesan to King Darius. But when the Macedon army conquers his homeland, Bagoas finds freedom at the hands of their golden young commander, whose name is already becoming a legend: Alexander.
Their encounter sparks a passionate devotion that shapes the Persian boy’s future – and deepens into a relationship that will sustain them both through assassination plots, political intrigue and the threat of Alexander’s own restless ambition. This is a spellbinding tale of power, loyalty and loss – a vision of history transfigured by love.
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I read the first book in this trilogy, Fire from Heaven, last year and although I didn’t love it, I did find it fascinating. This is the second book and I’ll be interested to see what I think of it.
Have you read this – or anything else by Mary Renault?
She Reads Novels 
Mary Renault is in my top five historical novelists of all time (with Dunnett, O’Brian, Sutcliff and Mantel). This and ‘Fire From Heaven’ are, I think, her best books. I’m glad to see they’re now considered classics.
Mary Renault is one of my top five historical novelists, along with Dunnett, O’Brian, Sutcliff and Mantel. In common with them, her vivid re-creation of the past is so convincing, you think she must have had access to a time machine, and this, along with ‘Fire From Heaven’, is her best novel.
Sorry that this has been posted twice, it didn’t recognise me the first time and I thought the message hadn’t gone through!