I’ve read and enjoyed two of Natalie Haynes’ previous novels, A Thousand Ships and Stone Blind – both Greek mythology retellings, inspired by the Trojan War and the story of Medusa, respectively – so I was looking forward to this one, No Friend to This House. It retells the myth of Medea and is based on Euripides’ classic play.
Medea, however, doesn’t appear until halfway through the book. The first half is devoted to describing the journey of the Argo, the ship which carries Jason and his men, the Argonauts, to Medea’s home in Colchis in search of the Golden Fleece. Rather than telling this part of the story through the eyes of the Argonauts, though, it’s told from the perspectives of the various women – both mortals and goddesses – whose lives are touched in some way by the Argo‘s journey. This narrative structure is similar to the other two Haynes novels I’ve read and in all three it’s very effective as the actions of those on the peripherals can be just as important as those at the centre of the story.
Some of the characters we hear from are names everyone will know, such as the goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, but others are less famous – for example, Erato the Muse, the priestess Iphias and even the dove, Peleia! One of these lesser known characters, Kleite, is particularly grateful to be given a voice at last…
That’s right, I’m just glossed over every time – Kleite with the beautiful hair – as if that tells you who I am or why I did what I did. So if you didn’t know me until I got your attention just now, well isn’t that more reason to include me, not less? What’s the point in telling the old stories all over again in the same way?
Once Medea makes her appearance, the book begins to feel different. We spend longer with Medea than with any of the other characters, seeing multiple chapters from her perspective, and I missed the wide range of voices we heard in the earlier sections of the book. Still, I found this retelling of the Jason and Medea story much more enjoyable than the last one I read (Savage Beasts by Rani Selvarajah). There were also some other little touches that I loved. For example, every chapter is headed with a word or string of words in italics which, taken on their own, make no sense at all, but when put together tell a story-within-a-story. There’s also a fascinating ‘interlude’ in the middle of the book which describes the origins of the Golden Fleece itself.
Overall, I think I enjoyed this book more than A Thousand Ships but not quite as much as Stone Blind, although all three are excellent. I still need to read her earlier novels and her non-fiction, but I would also like to hear any recommendations of other Jason and Medea retellings! Have you read any good ones?
She Reads Novels 
I picked this up last week. Natalie Haynes is an auto-buy for me. Looking forward to it.
I hope you like it!
I’ve always been fascinated by the Medea myth (was lucky enough to see Euripides play performed many years back), so I awaited this novel with much anticipation. Although I did enjoy No Friend, I have to admit I was less than overwhelmed. Like you, I enjoyed the novel’s focus in its first half on the (almost always) overlooked female figures. But (there’s always a “but” isn’t there?) I thought this distracted from the story’s overall dramatic impact — as you point out, Medea doesn’t appear until the novel is halfway over. Since I preferred Medea’s story to that of the other characters, for me this was a ding, whereas for another reader it wouldn’t be! At some point, I’d like to try one of Haynes’ other novels — she’s clearly an interesting writer, with the ability to bring this material to life.
I preferred the first half of the book, where we hear from so many different characters, but I had expected Medea to be the main focus and was surprised that she didn’t appear until halfway through. I can understand why that would be a problem if it was mainly Medea’s story you were interested in. Of the other Haynes novels I’ve read, I particularly loved Stone Blind, but A Thousand Ships is also good.
Ive read this too and loved the approach of giving voices to so many of the women on the sidelines of other stories, it made for a fascinating read. I also thought the interval concerning the fleeces origins was beautifully done and very poignant. I struggled a bit with the Medea depiction at times though personally. Not always but some scenes I wanted more from.
The only other Medea tale I’ve tried so far is by Rosie Hewlett and I had a similarly mixed experience there (in the case I loved the beginning and the end blew me away but I felt like the character lost her edge around the middle). Its still worth giving a try though as it’s fantastic when it’s strongest points and plenty of other readers adore it throughout.
I also have another on my TBR by Eilish Quin although I’m yet to try that one. Both are simply called Medea.
Yes, I love the way Natalie Haynes gives voices to so many different characters. All three of the books I’ve read by her so far have been written in the same style. I also struggled a little bit with Medea’s depiction but I haven’t tried the Rosie Hewlett book yet and am curious to see how it compares.
I hope you enjoy the Eilish Quin book, whenever you manage to read it.
I really liked Katie Hewlett’s Medea/The witch of Colchis. It’s more focused on her life and less on Jason’s voyage. Although I also liked the different perspectives of this novel.
I want to try the Hewlett book so I’m glad you liked it.
Glad you enjoyed this one. Reading your review has made me want to go watch the epic film: Jason and the Argonauts (1963)! 😊
I’m sure I saw that film years ago, although I can’t really remember it now!
Methinks you need a rewatch 😉