{"title":"Mary Renault","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"the-king-must-die","title":"The King Must Die","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFirst published in 1958, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe King Must Die\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is Mary Renault’s imaginative retelling of the myth of Theseus, the legendary hero of ancient Athens. Narrated by Theseus himself, the novel follows his journey from childhood in Troizen through the sacred rites of Eleusis and the dangerous road to Athens, before carrying him to Crete, where he joins the young captives destined for the bull-dance and confronts the Minotaur. Along the way, Renault brings familiar figures such as Ariadne into a richly realised world of kings, priestesses, ritual and political power.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDrawing on archaeological discoveries and ancient traditions, Renault gives myth the texture of lived experience, exploring the origins of heroism, the demands of leadership, the force of belief and the uneasy relationship between human lives and divine will. Her Theseus is not simply a figure of legend, but a young man shaped by loyalty, desire, courage and uncertainty. The first of her two novels about Theseus, followed by \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Bull from the Sea\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, it is among Renault’s finest achievements in historical fiction.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFrom the book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“The Citadel of Troizen, where the Palace stands, was built by giants before anyone remembers.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— Mary Renault, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe King Must Die\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe King Must Die\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“The ancient world of myth and legend takes on the trappings of living history.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardner's EU","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":64214390243658,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1028\/0389\/8698\/files\/the-king-must-die-mary-renault-english-bookstore-paris_bb988dab-ab5d-42de-af58-5d6ddcde620f.png?v=1793743436"},{"product_id":"the-persian-boy","title":"The Persian Boy","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFirst published in 1972, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Persian Boy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is Mary Renault’s portrait of Alexander the Great’s final years, told through the eyes of Bagoas, a young Persian eunuch whose life is transformed by the Macedonian conquest of his homeland. Once a favourite at the court of King Darius, Bagoas is brought into Alexander’s household, where he becomes the conqueror’s companion and lover. As Alexander’s armies advance through Persia and beyond, Bagoas witnesses the intrigues, loyalties and rivalries surrounding the king, while offering an intimate view of a man whose ambition reaches far beyond the limits of his empire.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eRenault’s meticulous knowledge of the ancient world is matched by her sensitivity to private feeling, as the novel explores love, power, cultural identity and the cost of conquest. By placing a Persian voice at the centre of a story usually told by its conquerors, she gives the familiar history of Alexander a strikingly different perspective. The second novel in her Alexander trilogy, following \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFire from Heaven\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e and preceding \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFuneral Games\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Persian Boy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is among her most celebrated explorations of the emotional and political complexities of the ancient world.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFrom the book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“It is a true saying, that men don’t know till too late when they have been well off.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— Mary Renault, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Persian Boy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Persian Boy\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“Bagoas is a brilliant narrator. Rendered unreliable by his passion, he is always believable and sympathetic.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— Antonia Senior, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Times\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardner's EU","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":64214484222282,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}]},{"product_id":"the-charioteer","title":"The Charioteer","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFirst published in 1953, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Charioteer\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e is Mary Renault’s quietly daring novel of love, conscience and self-discovery, set in England during the Second World War. Its central character, Laurie Odell, is a young soldier recovering from the evacuation of Dunkirk when he meets Andrew Raynes, a Quaker conscientious objector working at the military hospital. Their growing attachment is complicated by Laurie’s reappearance in the life of Ralph Lanyon, an older figure from his schooldays whose influence has never quite left him. Between these two relationships, Laurie must negotiate not only his desires but the competing ideals of loyalty, honour and personal truth.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTaking its title and central imagery from Plato’s \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePhaedrus\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, Renault’s novel considers the struggle between spiritual aspiration and physical longing, while examining the pressures placed on men whose private lives must remain hidden. Written with unusual tenderness and moral intelligence, it offers a humane portrait of gay love at a time when such relationships were rarely represented without condemnation or sensationalism. Alongside \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe City and the Pillar\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e and \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eGiovanni’s Room\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e, it holds an important place in the history of twentieth-century gay literature, and remains one of Renault’s most affecting contemporary novels.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFrom the book\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“The rightness of a thing isn't determined by the amount of courage it takes.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— Mary Renault, \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Charioteer\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eOn \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe Charioteer\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cspan\u003e“Compelling both as a snapshot of a particular cultural moment, and as a deeply romantic story of love fulfilled against the odds.”\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003e— Sarah Waters\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Gardner's EU","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":64214508699978,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}]}],"url":"https:\/\/thelamppostparis.com\/fr\/collections\/mary-renault.oembed","provider":"The Lamp-Post Library \u0026 Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}