Category: reviews

In her irresistible new novel, Sunday Times No 1 bestselling author Victoria Hislop shines a light on the questionable acquisition of cultural treasures and the price people – and countries – will pay to cling on to them.

Of all the ancient art that captures the imagination, none is more appealing than the Cycladic figurine. An air of mystery swirls around these statuettes from the Bronze Age and they are highly sought after by collectors – and looters – alike.

When Helena inherits her grandparents’ apartment in Athens, she is overwhelmed with memories of the summers she spent there as a child, when Greece was under a brutal military dictatorship. Her remote, cruel grandfather was one of the regime’s generals and as she sifts through the dusty rooms, Helena discovers an array of valuable objects and antiquities. How did her grandfather amass such a trove? What human price was paid for them?

Helena’s desire to find answers about her heritage dovetails with a growing curiosity for archaeology, ignited by a summer spent with volunteers on a dig on an Aegean island. Their finds fuel her determination to protect the precious fragments recovered from the baked earth – and to understand the origins of her grandfather’s collection. Helena’s attempt to make amends for some of her grandfather’s actions sees her wrestle with the meaning of ‘home’, both in relation to looted objects of antiquity … and herself.

Inspired by a visit to Spinalonga, the abandoned Greek leprosy colony, Victoria Hislop wrote The Island in 2005. It became an international bestseller, has sold more than 6 million copies and was turned into a 26-part Greek TV series. She was named Newcomer of the Year at the British Book Awards and is now an ambassador for Lepra. Her affection for the Mediterranean then took her to Spain, and in the number one bestseller The Return she wrote about the painful secrets of its civil war. I

n The Thread, Victoria returned to Greece to tell the turbulent tale of Thessaloniki and its people across the twentieth century. Shortlisted for a British Book Award, it confirmed her reputation as an inspirational storyteller. Her fourth novel, The Sunrise, about the Turkish invasion of Cyprus and the enduring ghost town of Famagusta, was a Sunday Times number one bestseller.

Cartes Postales from Greece, fiction illustrated with photographs, was a Sunday Times bestseller in hardback and one of the biggest selling books of 2016. The poignant and powerful Those Who Are Loved, was a Sunday Times number one hardback bestseller in 2019 and explores a tempestuous period of modern Greek history through the eyes of a complex and compelling heroine. Victoria’s most recent novel, One August Night, returned to Crete in the long-anticipated sequel to The Island. It spent twelve weeks in the Top 10 hardback fiction charts.

Her books have been translated into forty languages and Victoria was executive producer on the adaptations of three of her novels for Greek television. Victoria divides her time between England and Greece and in 2020, was granted honorary citizenship by the President of Greece. She was recently appointed patron of Knossos 2025, which is raising funds for a new research centre at one of Greece’s most significant archaeological sites. She is also on the British Committee for the Reunification of the Parthenon Marbles. Victoria was recently granted an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Sheffield.

My thoughts: Having read several of Victoria Hislop’s previous books, I knew this would be enjoyable, well written, full of history and very interesting but this was also something of a thriller.

Helena is half Greek and spends a few weeks every summer at her grandparents’ home in Athens, a place her mother refuses to return to. Her Yiayia (grandmother) is kind but under the thumb of her husband – a general in the Greek army, and as the military rules the country, an important man, but not a kind one.

As she gets older Helena realises more and more about her family, their place in Greek society and her grandfather’s casual cruelty. She becomes closer to her mother and her Scottish father, a doctor, who is so different from her grandfather.

As an adult Helena meets the charming Nick, who invites her to join him on an archaeological dig in Greece. From there everything changes, initially enthralled by the charismatic young man, she becomes suspicious of him and his charms. Discovering he might well be involved in the theft and sale of priceless antiques is the last straw and Helena begins to plan a way to stop him, and those he works with.

It’s an utterly gripping story of wrongs to be righted, beautiful and ancient artefacts in peril, the illegal antiques market, and a love story too. Helena and Greece. As well as the young art restorer she meets while selling her grandparents’ furniture in Athens.

I was completely hooked and thought Helena a wonderful protagonist, as she learns about Greece’s difficult and complex past, makes new friends and ultimately builds a life, while ensuring some truly wonderful treasures remain where they belong.

As the argument about the Parthenon marbles stolen by Elgin and currently held in the British Museum continues to rumble on (I find that particular gallery dreary and depressing), this is a timely and intelligent reminder that the treasures of the past should be preserved for the future, in their homelands, not sold away to private collectors. A truly delightful story with a powerful message.

*I was kindly gifted a copy of this book in exchange for taking part in the blog tour but all opinions remain my own.