The greatest grace of this book is its lyrical prose, the beauty and elegance with which it describes everything from landscapes to love and passion. The Patroclus POV works very well, because through his adoring eyes Achilles is portrayed as nigh-godlike, while still so /human/ - which is exactly what he is. Still, I have beef with the book - some of the expressions were downright odd (and Miller is strangely fixated on fingers and thumbs). I wasn't fond of the creative license she took with the original myth, either. Not Patroclus and Achilles' love - but rather things like forcing in the Abusive Father™ backstory for Patroclus; Thetis being hateful and scornful of humans; Achilles' disdain and cruelty toward poor Deidameia. They're...valid interpretations, I suppose, but I didn't like them much. There was also a lot of random switching between tenses, which was confusing and unexplained. Madeline Miller also chose to ignore the entire Achilles' Heel business, and has Achilles shot in the /back/. I did not understand why, and it didn't sit well with me, I mean, the Achilles Heel is LEGENDARY!
Overall, I liked the The Song of Achilles, and I see its value and can understand where it gets its fame and fanbase. It just wasn't quite for me. I got exactly what I expected, and it was a nice enough experience, but I don't think I'll read it again. However, I do recommend it to anyone who expects a more modern twist as opposed to a faithful novelization of the age-old legend. You will probably like it more than I!