This is truly a retelling of the Illiad, because it shifts the focus. Not away from Achilles and his lover, Patroclus, but through the eyes of someone who is considered less than nothing - Briseis, a woman. 

She tells a story of loss, of war and the massacre it brings; the young men eager to kill and the women forced to comply and be used as sklaves. The author is quite descriptive when it comes to the various formes of abuse these women and girls face and whoever is looking for a love story has come to the wrong place - neither Briesis and Achilles nor Achilles and Patroclus nor Patroclus and Briseis are described as sharing an actual romantic bonding, but more of a forced attraction to each other, though it becomes apparent that the both men are way more than just friends and colleagues.  

While the writing style lacks quite a bit of depth and originality, it’s quite easy to read it very fast, but the characters could’ve been a bit more threedimensional instead of very easyly crafted personalities with just a few obvious characteristics. Still a good book, especially if one wants to read different perspectives (and while it’s set in ancient Troy, there are many more or less well hidden (feminist) standpoints on human rights and the abuse of power, which make it more than just a book one might read for entertainment.