FIRE FROM HEAVEN (40TH ANNIVERSAY ED)

Gifted this to my father on his 60th birthday....he found it gripping and unputdownable....

This classic deserves its reputation and is meticulously researched.Renault writes in a unique style that straddles the dividing line between clarity and opacity. Sometimes, sentences have to be read repeatedly for comprehension, and this difficulty is not on account of any lapse on the part of the author; perhaps, she simply expected the reader to invest some effort in understanding the material.The relationship between Alexander and Hephaistion is described with feeling and finesse. This sort of treatment must have been no mean task, given the homophobic times in which Renault wrote.

No encontraba esta trilogía por ningún lado y después de años al fin la tengo. Estoy muy feliz, es una gran autora y la historia te cautiva hasta el final.

A work of passion, this immersive book shows you not just the making of Alexander, but the world he lived in. The accuracy of her depiction of ancient Greece and Macedon is perhaps the best in fiction; Renault does not shy away from the strange and alien, nor overemphasise the familiar. Fundamentally, this is not our world - and she conveys that evocative and convincing way.Her Alexander is likewise convincing, as Renault takes us on a journey to see how his culture, his ability and the forces of his childhood combined to produce someone truly extraordinary - yet still relatable and all too human. More than many Alexander writers, she captures the essence of who he was, perfectly encapsulated in her title: Fire from Heaven. Fire gives us warmth, and the flames intrigue us; but it is unstable and destructive. It consumes everything it can, and burns itself out. In a nutshell, that is Alexander's story.Three things to bear in mind for new readers, though. First, it's a slow start - the first third or so is really about getting you familiar with the world and culture of ancient Greece and Macedon, and reads a little slowly. It picks up a lot once Alexander reaches his teenage years, so persevere! Second, at times the language is quite complex and unnatural (written as ancient Greek translates, as it happens) - you'll want to read it carefully to fully pick up the meaning. Third, if you're unfamiliar with Greek mythology and gods there are bits that'll not make much sense; the book could've used a quick guide at the start. But don't let that put you off - it's definitely worth it!

History fiction is not history. However, goo history fiction helps me understand that period of history, the major players and their activities much more than history book. That what this trilogy did.

Alexander has suffered more than most from post-war disillusionment with power and empire in Europe and the USA. When Mary Renault began her extraordinarily well-researched and authenticated trilogy, he was popularly dismissed as a blood-thirsty monster. The trilogy is a passionate refutation of this assessment - a true labour of love. For Renault he is the consummate hero, as every word of these three excellent and gripping novels bears witness. This first novel in the set is not only passionate but intimate, charming and enthralling too, more indeed (although that is saying a lot) than either of the other two. Here we meet Alexander as a young child and watch him grow to the brink of adulthood. Her brilliant descriptions of the spectacular topography of Macedonia are a commanding backdrop to an almost unbelievably spectacular life, one that changed the world forever, and still reverberates around it. Just think for example of the popularity of the name Alexander... and consider the fingerprints Alexander's lightening conquest may well have left in the frenetic drive of Jesus' invasion of the Strong Man's House in the second Gospel of the New Testament. The upshot of all this is that Alexander became a messianic figure, dying, like Jesus at the age of 33, and for multitudes has remained so. This novel of his childhood and adolescence is a brilliantly crafted testimony to this.The forces that tormented his childhood are harnessed by Renault in a way that effectively opens the way for her rehabilitation project. Her admiration for the hero is unparalleled, and consequently, her labour of love is astoundingly convincing. The nightmare of Philip's and Oympias' marriage is graphically brought to life - to the point that one wonders how the child survived at all - his mother unceasingly attempted to devour and enslave him emotionally and although she completely failed in that, she planted a devastating and deeply troubling hatred of Philip in his young affections, to the point that he struggled unremittingly to retain love and respect for both of them right to the end of his life. Surely his lifelong love for his boyhood friend Hephaistion, was the raft he clung to as he rode these horrendous emotional rapids. Alexander's efforts to conquer the poisoned wells of his own heart are no doubt even more heroic than his determination to conquer and unite Greece and Asia.This novel is not only highly instructive, but also gripping and very hard to put down.

Man's immortality is not to live forever; for that wish is born of fear. Each moment free from fear makes a man immortal.Fire from Heaven is about the childhood and youth of Alexander the Great. No doubt, Mary Renault has done such an extensive and comprehensive research on the subject matter. She touched on key events such as his first kill at twelve, the taming of his horse Bucephalus, being made regent at sixteen and commander at eighteen, among other things. She touched on key relationships that he has with his tutor Aristotle, and the immense love and devotion that he has for his companion, Hephaistion. Alexander was lying flat on his back, staring upward. Suddenly he grasped Hephaistion in an embrace so fierce that it knocked the breath out of him, and said, "Without you I should go mad." "I too without you," said Hephaistion with loving ardor.Through her inferences, she brought Alexander the Great back to life. We got a glimpse of all the things that made him truly deserving of that epithet. It's intriguing to know that what Mary Renault writes are things that could have happened, might have happened; the words exchanged could have been uttered. When Alexander got up, his eyes had grown used to the shadows. He saw they were all looking at him, jealous, despondent, hopeful; feeling their pain, and wanting their contribution recognised. In the end, before he left, he had spoken to every one of them.This is truly a heavy book - the way it's written to be exact. The stilted writing made the reading process long and slow. But the rich history is worth it. The Wikipedia page on Alexander the Great and the film Alexander make great supplements to Fire from Heaven - although Colin Farrell makes a terrible Alexander. Jared Leto on the other hand makes a fine Hephaistion!Conclusion: For a brilliant semi-fictitious historical novel, be sure to pick up Mary Renault's Fire from Heaven, the first of the Alexander the Great series!