Fire from Heaven

By Mary Renault,

Book cover of Fire from Heaven

Book description

'The Alexander Trilogy contains some of Renault's finest writing. Lyrical, wise, compelling: the novels are a wonderful imaginative feat - Sarah Waters

Alexander the Great died at the age of thirty-three, leaving behind an empire that stretched from Greece to India. Fire From Heaven tells the story of the years…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

1 author picked Fire from Heaven as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Any recommendation list of novels about Alexander must include Mary Renault, queen of Greek historical fiction. Fire from Heaven covers his childhood/youth and remains many readers’ initial introduction to him. Her knowledge of Greece, both the land and its history, is rich, and she was first to depict, in a positive way, Alexander’s relationship with Hephaistion as more than friendship. Ironically, the book’s publication coincided with the NYC Stonewall Riots in June of 1969. Yet however progressive her view of homoerotic attachments, she paints a troublingly misogynistic portrait of Alexander’s mother Olympias. The book contains a few errors as…

From Jeanne's list on Alexander the Great.

Want books like Fire from Heaven?

Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Fire from Heaven.

Browse books like Fire from Heaven

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in Greece, Macedonia, and Alexander the Great?

10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about Greece, Macedonia, and Alexander the Great.

Greece Explore 161 books about Greece
Macedonia Explore 11 books about Macedonia
Alexander The Great Explore 34 books about Alexander the Great