Although Errantry was my choice for best book of 2013, it was a collection of short fiction, and there are some people who simply don't read much short fiction. If I were to pick a best novel for 2013, it would be Food for the Gods by Karen Dudley, a humorous mystery novel set in mythic Athens and featuring Pelops, a celebrity chef who had previously been prepared as an entree for the Olympian deities. The novel is a well-written melange of history, mythology, and mystery, using all of the elements to deliver a fast-paced story that manages to be funny, satirical, and at times, endearing. The novel includes several handbill-style advertisements in between the chapters, ostensibly marketing some commercial aspect of Athenian society, highlighting the parallels between the over-the-top nature of Athenian culture and the over-the-top nature of modern consumerism. If you would enjoy a murder mystery, or a historical fiction about ancient Greece, or a story filled with mythological elements, or all three, then Food for the Gods is the perfect book for you. I am a fan of all of these elements, and as a result, in my estimation Food for the Gods is the best novel I read in 2013.
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The Tennis Player from Bermuda, by Fiona Hodgkins.
ReplyDelete@Julia Rachel Barrett: I'm afraid I'm not familiar with that book. I suspect that this is my loss.
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