Review by Ginnamassa19 -- The Fox by M. N. J. Butler

[Ginnamassa19]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Fox" by M. N. J. Butler.]

---

3 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

If you’re a fan of the Iliad, historical fiction in general, or, really, the movie 300 (“This is Sparta!”, anyone?), then The Fox by M.N.J. Butler is a book that you should definitely pick up. Featuring spectacular Grecian battles, a thorough study of the ancient Spartan lifestyle, and one illegitimate prince, The Fox presents a wonderfully informative reimagining of ancient Sparta—and the lives of the warriors who would die to protect it.

Here is a quick, spoiler-free rundown of the plot, for everyone who’s as excited about the premise of this book as I was: When King Agis—young Leotychides’ father and the Eurypontid King of Sparta—dies, his last instructions to his son are to not let the kingdom divide. Leotychides tries his best to comply, but in the years that he’s been training as a soldier in the Spartan countryside, his no-good uncle Agisilaos has usurped the throne. Agisilaos’ reign is terrible for Sparta, and it is ultimately up to Leotychides and his fellow soldiers to keep Sparta together, whatever the cost…and no matter the loss.

There are definitely many things The Fox deserves praise for. What I like best about the book, however, is the effort Butler has put into his historical research. There is an astounding amount of historical detail in the story; readers will definitely come away from the book with a good idea of the ancient Greek way of life, taking away knowledge of the ancient Olympic Games and even how Spartan soldiers were trained. Butler even cites his sources at the end of the book and indicates which characters were based on real historical figures, which—as something of a history nerd—I greatly appreciated! I was also happy to find that Leotychides’ main love interest is Doreius, a man who trained alongside Leotychides as a soldier. This very accurately reflects the ancient Greek culture of pederasty, which I don’t often see in books about ancient Greece.

The historical accuracy is not the only thing I liked about The Fox, of course. Something else I enjoyed very much was Butler’s writing style; there were many clever turns of phrase and well-written lines. I also appreciated the fact that the book seemed to have been professionally edited—I saw very few spelling and grammar errors.

However, I must say that The Fox is not without its flaws. Yes, the story is based on historical happenings, but it does read slightly more like a storied version of a history textbook than a fictional narrative. Leotychides’ narration often leaves out his own feelings; readers are not told what his emotional responses are to what seem like important and even traumatic events, resulting in rather anticlimactic scenes which, judging by the context, should be fraught with emotion. This meant that I was not really able to connect emotionally with Leotychides as a character—which is definitely one of the most important aspects of reader engagement when it comes to a novel!

Another flaw I must point out is the sheer number of characters readers have to keep track of as they read. A quick look at the PDF copy reveals that the names-and-terms glossary is eleven pages long. That’s a staggering number of names to remember for any book! It definitely interrupts reader immersion to have to keep flipping back to the glossary to refresh one’s memory. I also have to mention that there were no line breaks between paragraphs in the PDF copy of the book, which made it very tiring to read. (Of course, this could just be for the PDF version; in any case, I recommend picking up a hardcopy version of the book if you want to give it a go.)

Having considered all of the above, I give The Fox 3 out of 4 stars. Despite the lack of emotional engagement I had with the characters, I did enjoy the writing—and the knowledge I gained about ancient Sparta! Suffice it to say that if you’re a history nerd like I am, M.N.J. Butler’s commitment to historical accuracy will definitely leave you satisfied.

******
The Fox
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[LinaMueller]

[Following is a volunteer review of "The Fox" by M. N. J. Butler.]

---

3 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

If you’re a fan of the Iliad, historical fiction in general, or, really, the movie 300 (“This is Sparta!”, anyone?), then The Fox by M.N.J. Butler is a book that you should definitely pick up.

Very informative review, Ginnamassa19. I loved it.

[Kanda_theGreat]

I love the thorough information provided that answered all the questions I had about this book.