Andromache is one of the pov characters from David Gemmels’ Lord of the Silver Bow, a retelling of the Trojan saga from classical myth.
Daughter of the king in backwater Thebe under Plakos Andromache was sent to the island of Thera to serve as a priestess of the minotaur, as her father declared she had made herself unmarriageable by refusing to diminish herself for the comfort of men. Intended at least in part as a punishment Andromache discovered that an island populated entirely by women was exactly what she’d always wanted. From hunting, running and riding across the grassland, to Dionysian revels once a month, and the freedom to take a lover and live their lives unencumbered by patriarchal rule, Thera was a paradise for the intelligent and independent princess.
However, when her younger sister, betrothed to Hektor, heir to the powerful kingdom of Troy, died, Andromache was forced to leave Thera and take her place, despite her dedication to the priesthood and unsuitability for marriage. Much as she misses the island and her lover Kaliope, whose continued safety is the only reason for her compliance with the Trojan marriage, she begins to find purpose in the world outside. Opposing her brilliant but lecherous father-in-law, providing martial insights into the defense of the city, and advocating for the people her powerful, and largely morally bankrupt, new family treat as disposable fill her days, and while she may like it less than life on Thera it’s no less compelling.
Despite her continued longing for Kaliope, Andromache also falls in love again, and with a man this time. Unfortunately for all involved, it’s not her husband but his best friend, Helikaon of Dardania, made all the more complicated because he loves her in return.