Ithaca

[This is the story of Penelope of Ithaca, famed wife of Odysseus, as it has never been told before.] The gods are capricious in their ways, their whims dictating the wars between men, their desires impacting the lives of everyone around them without thought of any consequence. Yet on the isle, the women who have been tossed aside and abandoned are the ones to make the choices - and the goddesses - that will change the course of the world. Seventeen long years ago, the mighty King Odysseus set sail to war with Troy, taking every man of fighting age from Ithaca. None returned, leaving the women to run the Kingdom themselves. Penelope barely knew womanhood when Odysseus took her for his wife and while he was alive, her position was secure. Now, many years on, speculation grows that her husband has gone to the underworld. The throne of Odysseus sits empty, unoccupied, as no one is worthy to claim it. The scales of power begin to slowly tip and with such a shift, Penelope knows a civil war is on the cusp of erupting, yet through cunning, wit and trust perhaps she can maintain peace within her Kingdom. Or do the Gods have plans of their own? A sweeping epic told from a truly original and raw voice, this complex story weaves mythological characters with lonely slave-women in this emotional observation on human life tainted by the many follies of the Gods.