Herc

By: Phoenicia Rogerson

Narrated by: full cast

Winner of the Somerset Maugham Award

Waterstones best book of the year 2023

'A remarkable feat of storytelling' Rosie Hewlett

This should be the story of Hercules: his twelve labours, his endless adventures…everyone’s favourite hero, right?

Wrong.

This is the story of everyone else:

Alcmene: Herc’s mother (She has knives everywhere)

Hylas: Herc’s first friend (They were more than friends)

Megara: Herc’s wife (She’ll tell you about their marriage)

Eurystheus: Oversaw Herc’s labours (He never asked for the job)

His friends, his enemies, his wives, his children, his lovers, his rivals, his gods, his victims.

It’s time to hear their stories.

Herc gives voice to the silenced characters, in this feminist, queer (and sometimes shocking) retelling of classic Hercules myth.

©2023 Phoenicia Rogerson (P)2023 HarperCollins Publishers Limited

Critic reviews

‘Alternately hilarious and shocking, this is an astonishingly vivid retelling of the story of Hercules, and these are not the Greek myths I learned in school.’ Jodi Taylor, author of Just One Damned Thing After Another

‘A brilliant debut! Rogerson has produced a fresh and totally original retelling of the Hercules myth. For the first time, long-silent characters from the hero’s story are given a voice. They provide a sparkling new perspective on the club-wielding, all-daring son of Zeus. A Herculean triumph of creative writing... Finally, a Hercules for the twenty-first century!’ Alex Rowson, author of The Young Alexander

‘A rollicking ride through Greek mythology, Herc tells the story of the famous hero through his impact on the people around him. By turns quippy, hilarious, and shocking.’ Luna McNamara, author of Psyche and Eros