Orphia and Eurydicius: a new retelling of Orpheus’ story
Their love transcends every boundary. Can it cheat death?
A retelling of Orpheus’ myth by author Elyse John, Orphia and Eurydicius presents a story about unconventional love, the power of creativity and the courage of women who struggle to make their voices heard.
Available now in the USA, UK, Canada, and AUS/NZ.
Exclusive UK Sprayed Edge Special Edition available now.
Forthcoming in Italy from Newton Compton in late 2024.
“Poetic and evocative… the story will thrill readers who have long suspected something is missing from the classics of Greek Myth.”
- Pip Williams, bestselling author of The Dictionary of Lost Words
“Elyse John's deft language lays bare the exquisite intimacies of human connection, from the brutal - yet seductive - exercise of power over another, to the moments of tenderness and vulnerability between lovers.”
- Shelley Parker-Chan, Sunday Times bestselling author of She Who Became the Sun
Book cover design by Andrew Davis
Character art (below) by Flaroh Illustration
Orphia and Eurydicius is a monthly pick for Channel 7’s Book Club.
Read more about the novel or view character art of its gender-flipped romance.
“Bold yet beautiful ... I was glued to the page, compelled by the story of Lady Orphia and her love, the gentle shieldmaker Eurydicius. Orphia and Eurydicius is a thoughtful consideration as to what it means to be a man, a woman, a hero, a human being. I loved this retelling and couldn't stop thinking about it: Lady Orphia has my heart.”
- Laura Shepperson, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Heroines (UK), Phaedra (US)
“There are retellings and there are retellings. Elyse John weaves words into gold in this superb gender reversed reinvention of the Orpheus myth. …John’s descriptions are rich, intricate and possess the ability to stir the soul. Her word rhythms are mesmerising. Her poetry steers her prose in the loveliest and most lyrical of ways.”
“Elyse John’s Orphia and Eurydicius is a sumptuous, gender-bending retelling… [it] whole-heartedly embraces its queer possibilities while also giving weight to the often horrifying treatment of women.”
- Readings Bookshops
“Vivid, consuming, potent, and poetic. This gender-flipping, feminist retelling is not just a love story for the ages, but a moving, magical ode to the power of using our voices, and of being who we are in the world.”
- Holly Ringland, bestselling author of The Seven Skins of Esther Wilding
"A cleverly conceived and lyrically crafted reimagining. John deftly weaves a compelling and insightful narrative that interrogates not only patriarchy but the gendered dynamics of love, romance and the role of artist and muse… a delightful subversion of myth."
-Bea Fitzgerald, Sunday Times bestselling author of Girl, Goddess, Queen
“Orphia and Eurydicius is a beautiful, poetic ode to Greek myth, love, and the sheer power of women's art and women's voices.”
- Tasha Suri, award-winning author of the Burning Kingdoms series
“Orphia and Eurydicius astutely explores and tests the gendered stereotypes of classical myth and elevates women’s voices and stories to craft a beautiful, beguiling modern myth about the value of creativity, the strength of non-conformity and the power of love.”
- Nikki Marmery, author of Lilith
“Orphia and Eurydicius spins a bewitching tale of courage, love, and defiance… Orphia's poetry may bring the gods to tears; John's words have the same effect on us mere mortals. Tragic and triumphant, a must-read!”
- Andrea Stewart, author of The Bone Shard Daughter
“Elyse John has written that rare novel, one that has heart and wisdom, adventure and poetry, and all the while it pulses with a great political purpose. It’s a marvel.”
- Nigel Featherstone, author of My Heart is a Little Wild Thing
“Orphia and Eurydicius is a Greek retelling which stands out in an age of reiterations. The language is lyrical, the plot, enchanting. John is a writer who has clearly done the work, one whose courage aligns with her brave, protagonists, outliers in their own right. I find myself enamoured of both artist and novel; the tender yearning, the fierce desire, the sorrow and sacrifice… worthy of the greats.”
- Chịkọdịlị Emelụmadụ, author of Dazzling
“Distilling the essence of poetry and the meaning of honesty, Orphia and Eurydicius is sharp as a spear tip and precise as a lover's wound. A story to be re-read and luxuriated in, asserting strength in a woman's spirit, the need for expression, and the fight to stay true to oneself.”
- Kritika H. Rao, author of The Surviving Sky
“Orphia and Eurydicius reimagines the well-loved myth into a powerful ode to female creativity and ambition, a poignant exploration of grief, and a testament to the power of art and love to transcend death. Lyrical, luminous, and brimming with passion.”
- H.G. Parry, author of The Magician’s Daughter
“I found myself crying at the power of Elyse John's glittering, lyrical prose and the relationship at the heart of the novel. This is an excellent example of the power of mythological retellings as the novel makes us re-examine gender, heteronormativity and what makes a hero. I fell head over heels for this warrior-poet and gentle shieldmaker.”
-Rani Selverajah, author of Savage Beasts
“Elyse John’s Orphia and Eurydicius stunning retelling deftly explores Orphia’s beginnings, her poetic ambitions, and her searing chemistry with Eurydicius, all of which challenge the gender dynamics of the time and death itself. A highly original read.”
- Stacey Thomas, author of The Revels
“An absolutely beautiful book, both mythic and achingly human. Elyse John crafts an incisive yet graceful inversion of myth, told in deft and evocative prose.”
- Rowenna Miller, author of The Fairy Bargains of Prospect Hill
“This book hooked me from its opening lines… Art and magic are woven together in this dazzling fable which ultimately asks: how far are we willing to go for the ones we love? Elyse John has taken one of the most beautiful and tragic love stories ever told and infused it with a modern sensibility. Readers will swoon.”
- Lauren Chater, bestselling author of The Winter Dress
“A gorgeous, sweeping tale that both evokes the feeling of classic mythology and intelligent and modern insight, this is a story of the boundaries we put on love and grief - I dare you to be unmoved by it.”
- Sam Hawke, award-winning author of City of Lies
“A timeless story told in rich, poetic language, Orphia and Eurydicius is a book for lovers of myth, passion and transporting historical fiction. Elyse John brilliantly reimagines the past while crafting a moving tale of love that challenges outdated gender roles, and of grief drawn from the depths of experience. The mesmerising landscapes, the journeys of sea and fire, encircle this very human story in the evocative realm of legend.”
- Katherine Brabon, author of The Shut Ins
“Elyse John has given us a highly polished and luminous one in this wonderfully ambitious, richly imagined tale of star-crossed lovers. Brimming with passion, wit and poetry Orphia and Eurydicius is a story of, and for, the ages. One that not only stands as a paeon to love, courage and acceptance but to every woman’s desire, and right, to be heard. A triumph.”
- Lyn Hughes, author of Mr Carver’s Whale
“Beautiful, beguiling and at times heartbreaking, Orphia and Eurydicius is a novel to be savoured and cherished. Rich in detail with characters that leap off the page, it kept me reading well into the night with my heart in my mouth. John has created a world that is both visceral and sumptuous, with prose that is as razor-sharp as it is lyrical. Gripping, poetic and enthralling, this novel is a testament to Elyse John's astonishing talent.
Awais Khan, author of No Honour and Someone Like Her
“John expertly blends known myths into a delectable concoction at once ancient and modern… Orphia and Eurydicius is a thrilling tale of epic love and epic ambition spun with a Homeric sense of adventure and storytelling flair. It’s also a hymn to the pleasures of sensuality, nature and creativity, and to the courage of being yourself rather than the person others want you to be.”
- Lee Kofman, author of The Writer Laid Bare
“Orphia and Eurydicius is an intoxicating story about a woman fighting to live a life of creativity and love, on her own terms. This is a powerful epic about the collective power of women set in the mythical past that feels incredibly relevant today. John's gilded romance about breaking boundaries to live and love is transportative.”
- Steph Vizard, author of The Love Contract