[It] is with some trepidation that this reviewer places himself athwart the throng of hand-clappers and ventures the view that, while competently written, "The Bull from the Sea" is very far from being a great historical novel, an unusually good re-creation of antiquity, or a masterpiece of writing. Indeed, not to put too fine a point on it, this book seems surprisingly shallow and lacking in any feeling for antiquity.

For if Theseus, the tough, doughty, deedful legendary founder of Athens, if Hippolyta, the equally rough-and-ready Queen of the Amazons, if Pirithoos, leader of the untamed Aegean sea-rovers were as they are set forth in this book, then Hollywood is right after all. In fact, the encounter, combat, and love affair between Theseus and Hippolyta would make a grand spectacular, however poor Homer or Aeschylus it may be.

Not that Miss Renault is not able on occasion to...