For a period in time that gave us Sappho and the love affair of Achilles and Patroclus, the Ancient Greek relationship with queer folk is more complicated than at first glance. Tales as old as antiquity persevere, whether the goddess of love Aphrodite, Tiresias, the prophet who spent time as both man and woman, or the infamous Heracles. But, what can these ancient stories offer our contemporary world? Historian Jean Menzies dives into the world of queer retellings and the Greek myths being told anew by LGBTQ+ writers. From explorations of gender and identity across millennia, to celebrating queer love in its many forms, All the Violet Tiaras invites readers to discover the power to be found in remaking these myths, time and again, carving a space for queer stories to be told with all the complexity and tenderness they deserve, with a goddess or two for good measure.
Jean Menzies is an ancient historian and author from Scotland. Jean completed her PhD in classics at the University of Roehampton in 2022, with a focus on gender, myth, and rhetoric in Ancient Greece. Meanwhile, her first novel, The Flames of Albiyon, is a sapphic adult fantasy about dragons and found family. She can usually be found online harping on about queer literature and ancient history over on her YouTube channel Jean's Thoughts.
