The latest addition to my website is Pandelis Prevelakis‘ Ο Κρητικός (The Cretan). The novel essentially tells the story of the struggle for Cretan independence from the Ottoman Empire in the late nineteenth century .
We have two key characters – the very real Eleftherios Venizelos who would later become prime minister of Greece and the fictitious Kostandis Markantonis who has a host of adventures in the fight for freedom. The book is a trilogy (but published in one volume in English) with the first two books more focussed on the fighting and the third book focussed on the political struggle as various European countries and mainland Greece get involved. Our hero of course has his problems while the Cretans see this as a religious struggle of Christianity vs Islam as much as a national struggle and this is a key issue in the book. It is a thoroughly enjoyable tale as Prevelakis tells us about the politics, the religion and the fighting as well as the life of our hero and his fellow Cretans.
This blog post offers a fantastic introduction to Ο Κρητικός (The Cretan) by Pandelis Prevelakis. The mix of historical figures like Eleftherios Venizelos and the fictional Kostandis Markantonis makes for a compelling narrative. I love how the novel weaves together Cretan independence, political struggles, and religious conflict, providing a rich context for the characters’ journeys. It’s also great that the trilogy is published in one volume in English, making it accessible to a wider audience. This definitely sounds like an engaging and thought-provoking read!