God. Hero. Idol. Monster. Murderer. The story of Hercules is one of the most famous ever told. But what if it’s wrong?

* * * Shortlisted for the Nebula Award for Best Novel! * * *

Furious with Zeus for once again siring a child with a mortal woman, Hera finds herself redirecting all her fury at the baby himself, Heracles, an innocent named in her honour. As Heracles grows into a man – an unfathomably strong, loving man – he thanks Hera for all the blessings he feels she’s seen fit to bestow upon him.

In a moment of misdirected rage, however, Hera sends a fury to kill Heracles’ family. Heracles sets out on an epic quest to discover the name of the god who set their murders in motion. Desperate to keep him busy until she can come up with a solution, Hera sets Heracles a series of tests, as impossible as they are deadly: the Nemean lion, the hydra, the Stymphalian birds, the Aegean stables . . .

But Heracles’ innate kindness, alo