Epic Summer: The Iliad, post 7

End of Book 13: Fighting, fighting, more fighting.  A bunch of Trojans died.  A bunch MORE Greeks died and the Trojans are getting pretty near the ships. But at this point everyone on both sides is kinda bummed because their friends keep dying.


Book 14: Here is where I think it gets interesting: Back to the gods! Hera decides she's going to trick Zeus into sexytimes to give Poseidon time to help the Greeks.  She gets Sleep to help her (even though last time he did that, Zeus was SO ANGRY) and she goes to mount Ida, after borrowing Aphrodite's lust-inducing girdle in which all her charms are sewed, and tells Zeus she's just passing through on the way to their parents' house.  (Oceanus?  I'd never heard of the guy.)  Zeus says "Hey baby, why don't you postpone your visit while we have some sexytimes?"  And Hera says "Okay, sure!" at which point he surrounds them in a golden cloud and she puts him to sleep.

Back on the ground, Poseidon rallies the Greeks and the Trojans start dying en mass.

At some point the Greeks switch up their armor, giving the best armor to the most valiant.  I'd hate to be the guy with the awesome shield (which is all that's keeping me alive) informed I've gotta give it to Ajax and I'll get a plank of wood in return.  

Book 15: At this point Zeus wakes up and is, as expected, PISSED OFF.  But he tells Hera that if she'll just do what he says, it'll all be okay.  He's going to fulfill his promise to Thetis and give Achilles some glory, which means Patroclus is going to fight and be killed by Hector, Achilles is going to avenge him by killing Hector, and it'll all be peachy.  Basically, he gives away the ending.

Back on the ground Apollo heals Hector (who was smashed by a big rock in the last book) and the Trojans rally one more time and are thisclose to the Greek ships, which they plan to set on fire.  (Zeus is waiting until this happens to turn the tide of war and bring Achilles into the fray.)

We're very much in gods-using-men-as-playthings territory.