The Ruinous Face

"The Ruinous Face" by Maurice Hewlett is a historical novel that takes place during the Trojan War, examining love, disloyalty, and wanting something badly through the story of Helen of Troy. The book looks at how the characters feel as they deal with the effects of war and being obsessed with someone. The story focuses on Helen as she struggles with where she belongs, torn between Menelaus, her husband, and Paris, the prince of Troy; as Troy is under attack for ten years, Menelaus desperately wants his wife back, but she is in love with Paris. Helen's internal problems are revealed through sad and personal moments, showing her struggle with who she is and what she has chosen, as she goes back and forth between her previous love for Menelaus and her current life with Paris, and her story ends with painful choices as she finds a way to be free from her deceiving beauty, which represents how attraction can be harmful.