[Martina]

The King Must Die by Mary Renault

I read all her historical fiction years ago, but one advantage of getting old is you forget what you read long and can read all the good stuff again. It's set in Ancient Greece. Male homosexuality is presented in a non-judgemental light. Renault was, in fact, a lesbian. She got some shit for not being all rah rah about "gay liberation." And the goddesses and matriarchal societies are not depicted in a flattering light. But I don't care. I love ancient Greece, and these are so good.

Some gay men of my generation and older used to talk about these books as the first things they ever read in which gay relationships weren't tragic or pathologized. Anyway, I like them.