I started with 'The Last Of The Wine' when I was 14 or 15, astonished and delighted by it. I moved on to some of her lesser known Greek historical novels, then I discovered the Alexander series, which in some ways changed my life for the better — just by showing me that hatred of homosexuality is not a universal human condition. I did a lot of reading about Renault during that period, and I was further encouraged by the praise she received from classicists and historians, who lauded her historical accuracy and attention to detail.