BOSTON–Dr. Sudarshan Chatterjee, M.D., FACC, is known professionally as a practicing cardiologist, but his interests extend well beyond medicine. He is also a novelist, poet, vocalist, and student of Indian classical music.
His debut novel, When All The Gods Died, reflects more than a decade of research into Greek mythology and ancient Greek civilizations.
Chatterjee describes the book as a contemporary narrative built on the foundation of Greek myth. The story follows Andrew, an archaeologist, and his fiancée Rhea after a plane crash near Mount Olympus leads them into a realm where Greek gods remain alive. The novel places the characters in a world where divine figures reappear, ancient rivalries surface, and mortals are forced to navigate forces greater than themselves. According to Chatterjee’s summary, the book blends mythological tradition with elements of history, adventure, and fantasy.
Chatterjee says the novel is intended to give readers “deep understanding of Greek mythology and some understanding of Mycenean civilization and classical Greek civilization and it’s mythology.” He adds that the book presents, for the first time, “an understanding of how the Greek gods and goddesses thought about mortals and their own lives, which was described in very modern psychological terms.”
His interest in the subject began during a trip to Greece.
“When I went to Greece, I saw beautiful acropolis and Party on in Athens,” he says. Seeing ancient temples and statues that were no longer active places of worship led him to question how a once-flourishing cultural and religious tradition disappeared. He compares the decline of Greek religious practice to the endurance of Hindu traditions, noting that Hindu temples endured destruction and political disruption but survived. “I did not understand how the whole Greek culture…could all be wiped out,” he says. This question became the starting point for his research.
The writing and preparation of the book took many years. “It took me about 10 years and then another five years to do the editing and correcting before I could publish the book,” Chatterjee says.
Although the novel describes events rooted in mythology, Chatterjee says the emotional themes are grounded in universal human experience.
“I have not experienced any of the events that has been described in details, but some of the emotions and thinking process described in the book are universal and every human being goes through those emotions which include: Faith, Love, anger, shame, betrayal, friendship, etc., etc.”
He sees the audience for the novel as broad.
“Anyone who is interested in a good novel, mythology, fantasy, ancient Greek history, character, building, and conflict, resolution, self development, quest for Self Realization, contrast of modern life from ancient should read this book,” he says. He adds that the book contains “no profanity or vulgarity,” making it accessible for readers of any age.
Chatterjee’s work aims to connect modern readers with ancient narratives while examining how cultures preserve—or lose—their stories. His novel uses fiction as a way to revisit the origins of Western mythology and the civilizations that shaped it.
