Nefertiti

Nefertiti by Michelle Moran, reminds me alot of 'The Other Boleyn Girl' by Philippa Gregory - both books tell the story of two sisters, one sister is beautiful, intelligent and ambitious (Nefertiti; Anne) to become queen and the other young sister is loyal and loving to that sister until she is pushed away by her sister's selfishness (Mutnodjmet; Mary). It's actually scary how both stories run in parallel to each other in regards to both the characters and the plot (apart from the 4,000 years between settings).

Nefertiti tells the story of two sisters, against the backdrop of ancient Egypt. Nefertiti is beautiful, intelligent and cunning and is destined to become chief wife to the next Pharaoh, Tuthmosis . However Fate intervenes, and Tuthmosis, the favoured son dies, leaving the younger son Amenhotep to rise as the next leader. The story at its essence is the story of two sisters and their relationship, but is also about the hubris of Amenhotep IV (aka Akhenaten) and his chief wife Nefertiti.

I absolutely love everything to do with Ancient Egypt and have read about the era of Akhenaten. Obviously with the passing of thousands of years, facts about what really happened are quite limited, but Moran does an excellent job of putting her own spin on events. She has done her research and similar to 'Cleopatra's Daughter' doesn't overburden the reader with too much information. She uses historical information to tell the story, not drown it so you keep turning the pages effortlessly. I read this book in a day, and thoroughly enjoyed it, and am giving it 8 stars.

One of the main reasons I docked a star was because of the romance element concerning Mutnodjmet. It seemed to just happen, there was no build up. Mutnodjmet seemed almost removed from it, I felt I never got to see her actually feelings. It just didn't seem to connect.

Apart from this minor issue (because it's not a romance book), it was a great read, and I'd recommend it to anyone who wanted a historical page turner.

Cleopatra's Daughter

Cleopatra's Daughter tells the story of Selene Kleopatra, daughter of Mark Anthony and Cleopatra of Ptolemy, who after the defeat and suicide of her parents, if left to live under the watchful eyes of the ruling family of Ancient Rome.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and am looking forward to reading Moran's other works. It's extremely easy to read, and isn't bogged down with too much historical detail. I found the characters and their stories to be engaging, and I would recommend it to others except for one major caveat.

Moran adds an additional element to the story, she creates a character/plot called the 'Red Eagle' which fights against the establishment for the freedom of slaves. This plot is meant to add an extra feeling of suspense and action to the plot which I feel is completely unneccesary and sort of ruins the atmosphere of the book. Immediately it adds a very 'modern' concept to the ancient world, yes there were those who were against slavery in ancient times but this 'red eagle' hero figure feels very modern. The entire slavery subplot contaminated the storyline for me, as Selene is seen as very anti-slavery, which just has me sort of shaking my head - she was raised with slaves tending to her every need, why would she start to question it now? I know it has to do with the fact that she now is a captive, but she is never a slave or experiences the life of a slave.

Moran is an excellent writer and I did enjoy the story, I just feel that it would have been much better and realistic for her to concentrate on the dangers for Selene being in Rome such as political intrique, the senate etc. This is touched on briefly but isn't explored to its potential. Reading is about suspension of belief but the 'red eagle' plot line pulled me out of this belief. I thoroughly enjoyed Moran's writing style and story (except for that aspect) and I LOVE anything to do with Egypt so this gets a 7 out of ten from me.

I'm looking forward to reading her other works Nefertiti and The Heretic Queen.

If anyone has any recommendations of egyptian historical fiction, please leave a comment :)