Tagged: ahmose
The Sekhmet Bed by L. M. Ironside
(Cover picture courtesy of L. M. Ironside’s website.)
Is Ahmose’s divine gift a blessing or a curse?
The second daughter of the Pharaoh, Ahmose has always dreamed of a quiet life as a priestess, serving Egypt’s gods, ministering to the people of the Two Lands. But when the Pharaoh dies without an heir, she is given instead as Great Royal Wife to the new king – a soldier of common birth. For Ahmose is god-chosen, gifted with the ability to read dreams, and it is her connection to the gods which ensures the new Pharaoh his right to rule.
Ahmose’s elder sister Mutnofret has been raised to expect the privileged station of Great Royal Wife; her rage at being displaced cannot be soothed. As Ahmose fights the currents of Egypt’s politics and Mutnofret’s vengeful anger, her youth and inexperience carry her beyond her depth and into the realm of sacrilege.
To right her wrongs and save Egypt from the gods’ wrath, Ahmose must face her most visceral fear: bearing an heir. But the gods of Egypt are exacting, and even her sacrifice may not be enough to restore the Two Lands to safety.
The Sekhmet Bed is the first volume of L. M. Ironside’s series The She-King, a family saga of the Thutmosides, one of ancient Egypt’s most fascinating royal families.
The Sekhmet Bed was actually recommended to me by an editor from another publishing house that I consider a friend. It was free on Amazon for that day so I decided to give it a try, considering that her previous recommendations had worked out very well for me. Thankfully, this one was no different.
It seems more and more people are writing about Hatshepsut these days (hallelujah!) but I’ve never, ever seen anyone write about her mother, Ahmose. And you know what? Ahmose deserves a little recognition too because while she obviously couldn’t match her daughter in some of her achievements she was a strong woman in her own way. Ironside filled in some gaps in the historical record with her own imaginings but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that things didn’t actually happen in a similar fashion.
Ahmose is just a girl when she’s married off to Thutmose, a common general who is chosen as the next Pharaoh because of the lack of male heirs in the family. This makes both of their positions extremely precarious and it’s up to Ahmose to smooth things over in the political sphere. She’s very obviously young and naive when she’s first married but I love how she really comes into her own as she grows older. Ahmose doesn’t have an easy time of it in life but she reacts realistically to a rather bad situation and eventually finds a little bit of happiness.
I wouldn’t say the plot is fast-paced by most standards, but it was very interesting. There’s not as much political intrigue as I would have liked but that’s more of a personal preference than anything else. The religious aspect of the novel was fascinating, though, and I love that Ironside went into such detail about Egyptian religion. It’s quite strange to the modern reader but she manages to explain such things to the reader in a way that makes it easy to understand for people new to ancient Egyptian history as well as fanatics like myself.
Basically, this is just an awesome self-published novel. There were barely any errors and none of them were particularly memorable (just some missed quotation marks and such). Really, this is just a good story with an amazing female lead and great historical accuracy. Where there are changes, they’re completely justified so I can’t even complain about that. The Sekhmet Bed is just a great book and I can’t wait to read more of Ironside’s work.
I give this book 5/5 stars.
The Horus Road by Pauline Gedge
(Cover picture courtesy of mcnallyrobinson.com)
Using subtle means of political power and economic control, a foreign power known as the “Rulers of the Upland” has taken over Egypt to plunder its riches and eradicate its religion and culture. In The Oasis, the stunning second volume of Pauline Gedge’s Lords of the Two Lands trilogy, Kamose, the son of Seqenenra, continued his father’s fight for the freedom of Egypt and his family.
In this riveting final volume of the trilogy, Ahmose, the brother of Kamose, vows to continue the struggle that has been so catastrophic for his family. He knows that the time has come to lay siege to the Setiu capital, but he realizes that military might alone will not be enough to breach the city’s walls. He will need no less than a miracle from Amun. And he cannot imagine how devious Apepa will be in his attempt to rob the Tao family of its chance for total victory.
Okay, we all know that Ahmose ends up liberating Egypt from the Hyksos. The appealing part of The Horus Road is the journey to victory, not so much the victory itself. Will Ahmose be able to continue on and finish what Seqenenra and Kamose died for? Of course he will, but nothing will ever be the same again in the Tao family.
Ahmose is a three dimensional character, but after reading The Oasis, which is in Kamose’s perspective, he seems pale in comparison to his brother. Yet, throughout the novel, Ahmose steps into the large footprints left by his father and brother and eventually outshines both of them. Ahmose is a great character, but Pauline Gedge has not neglected secondary characters like the resourceful Ahmose-Nefertari or the tragic Ramose. She only gives us hints at the great woman Ahmose-Nefertari would become, but it is enough to make her steal every scene that she’s in.
Since the end of the war is drawing near, the plot moves along at a fantastic pace that makes you never want to put this book down. Cities burn, kings run from danger and betrayal happens on both sides…what more could you ask for in the conclusion to this stunning trilogy? The ending is not a perfectly happy one, but it is satisfying and the characters stay true to themselves.
I give this book 4/5 stars.
The Oasis by Pauline Gedge
(Cover picture courtesy of Amazon.)
Using subtle means of political power and economic control, a foreign power known as the “Rulers of the Upland” has taken over Egypt to plunder its riches and eradicate its religion and culture. In The Hippopotamus Marsh, the stunning first volume of Pauline Gedge’s Lords of the Two Lands trilogy, the family of the last true King of Egypt chose to end 200 years of submission to King Apepa, and attempted to resurrect a dynasty. Seqenenra Tao began a courageous and tragic revolt that almost led to the destruction of his family.
In this thrilling second volume, Seqenenra’s surviving son Kamose refuses an inheritance of failure, and chooses instead to continue his father’s fight for the freedom of Egypt and his family. He begins his desperate sweep north, collecting fighting men from the loyal towns and villages he passes. Will his savage brilliance bring him victory of defeat? And will his acts redeem him or drive him to the brink of madness?
With his father (Seqenenra) and his twin (Si-Amun) dead, you would think Kamose would be ready to give up. But instead of standing by and watching his family torn apart by the Hyksos king, Apepa, he decides to fight. After all, he has nothing to lose and everything to gain. Kamose’s decision to fight irrevocably changes both himself and the fate of Egypt.
Faster paced than her later work and filled with memorable characters, The Oasis is my favourite book in the Lords of the Two Lands trilogy. Of course I am biased because I love reading about ancient warfare, but Pauline Gedge has still penned a wonderful novel. Told mostly from the point of view of Kamose, she gives us greater insight into the man behind the ruthless reputation. His motivations are very believable and his internal struggles with the war are heart-wrenching, which makes him a very three dimensional character.
“This trilogy is dedicated to Prince Kamose, one of the most obscure and misunderstood characters in Egyptian history. I hope that in some small way I have contributed to his rehabilitation.”
I truly believe that Pauline Gedge has contributed a lot to the rehabilitation of the infamous Kamose Tao, in much the same way Marcus Crassus was rehabilitated in my eyes by Andrew Levkoff. Her trilogy certainly changed my perception of the great leader and I hope it changes yours as well.
I give this book 5/5 stars.