Tagged: cleopatra selene

Daughters of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

Daughters of the Nile by Stephanie Dray(Cover picture courtesy of Historically Obsessed.)

Based on the true story of Cleopatra’s daughter…

After years of abuse as the emperor’s captive in Rome, Cleopatra Selene has found a safe harbor. No longer the pitiful orphaned daughter of the despised Egyptian Whore, the twenty year old is now the most powerful queen in the empire, ruling over the kingdom of Mauretania—an exotic land of enchanting possibility where she intends to revive her dynasty.

With her husband, King Juba II and the magic of Isis that is her birthright, Selene brings prosperity and peace to a kingdom thirsty for both. But when Augustus Caesar jealously demands that Selene’s children be given over to him to be fostered in Rome, she’s drawn back into the web of imperial plots and intrigues that she vowed to leave behind.

Determined and resourceful, Selene must shield her loved ones from the emperor’s wrath, all while vying with ruthless rivals like King Herod. Can she find a way to overcome the threat to her marriage, her kingdom, her family, and her faith? Or will she be the last of her line?

The main strength of the Cleopatra’s Daughter trilogy is the characters.  The characters are so real that when they get hurt, you feel the hurt right along with them.  Believe me, Selene gets hurt a lot.

In the first book you have Selene as a frightened child, a captive in Rome.  In Song of the Nile you have her as an emotionally stunted teenager suffering from a violent rape and being repudiated by a husband who refuses to listen to her side of the story.  Now, finally, in Daughters of the Nile Selene is approaching a state of contentment.  She’s made her peace with Juba and begins to love him.  She’s ruling Mauretania by his side and doing it extremely well.  And, most importantly of all, she’s finally happy.  Selene knows what she wants out of life and after a little bit of soul-searching in Rome, is prepared to give up her mother’s throne for a chance at happiness.  I knew what the ending was going to be, but I felt the tears come out just the same.  It’s hard to lose a character you’ve grown to love yet Stephanie Dray brought her trilogy to an amazingly satisfying end.  Very few authors can do that.

The plot slows down a little more in the beginning than in the previous books as we get a bigger picture of Selene’s domestic life.  When she’s called back to Rome things heat up quite a bit and even I was in doubt about her final decision when it came to Augustus.  Even though the ending takes place in Mauretania it’s far from boring as Selene comes into conflict with her teenage daughter Isidora who doesn’t want to be queen like her mother.  But really, even if the plot was totally boring in this book it wouldn’t matter.  The characters are that compelling.

One of the things that I really enjoy about Stephanie Dray’s writing is that it has very vivid imagery.  I can feel the hot air in Mauretania, the stench of the dye factories, the more cool interior of the palace, etc.  In Rome I can hear the sounds of thousands of voices on a market day, smell the Tiber in summer and walk through Augustus’ villa to see the beautiful mosaics.  Stephanie Dray transports her reader back to a different time and makes them feel at home there which was why when the novel ended it took a few seconds for me to remember where I was.  Yes, her writing is just that good.

If you haven’t read Stephanie Dray’s Cleopatra’s Daughter trilogy you need to.  It’s by far one of the best books about Cleopatra Selene’s life and it’s extremely well-written.  You can’t go wrong with it and I’m very anxious to see what Stephanie Dray chooses to write about next.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Song of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

Song of the Nile by Stephanie Dray(Cover picture courtesy of Stephanie Dray’s website.)

Sorceress. Seductress. Schemer. Cleopatra’s daughter is the one woman with the power to destroy an empire…

Having survived her perilous childhood as a royal captive of Rome, Selene pledged her loyalty to Augustus and swore she would become his very own Cleopatra. Now the young queen faces an uncertain destiny in a foreign land.

The magic of Isis flowing through her veins is what makes her indispensable to the emperor. Against a backdrop of imperial politics and religious persecution, Cleopatra’s daughter beguiles her way to the very precipice of power. She has never forgotten her birthright, but will the price of her mother’s throne be more than she’s willing to pay?

Oftentimes the second book in a trilogy suffers from what I call Book 2 Syndrome.  It means that the book is essentially a set up for the more exciting final book and ends on a huge cliffhanger to sucker readers into buying another book.  This is definitely not the case with Stephanie Dray’s debut trilogy.

Cleopatra Selene is an even better character in this book not only because of her age but because of her life experience.  Stephanie Dray manages to find a perfect balance between Selene’s ambitious side and her religious side, the side that is totally devoted to Isis.  At the same time (for what will become obvious reasons) Selene has a hard time trusting and forgiving people.  She’s not a perfect woman and never pretends to be but her inner strength is undeniable.  Truly, Selene is spared nothing by Stephanie Dray and goes through so much suffering throughout the novel.  Yet with the suffering there is also healing.

Much like Lily of the Nile, this book was a one-sitting read.  I literally could not put it down, going so far as to read it while having supper, which is not something I’d normally do no matter how interesting a book is.  The plot is fast-paced but there’s so much character development not only for Selene but for Chryssa, Juba, Octavian and Helios as well.  It’s really a fascinating read from a lot of perspectives.

Song of the Nile is not a miraculous example of historical accuracy in fiction.  Yet I loved how Stephanie Dray admitted this in her ‘Dear Reader’ note and gave actual justifications for any changes.  There is also a huge gap in the record of Cleopatra Selene’s life so she did have a little more leeway with her characters than most historical fiction writers do.  Despite these changes where possible the novel is historically accurate right down to the details of everyone’s clothing.

If you haven’t started the trilogy yet I can’t recommend it enough.  It’s well-written so that you feel like you’re actually there with these historical figures.  It’s fast-paced but doesn’t sacrifice character development in the process.  And it’s historically accurate where possible.  What more can you ask for in historical fiction?

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray(Cover picture courtesy of Stephanie Dray’s website.)

With her parents both dead, the daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony is left at the mercy of her Roman captors.  Heir to one empire and prisoner of another, it falls to Princess Selene to save her brothers and reclaim what’s rightfully hers.

In the aftermath of Alexandria’s tragic fall, Princess Selene is taken from Egypt, the only home she’s ever known. Along with her two surviving brothers, she’s put on display as a war trophy in Rome. Selene’s captors mock her royalty and drag her through the streets in chains, but on the brink of death, the children are spared as a favor to the emperor’s sister, who takes them to live as hostages in the so-called lamentable embassy of royal orphans…

Now trapped in a Roman court of intrigue that reviles her heritage and suspects her faith, Selene can’t hide the hieroglyphics that carve themselves into her flesh. Nor can she stop the emperor from using her for his own political ends. But faced with a new and ruthless Caesar who is obsessed with having a Cleopatra of his very own, Selene is determined honor her mother’s lost legacy. The magic of Egypt and Isis remain within her. But can she succeed where her mother failed? And what will it cost her in a political game where the only rule is win or die?

I’ve read many, many takes on Cleopatra Selene.  The historically accurate one from Michelle Moran, the more character based one of Vicky Alvear Shecter as well as a couple combinations of the two approaches.  But this magic infused take of Stephanie Dray’s is definitely unique.

Cleopatra Selene is a fascinating character.  She’s a princess, but she’s wise beyond her years as her mother likely would have raised her.  Her twin brother, Alexander Helios is a proud young man raised in the mold of his father, Mark Antony.  Selene is sort of the one that takes care of her two brothers, not allowing her pride to get in the way of their survival.  She has to make such hard choices and her brothers shun her for them, but they’re always made with the best intentions: to help the family survive.

Even in Rome with the dangerously ruthless Octavian and the always-scheming Livia, Selene manages to survive and even thrive.  For someone who goes through so much at a young age, Selene isn’t very trusting and when the schemes of the cult of Isis start to interfere with the careful walls she’s built around her surviving family she does everything she can to protect them.  Even if it means losing their only chance to escape.

I like how Stephanie Dray focused not only on making these historical figures into relatable characters, but also on the magical aspect of her novel.  We really feel Selene’s panic as the words of Isis are written into her skin and the reactions of the characters around her are varied and realistic.  Octavian’s reaction to a particular message near the end of the book seems quite in character, knowing what I know about the real Octavian.  Stephanie Dray doesn’t go too far into the magical aspect, but she gives us enough of a taste so we know Selene is in for big things in the sequel, Song of the Nile.

Some may find the plot a little slow and, well, fair enough.  I, however, enjoyed the slower pace as Selene adjusted to life in Rome and tried to make a new home for herself and her brothers there.  It really allowed Stephanie Dray to focus in on the characters as well as throw in some plot twists near the end.  As for the historical accuracy, many of the details have been carefully researched but as she says in her author’s note, Stephanie Dray did take liberties with history.

In short, if you’re looking for a refreshing take on Cleopatra Selene with some fantastical elements, you’ll love Lily of the Nile.

I give this book 4.5/5 stars.

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Cleopatra’s Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter

Cleopatra's Moon by Vicky Alvear Shecter(Cover picture courtesy of The Book Girl Recommends.)

Princess of Egypt

Cleopatra Selene is the only daughter of the brilliant Queen Cleopatra of Egypt and General Marcus Antonius of Rome.  She’s grown up with jewels on her arms and servants at her feet, and she longs to follow her mother in becoming a great and powerful queen.

Prisoner of Rome

Then the Roman ruler, Octavianus, launches a war that destroys all Selene has ever known.  Taken to live in his palace in Rome, she vows to defeat him and reclaim her kingdom at all costs.  Yet Selene soon finds herself torn between two young men and two paths to power.  Will love distract her from her goal—or help her achieve her true destiny?

Epic in scope and ravishing in detail, this novel reveals the remarkable true story of a girl long hidden in history: the extraordinary Cleopatra Selene.

I know you won’t believe it, but I found something in this book that is generally an oxymoron: a believable love triangle.  Yes, I found the rarest kind of YA book out there!  It’s believable and it resolves itself in the end where the main character makes a powerful decision rather than angsting over who she should choose.

After reading Michelle Moran’s Cleopatra’s Daughter, I thought that Cleopatra’s Moon wouldn’t be much different.  But I am so glad I decided to buy Vicky Alvear Shecter’s book!  It had a completely different perspective from Moran’s and the sort of antagonist of the novel came completely out of nowhere.  Hint: it’s definitely not who you think it is but it makes sense when you look back in the story.  Cleopatra Selene comes off as a strong character who comes by her feminism honestly in a world dominated by men, rather than being your stereotypical girl with 21st century perspectives in historical fiction.  You can really feel her anguish at her mother’s and father’s deaths as well as the growing distance between herself and her twin, Alexander Helios.

Not only that, the men in her life are quite believable as well.  Juba comes off as aloof and thoroughly Romanized in the beginning, but we start to see his strength of character later on.  Of course Marcellus is incredibly charming but intelligent as well and a potential path to power for Selene.  I like how Selene doesn’t just stand by as boys drool over her; she actively pursues them once she realizes their feelings and tries to reconcile her own.  She also has incredible determination when it comes to reclaiming her birthright and that makes her both believable as a daughter of Cleopatra and a character everyone will cheer for.

As for the historical accuracy, I can’t nitpick.  Some of the mystery surrounding events at the time allows for a little creative license and Vicky Alvear Shecter doesn’t take it over the top.  She fills in gaps with plausible explanations and where there are historical records, sticks to them very well.  Her portrayals of historical figures are realistic and you kind of get the feeling that hey, this is what they could have really been like.  That, my friends, is great writing combined with great research.  What more can you ask for in historical fiction, really?

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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Cleopatra’s Daughter by Michelle Moran

(Cover picture courtesy of Fyrefly’s Book Blog.)

The marriage of Marc Antony and Cleopatra is one of the greatest love stories of all time.  Feared and hunted by the powers in Rome, the lovers choose to die by their own hands as the triumphant armies of Anthony’s rival, Octavian, sweep into Egypt.  When their orphaned children are taken in chains to Rome, only two—the ten-year-old twins Selene and Alexander—survive the journey.  As they come of age, they are buffeted by the personal ambitions of Octavian’s family and court, by the ever-present threat of a slave rebellion, and by the longings deep within their own hearts.

Based on meticulous research, Cleopatra’s Daughter is a fascinating portrait of imperial Rome and of the people and events of this most tumultuous period in human history.  Emerging from the shadow of the past, Selene must confront the same forces that destroyed her mother and struggle to meet a different fate.  A young woman of irresistible charm and preternatural intelligence, Selene will capture your heart.

So much is made of Antony and Cleopatra’s relationship that it’s almost sickening.  But very few novels follow the story of Cleopatra Selene and Alexander Helios, the son and daughter of this famous couple.  Michelle Moran has finally shed light on these obscure people and really brings ancient Egypt and ancient Rome to life.  She has obviously done her research and unlike Conn Iggulden’s Emperor series, I did not find one single historical inaccuracy.  In fact, I actually learned quite a bit, which is the point of historical fiction.

The book is told from the point of view of Selene, who is a wonderful narrator.  The young daughter of a powerful queen, she behaves more like an adult than a child, despite being only ten years old at the beginning of the story.  This makes the book much more appealing for older teens as well as the younger ones because she is a very interesting character.  The plot is not exactly fast-paced, but it’s rare to find such plots in historical fiction.  Overall, it was a very enjoyable read.

I recommend this book to any teenage girl, even if they are not interested in history.  Once Michelle Moran’s amazing writing sucks them into the world of Selene, they won’t even notice they’re learning about history.  As a bonus, this novel may spark an interest in history that could last a lifetime—it started my little sister’s interest in history.  Just days before she read it, she proclaimed, “I hate history!  It’s so boring!”  Now I dare you to try to take away her precious historical fiction novels.

I give this book 5/5 stars.

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