New Release: Daughter of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

Good morning!

I'm so pleased to share with you all the release of my good friend, Stephanie Dray's latest historical fantasy, Daughters of the Nile, the third book in her Cleopatra Selene series. I thoroughly devoured the first two books in the series and I can't wait to read this one! Perfect timing for my month of December read-a-thon, where I catch up on all the books on my TBR!

From critically acclaimed historical fantasy author, Stephanie Dray comes the long-awaited new tale 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?

Read the Reviews

"A stirring story of a proud, beautiful, intelligent woman whom a 21st century reader can empathize with. Dray's crisp, lush prose brings Selene and her world to life." ~RT Book Reviews

"The boldest, and most brilliant story arc Dray has penned..." ~Modge Podge Reviews

"If you love historical fiction and magical realism, these books are for you." ~A Bookish Affair

Read an Excerpt

Below me, six black Egyptian cobras dance on their tails, swaying. I watch their scaled hoods spread wide like the uraeus on the crown of Egypt. Even from this height, I'm paralyzed by the sight of the asps, their forked tongues flickering out between deadly fangs. I don't notice that I'm gripping the balustrade until my knuckles have gone white, all my effort concentrated upon not swooning and falling to my death.

And I would swoon if I were not so filled with rage. Someone has arranged for this. Someone who knows what haunts me. Someone who wants to send me a message and make this occasion a moment of dread. My husband, the king must know it, for he calls down, "That's enough. We've seen enough of the snake charmer!"

There is commotion below, some upset at having displeased us. Then Chryssa hisses, "Who could think it a good idea to honor the daughter of Cleopatra by coaxing asps from baskets of figs?"

The story the world tells of my mother's suicide is that she cheated the emperor of his conquest by plunging her hand into a basket where a venomous serpent lay in wait. A legend only, some say, for the serpent was never found. But I was there. I brought her that basket. She was the one bitten but the poison lingers in my blood to this day. I can still remember the scent of figs in my nostrils, lush and sweet. The dark god Anubis was embroidered into the woven reeds of the basket, the weight of death heavy in my arms. I can still see my mother reach her hand into that basket, surrendering her life so that her children might go on without her. And I have gone on without her.

I have survived too much to be terrorized by the emperor's agents or whoever else is responsible for this.

If it is a message, a warning from my enemies, I have already allowed them too much of a victory by showing any reaction at all. So I adopt as serene a mask as possible. My daughter blinks her big blue eyes, seeing past my facade. "Are you frightened, Mother? They cannot bite us from there. The snakes are very far away."

I get my legs under me, bitterness on my tongue. "Oh, but they're never far enough away."

Available now in print and e-book!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Powells | IndieBound | Goodreads

Did you miss the first book in the series?

Available now in print and e-book!

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iTunes | Kobo | Powells | IndieBound | Goodreads

STEPHANIE DRAY is a bestselling, multi-published, award-winning author of historical women’s fiction and fantasy set in the ancient world. Her critically acclaimed historical series about Cleopatra’s daughter has been translated into more than six different languages, was nominated for a RITA Award and won the Golden Leaf. Her focus on Ptolemaic Egypt and Augustan Age Rome has given her a unique perspective on the consequences of Egypt's ancient clash with Rome, both in terms of the still-extant tensions between East and West as well as the worldwide decline of female-oriented religion. Before she wrote novels, Stephanie was a lawyer, a game designer, and a teacher. Now she uses the transformative power of magic realism to illuminate the stories of women in history and inspire the young women of today. She remains fascinated by all things Roman or Egyptian and has-to the consternation of her devoted husband-collected a house full of cats and ancient artifacts.

Keeping it in the (Ptolemaic) Family: When Incest is Best by Stephanie Dray

Welcome back to History Undressed a fabulous author who I admire--Stephanie Dray. If you haven't already read her previous article, Bad Girls of the Ancient World, you will want to!  Today she's hear to talk with us about a very controversial topic, that also happens to take center stage in her new novel, Song of the Nile, which I reviewed earlier this week.

Without further ado... I give you Ms. Dray!

Keeping it in the (Ptolemaic) Family: When Incest is Best

by

Stephanie Dray

There are a whole slew of fantastically good reasons why incest is illegal and taboo, including the lasting psychological damage it does, and the dysfunctional family dynamics it creates. That said, there’s a good chance that the Ptolemaic Dynasty would have been filled with fratricidal thugs and harpies even if they hadn’t made it a practice to marry their siblings.



I say this because just about every relationship in the ancient world was founded upon some manner of abusive power. While we romanticize the relationship between Cleopatra VII and Julius Caesar, and especially the relationship between Cleopatra and Mark Antony, both of these love affairs were based on mutual political interest--in Cleopatra’s case, a desire to stay alive. While many accused her of seduction, the fact remains when she rolled herself out at the feet of the Roman general, she was more than thirty years his junior, and utterly at his mercy. 



Today, we would rightly question the ethics of these love affairs, but given the way women were treated in the ancient world--and even until recently--her relationships with these men seems positively enlightened. Especially when you contrast them with the sexual relationships she was supposed to have as the Queen of Egypt. 



To wit, she was not only expected to marry her brother, but to have children by him.



So, how did this come to pass? The Ptolemies considered themselves to be the successors to Alexander the Great--that Macedonian King who conquered the known world. Ptolemy was his general, and some said his half-brother. After Alexander the Great died and his empire was broken up, Egypt fell into the hands of Ptolemy and a dynasty was born. 



His daughter, Arsinoe II, would start the tradition of incest. Married off to an old King of Thrace when she was still a teenager, she was the ultimate survivor. Her life was frequently in danger and she made many narrow escapes, including one from the Seleucid Army marching on her kingdom. At some point, Arsinoe seems to have decided that if she wanted to be safe, she couldn’t trust anyone outside her immediate family. So, she returned to Egypt and married her full brother, Ptolemy II. 

Now, the Greeks didn’t have a tradition of incest in their ruling families...but the pharaohs of Egypt did. By marrying her brother, Arsinoe was able to help create a link between the new Ptolemaic dynasty and the very old traditions of the native Egyptians. It served her extremely well as she became the first female pharaoh of the Ptolemaic dynasty, ruling not just as the wife of the king, but as a king in her own right.



After that, the tradition took hold and not simply because all the cool kids were doing it. The Ptolemies discovered that incest served some important political purposes. For one, it kept out the riff-raff. Incestuous marriages virtually ensured that the Macedonian ruling family would never have to dilute its blood with native Egyptians, for whom they seemed to hold some disdain. Moreover, it put the kibosh on social mobility. No ambitious little Macedonian or Egyptian boys would grow up with the dream that they, too, could be pharaoh as long as they worked hard, sucked up, and poisoned the right people. 



The best an ambitious man could hope for was to make his daughter a concubine to the king, which might, if the queen was infertile, allow him to one day become grandfather and vizier to the next king. Consequently, a tradition of Ptolemaic incest kept the threat of being poisoned by outsiders to a minimum.



Another advantage to keeping it in the family was that foreign powers couldn’t get a foothold in Egypt. The usual way by which empires encroached upon one another was by marriage. If I’m the king of the nearby Seleucid empire, for example, it might be a good idea to marry my daughter off to the King of Egypt. Then, when the pharaoh is old and feeble, I could claim the throne in the name of my grandson with my own army to back me. But if Ptolemaic kings only marry their sisters or daughters or nieces, I don’t have a prayer. 



So, the potential for foreign invasion and manipulation was reduced by incest. But what of internal conflicts? Well, when you marry your own sisters you can maintain control over your nephews--all of whom would have a claim to your throne. It’s an easy solution to turn them into sons!



You might assume that the Ptolemaic gene pool would produce a lot of inbred drooling abominations, but aside from a tendency towards weight-gain and buggy eyes, the Ptolemies don’t appear to have suffered any genetic abnormalities. Unless you count the unflinching resolve to murder your siblings as a matter of nature rather than nurture. 



Apparently, familiarity breeds contempt and the Ptolemies became a fratricidal lot. The family infighting was ruthless and deadly; there was no defense against those family dynamics. 



So was it worth it? 



Well, the evidence tells us that it was. The Ptolemies ruled Egypt for almost three hundred years. And if the Battle of Actium had gone the other way, Egyptian culture would have dominated western civilization. 


Bio

Stephanie graduated from Smith, a small women’s college in Massachusetts where–to the consternation of her devoted professors–she was unable to master Latin. However, her focus on Middle Eastern Studies gave her a deeper understanding of the consequences of Egypt’s ancient clash with Rome, both in terms of the still-extant tensions between East and West as well as the worldwide decline of female-oriented religion.

Before she wrote novels, Stephanie was a lawyer, a game designer, and a teacher. Now she uses the transformative power of magic realism to illuminate the stories of women in history and inspire the young women of today. She remains fascinated by all things Roman or Egyptian and has–to the consternation of her devoted husband–collected a house full of cats and ancient artifacts.

Blurb

Sorceress. Seductress. Schemer. Cleopatra’s daughter has become the emperor’s most unlikely apprentice and the one woman who can destroy his 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.

Forced to marry a man of the emperor’s choosing, Selene will not allow her new husband to rule in her name. She quickly establishes herself as a capable leader in her own right and as a religious icon. Beginning the hard work of building a new nation, she wins the love of her new subjects and makes herself vital to Rome by bringing forth bountiful harvests.

But it’s the magic of Isis flowing through her veins that 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?

Berkley Trade October 2011 (Trade Paperback)
# ISBN-10: 0425243044
# ISBN-13: 9780425243046

Purchase Info

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B&N

IndieBound

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Constellation Books

Powell's

Historical Novel Review: Song of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

I recently had the pleasure of reading Stephanie Dray's second novel in her Cleopatra's Daughter series, Song of the Nile.

If you'd like to read my review of the first novel, Lily of the Nile, click here.


BOOK INFO: (borrowed from the author's website)


Sorceress. Seductress. Schemer. Cleopatra’s daughter has become the emperor’s most unlikely apprentice and the one woman who can destroy his 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.

Forced to marry a man of the emperor’s choosing, Selene will not allow her new husband to rule in her name. She quickly establishes herself as a capable leader in her own right and as a religious icon. Beginning the hard work of building a new nation, she wins the love of her new subjects and makes herself vital to Rome by bringing forth bountiful harvests.

But it’s the magic of Isis flowing through her veins that 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?

Berkley Trade October 2011 (Trade Paperback)
# ISBN-10: 0425243044
# ISBN-13: 9780425243046

MY REVIEW: (may contain some spoilers, but not really)

I really really really liked the first book in this series and so I was looking forward to seeing what happened next in Selene's life. She was such a strong young woman with so much going for her. Would she find her brother? What would happen between her and the emperor? Livia? Everyone else? Would she ever regain her mother's kingdom?

This book starts out just as riveting as the last book, pulling me in. The author has done a lot of research into her setting, events during the time period, the people, materials, food, clothing, dye, ships, religion, and so much more. When an author does this extent of research and weaves it into the story so well that I feel I am deep within a the period--as if I time-traveled--then they've done a great job! And Ms. Dray certainly did that.

There is a lot of controversy regarding a topic that takes place in this novel--incest. Please keep reading for a full understanding of this. It was not done in a gross or icky way, and if you read the first story, or have some knowledge on Egyptian culture, then you would realize this was not taboo in the time period. Cleopatra--Selene's own mother--married her brother. Many royals have married within the family to keep the crown, money, lands for themselves. I've read conflicting reviews about the relationship between Selene and her brother. I must say that within the context of this book, it did not bother me for a number of reasons.   One: in the first book it is said they are to be married. They've grown up believing they will be married. Two: Selene herself explains that she does not see him as her brother. He is her soul mate, her healer. There is no historical evidence that his relationship actually occurred, but I applaud the author for taking a leap, and for doing it in a tasteful way.

The relationship between Octavia and Selene really puts me through an emotional wringer! I really don't like him--yet I understand him (except for the rape--that I was really tormented over). I am so mad at how he treats her, uses her, I want to jump within the pages and punch him! His wife, Livia, is even worse. I feel so bad for Selene that she has to deal with these people. Now, I must explain why I said I understand him. During that time period, emperor's had to be ruthless to keep their place. They were assassinated by their peers without warning, so I understand why he's the way he is, and Dray did a great job portraying that.

For me, I saw Selene really struggling with becoming an adult. There was so much she had to deal with--a new husband who she despised and also loved at the same time, being raped, having a child, building a country, trying to establish her place in her new kingdom, dealing with negative council members, tribesmen, people altogether, friendships, her relationship with her brother, seeking her mother's kingdom, and oh-so-much more. I can see her becoming depressed, confused, angry, frustrated. It is a struggle that really affects the reader. Sometimes I wanted to shout at her for her decisions and other times I shouted for joy at her triumphs. In the end, Selene came out on top, and I was proud of her.  I eagerly look forward to reading the third book.

Well done, Ms. Dray!

If you enjoy reading books in this era, than I would recommend reading Song of the Nile, but be warned it does contain controversial material, and will affect you emotionally as you read.

Cheers,
Eliza