Cleopatra Unconquered (Volume #1) by Helen R. Davis: A Book Review

Cleopatra Unconquered (Cleopatra Reimagined Book #1)
Author: Helen R. Davis
Genre: Alternative Historical Fiction
Publisher: Savant Books & Publications LLC
Release Date: 2015
Pages: 328
Source: This book was given to me by Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.
Synopsis: The first book of three in a richly imagined ancient world where the course of history is altered by one battle. In this world, Antony and Cleopatra triumph at the Battle of Actium, and Cleopatra emerges as a queen, stateswoman, and politician. Those around her come to life as the reader returns to those days to live them with her.

My Review: Cleopatra Unconquered is the first in a trilogy that that imagines what would happen if Cleopatra won the Battle of Actium. This book narrates Cleopatra’s challenges to becoming pharaoh. She is the favorite child of her father Ptolemy XII. When he dies, Cleopatra marries her brother Ptolemy XIII. However, she faces a war between her siblings for the crown of Egypt. Her only hope of ever reconquering her kingdom is through Julius Caesar. Together, Julius Caesar and Cleopatra dream of forming an alliance between Rome and Egypt.

Even though this is an alternative history series, Cleopatra Unconquered is mostly a straightforward historical fiction novel until the end. This novel introduces us to Cleopatra and her trials. Cleopatra is a strong and capable queen. She is a quick-thinker and manges to turn the odds in her favor. She can be impatient at times. However, she is very ambitious. The novels shows that she loves Egypt and cares about her kingdom. Thus, she was a very admirable figure and shows that she was able to hold her own in a man’s world.

Overall, Cleopatra Unconquered is full of political intrigue, betrayal, and ambition. I like how the novel narrates the events that happen before the Battle of Actium. I thought all the characters except for Antony were developed. There were very few scenes with Antony, and I would love for him to be featured more. The drawbacks of the novel was the fantasy aspect in the story did not appeal to me, and I found them to be unnecessary to the plot. Also, the story seemed rushed, especially towards the end. It seemed as if once she met her word count, the author wanted to suddenly end her novel. Despite these flaws, it was a very enjoyable novel for fans of Cleopatra. I look forward to reading what happens to Cleopatra and Antony. I recommend this novel for fans of The Memoirs of Cleopatra, Kleopatra, and Cleopatra: Daughter of the Nile.

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth: Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer by Samuel Noah Kramer and Diane Wolkstein: A Book Review

Inanna, Queen of Heaven and Earth: Her Stories and Hymns from Sumer Author: Samuel Noah Kramer and Diane Wolkstein Genre: Nonfiction, History, Biography, Religion, Mythology Publisher: Harper Perennial Release Date: 1983 Pages: 256 Source: Personal Collection Synopsis: With the long-awaited publication of this book, we have for the first time in any modern literary form one of the most vital and important of ancient myths—that of Inanna, the world’s first goddess of recorded history and the beloved deity of the ancient Sumerians. The stories and hymns of Inanna (known to the Semites as Ishtar) are inscribed on clay tablets which date back to 2,000 B.C. Over the past forty years, these cuneiform tablets have gradually been restored and deciphered by a small group of international scholars. In this groundbreaking book, Samuel Noah Kramer, the preeminent living expert on Sumer, and Diane Wolkstein, a gifted storyteller and folklorist, have retranslated, order...

Olympias: Mother of Alexander the Great by Elizabeth Carney: A Book Review

Olympias: Mother of Alexander the Great (Women in Antiquity) Author: Elizabeth Carney Genre: Nonfiction, History, Biography Publisher: Routledge Release Date: 2006 Pages: 240 Source: Personal Collection Synopsis: The definitive guide to the life of the first woman to play a major role in Greek political history, this is the first modern biography of Olympias. Presenting a critical assessment of a fascinating and wholly misunderstood figure, Elizabeth Carney penetrates myth, fiction and sexual politics and conducts a close examination of Olympias through historical and literary sources, and brings her to life as she places the figure in the context of her own ancient, brutal political world. Individual examinations look at: the role of Greek religion in Olympias' life literary and artistic traditions about Olympias found throughout the later ancient periods varying representations of Olympias found in the major ancient sources. ...

Interview with Melanie Dickerson

Today, I have the honor to host Melanie Dickerson, who is not only the author of The Healer’s Apprentice , but also of her latest novel, The Captive Maiden . She is a young adult author that spins classic fairy tales into a historical and Christian perspective. I have all of her books. I am still in the process of finishing her series, but the books that I have read, I love them. I even went to her book signing to get her to sign my copy of The Healer’s Apprentice . This interview gives readers a good insight to her writing and style of her novels. I would like to thank Mrs. Dickerson for her time and cooperation with the interview and generosity to give my readers a book giveaway. 1. Can we learn from fairytales, and why do they appeal to you? Fairy tales have amazing themes, and I think we can learn from them. Most of them have some sort of moral or takeaway, a lesson we can learn. I like them, but it's hard to say what it is about them that ap...

History from a Woman's Perspective- A Book Blog

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