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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
I don't remember crying the first time I read this book, but I sure bawled at the end the second time. I enjoyed this book much more than the first two in the series, particularily her strength and memories of her past lives.
Synopsis: Set in the desert plains of Egypt, Charmian, the half-sister of the infamous Queen Cleopatra, recounts her life's tale in this epic historical fantasy by Jo Graham. Charmian tells of a sparse childhood being raise by just her mother, who was a servant to the pharaoh. Not knowing that her father was the pharaoh, Charmian is startled when she learns that the Princess Cleopatra is her half-sister. She's even more stunned to learn that she has another half-sister, Iras, and that Iras and Charmian are to be live-in playmates to the Princess.
As the three girls grow up, they become closer than playmates. The grow into the sisters they actually are. While Charmian recounts a seemingly normal childhood for the girls, she details Cleopatra's tumultuous and dangerous rise to the thrown and her struggle to keep it. She lends her voice to the details of Cleopatra's romances, first with Julius Caesar and then with Mark Antony. But Charmian has her own tale to tell and she tells of her own passions, of becoming a mother, and of being in the most impossible of love relationships.
When the end finally comes for the great Cleopatra and her sisters, it is Charmian who carries the reader into the afterlife and on the next part of her journey.
Review: I have read nothing else by Jo Graham, but after reading The Hand of Isis, I most definitely will. Graham is an extraordinary writer and the author's talent lies within the details of the novel. Almost everyone is familiar with the story of Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, and Mark Antony. Told from Charmian's point of view and with the most dazzling attention to detail, Graham breathes new life into this familiar tale. Graham takes such care with descriptions and details in this novel, that the reader cannot help but feel the sands of the desert blow across them, or to hear the lapping of the Nile river.
Charmian as the narrator pulls you in with her strength and honesty. Her voice is genuine and tangible. The reader feels as if Charmian is sitting with them, telling them her story personally. She adds a dimension to this novel that no other character could, and while Cleopatra is very obviously the focus of the novel, the reader wants to hear and experience Charmian's life, just as much as they do the Queen's.
I highly, highly recommend this novel.
As the three girls grow up, they become closer than playmates. The grow into the sisters they actually are. While Charmian recounts a seemingly normal childhood for the girls, she details Cleopatra's tumultuous and dangerous rise to the thrown and her struggle to keep it. She lends her voice to the details of Cleopatra's romances, first with Julius Caesar and then with Mark Antony. But Charmian has her own tale to tell and she tells of her own passions, of becoming a mother, and of being in the most impossible of love relationships.
When the end finally comes for the great Cleopatra and her sisters, it is Charmian who carries the reader into the afterlife and on the next part of her journey.
Review: I have read nothing else by Jo Graham, but after reading The Hand of Isis, I most definitely will. Graham is an extraordinary writer and the author's talent lies within the details of the novel. Almost everyone is familiar with the story of Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, and Mark Antony. Told from Charmian's point of view and with the most dazzling attention to detail, Graham breathes new life into this familiar tale. Graham takes such care with descriptions and details in this novel, that the reader cannot help but feel the sands of the desert blow across them, or to hear the lapping of the Nile river.
Charmian as the narrator pulls you in with her strength and honesty. Her voice is genuine and tangible. The reader feels as if Charmian is sitting with them, telling them her story personally. She adds a dimension to this novel that no other character could, and while Cleopatra is very obviously the focus of the novel, the reader wants to hear and experience Charmian's life, just as much as they do the Queen's.
I highly, highly recommend this novel.
The Hand of Isis is the story of Cleopatra told through the eyes of her loving sister Charmian. It spans Cleopatra’s life from her birth and childhood to her death.
Some people won’t like the sex scenes and the candid way sex was part of the story. However, I found it refreshing. Additionally, including homosexual and bisexual characters made it feel representative of people generally. I loved Charmian’s candid approach towards sex.
A significant part of the story involves the Egyptian gods and Jo Grahams slightly odd way of dealing with faith and dead. This will alienate some readers, however I found it an interesting angle to take and felt it added something to the story. It raises some questions about the role of religion in understanding and dealing with death, and asks questions about our abilities to accept people with different beliefs to our own.
My complaints about the book are mostly a feeling that the pacing was inconsistent, meaning my attention was lost at times. Normally this type of book compels me to complete reading it quickly; however, I put it down for days at a time and eventually finished it in little over a month. It seemed to jump focus. Towards the middle, I felt told about Cleopatra’s activities and character, and not shown them. The relationship between the sisters was weaker in the second half, which was unfortunate as this was a major strength of the book in the first half.
This was a book I didn’t quite know what to think about. My opinion of it changed so much depending on my mood. Sometimes I genuinely didn’t think it was very good. Yet somehow, I couldn’t forget about it. It was almost as if it was haunting me, making me read until the very end. I didn’t want to read the end. I’m not too clued up about the history of Cleopatra. I’ve never watched a film about her and this is the first book about her I’ve read. I did however know she would die. I didn’t want her to die. Maybe it was the conflicting emotions that made me dislike the book at times. Sometimes I loved it. I could relate to the characters which seeing as they lived over 2000 years ago and had a very different standing in life, not to mention living in a different continent and society, seems like an achievement. The vivid descriptions made me want to know more about Alexandrian society and the scientific and engineering inventions mentioned.
I look forward to reading more of Jo Graham’s work, but I’m going to wait a while until I do.
Some people won’t like the sex scenes and the candid way sex was part of the story. However, I found it refreshing. Additionally, including homosexual and bisexual characters made it feel representative of people generally. I loved Charmian’s candid approach towards sex.
A significant part of the story involves the Egyptian gods and Jo Grahams slightly odd way of dealing with faith and dead. This will alienate some readers, however I found it an interesting angle to take and felt it added something to the story. It raises some questions about the role of religion in understanding and dealing with death, and asks questions about our abilities to accept people with different beliefs to our own.
My complaints about the book are mostly a feeling that the pacing was inconsistent, meaning my attention was lost at times. Normally this type of book compels me to complete reading it quickly; however, I put it down for days at a time and eventually finished it in little over a month. It seemed to jump focus. Towards the middle, I felt told about Cleopatra’s activities and character, and not shown them. The relationship between the sisters was weaker in the second half, which was unfortunate as this was a major strength of the book in the first half.
This was a book I didn’t quite know what to think about. My opinion of it changed so much depending on my mood. Sometimes I genuinely didn’t think it was very good. Yet somehow, I couldn’t forget about it. It was almost as if it was haunting me, making me read until the very end. I didn’t want to read the end. I’m not too clued up about the history of Cleopatra. I’ve never watched a film about her and this is the first book about her I’ve read. I did however know she would die. I didn’t want her to die. Maybe it was the conflicting emotions that made me dislike the book at times. Sometimes I loved it. I could relate to the characters which seeing as they lived over 2000 years ago and had a very different standing in life, not to mention living in a different continent and society, seems like an achievement. The vivid descriptions made me want to know more about Alexandrian society and the scientific and engineering inventions mentioned.
I look forward to reading more of Jo Graham’s work, but I’m going to wait a while until I do.
I liked this even better than Black Ships. Same high quality of writing and scholarly knowledge but the plotting was smoother and the characters more sympathetic and relatable. Very enjoyable!