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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
DNF at 25%.
The premise of the story seems interesting, but I couldn't get into the story due to the slow pacing and characters that were unlikeable to me.
•••
I received an ARC through Netgalley. My opinions are my own.
The premise of the story seems interesting, but I couldn't get into the story due to the slow pacing and characters that were unlikeable to me.
•••
I received an ARC through Netgalley. My opinions are my own.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
DNF at 25%.
This is written similarly to other myth retellings, so if you want something set in Egypt, give it a go. The author is not Egyptian or African, but has a Ph.D. in Egyptian History, I believe. It's rich with details and I can tell she has a mastery of the subject matter. This book was just a bit more political and mysterious than I initially thought, and some of the repetitive language felt a bit heavy-handed.
But, I think for most people, it will probably be a refreshing addition to the mythology retelling canon! It just wasn't the book for me (or maybe it is, but it's just hitting at the wrong time).
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. Neferura publishes February 13, 2024!
This is written similarly to other myth retellings, so if you want something set in Egypt, give it a go. The author is not Egyptian or African, but has a Ph.D. in Egyptian History, I believe. It's rich with details and I can tell she has a mastery of the subject matter. This book was just a bit more political and mysterious than I initially thought, and some of the repetitive language felt a bit heavy-handed.
But, I think for most people, it will probably be a refreshing addition to the mythology retelling canon! It just wasn't the book for me (or maybe it is, but it's just hitting at the wrong time).
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. Neferura publishes February 13, 2024!
I unfortunately DNF'd this title very early on. It just wasn't for me. It read very dense, like a history textbook and the jumps between tenses made it an uncomfortable reading experience for me. If there is an audiobook that will come out later on after pub date, I'll give it another go as I'm very much all for feminist retellings and the change in media might allow me to read this without the hurdles I'm experiencing reading it with my eyes.
adventurous
emotional
DNF
Kind of it’s not you, it’s me. I just keep not wanting to pick this book up. It’s both somewhat interesting and boring at the same time. I skimmed through to the end. And honestly I like my mythology/historical stories feminist and triumphant, and this is NOT that. My bad for not reading up on who Neferura actually was, because maybe I could have avoided this disappointment 😬
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher though for providing me a free copy to review.
Kind of it’s not you, it’s me. I just keep not wanting to pick this book up. It’s both somewhat interesting and boring at the same time. I skimmed through to the end. And honestly I like my mythology/historical stories feminist and triumphant, and this is NOT that. My bad for not reading up on who Neferura actually was, because maybe I could have avoided this disappointment 😬
Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher though for providing me a free copy to review.
emotional
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
"In the end, everyone's heart will be weighed."
NEFERURA by Malayna Evans
Coming out on Feb 13th 2024
* I would like to thank @netgalley and @bookmarked for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. *
I'll start by saying that I don't think I'm the right audience for this book. I went in thinking this would be an adult historical fiction. I don't recall any advertisement mentioning it would be for a younger public. The writing style and the characters personalities took me a bit by surprise. That being said, I tried to shift my mindset to remain as objective as I could be to review this book properly.
If I had read that book at 14, I would have LOVED it. This is the perfect book for a teenager that wants to dip its toes into historical fiction, Egypt history and political intrigues. This book reviews Neferura's short reign and her time as her half-brother's spouse. Female empowerment is at the center of this story!
The author did a fantastic job and this book was well researched. It was very well paced most of the book although I feel the ending was a bit rushed. Like several chapters were missing to end the story. Everything is wrapped up rather quickly in the epilogue and it took me a few paragraphs to understand who was narrating this time.
The story is very light on the romance. You understand something is going on but it doesn't focus on that. It's all about Neferura and how she will face her challenges.
So, parents! If your offspring is looking for a great read and is in their egyptian era (we all had one!), this will be the perfect book for them!
NEFERURA by Malayna Evans
Coming out on Feb 13th 2024
* I would like to thank @netgalley and @bookmarked for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. *
I'll start by saying that I don't think I'm the right audience for this book. I went in thinking this would be an adult historical fiction. I don't recall any advertisement mentioning it would be for a younger public. The writing style and the characters personalities took me a bit by surprise. That being said, I tried to shift my mindset to remain as objective as I could be to review this book properly.
If I had read that book at 14, I would have LOVED it. This is the perfect book for a teenager that wants to dip its toes into historical fiction, Egypt history and political intrigues. This book reviews Neferura's short reign and her time as her half-brother's spouse. Female empowerment is at the center of this story!
The author did a fantastic job and this book was well researched. It was very well paced most of the book although I feel the ending was a bit rushed. Like several chapters were missing to end the story. Everything is wrapped up rather quickly in the epilogue and it took me a few paragraphs to understand who was narrating this time.
The story is very light on the romance. You understand something is going on but it doesn't focus on that. It's all about Neferura and how she will face her challenges.
So, parents! If your offspring is looking for a great read and is in their egyptian era (we all had one!), this will be the perfect book for them!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest
adventurous
emotional
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for the eARC! Neferura by Malayna Evans is a Historical fiction/Feminist Ancient Egyptian retelling ❤️
Author has a PhD in Egyptology! You’d think that would make this more academic but boy can Evans weave a tale while also encapsulating the world of Ancient Egypt (or Kemet as it was called), having you learn something and be entertained!
MC, Neferura, is daughter to famous pharaoh Hatshepsut. Not much was known about Neferura but Evans used what is known to create this captivating novel!
Evans uses ancient Egyptian names and terms to reflect the time period which I loved! She did use some modern terms in places where it would be difficult for modern readers to recognize (like pharaoh wasn’t a term used back then).
The novel paints vivid pictures of ancient Egypt, I feel my childhood hyperfixation returning 😅😍 The story is intriguing and I can clearly picture the scenery and opulence of the court. The pacing was well done, I did not want to put this down!! There were a few twists and I only guessed one of them. I loved the characters, each person was well developed and had their own stories/personalities so you really get to know everyone, even the more minor characters!
I especially enjoyed seeing how women wielded power back then, in both large and small ways. Some of the characters had this sort of “quiet power” to affect their communities without getting credit or being seen for their accomplishments, which only makes me think about how much women truly affected history without being credited!
The ending felt perfect, it tied most things up but also left it open a bit. I also enjoyed the author’s note to learn more background about Neferura and Hatshepsut’s reign.
If you enjoy court intrigue, found family/sisterhood, and are looking for a historical retelling not set in Greece, I’m begging you to pick this up!! It is divine and I need Evans to write more ancient Egyptian stories 🥹 (although she does have 2 middle grade books so maybe I’ll pick those up while I wait)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, Murder
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Pregnancy
Minor: Rape, Kidnapping
On the higher end of 2 stars, but this didn't quite work for me as I had been hoping.
Part of that may be due to expectations: this is billed as historical fiction, yes, but also mythology and fantasy (I received it from the Sci-Fi & Fantasy category of NetGalley, after all), and it truly is just historical fiction. Which there is absolutely nothing wrong with, but I do want to give it the benefit of the doubt that perhaps my expectations weren't in line with what the book was actually going to deliver.
With that out of the way, let's talk about what this book was about. Neferura is the daughter of two pharaohs, a princess of Kemet and god's wife (high priestess) for Amun. Her mother Hatshepsut and half-brother Thutmose are now pharaohs, with Hatshepsut having engineered her way into the true power position. Thutmose's return to the city threatens to upset that, as he is hungry for control and does nothing to hide this from his half-sister and step-mother. As rumours begin to rise that Thutmose will make his suspicions about Hatshepsut's involvement in his father's death known, Neferura decides to take steps to protect herself and her mother.
Sounds decent, right? Politics, family backstabbing, a web of characters, and all set in ancient Egypt, what's not to love?
I believe that I read somewhere that the author has a background in history, specifically Egyptology. This shows and is absolutely a good thing, in adding to the setting of the book, but the passion she shows for the history outstrips any passion she shows for the characters. I know Iset and Neferura are close, but who even is Iset? What is her personality? Kamut, Neferura's love interest, is likewise the same, and even Satiah, who has crazy potential for a cool arc, is given things to do but not much to actually be. All of these characters seem to exist just to worship Neferura, and everyone in her inner circle bends over backwards for her, and I'm left to ask: why?
The plot at its core was pretty simple, in a family politics way that I like. These kind of plots really need the characters to make them work, and with the characters and their development being the weakest part of this for me, it's no surprise that the story itself left me a bit cold.
I hate to fill this review up with criticisms, because I feel like my overall feeling on this book was more of the ambivalent nature and certainly not a feeling of dislike, but I'd be remiss not to mention one more thing that, once I noticed it, annoyed me for the rest of the book: characters could rarely just say anything. It always had to be something else, they cried, they advised, they retorted, they quipped, whatever it may be, and you know what? Sometimes, less is more.
I liked the history of this, and how detailed the setting was, I liked the idea of the plot and the idea of the characters, but I think the execution let it down for me, unfortunately.
Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, and to NetGalley for the ARC.
Part of that may be due to expectations: this is billed as historical fiction, yes, but also mythology and fantasy (I received it from the Sci-Fi & Fantasy category of NetGalley, after all), and it truly is just historical fiction. Which there is absolutely nothing wrong with, but I do want to give it the benefit of the doubt that perhaps my expectations weren't in line with what the book was actually going to deliver.
With that out of the way, let's talk about what this book was about. Neferura is the daughter of two pharaohs, a princess of Kemet and god's wife (high priestess) for Amun. Her mother Hatshepsut and half-brother Thutmose are now pharaohs, with Hatshepsut having engineered her way into the true power position. Thutmose's return to the city threatens to upset that, as he is hungry for control and does nothing to hide this from his half-sister and step-mother. As rumours begin to rise that Thutmose will make his suspicions about Hatshepsut's involvement in his father's death known, Neferura decides to take steps to protect herself and her mother.
Sounds decent, right? Politics, family backstabbing, a web of characters, and all set in ancient Egypt, what's not to love?
I believe that I read somewhere that the author has a background in history, specifically Egyptology. This shows and is absolutely a good thing, in adding to the setting of the book, but the passion she shows for the history outstrips any passion she shows for the characters. I know Iset and Neferura are close, but who even is Iset? What is her personality? Kamut, Neferura's love interest, is likewise the same, and even Satiah, who has crazy potential for a cool arc, is given things to do but not much to actually be. All of these characters seem to exist just to worship Neferura, and everyone in her inner circle bends over backwards for her, and I'm left to ask: why?
The plot at its core was pretty simple, in a family politics way that I like. These kind of plots really need the characters to make them work, and with the characters and their development being the weakest part of this for me, it's no surprise that the story itself left me a bit cold.
I hate to fill this review up with criticisms, because I feel like my overall feeling on this book was more of the ambivalent nature and certainly not a feeling of dislike, but I'd be remiss not to mention one more thing that, once I noticed it, annoyed me for the rest of the book: characters could rarely just say anything. It always had to be something else, they cried, they advised, they retorted, they quipped, whatever it may be, and you know what? Sometimes, less is more.
I liked the history of this, and how detailed the setting was, I liked the idea of the plot and the idea of the characters, but I think the execution let it down for me, unfortunately.
Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, and to NetGalley for the ARC.