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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
informative
slow-paced
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
This book was. . .fine.
Honestly, it was very nearly a DNF for me. I downloaded it ages ago and began reading right away, but the opening chapters were s-l-o-w and the first-person narrator did not draw me in. I thought, "Maybe I'm just not in the right place for this book right now," and set Neferura aside in favor of other titles, unknowingly initiating a cycle of slog through-utterly lose interest-vow to finish later that would continue for months. Finally, I powered through, but even then I had to give myself rewards for reaching certain milestones (e.g. "When I get to 33%, I'll take a break and read a novella from my TBR pile." or "When I finish Part 2, I'll go for a walk and listen to an audiobook for an hour.") Turns out, my initial disconnect with both the pacing and the characterization hardly improved through the rest of the novel.
Don't get me wrong—this book is not bad. It is incredibly well-researched, fairly well-plotted (even if not well-paced), and filled with intrigue. The eponymous main character grows from a naive and artless young lady who is easily manipulated to a canny woman who takes control of her destiny. I would have loved Neferura. . .if I ever felt a connection with her. Unfortunately, I did not.
In a nutshell: it's hard to read 300+ pages of a novel when you never really care about the protagonist.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]
Honestly, it was very nearly a DNF for me. I downloaded it ages ago and began reading right away, but the opening chapters were s-l-o-w and the first-person narrator did not draw me in. I thought, "Maybe I'm just not in the right place for this book right now," and set Neferura aside in favor of other titles, unknowingly initiating a cycle of slog through-utterly lose interest-vow to finish later that would continue for months. Finally, I powered through, but even then I had to give myself rewards for reaching certain milestones (e.g. "When I get to 33%, I'll take a break and read a novella from my TBR pile." or "When I finish Part 2, I'll go for a walk and listen to an audiobook for an hour.") Turns out, my initial disconnect with both the pacing and the characterization hardly improved through the rest of the novel.
Don't get me wrong—this book is not bad. It is incredibly well-researched, fairly well-plotted (even if not well-paced), and filled with intrigue. The eponymous main character grows from a naive and artless young lady who is easily manipulated to a canny woman who takes control of her destiny. I would have loved Neferura. . .if I ever felt a connection with her. Unfortunately, I did not.
In a nutshell: it's hard to read 300+ pages of a novel when you never really care about the protagonist.
[I received an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.]
adventurous
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5⭐ liked the characters, the ending was a little abrupt
CW: incest, implied sexual assault, forced marriage, abuse
CW: incest, implied sexual assault, forced marriage, abuse
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
This was very so so for me. I went in with very high hopes which is part of the disappointment I think. I expected something along the trends of ancient retellings, from Greek mythology books like Circe to the perfection that is Kaikeyi. This lacked historical depth and grounding. Lots of mentions of Egyptian stereotypes - scarab beetles, scorpions, etc. But I can't say I learned anything of note about Egyptian history like I did with the other books I mentioned. It felt like a plain story with Egyptian paraphernalia sprinkled in. "Remove all the Egyptian stuff and insert any other culture of your choice" sort of feeling.
As with all my reads, I looked into the author a bit after reading. She appears to be a white woman from Utah whose relationship to Egyptian history is academic. My book club girlies and I frequently discuss the merits (or lack of) of white people writing about other cultures, especially marginalized ones (in this case, a brown woman). It usually doesn't work out great. And I'd say that applies here.
As with all my reads, I looked into the author a bit after reading. She appears to be a white woman from Utah whose relationship to Egyptian history is academic. My book club girlies and I frequently discuss the merits (or lack of) of white people writing about other cultures, especially marginalized ones (in this case, a brown woman). It usually doesn't work out great. And I'd say that applies here.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book reminds me my teen years where I was so obsessed with the archeology. Well I still am and that’s why I guess, that I liked this book so much. This book was full of history and mythology. This novel follows the personal and political journey of the title character Neferura through the shifts of power in the Pharaoh's palace.
Y’all, This book did not disappoint me at all because, one: the author has an extreme world building to take us to the ancient Egypt and second: there is intriguing characters. . There are so many side characters that interact with Neferura throughout the novel who made me love and root for them. this book was full of strong women supporting other women, which is something that I adored.
However,This book did have a slow start, and it took me a long time to get into the flow of the story. Once the plot got moving, though, I was hooked. The internal and external struggle of Neferura kept me turning the pages to see how she would react to the next obstacle thrown at her.
Y’all, This book did not disappoint me at all because, one: the author has an extreme world building to take us to the ancient Egypt and second: there is intriguing characters. . There are so many side characters that interact with Neferura throughout the novel who made me love and root for them. this book was full of strong women supporting other women, which is something that I adored.
However,This book did have a slow start, and it took me a long time to get into the flow of the story. Once the plot got moving, though, I was hooked. The internal and external struggle of Neferura kept me turning the pages to see how she would react to the next obstacle thrown at her.
Really your average feminist retelling but I loved the Egyptian focus it’s really not something u see so I’m giving it an extra star