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3.74 AVERAGE
3.74 AVERAGE
I really wish that you could give 1/2 star increments when rating on goodreads. This was more of a 2.5 than a 2. It was slightly better than okay but I'm not going to go out on a limb and fully say that I liked it.
The "egyptianness" of it wasn't very strong and the plot was rather cliched. About the only things that I really liked were Taita's fights with Ishtar. If it had been a fantasy book it would have been indistinguishable compared to so many other fantasies out there.
A pleasant way to waste a few afternoons or plane rides, but overall don't break your neck trying to find a copy to read. Completely worth a cheap buy at a used book store (which is where I got this copy), but I wouldn't rate it much higher than that.
The "egyptianness" of it wasn't very strong and the plot was rather cliched. About the only things that I really liked were Taita's fights with Ishtar. If it had been a fantasy book it would have been indistinguishable compared to so many other fantasies out there.
A pleasant way to waste a few afternoons or plane rides, but overall don't break your neck trying to find a copy to read. Completely worth a cheap buy at a used book store (which is where I got this copy), but I wouldn't rate it much higher than that.
Wow. It's been a while since I read a book that was as by the numbers as this one. All the characters slip gracefully through the plot due to being completely two dimensional, and if I ever read the term 'this very Egypt' one more time, I'm going to throw up.
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Gore, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Murder, Pregnancy, War, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
This book is the third book in Wilbur Smith's ancient Egyptian series although, chronologically, it is a direct follow-up to the first book, "River God" which ranks among my all time favorite historical novels. The second book of the series, "The Seventh Scroll" actually takes place in the present day and concerns some archeologists/anthroplogists that become embroiled in a mysterious adventure dealing with the events of the first novel. So now, here in the third novel, the author returns to the era of Taita, his protagonist of "River God", attempting to recreate the magic (and the hugely popular reviews) of that book. So the question is...did he achieve that? Was he able to garner the forces of whatever muse inspired him that other time?
Pretty close. This isn't the super shining star that was "River God" but it is a shining star none the less. I think there are two main differences between the two novels that led this novel to be inferior to the first. One is just that: it isn't the first. Had this one been the first of a series or a stand-alone novel it might well have been held to the same kind of reverence. But since we have "River God" to which to compare it, it loses a little bit in the originality department.
But not much I have to say. The prose is equally well done and the pace of the novel is spot on. It reads easily like a quick novel despite its length and you have that same desire that all good novels inspire...wanting to sneak off and find time to read more of it. There were only a couple of spots where I wished events would speed up. The plot itself is not unique, basically a story of bad guys usurping power from the rightful good guys and how the good guys make things right and come back into power. But since the good guy's army is always outnumbered, he and his allies must use intelligence to find ways to win battles. It sort of reminded me of "Braveheart" in the numbers of ways outnumbered armies can find cool ways to win.
The other main difference that makes this novel slightly inferior to "River God" is that it is told in third person point of view. This is probably necessary because this time Taita is not always where the action is occurring. We have multiple major characters all over Egypt making it impossible for 1st person POV. But the author loses the intimacy that comes with 1st person POV. In "River God" we really know the character of Taita and come to understand his foibles as well as his matter-of-fact superiority to those around him. We know his thoughts when he acts as puppet master whereas in this book, he seems more aloof and somehow, less interesting. There are times, especially during the climactic scenes near the end where he is hardly involved.
All in all I enjoyed this book as a darn good read despite the inevitable comparisons I had to make to an actual masterpiece. 4 and 1/2 stars.
Pretty close. This isn't the super shining star that was "River God" but it is a shining star none the less. I think there are two main differences between the two novels that led this novel to be inferior to the first. One is just that: it isn't the first. Had this one been the first of a series or a stand-alone novel it might well have been held to the same kind of reverence. But since we have "River God" to which to compare it, it loses a little bit in the originality department.
But not much I have to say. The prose is equally well done and the pace of the novel is spot on. It reads easily like a quick novel despite its length and you have that same desire that all good novels inspire...wanting to sneak off and find time to read more of it. There were only a couple of spots where I wished events would speed up. The plot itself is not unique, basically a story of bad guys usurping power from the rightful good guys and how the good guys make things right and come back into power. But since the good guy's army is always outnumbered, he and his allies must use intelligence to find ways to win battles. It sort of reminded me of "Braveheart" in the numbers of ways outnumbered armies can find cool ways to win.
The other main difference that makes this novel slightly inferior to "River God" is that it is told in third person point of view. This is probably necessary because this time Taita is not always where the action is occurring. We have multiple major characters all over Egypt making it impossible for 1st person POV. But the author loses the intimacy that comes with 1st person POV. In "River God" we really know the character of Taita and come to understand his foibles as well as his matter-of-fact superiority to those around him. We know his thoughts when he acts as puppet master whereas in this book, he seems more aloof and somehow, less interesting. There are times, especially during the climactic scenes near the end where he is hardly involved.
All in all I enjoyed this book as a darn good read despite the inevitable comparisons I had to make to an actual masterpiece. 4 and 1/2 stars.
It’s not often I wonder why I get given a book as a gift, but as I never showed any interest in Wilbur Smith, Ancient Egypt, books that could be aimed at children (were it not so violent, maybe), or books about wizardry, I have no idea why I was given this book as a birthday present.
This book sees 3 pharaohs try to unite Egypt. There are battles, boys coming of age, attempted rapes, wizards giving advice, and all round ancient battling. If you like this sort of thing, then you’ll enjoy this book, but it wasn’t for me, as it wasn’t my sort of book
My biggest issue with the book is that it felt like he padded the run time. There were meanders that really didn’t need to be there, beyond making the book longer.
This book sees 3 pharaohs try to unite Egypt. There are battles, boys coming of age, attempted rapes, wizards giving advice, and all round ancient battling. If you like this sort of thing, then you’ll enjoy this book, but it wasn’t for me, as it wasn’t my sort of book
My biggest issue with the book is that it felt like he padded the run time. There were meanders that really didn’t need to be there, beyond making the book longer.
slow-paced
TW: SA, graphic violence etc.
Wilbur Smith really liked writing about naked barely pubescent girls. This was published in 2001 so the 'it was a different time' defence doesn't really fly. It's problematic.
Nonetheless, this was an entertaining (if rapey) addition to the Ancient Egipt series. Some of the character tropes are becoming predictable though (hero will succeed but barely, hero's offsider will suffer but survive). But yeah. Every young main female character has their body described in detail.
Wilbur Smith really liked writing about naked barely pubescent girls. This was published in 2001 so the 'it was a different time' defence doesn't really fly. It's problematic.
Nonetheless, this was an entertaining (if rapey) addition to the Ancient Egipt series. Some of the character tropes are becoming predictable though (hero will succeed but barely, hero's offsider will suffer but survive). But yeah. Every young main female character has their body described in detail.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
A typical Wilbur Smith book and a good follow-on from the previous two, however, it lacked the tension and excitement I loved from the first two. Taita is now too over-powered, to the point that (even though he didn't) it was obvious he could have changed the outcome all on his own. Nefer never made a bad decision, always guided by Taita. There was nothing interesting left to read about him. Finally, the ending was terrible. After nearly 700 pages of waiting, it was extremely anti-climactic.
So the book was fine, but I would not read it again.
So the book was fine, but I would not read it again.