twicebaked's Reviews > Mara, Daughter of the Nile

This book is better than five stars. Honestly, I couldn't love a book more, this was the very first I ever reread. Before that, after I finished a book, no matter how much I enjoyed it, I never picked it up again - I knew what was coming, and how it ended, and there was no reason to revisit until I read this book. One of the first books I ever truly loved, it gets better every time you read it.

A very sweet, complicated story about Hatshepsut's reign and ultimate overthrow. And Mara's right in the middle of it, juggling her life and the lives of others that she likes (or, maybe, dislikes). She's desperate for good luck, her whole life has been "finders keepers", "grab it before somebody else does", and she slowly realizes throughout the book that sometimes you don't have to: sometimes things are given.

More importantly, sometimes things are earned.

I appreciate the fact that when the author uses Egyptian words she doesn't explain them (or repeat them in English) like some authors do. Instead, she has the meaning slipped in without you realizing it.

"Haut meryt, you are mistaken!" protested Sheftu. "There is no name better remembered or more honored than yours in all the Black Land."

"Honor I never cared for - nor fame or riches - then or now. 'Beloved General,' you call me..."

You almost don't realize when she explains the words, because she doesn't really explain. She just translates subtly.

What an amazing book. Couldn't recommend it more. Amazing storytelling and world-building, huge (but subtle) character growth, and a very in-depth, realistic depiction of what life was like during Queen H's reign. It's a great book that sheds some light on a time that isn't really talked about in school or movies or books, and though not completely true to historical events, it instills an appreciation for the Egyptian culture, an interest in those times, and an idea of what that event might have been like.