Hand of Isis

Starred review from February 2, 2009
Historical fantasist Graham (Black Ships
) heads to Egypt with this elegant, engaging memoir of Charmian, half-sister and handmaiden to Cleopatra. The two young women and their other sister, Iras, are inseparable from childhood, getting one another into and out of numerous mishaps. As teenagers, they vow to Isis that they will protect Egypt from the covetous Romans, and in return for their devotion, the goddess rewards Cleopatra with the throne. Graham never resorts to melodrama even at the murder of Julius Caesar or to cliché when Charmian recalls her past lives, and she supplies plenty of superb historical detail, but doesn't let it overwhelm the narrative. Charmian's shy hopes, failures and devotion to Cleopatra and Isis make her one of the most memorable “witnesses to history” to emerge from fantasy in quite some time.

Starred review from January 15, 2009
Seeress Gull (Black Ships, 2008) is reincarnated hundreds of years after the fall of Troy as Charmian, handmaiden and half-sister to doomed Queen Cleopatra of Egypt.

The daughter of a dead pleasure slave and Pharaoh Ptolemy Auletes, Charmian is dedicated to Cleopatra when both girls are six. Although Charmian and her fellow handmaiden and half sister Iras are both slaves, they are also Cleopatra 's chief confidantes and ministers once she becomes queen. But good government, Charmian 's prophetic visions, clever diplomacy and Cleopatra 's more intimate alliances with Julius Caesar and Marcus Antonius ultimately avail them little against the crushing power that is Rome. Snatching love and happiness where they can, the three sisters devote themselves to the goddess Isis, and in her service, to preserving what they can of their way of life. With a solid grounding in history, this novel is a far richer work than its predecessor. Although most readers will already be aware of Cleopatra 's sad fate (and will know from page one that Charmian shares it with her mistress), the journey, and the vivid descriptions of life in the cosmopolitan city of Alexandria, make this book well worth reading. Moreover, the sympathetic portrayal of Cleopatra as an intelligent and devoted ruler willing to use whatever tools at hand to gain advantages for her people is a welcome and intriguing departure from prior fictional depictions of the Egyptian queen as a decadent nymphomaniac, love-blinded fool or drugged-out opportunist.

Recommended for those with an interest in the ancient world.

(COPYRIGHT (2009) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

February 15, 2009
Three half sisters, each fathered by the Pharaoh Ptolemy Auletes, grow up in an Egypt on the verge of catastrophic change. Iras and Charmian are companions to their middle sister, the legitimate daughter, named Cleopatra. The author of "Black Ships" brings to life the courts of Ptolemy and Cleopatra in a way that illuminates the lives of women and their effect on history. A stand-out addition to most libraries, with strong appeal to fans of ancient history and mythology.

Copyright 2009 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2009
In Grahams second novel, narrated by Cleopatras handmaiden Charmian, Iras, Charmian, and the queen are sisters, all daughters of Ptolemy Auletes and sworn servants to Egypt and its gods. They seek Egypts preservation during the turbulence of the Roman republics demise. Through Charmian we appreciate Cleopatra as dedicated queen and loving mother, who forgave Antony grave faults out of love; Julius Caesar as a leader almost supernaturally skilled in war and diplomacy; Antony as Caesars lesser successor, much to Egypts loss; Marcus Agrippa as god-touched soldier; Caesarion as the inevitably doomed son of Caesar and Cleopatra. Moreover, Graham paints a detailed picture of late-Ptolemaic Egypt as a truly Hellenistic civilization that merged ancient Egyptian traditions and the tolerant, exploratory mind-set of the higher Greek cultures to welcome just about everyone to Alexandria. For that the sisters work, fight, and connive. If they were defeated, their legend is with us yet. Graham keeps your interest and takes no discernible liberties with the actual events.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)