The Heretic Queen: Heiress of Misfortune, Pharaoh's Beloved Paperback – September 1, 2009

I found this book to be very exciting. I couldn't put it down. I just had to know who was sneaking around, who thought they were going to get what they wanted thru treachery. A beautiful love story. An exciting battle. And murders too. A nice history lesson too . If you like ancient Egypt it's a great read.

I love historical fiction, especially in the ancient and medieval eras. This novel about ancient Egypt BC painted a vivid picture of the sights and sounds of royal life ...from the jewelry, to the foods, to the clothing, and to palace life and etiquette. What a beautiful picture it made! The characters were solid, the dialogue rich, and the story line good. I enjoyed reading about the political wranglings and conspiracies too, whether or not they are true to history. Overall, this is an enjoyable read.

The Heretic Queen is the story of Nefertari, niece of the infamous Pharaoh Nefertiti who ruled Egypt with Akenaten, the pharaoh who abandoned the traditional gods of the country. Because of her aunt and uncle’s actions, Nefertari’s entire family has been erased from the history of Egypt. As an orphan princess, Nefertari is raised in the court of Seti alongside Ramesses. Unbeknownst to the young princess she is the pawn of the treacherous sister of Seti, who seeks to enrich herself at the expense of her nephew and of the country.From early childhood Nefertari has looked upon Ramesses with love and sees in him not only a fierce personal protector but the brave guardian of Egypt. She prays daily to the gods to open Ramesses eyes to her love, and take her not only as wife but Chief Wife. As such her name would be carved in the history of Eqypt and thus restore the name of her family. And should she produce the first-born son of Ramesses, her child would continue to rule Egypt. But first she will need to win over the people, who still hate her family. Not an easy thing to do when roadblocks are thrown in her way.But this is a court and there is intrigue, drama, and assassination plots aplenty. With detailed descriptions of the palaces, temples, and cities, the reader will soon be lost in the heat of the desert and the flames of heated tempers.The Heretic Queen is the second book in the Egyptian Royals Collection series that recounts the lives of powerful Egyptian women; women who have ruled alongside their pharaoh husbands or even in their stead. Several characters from the first book of the series reappear and link the two tales. An easy read and one that will have you lost in the story by the second page.I found this book to be engrossing, engaging (there’s a glossary of terms used by the Egyptians along with a map of the land in the time period covered), and memorable.

I bought this book on a whim and I am SO GLAD that I did! Seriously, I had to keep reminding myself that I was not in ancient Egypt, caught up in a crazy love story/triangle with the great Pharaoh Rameses II! This is historical fiction and as such, the author took many liberties in creating characters and story lines out of what is known or suspected (or imagined!) about ancient Egypt.One of the most mystifying civilizations in the known world, for the first time I felt like the ancient Egyptians were real people. I don't mean that in a sarcastic or condescending way, it's just that you grow up learning about the pyramids and mummification and viewing crumbling cities in the desert and it all feels so far away from our lives today. But reading this book was like traveling back in time and looking at Egypt the way it must have been to the people then. They fell in love, they fought for what they believed in, they gossiped and studied foreign languages.This book is so well-written and imagined, I loved every minute of it. Though it was a longer book, I easily read in four days and I would had finished sooner if it were not for my trip to Disney World.If you're looking for an absorbing, escape of a read, then you need to pick up The Heretic Queen right away, I promise you won't regret it!

I enjoy learning history through an entertaining read of a great story. The reader reaps the benefits of an author who has obviously performed extensive research, allowing us to experience the lives of characters who lived thousands of years ago. I like how Moran included cameo appearances of an ancient biblical figure, giving him realistic traits and dialogue, rather than portraying him as some type of ideological mutant. The book is a love story between Queen Nefertari and Pharaoh Ramesses of ancient Egypt with hints of the Exodus story in the background. Moran brings to light the amazing coincidence of the “heretic” introduction of monotheism by Nefertari’s aunt and uncle (Queen Nefertiti and Pharaoh Akhenaten), the persecution they experienced, and an event that many historians associate with the birth of Judaism in a local people called the Habiru (remarkably similar to “Hebrew”). Moran introduces an interesting twist suggesting Pharaoh Akhenaten adopted the idea of monotheism from having Moses as his tutor. However, I lean more towards an opposite turn of events proposed several decades ago by Sigmund Freud in his work “Moses and Monotheism.” But whatever the circumstances, Moran keeps the reader gripped in a story with a satisfying and feel-good ending.