⋙ Libro The Sekhmet Bed A Novel of Ancient Egypt The SheKing Book 1 edition by Libbie Hawker Literature Fiction eBooks

The Sekhmet Bed A Novel of Ancient Egypt The SheKing Book 1 edition by Libbie Hawker Literature Fiction eBooks

Download As PDF : The Sekhmet Bed A Novel of Ancient Egypt The SheKing Book 1 edition by Libbie Hawker Literature Fiction eBooks

The Sekhmet Bed A Novel of Ancient Egypt The SheKing Book 1 edition by Libbie Hawker Literature Fiction eBooks

I'm having a bit of trouble with this one. I picked it up for free (thanks muchly!). I enjoy anything nonfiction about Ancient Egypt, and this was fiction, and it was well-researched, so there's a star for that.

I have this problem, however. I sort of enjoyed the book because of Ancient Egypt, and because of the time in its history that is truly fascinating. My problem is this: it's mostly about two teenaged girls fighting a lot. Ahmose gets a star because she reads as a well-rounded character. She's young, she's just become very powerful, and her fumbling steps are far heavier and cause a lot more damage than most girls do. She has an older sister who seems like a jackal-headed harpy, but, if I were in her sandals, I'd probably feel the same way Mutnofret did. And, I can see a lot of my insecurities in Ahmose, and some of my mistakes.

Ahmose is barely hitting the age of twenty at the end of the book. I actually had to stop halfway through for a bit because it was hitting me right in the old dormant teenage insecurities.

I think what bothers me is that Hawker wrote a good book about teenaged girls in ancient times when a lot more was expected of everyone, as people tended to die a lot earlier, and it hit me in all the places Hawker intended, and some of them are not comfortable. I keep waffling between "this is a soap opera set in ancient times with teen girls--AND they're rich and privileged--yecch!" and "teen girls STILL act this way, but now they think they're clever because they have digital watches and cars." Not a big difference, actually, Ahmose steals a chariot at one point.

In writing this, I think I've found what's bothering me. It reads like a prequel. You get it right from the start when Aiya wants to name her baby and asks what it is in Ahmose's language: "Hatshepsu." Well, that sets it up right there. We get to meet Hatshepsut as a toddler, and that's interesting, but the end chapters seem rushed in...that involves spoilers which I shall not give here.

All in all, 4 stars. (I only found a few typos.)


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The Sekhmet Bed A Novel of Ancient Egypt The SheKing Book 1 edition by Libbie Hawker Literature Fiction eBooks Reviews

I enjoyed reading this novel. I thought it was a wonderful mix of history and fiction, and the author did an excellent job of making some things more contemporary and understandable for her readers' benefit. Meaning, she tried to keep names, places, and gods as authentic as she could, but often replaced Ancient Egyptian names for their more Anglicized versions. The descriptions where rich and vivid, as were the characters.

Ahmose and her sister, Mutnofret, are both very young when they marry Thutmose. Ahmose is chosen as Great Royal Wife above her elder sister, which causes an immense amount of jealousy and tensions between the two women. This struggle takes up a large portion of the beginning of the book, and both sisters engage in treating each other horribly and acting like the immature teenagers they are. I disliked both characters as they conducted themselves this way, but Ahmose is between 13-16 during this time, and her sister is not much older. It's like a glorified high school feud, basically, but I don't find this struggle unrealistic or unbelievable. The novel explores how these two women grew and changed, became mothers, and learned to forgive and move on.
I devoured the first half of this book. It was so well written and interesting, but then it slowed and the main character who had been scared and unsure became scheming and horrible. It was nice when she stops being ignorant and starts being strong and standing up to her sister. But first she's broken and crying and weak, and then she's vicious and cruel. I know she's a teenager but those are some crazy mood swings. In the beginning everyone, except her sister, wants her to succeed but she doesn't take help from anyone and never learns to by the end. We see no signs of the court or the priests wanting her to fail so all of her terrible plans were not just stupid but unnecessary. Oh and she's willing to do whatever it takes to secure the heath of her kingdom except have a baby because she might die. So she'll do anything for her kingdom unless she doesn't want to then she won't? I did make it to the end but I almost gave up when she's lamenting her poor wretched life to a servant (who's agreeing with her that "oh yes, most highness, you truly have it worse than anyone"), you own slaves bitch! I was glad when the book was over and will not be reading the sequel.
The dynasty of Thutmose began in 1500 BCE, and is less known than later ones of Akhnaton and Ramses. Book 1 of four tells the story of Thutmose's rise to power, internal family conflicts and threats to his kingship. Experts disagree on facts, as is common for such distant history, and the author chooses to portray Thutmose's two wives as sisters. This sets up a rivalry for his affection and the power of First Wife. Younger sister Ahmose is chosen by her all-powerful grandmother and mother, sparking relentless resentment by Mutnofret the older sister. This sometimes vicious rivalry persists throughout the story and into sequels.

In essence, it is a story of inter-family conflicts, jealousies, plotting and political strategies for power. Ahmose is a dubious heroine, fluctuating between confidence and paralyzing doubt, love and hate for her sister, following the gods' direction or sinking into self-serving deceptions. After many reiterations of her inner wavering, this became tiring. Toward the end her conversations with Thutmose and her sister became too repetitious.

Descriptions of Egyptian life, countryside, rituals and court culture were interesting and informative. As an avid reader of Egyptian HF, I would have appreciated more focus on this and less on the family squabbles. The writing style is engaging, and after a slow start the action kept me absorbed. I will continue reading the series.
I'm having a bit of trouble with this one. I picked it up for free (thanks muchly!). I enjoy anything nonfiction about Ancient Egypt, and this was fiction, and it was well-researched, so there's a star for that.

I have this problem, however. I sort of enjoyed the book because of Ancient Egypt, and because of the time in its history that is truly fascinating. My problem is this it's mostly about two teenaged girls fighting a lot. Ahmose gets a star because she reads as a well-rounded character. She's young, she's just become very powerful, and her fumbling steps are far heavier and cause a lot more damage than most girls do. She has an older sister who seems like a jackal-headed harpy, but, if I were in her sandals, I'd probably feel the same way Mutnofret did. And, I can see a lot of my insecurities in Ahmose, and some of my mistakes.

Ahmose is barely hitting the age of twenty at the end of the book. I actually had to stop halfway through for a bit because it was hitting me right in the old dormant teenage insecurities.

I think what bothers me is that Hawker wrote a good book about teenaged girls in ancient times when a lot more was expected of everyone, as people tended to die a lot earlier, and it hit me in all the places Hawker intended, and some of them are not comfortable. I keep waffling between "this is a soap opera set in ancient times with teen girls--AND they're rich and privileged--yecch!" and "teen girls STILL act this way, but now they think they're clever because they have digital watches and cars." Not a big difference, actually, Ahmose steals a chariot at one point.

In writing this, I think I've found what's bothering me. It reads like a prequel. You get it right from the start when Aiya wants to name her baby and asks what it is in Ahmose's language "Hatshepsu." Well, that sets it up right there. We get to meet Hatshepsut as a toddler, and that's interesting, but the end chapters seem rushed in...that involves spoilers which I shall not give here.

All in all, 4 stars. (I only found a few typos.)