Book Review : Nefertiti by Michelle Moran

Product Details

• Paperback: 479 pages
• Publisher: Three Rivers Press (December 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307718700
• ISBN-13: 978-0307718709

Beautiful Nefertiti and her sister, Mutnodjmet, have been raised far from the court of their aunt, the Queen of Egypt. But when the Pharaoh of Egypt dies, their father’s power play makes Nefertiti wife to the new and impetuous king. It is hoped she will temper King Amunhotep’s desire to overturn Egypt’s religion, but the ambitious Nefertiti encourages Amunhotep’s outrageous plans instead, winning the adoration of the people while making powerful enemies at court. Younger yet more prudent, Mutnodjmet is her sister’s sole confidant, and only she knows to what lengths Nefertiti will go for a child to replace the son of Amunhotep’s first wife.

In Nefertiti, Michelle Moran has created a fascinating world of ancient Egypt which offers us a glimpse of life in that particular era, through the eyes of Mutnodjmet, Nefertiti's half sister. I can never rave enough about Michelle's superb writing skill and her talent to weave fact and fiction together seamlessly. I've been a great fan of Michelle's since I started reading Cleopatra's Daughter, which is mostly set in Rome.

Nefertiti is famous for her ethereal beauty and charm. She is portrayed as a cunning and ambitious Queen in this novel, and together with her husband Akhenaten, they demolished Egypt's gods and raise a new deity called Aten or the Sun God in their place.

Mutnodjmet is a likable character. She is a herbalist who has a caring heart and is content with a simple life. At first, she is dominated by her sister, but at last, she succeeds in finding her own true love - General Nakhtmin. I pity her when she suffers physically and emotionally because of the pain that is inflicted by others who meant harm.

Since the synopsis has given you some information about what is told in this story, I shall not talk about it further just in case I revealed some spoilers accidentally. I will only say that this book is awesome and should never be missed! Hurry and pick up a copy of Nefertiti and get swept on a thrilling ride into the world of ancient Egypt!

Rating:

Michelle Moran was born in the San Fernando Valley, CA. When she was accepted into Pomona College she took as many classes as possible in British Literature, particularly Milton, Chaucer, and the Bard. Following a summer in Israel where she worked as a volunteer archaeologist, she earned an MA from the Claremont Graduate University. A public high school teacher for six years, Michelle Moran is currently a full-time writer living in California with her husband. She is the author of Nefertiti, The Heretic Queen, and Cleopatra's Daughter. Her fourth novel, Madame Tussaud, will debut in March 2011.

Read my review for The Heretic Queen :: Cleopatra's Daughter

Visit Michelle Moran's Official Website
Visit Michelle's blog

I love these covers!


Michelle's other books:
The Heretic Queen
Cleopatra's Daughter

Book Review : Shanghai Girls by Lisa See

Shanghai Girls: A Novel (Paperback) ~ Lisa See

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks; Reprint edition (February 2, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812980530
• ISBN-13: 978-0812980530

For readers of the phenomenal bestsellers Snow Flower and the Secret Fan and Peony in Love--a stunning new novel from Lisa See about two sisters who leave Shanghai to find new lives in 1930s Los Angeles.

May and Pearl, two sisters living in Shanghai in the mid-1930s, are beautiful, sophisticated, and well-educated, but their family is on the verge of bankruptcy. Hoping to improve their social standing, May and Pearl’s parents arrange for their daughters to marry “Gold Mountain men” who have come from Los Angeles to find brides.

But when the sisters leave China and arrive at Angel’s Island (the Ellis Island of the West)--where they are detained, interrogated, and humiliated for months--they feel the harsh reality of leaving home. And when May discovers she’s pregnant the situation becomes even more desperate. The sisters make a pact that no one can ever know.

Pearl and May are two young, beautiful girls living in the modernized Shanghai. Everything seems to be perfect until their father tells them that he is broke and has to sell both her daughters to Gold Mountain Men (Chinese men living overseas who comes back in search for Chinese brides). They are arranged to embark for San Francisco, but Pearl throws away their tickets, insisting that she does not want to live her life with a man she does not love.

The bond between Pearl and May is special and strong. As the elder sister, Pearl has a feeling that she has the responsibility to look after May, and always does her best to keep her safe. During the Japanese invasion, Pearl and her mother suffered the humiliation of being raped repeatedly by Japanese soldiers. Pearl sacrificed herself to protect her sister from being ravished by the cruel men because she knew that the soldiers are bound to search the place and finally find them (she and May), who were not concealed safely under the wooden planks.

During their confinement at Angel Island, the 18-year-old May gives birth to a child in result of a premarital relationship with a man. For fear of being rejected by her in-laws, May pleads her sister to accept the child, named Joy, as her own. At first, Pearl intends to run away, but after many years living with the Louies, she begins to have a feeling of home and family, although Chinese are constantly discriminated by the Americans.

The characters of this story are very well drawn, especially Old Man Louie's stinginess and fatherly concerns and Pearl's determination, stubbornness, fears and weaknesses. Pearl's character can be summarized by this sentence:

"We’re told that men are strong and brave, but I think women know how to endure, accept defeat, and bear physical and mental agony much better than men."

The story has an excellent plot, which implores me to keep on reading. I really take my hat off to the truth and lies that Lisa creatively inserted into the story. They never fail to make me surprised and shocked at the same time. I have always loved Lisa's way of writing : There is a smooth flow and strong transitions, which makes me to understand and follow the story easily. Even though I love the story, I have a feeling that Shanghai Girls ended too abruptly. I didn't expect it to end so soon and was earnest to read the next chapter, but when I turn the page - there's the acknowledgments page.

Shanghai Girls explores the loving yet conflicted relationship between sisters --- how they support each other during bad times, share the happiness during good times and blame each other when something bad happens. Towards the end of the novel, each of them finally confronts each other, pouring out all their anger and hurt which they have kept in their hearts for so long.

Your sister is the one person who should stick by you and love you no matter what, but she’s also the one person who knows exactly where to drive the knife to hurt you the most.

As the adage goes, blood is thicker than water, Pearl and May eventually becomes supportive of each other again when there is a problem. Their sisterly-bond can never be destroyed. Lisa See brings us on a provocative journey along with Pearl and May, from Shanghai to Angel Island and finally to America. She has once again exhibited her gift and talent in writing through this amazing and gripping novel, Shanghai Girls.

Rating:

Pros: Excellent writing style, well drawn characters, amazing plot.
Cons: The story ends too soon. I want more!

I'd like to say THANK YOU to Lisa See for sending me a signed paperback copy of Shanghai Girls for this review!

Lisa See, author of the critically-acclaimed international bestseller, Snow Flower and the Secret Fan (2005), has always been intrigued by stories that have been lost, forgotten, or deliberately covered up, whether in the past or happening right now in the world today. Ms See is probably best known for Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, for which she traveled to a remote area of China—where she was told she was only the second foreigner ever to visit—to research the secret writing invented, used, and kept a secret by women for over a thousand years. ~ Visit Lisa See's Website HERE

Purchase Shanghai Girls in Paperback:

Amzon $10.47
Barnes and Noble $10.80
The Book Depository $21.83

The Book Depository $15.56

The Book Depository $7.11

Notes:

These are examples of calenders with "beautiful girls" as models.

Book Review : Sophia's Secret by Susanna Kearsley

Product details:

• Paperback: 521 pages
• Publisher: Allison & Busby (22 Sep 2008)
• Language English
• ISBN-10: 0749080787
• ISBN-13: 978-0749080785

When bestselling author Carrie McClelland visits the windswept ruins of Slains Castle, she is enchanted by the stark and beautiful Scottish landscape. The area is strangely familiar to her but she puts aside her faint sense of unease to begin her new novel, using the castle as her setting, and one of her own ancestors, Sophia, as her heroine. Then Carrie realizes her writing is taking on a life of its own and the lines between fact and fiction become increasingly blurred. As Sophia's memories draw Carrie more deeply into the intrigue of 1708, she discovers a captivating love story lost in time. After three hundred years, Sophia's Secret must be told.

Anyone who loves reading historical fiction will certainly love this wonderfully crafted novel. This book enlightens me with the historical facts and information of the invasion fleet of French and Scottish soldiers who nearly succeeded in landing the exiled James Stewart in Scotland to reclaim his throne.

When Carrie realizes that one of her ancestors, Sophia Paterson, lived around the same time, she decides to create a fictional life for Sophia and places her at the castle of Slains to be a narrator for the events leading up to the Jacobite uprising. However, she later on discovers that her characters seem to come alive, and everything she writes is true. The shocking events lead her to believe that she has, in fact, inherited Sophia’s memories and is seeing the past through Sophia's eyes.

Susanna's writing flows smoothly, moving from one character to the next, one setting to another, with readers keeping the swift pace. She has created a powerful, unbroken connection between Carrie and Sophia. Reading Sophia's Secret, to me, was like having a rendezvous with my friends. It gives me the chance to delve into the past, while listening to an interesting tale told by a skillful storyteller who both entertains and enlightens the listener.

In the past, the love and romance between John Moray and Sophia Patterson is written nicely. They showed respect for each other and marry out of pure love. When bad news about John arrived, Sophia thought she would never fall in love again, until someone special appeared. Susanna manages to send readers away happily with a twist in the plot. Sophia's story shows us that true love withstands and endures all trials and tribulations. As for Carrie, she finally succeeds in finding her true love, discovering her true heritage and completing her novel with a perfect ending which will leave readers in tears, not sad, but rather happy ones.

The field might fall to fallow and the birds might stop their song awhile; the growing things might die and lie in silence under the snow, while throught it all the cold sea wore its face of storm and death and sunken hopes...and yet unseen beneath the waves a warmer current ran that, in its time, would bring the spring. (pg 512)

Overall, Sophia's Secret is an interesting read, and I don't doubt the slightest bit that it will be loved by all historical fiction fans.

Rating:

I'd like to say THANK YOU to Susanna Kearsley for sending me a signed paperback copy of Sophia's Secret for this review!

Susanna Kearsley, 43, always knew she wanted to be an author – and even swapped her job as a curator in a museum to be a waitress so she would have more time to write. It wasn’t until she entered the Transworld Publishers’ Catherine Cookson Fiction Prize competition in 1993 – and won! – that she realized her hobby could actually make her a living. Since then, Susanna has published eight books, including The Splendour Falls, The Shadowy Horses and Season of Storms, and, despite being a busy mum, still finds time to write new material. Susanna also writes under the name of Emma Cole.

Sophia's Secret is available on
Amazon US / Amazon UK / The Book Depository

Visit Susanna Kearsley's Website
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Visit The Official Susanna Kearsley / Emma Cole Fan Site