Review: Neferura by Malayna Evans

Synopsis: There are many paths to power. They all come with a price.

Neferura, princess and high priestess of Kemet, knows her duty is to her people. When your mother is the great Pharaoh, it is hard to forget. But Neferura's unique position at court comes with high stakes for her country, especially when she's forced to serve her vile half-brother, a man determined to stop Neferura's potential rise.

Peace, it seems, never lasts for women who wield power in the open. Especially when they cross a vengeful man.

When Neferura overhears Thutmose's plot to end her mother's rule, she knows he must be stopped, no matter the cost. The discovery of a mysterious tattooed wise-woman and her shadowy network of spies offers an uneasy alliance. But the wise-woman wields more power than Neferura knew possible—power with the potential to rival her own. Neferura must decide where her loyalties lie and how much she's willing to sacrifice to protect the people she loves before everything crumbles at the hands of a tyrant.

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Honestly, I was not as engaged as I thought I would be. I love Hatshepsut - so the fate of her daughter quite naturally intrigued me, even if from an historical fiction perspective. I am even open to "alternate" conclusions as to the fate of an equally enigmatic historical figure; however, this just didn't do it for me.

I would most likely suggest that the intended audience is teens / young adults as it certainly was not up to the standard I would expect from a work of historical fiction aimed at an adult audience, especially an audience seeking out something out of the box (and for which they themselves have some knowledge about).

Kudos for taking on Neferura though, and for the line taken to explain her sudden and mysterious disappearance from history, but as I said from the outset - I was not overly engaged.

Review: Warrior Women by Will Roberts

Synopsis: Warrior Women consists of fifteen short stories of women who led men into battle, fought alongside them, or resisted invasion of their homeland by foreign forces. Some are well known, others less known.

From ancient times, I chose Atalanta, who played a significant role in the Calydonian Boar Hunt, and according to some of the chroniclers, sailed with Jason on the Argo in search of the Golden Fleece. Another from this era, Artemisia, the Queen of Caria, fought for Xerxes against the Greeks in the Greco-Persian War, and Cynane, the little-known half-sister of Alexander the Great, herself a fine warrior who led her army into battle.

From the Roman era, this compilation would not be complete without Boudica of the Britons, and I have included two others who resisted the Romans who were determined to impose the ways of Rome on their culture: Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra, and Mavia, of the Tanūkhids, (Saracens), who led a similar revolt against the Romans one hundred years after Zenobia.

From Asia, I chose Nakano Takeko, who fought to uphold the shogun and the samurai traditions. She led a squad of women against the riflemen of the Imperial army of Emperor Meiji, armed with only her naginata, the traditional samurai pole weapon, in the Boshin War. Also, from this region, and my favourite, I have Ba Trieu, the Korean warrior who resisted the Chinese invasion in the third century. She must have looked magnificent as she rode into battle on her great war-elephant, with her yellow cloak billowing in the breeze.

Another who would resist the Chinese, though in a different age, was Ani Pachen, the young Tibetan warrior nun, who fought the Chinese after they invaded Tibet in the 1950s, and when captured, would spend more than twenty years in prison.

Closer to home, I have included Lagertha, the Viking shield maiden; Gwenllian, the Welsh warrior princess Maurice of Londres mercilessly beheaded, as with Boudica, it would be inexcusable not to include Joan of Arc.

From North America, I have included the Apache warrior, Lozen, another who rarely gets mentioned in history books but who fought alongside her brother, Victorio, against the United States and Mexican armies, who were determined to wipe out the Native American.

From South America, Juana Azurduy de Padilla fought in the Bolivian War of Independence against the Spanish. Achieving the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was revered by the President, Simon Bolivar. She died penniless and forgotten.

In this collection, the continent of Africa representative is Yaa Asantewaa, of the Ashanti, who opposed the British colonisation of their home, now part of modern-day Ghana. She died in exile on the distant shores of the Seychelles Islands.

Simple storytelling narrative with a decent mix of nations and time periods - kudos for that!. The narrative is not overly taxing and it was - for me - a quick read. All of the ladies present were know to me - however, I am sure readers will enjoy learning about some that may not be so well know.  A decent enough read for an independently published tome.