One of the things that I really enjoy about Stephanie Dray’s writing is that it has very vivid imagery. But really, even if the plot was totally boring in this book it wouldn’t matter. Even though the ending takes place in Mauretania it’s far from boring as Selene comes into conflict with her teenage daughter Isidora who doesn’t want to be queen like her mother. When she’s called back to Rome things heat up quite a bit and even I was in doubt about her final decision when it came to Augustus. The plot slows down a little more in the beginning than in the previous books as we get a bigger picture of Selene’s domestic life. It’s hard to lose a character you’ve grown to love yet Stephanie Dray brought her trilogy to an amazingly satisfying end.

I knew what the ending was going to be, but I felt the tears come out just the same. Selene knows what she wants out of life and after a little bit of soul-searching in Rome, is prepared to give up her mother’s throne for a chance at happiness. And, most importantly of all, she’s finally happy. She’s ruling Mauretania by his side and doing it extremely well. She’s made her peace with Juba and begins to love him. Now, finally, in Daughters of the Nile Selene is approaching a state of contentment. In Song of the Nile you have her as an emotionally stunted teenager suffering from a violent rape and being repudiated by a husband who refuses to listen to her side of the story. In the first book you have Selene as a frightened child, a captive in Rome. The characters are so real that when they get hurt, you feel the hurt right along with them. The main strength of the Cleopatra’s Daughter trilogy is the characters. Can she find a way to overcome the threat to her marriage, her kingdom, her family, and her faith? Or will she be the last of her line? But when Augustus Caesar jealously demands that Selene’s children be given over to him to be fostered in Rome, she’s drawn back into the web of imperial plots and intrigues that she vowed to leave behind.ĭetermined and resourceful, Selene must shield her loved ones from the emperor’s wrath, all while vying with ruthless rivals like King Herod.

With her husband, King Juba II and the magic of Isis that is her birthright, Selene brings prosperity and peace to a kingdom thirsty for both.

No longer the pitiful orphaned daughter of the despised Egyptian Whore, the twenty year old is now the most powerful queen in the empire, ruling over the kingdom of Mauretania-an exotic land of enchanting possibility where she intends to revive her dynasty. (Cover picture courtesy of Historically Obsessed.)īased on the true story of Cleopatra’s daughter…Īfter years of abuse as the emperor’s captive in Rome, Cleopatra Selene has found a safe harbor.

Song of the nile stephanie dray