Cleopatra
Henry Rider Haggard
language
(, Sept. 16, 2015)
This is the epic story of the pharaoh who never was. The story of Harmachis and Cleopatra is vivid and intense, and involves love gone wrong in so many ways.With the exception of a short prologue, the entire book is given as a translation of three ancient scrolls. Here's a sentence, to give you an idea of the style: "Then in life mayst thou be wretched, and after death may Osiris refuse thee, and the judges of Amenti give judgment against thee, and Set and Sekhet torment thee, till such time as thy sin is purged and the Gods of Egypt, called by strange names, are once more worshipped in the Temples of Egypt, and the Staff of the Oppressor is broken, and the footsteps of the Foreigner are swept clean, and the thing is accomplished as thou in thy weakness shalt cause it to be done." It gives the story a certain Biblical weightiness, and isn't as intrusive as it might seem, but be prepared. That aside, it's a great character study of strong personalities against a violent historical backdrop.