However, the magic element added to the story was unnecessary. Lily of the Nile follows the story of Selene, daughter of Antony and Cleopatra, as she attempts to fit into her new environment and make herself trustworthy among the Romans, especially Octavian, in the hopes that she will one day regain Egypt. However, he does keep the children of Antony and Cleopatra alive and even sends them to be raised by his own sister. Octavian murders the son that Cleopatra had with Julius Caesar to eliminate all the rivals who threaten his throne to the Roman Empire. Octavian wins and Antony and Cleopatra end up committing suicide. He declares war on Cleopatra, but it's really Antony he wants defeated. All of this makes Octavian (Caesar's adopted son) displeased and furious at being challenged. Antony, the second Roman general, becomes so infatuated with Cleopatra that he starts to recklessly hand out Roman territory to her, such as Syria and Libya etc, and names Cleopatra's son as the true heir of Julius Caesar. An Egyptian queen who seduced two Roman generals in order to keep Egypt an independent kingdom. I suppose many of us know Cleopatra's story. But in a treacherous political game where the only rule is win or die, there's no telling what success will cost her.

She can't hide the hieroglyphics that carve themselves into her hands, nor can she stop the emperor from using her powers for his own ends.įaced with a new and ruthless Caesar who is obsessed with having a Cleopatra of his very own, Selene is determined to resurrect her mother's dreams and succeed where she failed.

Trapped in an empire that reviles her heritage and suspects her faith, the young messianic princess struggles for survival in a Roman court of intrigue.

But when Selene's parents are vanquished by Rome, her auspicious birth becomes a curse. To Isis worshippers, Princess Selene and her twin brother Helios embody the divine celestial pair who will bring about a Golden Age. Heiress of one empire and prisoner of another, it is up to the daughter of Cleopatra to save her brothers and reclaim what is rightfully hers. From the New York Times bestselling author of America's First Daughter comes the first epic novel of Cleopatra's daughter.

Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray