"The Heretic Queen" by Michelle Moran

Davina Morgan-Witts, BookBrowse editor

Looking for a dose of intelligent escapism to get you through the financial crisis and election woes? Look no further than The Heretic Queen, Michelle Moran's second novel following Nefertiti. Set in the 13th century BC, The Heretic Queen tells the rip-roaring story of the life of Nefertari, wife to Ramesses II, who is remembered as one of Egypt's greatest pharaohs and, possibly, its longest reigning (an estimated 66 years, two years longer than Queen Victoria).

The Heretic Queen is the sort of book you can stay up late reading but not regret in the morning, it's a fun, fast read but also a very good and informative one - bringing to life a time and place that maybe more than 3000 years in the past but isn't really all that different to today. Fashions come and go, wars are won and lost, people starve while others live in splendor and so on.

Complete with a glossary, an Egyptian calendar and an author's note that details which people and events are based on historical records, and where the author has had to fill in the gaps based on her best interpretation of the evidence, The Heretic Queen is an all round good read for historical fiction aficionados, especially those who enjoy a touch of romance.

"My love is unique and none can rival her .... Just by passing, she has stolen away my heart."
- Ramesses II, quoted on the wall of Nefertari's burial chamber.