I've never read a novel based in Egypt before so I wasn't sure what to expect. And I must say that the author paints beautiful pictures with her written words. I felt like I was in the story and in 1946 as I drawn to the beautifully written story as the writing was so descriptive and inviting. I'm looking forward to reading many more books by the author.

I received this book on netgalley in exchange for an honest review. It is a story about Aida who returns to her homeland after seven years. Before she went to England her father was accused of the crime he never committed and now after her return she can't move forward in life unless she has resolved the mystery behind the most unfortunate event of her life. I found the plot to be intriguing and very interesting.
The writing is flowy and rich in explanations about Egyptian culture.
The author has done the characterization well and I enjoyed reading the book.

At times, I felt the pace was slow and there was too much description about food in particular. I appreciate that the author has tried to introduce the culture but too much description about how beautiful the land was and how many different kinds of food were present became quite irritating for me to read. I wanted the story to move forward.

Although I enjoyed the characterization, Aida's character felt quite conflicting to me but as the story progressed I became a bit comfortable.

All in all it was quite an enjoyable read and I would recommend it if you like historical stories.

I enjoyed this exotic tale. I could picture myself in Egypt in the 40's fighting for what I believed in and being torn between what your heart wants and what your brain wants.

I found this book very interesting, not only the story but the setting. The descriptions of Egypt are beautiful without giving the reader a history lesson. Also, the explanations of the roles of women and class system were enlightening and really helped drive the story. The characters were well developed and likeable. My only issue is that the pacing was a bit slow. Still a different and enjoyable novel. Glad to have read it.

Song of the Nile was a fabulous read, maybe a masterpiece! Descriptions of locales in Egypt, the cities, desert, food and characters, are lush and beyond compare. Not to mention the romantic and steamy romantic episodes which are tastefully but passionately written.

The book is set in post-World War II Egypt and centers around Aida El-Masri, an English-Egyptian girl, whose Egyptian father tragically died of a heart attack after being falsely accused of the theft of an Egyptian antiquity. Aida has spent the war years in England as a nurse often caring for the war wounded. After the War ends, she returns to the family home in Luxor and soon reconnects with surgeon Phares Pharaony, a childhood friend. The relationship is complicated by the tale told by a servant years before about the involvement of Phares’ father Kamel, in the false allegations against Aida’s late father.

Eventually Phares and Aida begin to re-build their relationship, complicated by his unexplained absences. There is engaging narrative/adventure concerning the obtaining and sale of stolen archeological antiquities and how it connects to Phares.

This was a beautifully crafted novel, complete with detailed descriptions of the Nile, the trees and flowers of the country, and the lives and customs of various levels of Egyptian society—wealthy Coptic Egyptians, expatriates, the common people including workers, servants, and Bedouins,

My thanks to #netgalley for a copy of this book. The author was unknown to me previously, but I learned so much about how a non-European country fared during and after WWII, about Egyptian nationalism at the time, and so much more. Highly recommended.

This is the first book I have read by Hannah Fielding, though she seems to have written quite a few. It reminded me of the "bodice rippers" I read when I was younger, things like Angelique and Marianne. There is lots of period detail and the text is very dense, almost poetical in parts. And there is plenty of raunchy sex, misunderstandings and dastardly deeds. Great escapist literature. I am definitely tempted to read more of Hannah' books!

Thanks to Net Galley and the publishers for the opportunity to review this book.

Many thanks to both NetGalley and to London Wall Publishing for letting me see an advance reader's copy of Song of the Nile.

I wanted to love this story, I really did. I already loved the cover and the title, and it did look like a nice, interesting read. In fact, I settled down for a good session of escapism. But I have to admit that I was sorely disappointed.

For a start, the book went on and on and on about every tiny little thing the tourist, or even the resident, might have witnessed in post-war Egypt.

For example, I really wasn't interested in every single item that could be found for sale on the street market or in the shops. Sure, add a bit here and there for colour, but not every single trinket or piece of tat. 

I wasn't interested in the decor being described to the nth degree, and nor was I interested in the height of fashion at the time. Again, add some for colour and to give a flavour, but so much detail was simply overkill.

It's as though the author was trying too hard to get everything in, at the expense of the storyline and the character development.

Or rather not any character development. The characters did not develop at all, in my opinion.

I did not like the main, privileged character of Aida. She was too much the victim whilst trying to pretend that she was in control. I lost what little empathy I had for her when she abandoned an injured animal to a lonely, painful death. She was far too indulged and I wanted her to rebel against that.

I did not like the hero, Phares, either. For me, no should mean no, and especially when you're the hero. He was too arrogant, too cocky, too dishonest, and he did not seem to change his opinion of women at all.

And then, after ploughing through all of this unnecessary detail just to get to the end (it really does go on and on and on), all of a sudden, there was the end. The story was at far too leisurely a pace to suddenly finish so abruptly. It was wrapped up too quickly and too conveniently.

The cover is beautiful. One star awarded there. The title was wonderful. Another star awarded there. And I particularly appreciated the reference to the actual song of the Nile. But only three stars all together, I'm afraid, the third one awarded for effort.

I love Egypt and everything about it. This book transported me back there and back in time. It seemed everything that could go wrong with Aida and Phares’s love story would go wrong. So many ups and downs, a few secrets. Would they won’t they? I won’t spoil it. I loved this book. It was a bit longer than most other books but well worth it. I almost believed I was there.

I found this book an interesting combination of romance, thriller, travel, cooking and history writing.
If you throw the best of all worlds into a good story - what is the worst that can happen...? Apparently, it can become a bit dull, at some points even didactic. Hanna Fielding knows a lot about Egypt and she wants to share. And this is good. I do not think I have learnt so much about Coptic Christianity and the history and flora and fauna of Egypt since school. I still feel that a bit less of everything could have made a better book.

On the plus side, and this is a big plus: her characters have depth not just pretty faces, her scenery is to die for really, the plot is intriguing. But most of all, her prose is just plain beautiful.

I love a good historical novel and this book had so much potential. Set after the end of WW2, finally, a story that does not involve Nazis, Jews, suffering and cruelty. Instead, it is supposed to center around a strong female character, Aida, and flies you to magical Egypt. Unfortunately, this book didn’t live up to my expectations.

Aida returns to Egypt from England, to investigate the real reason for her father’s death, but she does not lift a finger to find out the truth throughout the entire book. She keeps telling everyone that she can stand on her own feet and is able to run the family estate without the help of a husband, but she spends only a few days in the family mansion and doesn’t care learning anything about the business. She goes from party to party, fashion shows, social events, shopping, long weekends and lives the lavish life of a millionaire heiress.

On the plus side, thanks to the author’s intimate knowledge of Egypt, the book is full of elaborate description of the desert, venues, buildings, clothes, food and the Egyptian way of life. It is a romance, and you can truly immerse yourself in luxury and peep into the world of high society. These long descriptions however slow the pace and make the novel unnecessarily lengthy.

Hannah Fielding does it again with this wonderful evocative story of post war Egypt.
Aida and Phare as children from neighbouring families had grown up together and it was always thought by both families that they would marry.
However when Aida was eighteen her father was accused and tried of stealing ancient antiques and found guilty.upon the verdict he suffered a heart attack and died.
Aida had been told by a servant that it was infact Phare.s father who had stole the artefact.
Feeling devastated she left Egypt and went to stay with family in England.
Following the Second World War where she has trained and worked as a nurse Aida returns to Egypt to try and clear her fathers name and restore the family estate.
What follows are the trials and tribulations of Aida and Phare and if they are able to resolve their differences and find love.
Beautifully written with beautiful descriptions of the Nile and Luxor.
One of those books you just can’t put down

Aida has returned to Luxor to her home, after eight years. The eight years spent as a surgical nurse has exposed her to the horrors of war and life. Now deciding to take up her inheritance after the sudden death of her father, a death brought about by a false claim of smuggling Aida does not find it that easy to fit into conservative Egypt unlike before.

A marriage had been almost settled on her but she is not of the same opinion now and the story that starts from this tumultuous beginning shows what Aida has to face. A beautiful, rich young woman becomes the target of fortune hunters anywhere and Egypt is no exception. Her independence and impulsiveness can lead her to dangerous situations and orders given without explanations will not be followed. Her growing attraction to Phares whom she originally promised to is something that she cannot ignore, but at the same time Aida has doubts over his true intentions. Is it just an annexation of her vast properties to his own which are adjoining and can she forget that she always thought that it was he who had betrayed her father causing him to die.

This story apart from being a love story and a rather torrid romance, was more beautifully a descriptive story of life in Cairo and Luxor in 1946. Especially amongst the aristocracy of Egypt. In detail the life, the surroundings,the archaelogical history of Egypt, the food which seemed glorious and even the souks and shopping areas in both cities detailed and descriptive add so much colour and lustre to the story. I enjoyed that part more than the romance anyway.

Aida returns to Egypty, where she grew up. I love the setting and description of the surroundings. The characters felt a bit flat. Still an enjoyable read.

Aida El Masri has returned to her home in Luxor, Egypt after spending the last eight years in London following the unfortunate death if her father, a renowned Egyptologist. Believing her family’s closet friends, the Pharaonys, to be the source of her father’s downfall from an antiquities smuggling frame job, Aida is especially wary of Phares, the eldest son and at time, her betrothed. Her return to Egypt is complicated by her strong feelings that she still harbors towards him and her ill will towards his father.

Beautifully detailed, Song of the Nile is a historical romance set in Egypt following World War II. Hannah Fielding does a fantastic job transporting the reader through descriptive sights and smells. Unfortunately, the characters tend to fall a bit flat. Aida is supposed to be smart and adventurous, yet she comes across as incredibly naive and inevitably falls into the traditional role expected of women. Phares, too seems almost too good to be true and his clear need for control seems to be forgiven due to his good looks.

An enjoyable read, but I wish more time had been spent on developing the characters and moving plot along than on clothing and scenic descriptions.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this free ebook in exchange for an honest review.

The Song of the Nile was an intriguing and interesting book. It often kept me on my toes, not expecting the next plot twist and had a great romance between Aida and Phares. The description and detail the author gives paints a beautiful picture of the scenery and surroundings. She describes the culture of Egypt, especially in the 1940’s with the mysogynistic environment, conspiracy and human trafficking, as well as the beauty, honor, and family relationships that were fostered in the culture.

I will admit that I often did not care for Aida’s character in how bitter, untrusting and suspicious she constantly was towards Phares who was completely genuine, honest, kind and eternally patient with her. It made her unfounded emotional swings that much more frustrating. Also I did not anticipate the graphic sex scenes in the book. It was more than I cared for but I appreciated that it was at least in context of the relationship and unselfish love the characters had for each other.

Thank you to Netgalley for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I received this novel as an ARC from NetGalley. I loved this book. The characters of Aida and Phares are complex and adventurous. The Egyptian setting is amazing and the supporting characters intriguing. Read this in one day, couldn’t put it down!

I am really sorry but I just couldn’t get on with this one. The story for me was predictable and the bodice ripper style at certain points didn’t work for me. I’m sorry to say this was a rare DNF for me.

I had never heard of this author - and I have no idea why! I love Kate Furnivall, and this book reminded me so much of those. I really enjoyed this lush historical romance, and I will be reading all of her books!

Incredibly seductive novel!

Wow. Just wow. It’s a fun adventure with the main female lead and some rather saucer bits (don’t read this out aloud). You really feel yourself rooting for a certain character, the way it’s written you can feel the chemistry between the two main leads coming off the pages. Lovely, true well written.

I really thought it was very enjoyable to read, I finished it within a matter of hours. Bravo Hannah Fielding!

Song of the Nile by Hannah Fielding takes you to Egypt. Her sweeping descriptions of the sunrises, sunsets, bazaars, buildings, and desert, make you feel that you are feeling the cool night air, smelling the hibiscus. The setting becomes a character in the setting of this book. Aida left Egypt 8 years previously after the death of her father. She served as a nurse in London during the war, but returns home in 1946. She struggles with the independence she gained in England now that she is back in a male dominated society. She is rebellious of these strict rules which cause impulsiveness and often misunderstandings in her life. Phares is the man who as a boy taunted and teased Aida growing up. He is now a doctor, has women falling at his feet, and Aida believes his father is responsible for her father's death. Will they be able to come to terms as they look as much at the past as they do the future? Thank you #NetGalley for allowing me to give my voluntary and honest review of #SongoftheNile, it was a fabulous book.