Sadly this book wasn’t for me and I was so sad about it! It had such potential, the cover is so beautiful as well and I love Egyptian style books, but had to DNF.

The first third of this book was a slog. I didn't connect with Neferura and the first-person narration did not help as the plot moved at a glacial pace. It also felt like much of the first third was dedicated to pedantic details about Egyptian culture which were not shown to us organically, instead, it felt like I was at a lecture. I pushed through the slow start and did find myself becoming somewhat invested in the plot, though I found the characters remained pretty flat. Neferura remained frustratingly naive and slow to do anything to help herself. At least we had some actual stakes and plot to keep things moving after the first part. While I found the conclusion decently written and set up, I wasn't satisfied because everything was tied up too neatly. Overall, I was disappointed.

This one could have been great but overall just kind of fell short, I liked the idea of an Egyptian mythology but it was truly impossible to keep track of each character.

Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for an ARC of this novel. Neferura by Malayna Evans is a historical fiction about real life princess Neferura and her mother Hatshepsut who was a woman pharaoh in 18th dynasty Kemet (modern day Egypt). Neferura is a princess and high priestess whose mother stole the throne from her half brother Thutmose III. After sending Thutmose off to war hoping he would die, and in many instances helping him along with assassins, Thutmose comes back to get his throne. Neferura gets caught between two very powerful and ruthless individuals as she tries to survive while protecting the people of Kemet.

What I dislike about the book: Neferura. For someone raised in the palace, she was far too naive and seemed to be pulled every which way. She constantly made mistakes based on assumptions that "they were not that bad". Her mother was a woman king! but she expected her to be nice. It was aggravating and absurd to watch her constantly try to talk it out. Hatshepsut and Thutmose were merciless and ruthless and Neferura kept trying to reason with two egomaniacs. By the time she realized it was all for not, I wanted to scream.

What I loved about the book: EVERYTHING. It was a great story. The characters (except for Neferura) were compelling. While a terrible mother and a horrible human being Hatshepsut was a great pharaoh, which made me think about the price for greatness and power. The wise woman and her scorpions, chef's kiss. It was girl power to the nth power. I love their community and how women learned to survive in a world built by and for men. It's a story of friendship, community, abuse, and the power of women. We are stronger together. I highly recommend it.

CW: Incest
Implied sexual violence (not on page)
Violence against women (not on page)

Thank you to NetGalley and to the publisher for providing me with an E-ARC. All thoughts/opinions are my own.

Release Date: February 13, 2024

“‘Trust me, I’ve seen royals bleed, and your blood is the same as everyone else’s.’”


*ੈ𓂀₊𓃒˚𓆚🦂🏜️🐍🐄 *ੈ𓂀₊𓃒˚𓆚➷

Neferura tells the story of the daughter of the legendary pharaoh Hatshepsut through an intriguing feminist perspective. When Neferura’s brother Thutmose arrives intending to take power for himself, Neferura must decide what she’s willing to give up to save herself, her family, and the ones she loves. With the help of a wisewoman, Neferura must keep her wits about her to navigate difficult family politics and try to win back power for her and her mother.

I had really high hopes coming into this, because I’m a huge fan of Egyptian mythology and I love feminist mythology retellings. While there were elements of this book that I enjoyed, unfortunately, much of this book didn’t feel executed properly.

For starters, I found it quite difficult to keep track of the characters. Maybe that’s on me, but I felt like the side characters were only introduced once (their role and connection to Neferura) and there was no reminder about who they were as we continued to get to know them. If there had been fewer side characters I think this would’ve been fine, but since there was so many, they were hard to keep track of and easy to mix up.

The pacing also felt really strange to me. At some parts, it went super fast, but at others, it dragged until a new part of the plot was introduced. I think that the plot itself was fine, it was intriguing and kept me hooked, but the pacing just didn’t feel quite right to me.

There is also a romantic interest in this book. I thought it was an intriguing romance and I liked the two characters together, however, there was very little romantic buildup between the two. They had liked each other for a long time, not acted on it, and suddenly they did. It didn’t go very deep. I understand that this was a different time and what they saw as a relationship would be different from what we now see, but it would have been nice to see their relationship build up more and hear more of Neferura’s thoughts about why she loved him, not just her lust.

I was also really confused about the magic situation. At some points, everything seemed typical, nothing supernatural, just everyday life, but at others, things like spells were mentioned. This was very confusing to me, and I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to believe that it was an ordinary world or one influenced by fantastical elements such as the mentioned spells. If this magic situation had been clearer, I don’t think I would’ve had a problem with it, I was just confused about what the author wanted us to believe regarding magic.

My biggest issue with this book, though, was the writing. The writing felt very young adult (dare I say middle grade?), and it was very repetitive of certain terms. For example, the word “grin” was very overused and it made the characters seem childish instead of the adults that they are. Because of the YA style writing, I think that this could’ve been categorized as young adult, but that’s a hard decision to make because of some of the topics that this book touched on. I think that this should’ve been either sold as a YA novel with the topics such as sexual assault taken out, or have a more mature writing style and keep those topics. At some parts, I did enjoy the writing for its metaphors and sometimes description, but most of the time, I was just irritated.

While the writing did at times make it hard to like the characters, most of the time I did enjoy them and how they interacted. Sometimes I felt like there could’ve been more depth to them, but I think that the author did a really nice job writing the characters Hatshepsut and Neferura. I enjoyed watching Neferura’s thinking and values change throughout the story, and I liked reading about the layers beneath the strong and fearless act Hatshepsut puts on.

It was also quite clear that the author had a ton of knowledge about Ancient Egyptian life. There were many specific details about the different aspects of their lives, and there was a very clear knowledge of their customs and how they interacted. What I also enjoyed was that it was written in a way that it made sense to people who weren’t as knowledgeable. Sure, I know some things about Ancient Egypt and it’s a topic I take interest in, but I am by no means an expert and I am quite clueless about many things. This story was written using Egyptian terms, while also providing hints as to what they meant, which I really enjoyed. (there was also a glossary! probably more helpful for readers of physical copies, but still!)

Neferura also deals with a lot of grief in this book, and I think that part was very well written. When writing the loss of an important character, it can be easy to write one scene about their grief and then never return to it: a very unrealistic approach. I read books like that all the time, and it always frustrates me. I was very nervous about the grief element in this book, but I was pleased that it wasn’t a one-and-done type of thing. I liked the way Neferura handled her grief and how the author continued to touch on it as the story progressed.

I think that feminist retellings like this one are so important to read, because they tell the stories of those who had their own story erased and written by men for many, many years. Stories like this shed a light and truth on forgotten cruelty and forgotten injustices, and it’s beautiful that they’re being uncovered and authors are getting more accurate stories out in the world. While I disliked many things about this book, I think the feminist aspect of it was very clear and powerful. I wouldn’t call this book bad, there are just many things that could’ve been improved upon. This story held a lot of potential, and I’m sad it wasn’t executed better.

*ੈ𓂀₊𓃒˚𓆚🦂🏜️🐍🐄 *ੈ𓂀₊𓃒˚𓆚

DNF at 25%.

This is written similarly to other myth retellings, so if you want something set in Egypt, give it a go. The author is not Egyptian or African, but has a Ph.D. in Egyptian History. It's rich with details and I can tell she has a mastery of the subject matter. This book was just a bit more political and mysterious than I expected, and some of the repetitive language felt a bit heavy-handed.

But, I think for most people, it will probably be a refreshing addition to the mythology retelling canon! It just wasn't the book for me (or maybe it is, but it's just hitting at the wrong time).

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review. Neferura publishes February 13, 2024!

I unfortunately DNF'd this title very early on. It just wasn't for me. It read very dense, like a history textbook and the jumps between tenses made it an uncomfortable reading experience for me. If there is an audiobook that will come out later on after pub date, I'll give it another go as I'm very much all for feminist retellings and the change in media might allow me to read this without the hurdles I'm experiencing reading it with my eyes.

I know very, very little about the actual age of pharaohs, so this historical fiction was a new setting for me. Other books I've read in this setting had a lot of magic in them. This does not. It is straight historical fiction. And it's incredibly well done. Focusing on palace intrigue, powerful women, and what power even means, this is a rich world with fantastic characters. Anytime a piece of historical fiction has me so intrigued I start researching in the middle of the book, I call it a win. If you are a fan of high stakes political intrigue and/or classical Egypt, grab this one, as it will scratch both interests perfectly.

Neferura by Malayna Evans is a fictionalized account of an Egyptian princess. She was not just some princess but the daughter of Queen Hatshepsut, a woman who proclaimed herself as equal to Gods and any man. Neferura had some political power of her own as a priestess but when Thutmose, her half-brother, a co-pharoah, is back, is she safe? In a world where immortality was everything, how far will someone go? Expected Publication of this book is February 13th, 2024.

Being an Egyptian buff, as soon as I saw the cover of this book, I had to read it. There is not a whole lot of information out there about Neferura. Sandwiched between Hatshepsut and Thutmose, the world doesn't really know her. The author has done a good job of building her life. I can't help but look at the statue of Senenmut and probably Neferura in a different perspective now.

I really enjoyed reading this novel. What fascinated me was the way the author built this wonderful network of women who wielded power. Power doesn't always mean toppling kingdoms, but friendship, caring, and love are also forms of power. The intriguing world of Egypt is brought to life in this book.

Thank you, Sourcebooks Landmark @bookmarked , for this book.

DNF

Kind of it’s not you, it’s me. I just keep not wanting to pick this book up. It’s both somewhat interesting and boring at the same time. I skimmed through to the end. And honestly I like my mythology/historical stories feminist and triumphant, and this is NOT that. My bad for not reading up on who Neferura actually was, because maybe I could have avoided this disappointment 😬

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher though for providing me a free copy to review.

3.5 stars
This book started off slow I found the first 3rd hard to get through but it picked up in part 2 and 3.
Overall I really enjoyed this book. I loved ancient Egypt as a teen so the premise caught my attention right away. This book is from the perspective of Neferura daughter of the female Pharaoh Hatshepsut. Not much is known about her life so it was great to read a book from her perspective. The author did a great job of creating the scenery and world of ancient Egypt, there was a great mix of historical characters along with ones created for the story. It’s obvious the author did a lot of research and is well versed in ancient Egyptian history. The story was filed with intrigue, espionage, high stakes, power dynamics, and a love story. I really enjoyed and would recommend to anyone with an interest in ancient historical fiction.

"In the end, everyone's heart will be weighed."

NEFERURA by Malayna Evans
Coming out on Feb 13th 2024

* I would like to thank @netgalley and @bookmarked for a copy of this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. *

I'll start by saying that I don't think I'm the right audience for this book. I went in thinking this would be an adult historical fiction. I don't recall any advertisement mentioning it would be for a younger public. The writing style and the characters personalities took me a bit by surprise. That being said, I tried to shift my mindset to remain as objective as I could be to review this book properly.

If I had read that book at 14, I would have LOVED it. This is the perfect book for a teenager that wants to dip its toes into historical fiction, Egypt history and political intrigues. This book reviews Neferura's short reign and her time as her half-brother's spouse. Female empowerment is at the center of this story!

The author did a fantastic job and this book was well researched. It was very well paced most of the book although I feel the ending was a bit rushed. Like several chapters were missing to end the story. Everything is wrapped up rather quickly in the epilogue and it took me a few paragraphs to understand who was narrating this time.

The story is very light on the romance. You understand something is going on but it doesn't focus on that. It's all about Neferura and how she will face her challenges.

So, parents! If your offspring is looking for a great read and is in their egyptian era (we all had one!), this will be the perfect book for them!

Neferura by Malayna Evans is a Historical fiction/Feminist Ancient Egyptian retelling

Author has a PhD in Egyptology! You’d think that would make this more academic but boy can Evans weave a tale while also encapsulating the world of Ancient Egypt (or Kemet as it was called), having you learn something and be entertained!

MC, Neferura, is daughter to famous pharaoh Hatshepsut. Not much was known about Neferura but Evans used what is known to create this captivating novel!

Evans uses ancient Egyptian names and terms to reflect the time period which I loved! She did use some modern terms in places where it would be difficult for modern readers to recognize (like pharaoh wasn’t a term used back then).

The novel paints vivid pictures of ancient Egypt, I feel my childhood hyperfixation returning 😅😍 The story is intriguing and I can clearly picture the scenery and opulence of the court. The pacing was well done, I did not want to put this down!! There were a few twists and I only guessed one of them. I loved the characters, each person was well developed and had their own stories/personalities so you really get to know everyone, even the more minor characters!

I especially enjoyed seeing how women wielded power back then, in both large and small ways. Some of the characters had this sort of “quiet power” to affect their communities without getting credit or being seen for their accomplishments, which only makes me think about how much women truly affected history without being credited!

The ending felt perfect, it tied most things up but also left it open a bit. I also enjoyed the author’s note to learn more background about Neferura and Hatshepsut’s reign.

If you enjoy court intrigue, found family/sisterhood, and are looking for a historical retelling not set in Greece, I’m begging you to pick this up!! It is divine and I need Evans to write more ancient Egyptian stories 🥹 (although she does have 2 middle grade books so maybe I’ll pick those up while I wait)

𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙥𝙖𝙩𝙝𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙥𝙤𝙬𝙚𝙧.
𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙖 𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙘𝙚.

Neferura, princess and high priestess of Kemet knows and understands that her duty is to her people. But Neferura’s position at court comes with high stakes for her country, especially when forced to serve her half brother Thutmose who will stop at nothing to strip Neferura of her power.

When Neferura overhears Thutmose’s plan to end her mother’s rule, she knows he must be stopped.

Neferura must decide where her loyalties lie and how much she’s willing to sacrifice to protect those she loves most.

This is a bit of a challenging review to write as there are some things I loved about this book but there were some I didn’t.

I loved the use of strong female characters who are strengthened by the people around them. The women are all well rounded, with strengths as well as deep flaws and they feed well off one another.

However, I found the story a little slow at times and the ending felt quite predictable given what we’re told about certain characters throughout the book.

Despite all that, I did enjoy this book. It was a fun, quick read and was an interesting insight into ancient Egypt and its mythologies.

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks Landmark and the author for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

On the higher end of 2 stars, but this didn't quite work for me as I had been hoping.

Part of that may be due to expectations: this is billed as historical fiction, yes, but also mythology and fantasy (I received it from the Sci-Fi & Fantasy category of NetGalley, after all), and it truly is just historical fiction. Which there is absolutely nothing wrong with, but I do want to give it the benefit of the doubt that perhaps my expectations weren't in line with what the book was actually going to deliver.

With that out of the way, let's talk about what this book <i>was</i> about. Neferura is the daughter of two pharaohs, a princess of Kemet and god's wife (high priestess) for Amun. Her mother Hatshepsut and half-brother Thutmose are now pharaohs, with Hatshepsut having engineered her way into the true power position. Thutmose's return to the city threatens to upset that, as he is hungry for control and does nothing to hide this from his half-sister and step-mother. As rumours begin to rise that Thutmose will make his suspicions about Hatshepsut's involvement in his father's death known, Neferura decides to take steps to protect herself and her mother.

Sounds decent, right? Politics, family backstabbing, a web of characters, and all set in ancient Egypt, what's not to love?

I believe that I read somewhere that the author has a background in history, specifically Egyptology. This shows and is absolutely a good thing, in adding to the setting of the book, but the passion she shows for the history outstrips any passion she shows for the characters. I know Iset and Neferura are close, but who even is Iset? What is her personality? Kamut, Neferura's love interest, is likewise the same, and even Satiah, who has crazy potential for a cool arc, is given things to do but not much to actually <i>be</i>. All of these characters seem to exist just to worship Neferura, and everyone in her inner circle bends over backwards for her, and I'm left to ask: why?

The plot at its core was pretty simple, in a family politics way that I like. These kind of plots really need the characters to make them work, and with the characters and their development being the weakest part of this for me, it's no surprise that the story itself left me a bit cold.

I hate to fill this review up with criticisms, because I feel like my overall feeling on this book was more of the ambivalent nature and certainly not a feeling of dislike, but I'd be remiss not to mention one more thing that, once I noticed it, annoyed me for the rest of the book: characters could rarely just <i>say</i> anything. It always had to be something else, they <i>cried</i>, they <i>advised</i>, they <i>retorted</i>, they <i>quipped</i>, whatever it may be, and you know what? Sometimes, less is more.

I liked the history of this, and how detailed the setting was, I liked the idea of the plot and the idea of the characters, but I think the execution let it down for me, unfortunately.

<i>Thank you to the publisher, Sourcebooks Landmark, and to NetGalley for the ARC.</i>

DNF at 72%
since i only had about 80 pages left I thought about pushing through but to be honest the book bored me to no end. The main character was incredibly dull and had no personality. The plot was uninteresting to no end (quite a feat with how much is going on and all the palace intrigue). And lastly there were some elements in this book that felt like anti-trans dog-whistles (not sure if they really were tho, I just get iffy with the repeated use of sex over gender)

This was such a good historical fiction with a tiny bit of spell use on the side. I couldn't put it down!

The world felt very real and I was transported to the time of Pharaohs and their court. I know only little of the time and how they lived, so this world and people who were living in it very so well created. I could see the love for the time from the author.

I really liked the MC and her friends. The mother and brother were so well written too. Every character was interesting in their own way and they gave so much of themselves to better what they thought was right. The character growth was lovely to see and especially the MC realising she needs to take control of her own fate.

The themes that were explored were awesome and well made. I especially loved the kind of coming of age feel that I got from the MC and the found family vibe with her and her friends.

The spell use was very little, so this really felt like historical fiction more than fantasy or anything like that. Great for anyone who loves that type of stuff!

Magnificent! What an empowering story of women together making the world a better place. Just imagine if in reality women put their powers together to the betterment of society. I adored this novel and the growth of Neferura.

I would categorize this book as mostly historical fiction with a bit of mystery. The main character, Neferura, has the roles and responsibilities of an adult, but her sheltered upbringing as the daughter of two pharaohs has made her naive. It reads a bit young, but the circumstances are adult.

Neferura was the daughter of Hatshepsut, one of Ancient Egypt’s first queens who reigned until her stepson, Neferura’s half brother Thutmose III, came into power. This novel tells the story from the perspective of a tense, and sometimes hateful, relationship between the two rulers with Neferura caught in the middle.

The story itself was okay, with heavy themes of friendship and female empowerment. I had a hard time understanding Neferura’s character because she seemed underdeveloped from the start with conflicting thoughts and actions. This is a fairly quick read, but I think it could have benefited from further character development. That being said, I did like the mystery elements and storyline.

I can see why the parallels between this book and Kaikeyi. Both elipse over a great period of time between action scenes, both feature powerful women overlooked as lesser for their role as women. But the execution of these stories is so far removed from one another that the comparison only sours this story beyond what I may have felt about it going in cold.

While I enjoyed most of the climactic moments of the story, I found them to be lacking in both the character work (that would have driven home moments of emotional impact) and the foreshadowing that would be necessary for the plot resolutions to feel well earned. The romance has a solid grassroots beginning, but doesn't truly bloom before the story drives it home. The friendships feel shallow though the story makes it clear they're meant to be impactful. And the resolution, while enjoyable, is unsubstantiated. In fact it only hints at the conclusions direction in the last five to ten percent of the book.

I appreciate that the Authors Note provides historical context to the story, but as richly developed as the backdrop of the world around these character is, it doesn't translate as well to the characters, their motivations, or the progression of the plot.