"Neferura" is a good gateway for anyone wanting to dip their toes into reading retellings of historical figures. Evans skillfully weaves political intrigue into the story, such that you can feel the tension where it counts. I also appreciate the strong theme of female solidarity expressed throughout — between Neferura and her closest companion Iset, Neferura and her fellow priestesses, and amongst the secret network of female spies.

The first half of the novel (Part I) revolves around Neferura working to uncover the conspiracy surrounding her father's death. Given how sheltered she has been her whole life since then, she is understandably naive and prone to making mistakes. The end of Part I signals a turning point in her life and also in the novel; it appears that we would be getting a more assertive and manipulative Neferura, as she is forced to adapt and play the political game in order to survive. That said, I feel she never really lives up to that potential in Part II. We see glimpses of it, but she's not particularly a crafty player. When she finally does, it feels a little too late.

Hatshepsut doesn't play as big of a role for such a larger than life figure, understandably so as to not overshadow her daughter. But whenever she does, Evans portrays her ruthlessness very compellingly. We get many instances of other characters telling Neferura (and in turn, us as the reader) of Hatshepsut's competence in rising to her station and maintaining power, that I almost wish this book was about her instead. I would very much be interested in reading a prequel of her life.

Solid book, not something I would reread, but I can see the potential.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
I admit I know very little about Egypt and its pharaohs beyond the very famous ones, but Neferura piqued my interest nonetheless.While at first, I made the erroneous connection to the similarly named Nefertiti, a glance at the blurb and some Googling about the different pharaohs showed me how wrong I was, with Neferura being the daughter of Hatshepsut. While Neferura herself has largely been overshadowed by her legendary mother, the struggle to get out of her massive shadow makes for a solid driving force for the book itself, even if the Neferura of the book is largely a product of Malayna Evans’ imagination, although that is well-balanced with a great sense of place and a wealth of knowledge of the setting and time period, due to Evans’ background in Egyptology.
Neferura as a character is well-drawn, and I like how Evans imagines her as she navigates finding her place in the world as the daughter of two pharaohs and sister to another. She has no real role models, no one who has traversed the path in the same way as she does, so she’s forced to make it more or less on her own, while also dealing with the tense family situation due to her mother and brother’s politically fraught co-pharaohship. She also doesn’t make the wisest decisions as a result, being rather naive, but she’s fairly easy to sympathize with, given the struggles she deals with throughout.
I really enjoyed seeing the roles of strong women in this society. While Neferura doesn’t have the easiest relationship with her mother, Hatshepsut is still recognized as the powerful pharaoh she is. I also really enjoyed Neferura’s bond with some of the other women in the story, like Satiah, especially in how that allows for nuances in female sexuality.
This was an enjoyable read, and I’ll definitely keep an eye out for more books from Malayna Evans. I recommend this book if you’re interested in historical fiction about Ancient Egypt.

My thanks for the ARC goes to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark. I'm voluntarily leaving a review.

Genre: Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, Mythology, Historical Fiction
Sub-Genre: Romance
Age: Adult (That's what it's billed as, but we'll talk about this.)
Spice Level: Mostly fade to black
Violence Level: People are killed but off the page

NEFERURA wasn't what I expected. Somehow I thought it would show how Neferura completely changed the kingdom, or defied her mother, or would use more magic.

This is more about a young woman working at coming into her own. For this reason, this felt like a YA novel instead of adult. Though, it is billed as an adult novel.

I also never had a sense of how old Neferura was, but she read young, as in 16ish. And she might have been since the book mentions that many died in their 40s. It really shifts everything in a woman's life if she has to marry young because she could be dead as early as her 30s. Neferura's mother also wielded so much power over her life. She had very limited options to make choices, though she does make a few key ones through the story. Do you see what I mean by the age seeming more YA?

Neferura is also abused, but it's not on the page more than a gripped arm. Really I'm thankful that it was off page, but I still needed more of an acknowledgement to know what was happening. I wasn't even sure she'd slept with her husband.

The things I loved:

Female friendships
Hathor's irreverence
Egyptian pantheon
Exploring a different place and time

I think many people will enjoy this story—it has something of a feminist bent.

Happy reading!

Book Review of Neferura: The Pharaoh’s Daughter by Melayna Evans
⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
Thanks to NetGalley, Sourcebook Landmark and the author for providing an advance reader copy for my unbiased review 🩷

Neferura is not only a princess, but also a gods wife to the God Amun, a highly prestigious title and one that keeps her from being married off as other princesses are. Diligent and devoted to the people of Kemet, Neferura’s battles daily against loneliness and her highly critical Pharaoh mother, and is often mired in obligation and responsibility. So when her half brother, Thutmose, arrives to undermine Neferura’s efforts and attempts to turn the noble houses against her, she begins investigating who his allies might be, and in the process may have to choose between her family, her God and her heart.

Neferura: The Pharaohs Daughter is historical fiction rich in culture and political intrigue. As a reader new to the Pharaohic era, I highly appreciated the extensive glossary provided by the author, and the detailed period touches of the world at that time (including writing implements, beauty & clothing, commerce etc.) I’m not surprised that Malayan Evans has a PhD in Egyptology with the level of detail within the story.
I did struggle with the societal structure but put that down to being a newbie. The pacing was excellent with no ‘skim’ pages and despite the dialogue being written in a moderately modernistic way, I wasn’t drawn out of the setting.
Highly recommend for lovers of Egyptian history, historical fiction and mythology.

Neferura is introduced with a glossary of terms, and with author Malayna Evans stating that she has chosen to use certain vocabulary as it would have been utilized by Ancient Egyptians (as opposed to using classical or more modern vocabulary). This (in my opinion) is a good choice which adds depth and immersion to a story set thousands of years in the past. While this is categorized as adult fiction, I do think that this novel could very easily be enjoyed by an older young adult or new adult audience.

Malayna Evans is an American author, but she does have a Ph.D. in Egyptian history, and her knowledge is made apparent through thorough, atmospheric historical detail. The depiction of the Ancient Egyptian relationship to the Kemetic gods is easy to comprehend and contextualize, and does not devalue the significance of Ancient Egyptian religion.

While I did enjoy the idea of a network of solidarity between the women in this novel, I found the execution lacking in some respects. Neferura’s relationship to Satiah, and the power imbalance inherent to their dynamic, exemplifies this well. I do think that there is a difference between a story told from a woman’s perspective and a story told through a feminist lens, and this, alongside other, larger and smaller grievances (like Neferura stating that her mother wears kohl to distract from her “double chin and crooked nose”), ultimately left me wanting more from the 'feminist' aspects of Neferura.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the advance reader's copy of the book. I wanted to love this book as I love all stories involving the ancient world, but I can only say I liked it. The author did an amazing job by researching the period and I love that. I had issues with the title character, but that's on me not the author. The story was intriguing and we need more stories set in ancient Egypt, preferably before the Ptolemy dynasty. Overall the book is a 3.75 but I'll round up to 4.

**Thank you NetGalley for providing me with the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review**

First five star read of the year! This story was intriguing from beginning to end. I did not expect any of the twists that were in this and the shock of each one made me read faster. I loved everything about this book. If you are a historical fiction lover or want to get into historical fiction this is an absolute must read. This is by far my favorite Egyptian fiction read and I cannot wait until it releases so that I can purchase a copy to add to my shelves!

I was so happy to receive this ARC as I love the books it was compared to and I've always been fascinated with Ancient Egypt. Overall, I think this is a really interesting read with some wonderful female characters and some great relationships.

I thoroughly enjoyed this story particularly the second half. This book did have quite the slow start, and it took me a long time to get into the flow of the story. Once the plot got moving, though, I was hooked.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I haven't gotten to read much fiction about Egypt and the Priestess' and Pharaohs. It felt like a pallet cleanse almost, or a breath of fresh air. It was rich and lush in its characters, but the suspense and high intrigue was quite low in certain aspects. Still, good time!

Neferura combines ancient Egypt, political intrigue, and female friendship in a story that will appeal to fans of historical fiction works like The Wolf Den and The Silence of the Girls. Evans, a trained Egyptologist, provides unique details that bring this long-lost civilization to life. The daughter of the reigning female pharoah Hatshepsut, and half-sister to the other pharoah, Thutmose, Neferura finds herself caught between them as they vie to become the dominant power.
Likes: Neferura’s a sympathetic character. Her backstory makes her sheltered, somewhat naïve view of the world believable. I found the author’s focus on Neferura’s relationship with her maid/best friend as well as the priestesses under her command as the god’s wife refreshing. Rather than a story about a maiden needing a rescue, this novel presents a group of women working together to forge a path out of violence. Though there is a bit of romance, it’s done with a light hand. I enjoyed the twists and turns of Neferura’s relationship with her mother and half-brother and their war with each other, which kept me guessing about the ultimate outcome.
Dislikes: the pace of the story was somewhat uneven. I wished I had been able to see events through the eyes of some of the secondary characters, as that might have enriched the story. But overall this was an enjoyable read.
FYI: murder, violence, sexual assault, death of a child, death of a parent, reference to violence against animals.

DNF at 50%

I wanted to like this book. I'm trying to read more myth retellings and historical reimaginings outside of European, especially Greek, myths and history.

The pacing was incredibly slow, revelations and twists felt forced, and Neferura was not a compelling character.

“In the end, everyone’s heart will be weighed.”

From reading the first sentence, I knew this book would be good. The prose in this Egyptian historical fiction by Malayna Evans was honestly the best I have read in a while. I loved the author’s descriptive storytelling. Not only could I easily imagine the scenery, the environment, or the people described in the book, but I felt like the author was showing me what it actually felt like, being in Ancient Egypt.

All the characters were well thought out, and Nefura’s character arc was beautifully completed by the end of the book. If you’re an avid reader like me, you might see some of the foreshadowing towards the end start to build up once you’re a little over halfway through, but I was still pleasantly surprised by some of the court intrigues and scheming.

The author also managed to put the history of women at the forefront. In the book, there are multiple descriptions of the female pharaoh being depicted as a man, and how women were considered to be ‘broodmares’. This story presents a more nuanced view than we are used to seeing in traditional history books, by giving these women different voices and stories of their own, as most of them work together towards a greater purpose.

As a historian myself, I loved the addition of the glossary at the beginning of the book. It reminded me of my own classes in Ancient History, and I was glad to see a chapter added at the end where the author explained which parts of the story were rooted in research and theories concerning Ancient Egypt. It shows the care and effort that went into writing this book, something which I as a reader greatly appreciate.

Overall, I would definitely recommend reading this book. People who are into historical fiction/mythology books such as Circe, Clytemnestra, and Ariadne will most likely enjoy this book as much as I did.

- This review was based on an Advanced Reader Copy.

I know very little about Egyptian history besides stories about Tutankamum and found this fascinating. I could almost feel the heat of the desert sun on my skin. It was quite the immersive read.

So I really wanted to like this book. I was so interested in an adult historical fiction based on Egyptian mythology — I haven’t read anything similar to that and was excited to delve into this world. While the set up was intriguing (Neferura believes her virginity is linked to the gods being happy with her & her half-brother & her mother have an ongoing violent fued over power as pharaohs), I found myself getting whiplash from the back & forth in the plot (it is so slow-paced up until the 40% mark & then you’re left wondering “what is happening? how did this all unfold so quickly?!”) & the graphic descriptions of sexual & physical violence really fucked me up.

Even with content warnings, I don’t know that I would have delved into this book, knowing that the violent scenes don’t particularly add to the plotline or character development. I really think we could have done with no on-page sexual violence or animal violence/cruelty, and the point of the trauma that these characters endured would still get across. I really do empathize with the need to prove that yes, this violence did indeed happen, and women are historically just not believed. However, as a writer in 2024, you have the choice to do the least harm possible, and those scenes viscerally took me out.

As far as the overarching plot, I wasn’t entirely invested in it because I wasn’t vehemently rooting for Neferura. She of course starts off as very naive and sheltered in the beginning of this book, but I never got to really know her; the author explains what is going on through tons of exposition and info dumping, usually through letters/scrolls, and the rest is Neferura being shocked and disappointed by the way her mother, half-brother & the rest of her court act. It’s a merry go round of betrayal & political backstabbing, but it just didn’t pull me in.

I would try another book by this author in the future, but this book just wasn’t for me.

content warnings: violence, murder, fatphobia, rape, incest, animal cruelty & death (the scene described around the 50% mark will forever live in my head & I wish I never read it), tame sexual content, torture, misogyny/sexism

nice book! very well written, but it was NOT a fantasy in the slightest. i'd describe it as almost solely a historical fic. thanks forthe arc.

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

perfect for anyone looking for an ancient Egyptian vibe read! it's my first one and I loved every page of it, even though I'm used to more romance and was hoping for it it still kept my attention all throughout.

I love historical retellings from a woman's point of view, Neferura is a figure I had never heard of and I'm glad I got to read a possible life she might have lived.

I'm no historical expert but I felt like you could really tell the author knows what they're talking about (of course I read the author's note and read that she has a degree in Egyptian history.... but still) with many aspects of their lives and beliefs, it made the whole thing more credible and enjoyable.

Fave quote :

"Talk with the ignorant man as with the sage."


[review posted on goodreads and instagram]

As soon as I saw this historical fiction based on Egypt I had to read it! It gave me everything I wanted from it, a mix of life during that time and a political battle to survive. This made me want to return to Egypt ASAP. At the end there’s also some more factual information that’s great to read and find out more detail on background that inspired the story. Neferura was an amazing character, being a female princess she held some power but this was difficult for her to keep hold of. I most loved her friendships that she managed to maintain despite being set apart from others. The read itself was very accessible and would appeal to a lot of people. Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for an E-ARC. This is a voluntary review of my own thoughts.

Soft 4/5. The political intrigue kept me reading because I had to know how Neferura was going to overcome all of Thutmose’s traps. However, the characters themselves were not incredibly engaging. Neferura herself was fine… she was a little bland but I never found myself annoyed by her and she wasn’t boring to read about. I thought her ending was satisfying and I’m happy with where her character arc went.

The biggest problem lies with Hatshepsut’s depiction. I picked up this book because I recognized Neferura as her daughter, and I was eager to read about them both. Honestly, I was pretty disappointed to find that in this book, Hatshepsut is an incredibly selfish horrible mother and overall extremely unlikeable. The only reason she wasn’t the worst character in the book is because she’s not a physically abusive mustache-twirling villain like Thutmose. I’ve always thought Hatshepsut was a fascinating historical figure worthy of admiration— but here she’s just Egyptian Cersei Lannister, but not in a fun way.

I did like the depictions of friendships between women and the idea of a network of women helping each other in a world that was often hostile to women… though sometimes the message/modern sentiments were a little too on-the-nose.

I also really liked the afterword in the back of the book explaining the real history behind the story. This author apparently has a Ph.D. in Egyptology, and it definitely shows in the little details in the story. That’s always something I appreciate.

Definitely worth reading for lovers of ancient Egypt— though Hatshepsut fans beware.

Neferura is a princess and priestess of Kemet. The child of two Pharaohs. Her mother is Pharoah, who is in a reign challenged by Neferura's half-brother, the vengeful Thutmose. He returns to accuse his stepmother of murdering her husband. Nefrura overhears Thutmose's plan to overthrow her mother, and she must stop him so the people don't end up ruled by a tyrant.

I have always been intrigued by Ancient Egypt, and this book had so much historical information and detail that it was fascinating to read. There is a good deal of world-building and character development in the first third or so of the book, and even though Neferura is a bit of a mystery to historians, Evans clearly did exhaustive research. The book illuminates how women lived during this period, their rights and societal expectations, how they ruled and tried to prevent attacks against their rule, and how they came together to lend support and friendship to one another.

Neferura's character arc was well done. As the daughter of two Pharaohs, she is intelligent but a bit naive. However, it was satisfying to see her growth and strength as she faced all of the politics, manipulations, intrigues, scheming, etc. This was well-written, with fantastic female characters and feminist themes, but the pacing is somewhat uneven. The book's first part was slower as the world and characters were fleshed out, and the last part had elements that felt rushed. Overall, this was interesting, and I enjoyed it and recommend it to anyone interested in Ancient Egypt and historical fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Landmark for the gifted ARC.

Throughout the book, you can tell Evans has an extensive background in Egyptology as there is a so much historical information included in this story. As someone who enjoys historical fiction, this hit the mark for me.

However, the first half is very slow-paced and took awhile to build-up to the main plot of the story, and then the actual plot/conflict of the story felt a bit rushed. For a 368 page book, this felt a lot longer than that because of the slower pace, and even at the half-way point I really couldn't give an explanation of where the story was going/what the actual conflict would be. I didn't necessarily dislike the antagonist as much as I thought I should, he was just kind of there. Additionally there were LOTS of side characters named that left me a bit confused in some scenes. "Deadpan" was used a few times throughout the story which immediately took me out of the setting.

I did enjoy the overarching theme of friendship and women supporting women! Neferura really did surround herself with those she valued, trusted, and loved compared to being surrounded by who she "should" be around. The 1st person POV worked; but there was also so much that was done "off the page" that I think a multi-POV or going with 3rd person POV would have benefited this story.

The epilogue POV switch really threw me off at first, especially with the way the book ended. I want more background on how the ending was pulled off, the epilogue didn't provide much.

All in all, Neferura was a solid read and hit the historical fiction mark but lacked character depth, plot building, and in general pacing.