by Stephanie Dray | Feb 2, 2012 | FAQ, Historical Fiction Genre, Miscellany, My Works, Song of the Nile
The life of Cleopatra Selene is a story so unlikely that magic sometimes seems like the only explanation. But that isn’t why I chose to include magical realism in my book. I included my heroine’s ability to commune with her goddess through bloody hieroglyphs and some...
by Stephanie Dray | Jan 31, 2012 | Articles, Daughters of the Nile, Lily of the Nile, Song of the Nile
The star of my new novel, SONG OF THE NILE, is Cleopatra Selene. However, another young woman plays a very prominent role, and that is Julia, the daughter of Rome’s first emperor. Though their parents were mortal enemies, in my novel, the two teenaged girls form a...
by Stephanie Dray | Jan 24, 2012 | Daughters of the Nile, Lily of the Nile, Research, Song of the Nile
In ancient history powerful women got a bad rap. This was especially the case for Rome’s first empress, Livia Drusilla, the wife of Augustus Caesar. She comes down to us as a sort of wicked step-monster of the Julio-Claudian family–one who murders, manipulates...
by Stephanie Dray | Jan 10, 2012 | Articles, Fun Stuff, Research, Song of the Nile
The heroine of my novels, Cleopatra Selene, is the daughter of the much more famous Cleopatra VII of Egypt, the notorious Queen of the Nile who is best known for having committed suicide by way of clutching a venomous serpent to her breast. There is some debate...
by Stephanie Dray | Jan 5, 2012 | Fun Stuff, Song of the Nile
If it’s good to be the king, it’s even better to be the emperor. At least in ancient Rome. Unless your guards are waiting for you with daggers, or an angry wife feeds you poisoned mushrooms, you get to be the center of the world…wherever you go. Now, when...
by Stephanie Dray | Jan 2, 2012 | Fun Stuff, Song of the Nile
SONG OF THE NILE, begins with the wedding of my heroine, Cleopatra Selene, to the man the emperor has chosen for her. Like any bride, she is nervous and excited about her future. Her groom is the newly made King of Mauretania, and she is about to become a queen...
