For example, Isis, Cleopatra, Egypt, Alexandria, the moon, the Nile and even Selene herself were all used at some point as metaphors for the feminine, while Rome embodies everything about the masculine. This novel uses a lot of symbols and imagery to illustrate its themes, of which the most interesting to me was the relationship between masculinity and femininity. It’s labeled as historical fiction, but I was surprised to find a thread of fantasy laced through the novel in the form of old magic, which sets it apart from many other historical fiction I’ve read in the past. While not exactly a heart-thumping page-turner, it nonetheless had me enraptured with its story an d characters every step of the way.Īt the heart of it, Lily of the Nile is a coming-of-age story, and it’s a unique one at that. A prisoner trapped in a culture completely at odds with her heritage and faith, Selene struggles to hold on to Isis and the memory of her parents’ legacy, meanwhile using all her wits to survive life in the Roman court.

From birth, Selene and her twin brother Helios were hailed as a sacred pair by the worshipers of Isis, but after Alexandria fell to Ro man forces and the suicides of their parents, the children are brought to Rome by the conqueror Octavian to be fostered in his imperial household. Lily of the Nile is a historical fiction novel about Selene, the daughter of Cleopatra and Mark Antony. Book Review: Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray

Lily of the nile by stephanie dray