Category Archives: Stephanie Dray

Author of the Month: an interview (and giveaway) with Stephanie Dray

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For October’s Author of the Month, I’m proud to present Stephanie Dray, the supremely talented author of the Cleopatra’s Daughter trilogy– I have recently reviewed both “Lily of the Nile” and its sequel “Song of the Nile.” Stephanie is both a scholar and an author of ripping good yarns about sexy, powerful, magic-wielding queens in exotic far-flung lands; today, she’ll be chatting with us about Cleopatra, ancient Rome, RPGs, Orientalism and time travel (among other things).

We’re also going to be having a giveaway of one beautiful copy of “Song of the Nile,” courtesy of Berkley Books. All you have to do is subscribe to Stephanie’s newsletter, follow her on Twitter or Facebook, and leave a comment below!

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Hi Stephanie! Tell me a little about yourself. Where are you from? How long have you wanted to be a writer? What was your day job?

I grew up in a little town called Greece N.Y. I went to Athena High School. Our school mascot was the Trojan. I might have been influenced a little bit by that. Just a little! I think I always knew that I wanted to be a writer–it just didn’t seem very practical as a career choice, so I became a lawyer instead. I only practiced law for about ten minutes–just long enough to know that if I was going to lie for a living I’d rather be writing fiction. Continue reading “Author of the Month: an interview (and giveaway) with Stephanie Dray” »

Song of the Nile: or, Flowers in the Attic meets The Empire Strikes Back

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If “Lily of the Nile” was “Star Wars”– an exciting YA-oriented adventure story– then “Song of the Nile” is meant to be “The Empire Strikes Back” of Stephanie Dray’s Cleopatra’s Daughter trilogy. It’s dark, angsty, and tumultuous, and although it lacks some of the excitement of the first book, it’s a pretty cool story in its own right. It could be described as “Flowers in the Attic” meets “The Empire Strikes Back.” (Or The Flowers Strike Back? Or the Empire in the Attic?)

“Song” also strongly reminds me of Jane Gaskell’s Atlan saga, in both its weaknesses and its strengths. As in Atlan, a girl who thinks she’s a goddess is taken to a foreign land to become queen, and in the process learns her own dark destiny. Along the way, she finds multiple lovers, suffers many setbacks and has exotic, picaresque adventures. Although there’s no prehistoric birds or snake-men, a la Atlan, but Dray’s heroine Selene has her own unique run-ins with barbarian tribesmen, sirocco winds, and magic. There’s a lot of really dark things going on (in Gaskell’s “The Serpent,” as in “Song of the Nile,” rape and brother-sister incest are two major themes) but– like Gaskell– there’s a certain lightness of touch in the prose; for all the sturm und drang, it’s written in a way that’s not leaden or heavy-handed. The writing is polished and beautiful as an amethyst. Continue reading “Song of the Nile: or, Flowers in the Attic meets The Empire Strikes Back” »

It’s Ancient History month!

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Well, guys, I have an exciting (and ambitious) month planned ahead. In honor of Stephanie Dray, tremendously awesome author of “Lily of the Nile,” I’ve decided to hold an ancient history themed month. Joumana Medlej, comic artist and creator of the Lebanese superhero comic, “Malaak,” will be my Artist of the Month; she works with ancient Phoenician myth and legend in fascinating and unexpected ways. My Author of the Month is Stephanie Dray. Not only will I be reviewing “Song of the Nile,” the second book in her historical fantasy trilogy about Cleopatra’s daughter, on the 27th, when I post her interview, I will also be holding a giveaway of “Song of the Nile.” You may be able to win your very own print copy!

Other highlights will include guests posts from Carol Burrell, creator of the SPQR Blues webcomic, Gary Corby, author of a great new mystery series set in ancient Athens starring Socrates’ older brother, and last but not least, Cassandra Dean, author of the sexy Roman-era romance “Enslaved.” She will also be giving away a copy of “Enslaved,” so check back here for details.

Lily of the Nile: or, when a Roman-era historical fantasy is done right

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If you’ve read my previous review of Phoenix Sullivan’s “Spoil of War”, you’ve probably got a good idea of what I don’t like in historical fiction. Stupid anachronisms, pompous prose, and a ridiculous Conan-the-Barbarian depiction of people way back when are probably three of my top ten peeves in this genre. Well, discerning readers, you have reason to rejoice, since I have found a book that has none of those things. It is actually good. It’s “Lily of the Nile” by Stephanie Dray (who kindly sent me of a copy of the galley), and it was the perfect chaser to the dreck that was “Spoil of War.”

There has been a whole rash of books lately about Cleopatra Selene, the daughter of the famous asp-wielding Cleopatra VII, but Dray’s book is the first one I’ve read. It’s also the first in a projected trilogy where Selene’s life is re-imagined as a historical fantasy. I admit I was a little leery at first– especially when Ms. Dray credits the 1963 “Cleopatra” with Liz Taylor as a major inspiration. I’m not crazy about that movie (this hilarious review by MonsterHunter sums up my feelings about it) , and I was hoping it wouldn’t be stilted, pretentious or unconvincing (like Liz Taylor’s acting). However, I ended up being pleasantly surprised– and I ended up tearing through this 368 page novel in a day and a half. Continue reading “Lily of the Nile: or, when a Roman-era historical fantasy is done right” »