King and Goddess [Hardcover]

Judith Tarr (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1996

A fictional chronicle of the life and reign of Queen Hatshepsut, a powerful female pharoah of ancient Egypt, describes her rise to power, her secret love affair with her architect, and the efforts of her successors to efface her name from history.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Egypt's "most notorious" female king, Maatkare Hatshepsut, is the captivating subject of Tarr's latest novel of ancient Egypt. The story opens as Senenmut, a homely, arrogant young scribe, arrives at the royal palace in Thebes as a gift to the "girlchild" Queen Hatshepsut?the Great Royal Wife of King Thutmose II, who is her half-brother. Hatshepsut and the war-hungry king are living gods. The royal marriage has yet to be consummated, however, because the queen considers the king "a sweaty, panting lout without the least grain of delicacy." Recognizing her duty to produce an heir, she orders Isis, a beautiful maidservant, to prepare the king for her by teaching him the art of lovemaking. When Hatshepsut at last gives birth to a girl instead of the desired boy, the queen refuses to care for her, appointing Senenmut as her daughter's tutor and guardian. The birth of a stillborn son leaves the queen infertile. Her hatred toward the king crystallizes after Isis, now his calculating concubine, gives birth to an heir, Thutmose III. When the king suddenly dies, further intrigue unfolds, leading to Hatshepsut, now queen regent, seizing her chance to gain the throne. Tarr evokes Hatshepsut's ruthlessness as well as her vulnerability, and provides vivid portraits of Senenmut, Thutmose III and other real historical figures. Hatshepsut's courtship of the Egyptians, her peaceful reign and Thutmose III's ultimate revenge against her add up to a dramatic tale.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Tarr's faithfully researched historical novels (e.g., Pillar of Fire, LJ 6/15/95) have earned her an appreciable audience. Her latest is based on the life of Queen Hatshepsut, a woman who ruled Egypt some 4000 years ago.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: Forge; 1st edition (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312860927
• ISBN-13: 978-0312860929
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,835,599 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I have a lot of academic credentials (PhD from Yale, MA from Cambridge University, AB from Mt. Holyoke) and taught writing and Latin at Wesleyan University in Connecticut--before I ran away from it all to live on a mesa in Arizona. I breed and ride Lipizzan horses, read and study history (and make up my own alternate and fantastical versions), and write--novels, short stories, articles. I teach writing online (details at http://capriole.smoe.org) and blog on the livejournals as dancinghorse. My alter ego is author Caitlin Brennan, who also has a plog on amazon.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars It's not too bad, March 13, 2000

By 

Poison Ivy "poisonivy1" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: King and Goddess (King & Goddess) (Mass Market Paperback)

If this was my first book about Hatshepsut or about ancient Egypt I would have probably loved it. But I am a big fan of Pauline Gedge and I have read her "Child of the Morning", which was much more interesting and more historically accurate. My advise, if you want to know more about Hatshepsut, pick up "Child of the Morning" and avoid "King and Goddess"

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Read not for history, but for her story..., August 15, 2002

By 

J. Peterson "jenpeterson" (United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King and Goddess (King & Goddess) (Mass Market Paperback)

I liked this book. I know that maybe Ms. Tarr did rearrange some facts and/or leave/embellish some information, but that doesn't diminish the story for me. This is a story about a young woman, who knows what she is capable of doing, and then does it. That young woman is Hatshepsut. She is married to her half-brother, whom she despises and whom she knows does not have the skills needed to be a good king. She suffers, not always in silence, because of this. Senenmut is her chief scribe and is visible throughout the story, not only as her friend and advisor but also as her lover. I thought that it was a very touching love story.

The story is filled with people who are intelligent and care deeply about the queen. I felt like I knew the characters, they were so well written. I guess it doesn't bother me about any historical inaccuracies, as long as the story is told well.

There were weak moments--the Puta expedition was one that stuck out in my mind. But overall an interesting book. I will have to look up "Child of the Morning" and see how it compares, since it is getting such good recommendations here.

Enjoy.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A very good beach-book, but not the best historical fiction, September 29, 2002

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King and Goddess (Hardcover)

I really like historical fiction, and especially Egyptian historical fiction. It's amazing that we know so much about a people whose dynasties were contemporary with biblical history.

But Judith Tarr's version of the life of Hatshepsut, the female Pharoah, is so far from the historical "facts" that it is less satisfying as a novelized history than just a fiction story. However, if you ignore the lack of historical basis, you can enjoy a nice novel about life in an ancient palace, with intrigues, poisoning, secret lovers, ambitious courtiers and all the other things that make for a good "beach book." While not the best Egyptian historical novel I've ever read, "King and Goddess" was exciting and pleasant for casual reading.