I love reading and one perk of the recession is I finally get to do it more often! Orbit UK (thanks Sam!) send me through review copies of their books every couple of weeks and I have a review list as long as my arm. However while I freely confess to skipping Jo Graham’s Black Ships (something I now aim to redress), herlatest book, Hand of Isis, was one I was especially looking out for so it jumped to the top of my reading list.

Normally I’m not one for historical fiction, even when it concerns the ancient Greek, Roman or Egyptian cultures (which fascinate me), but Hand of Isis is the exception. Set in Egypt during the lifetime of Cleopatra VII, the book is presented from the perspective of her half-sister and handmaiden Charmian as she stands at the Gates of Amenti, the Egyptian afterlife, pleading her case to the gods Isis and Serapis. 

Her recollections take you back to a time of chaos for Egypt; Cleopatra’s struggle for the throne, her love affair with Julius Caesar, the birth of her son and heir Caesarion to her relationship with Marcus Antonius and her death at the bite of a snake. But at the same time, Charmian also has her own live, her own loves and chief amongst them is Isis. As exiled children growing up in the temple of Bastet, the Lady of Cats, Cleopatra, Charmian and their other sister Iras asked the Goddess to put Cleopatra on the throne, this request will forever shape the girls’ destinies.

Interspersed within the rich tapesty of Charmian’s life are interludes where she converses with her gods in Amenti as well as encountering a Jewish archangel – somehow fitting given the large Jewish population in Alexandria during this period in history. Yet there’s a balance between all the faiths and unlike many books, the worship of the Egyptians gods is treated with due reverance. These scenes also suggest something more to the story, hinting at Charmian’s numerous lives and indeed the story does not end there either, rather following her into her next life where she once again becomes a servant of Isis.

This one of those rare books that is a true joy to read, easy to pick up and hard as hell to put down. The period is vibrant and expressed in a new way thanks to Charmian’s first person perspective. Having the narrator speak using the voice of a handmaiden is a nice change from similar volumes such as Elizabeth George’s Memoirs of Cleopatra in which the Queen herself recounts her tumulteous life. The addition of the post-life perspective fits nicely with the Egyptian cosmology while the frequent mention of ancient scientific machines adds a realistic but almost sci fi vibe to the story.

Hand of Isis is out on March 5th, priced £8.99.