REVIEWS PRIESTESS OF POMPEII
ON LI N E E XC LUSI V ES
Sandra C. Hurt, Hawthorne, 2020, $29.99, hb, 334pp, 9781792334887
Due to an ever-increasing number of books for review and space constraints within HNR, some selected fiction reviews and all nonfiction reviews are now published as online exclusives. To view these reviews and much more, please visit www.historicalnovelsociety.org/reviews
BI BL IC A L MIRIAM’S SONG Jill Eileen Smith, Revell, 2021, $15.99, pb, 416pp, 9780800734725
1526 BC. After Pharaoh’s decree that all Hebrew boys are to be killed at birth, Miriam must learn to trust God when her mother risks their lives hiding the newly born Moses. Her parents believe Moses is their “tikvah,” their hope, for deliverance. Placed in the waters and discovered by an Egyptian princess, Moses’s story from birth through life in the wilderness is explored through the eyes of his sister, Miriam. The first word of the prologue floored me: Hatshepsut. Moses’ time in Egypt is regularly ascribed to Seti I or Rameses II, with his life primarily calculated to 1391–1271 BC. I was intrigued by this earlier time period and the unique political tension during Hatshepsut’s reign. The portrayal of Hatshepsut as a woman of strength and determination is brief but well done. However, as often occurs in Biblical fiction, details on Egypt aren’t always accurate. For example, characters travel from “Thebes” (note: Egyptians called it Waset) to a place called “Rameses.” Is this the mortuary temple built by Rameses II, reigning between 1279 to 1213 BC? If so, it’s a mention that’s 300 years too early. Conversely, Hebrew life is extensively researched, and the difficulties they faced are tangible. As with Hatshepsut, I enjoyed how fleshed out Miriam, Moses, and Zipporah were. They pose faith-challenging questions (Why doesn’t God speak to Miriam as He does Moses? Why does God keep Moses from his family for so long?), and these struggles develop them into complex individuals. Yet, while there’s a strong focus on Miriam’s life in the first half, by the time of the plagues, she’s overshadowed by Moses. Including Moses’s and Zipporah’s voices draws the plot away from our title character. That being said, fans of Biblical fiction will enjoy a feminine retelling of the book of Exodus. J. Lynn Else
C L A SSIC A L 16
Italy, 60 BCE: A baby girl is left exposed to the elements after her mother dies giving the child life. The infant is found and adopted by a loving couple from Pompeii, who name their new daughter Rufilla. Due to her difficult birth, the baby develops seizures but grows and thrives despite this malady. During a visit to the sanctuary of the healing god, Asclepius, a priest predicts that Rufilla possesses unusual powers, including the gift of prophecy. Even as a young child, Rufilla feels intuitive sympathy with the myth of Ariadne and the labyrinth. As she grows Rufilla participates in the coming-of-age rituals of the goddess Artemis Arktoi with other girls in her community and looks forward to marriage, but her life takes an unexpected turn when her betrothed perishes at sea. Bereft, Rufilla undertakes a different journey, traveling to Greece and experiencing the rituals of the Greek gods and goddesses who inhabit that land. Her new name, Arianna, honors the heroine of her mythos. Hurt has created an impeccably researched vision of life in the 1st-century BC Roman Empire. Beautiful illustrations, maps, and a gorgeous book design add to the appeal of this volume. Rufilla’s journey to adulthood will resonate with every woman, and the rituals honoring the gods and goddesses of that time still shine brightly and illuminate our own psyches. The author quotes C. G. Jung as saying, “The task is to give birth to the ancient in a new time.” Hurt has succeeded in bringing those past days to life in a novel full of meaning for those who live today. Susan McDuffie
ARIADNE Jennifer Saint, Flatiron, 2021, $26.99, hb, 304pp, 9781250773586
You all know the myth. Theseus, Prince of Athens, wins undying fame by penetrating an impregnable Cretan labyrinth and killing the Minotaur, a monster that eats humans. But what happens afterward to Ariadne, the Cretan princess without whose assistance Theseus would have failed, is another story, largely forgotten. Saint therefore focuses on Ariadne; her younger sister, Phaedra; their mother, Pasiphae; and women everywhere, whether abused wives, daughters forced into grotesque marriages, or victims of war and invasion. With psychological astuteness, Saint also imagines the Minotaur’s effect on the family, both in private and in public opinion, for he’s Ariadne’s half-brother, born of Poseidon’s rape of Pasiphae. Where Mary Renault portrayed Theseus as the classic hero in The King Must Die, here, he’s charismatic and fearless, all right, but utterly
REVIEWS | Issue 96, May 2021
lacking empathy, needing constant adoration. When one trophy loses its luster, he goes off seeking others—much like the gods, who care only for how many worshipers they have and what gifts they receive, which they soon put aside. What a brilliant concept: The heroic ideal is a narcissistic lie. However, Ariadne falters in the telling. One passage may soar, only for the next to plunge into triteness or the obvious. Many emotional moments depend on barrages of rhetorical questions, a weak, overused device, and Ariadne’s voice and thinking process frequently sound modern. Phaedra, though an intriguing character, changes from child to adult virtually overnight. I also sense that, in Ariadne’s universe, whatever men touch will invariably crumble, die, or rot, whereas only women may nurture, behave honestly, or remain loyal. This pattern undermines the nuance the author deployed to re-create her two main characters and her otherwise fresh reinterpretation of the myth. Ariadne, though thought-provoking, is an inconsistent, uneven novel. Larry Zuckerman
A NC I E N T H I STORY BRIDE OF THE BUDDHA Barbara McHugh, Monkfish, 2021, $17.95/ C$26.95/£12.99, pb, 374pp, 9781948626231
5th century BCE: Prince Siddhartha abandons his wife and his infant son, departing his palace and his life of royal ease to undertake a quest for supreme wisdom. Siddhartha eventually becomes the Buddha, the Awakened One. That story is well known; certainly, all Buddhist practitioners have heard the tale. But what of those he left behind? This luminous novel tells the story of Yasodhara, the Buddha’s wife. The story begins with her early girlhood and first confrontation with death, and guilt. The young maiden experiences joy and the sensual pleasures of life upon her marriage to the handsome Prince Siddhartha, and later faces the impermanence of these. Eventually, Yasodhara undertakes her own spiritual pilgrimage. Her quest parallels that of her husband, now known as the enlightened one, the Tathagatha. This re-imagining of how things might have been is skillfully interwoven with other tales and figures from the early Buddhist canon, most particularly the story of Ananda, the Buddha’s faithful companion and attendant. McHugh envisions a life for Yasodhara that will resonate with spiritual seekers, feminists, and other readers as well. Lovely, poetic
