JD PR NEWS

Congratulations to author Stephanie Dray for a fantastic review in Publishers Weekly:Lily of the Nile: A Novel of Cleopatra's Daughter Stephanie Dray, Berkley, $15 trade paper (368p) ISBN 978-0-425-23855-4 Dray deftly mixes magic and history in her debut, the first of a projected trilogy set in ancient Egypt. After Octavian defeats Cleopatra and her husband, Mark Antony, in battle, Octavian takes the Egyptian queen's three children--twins Cleopatra Selene and Alexander Helios and younger son Ptolemy Philadelphus--as spoils of war to Rome, where he makes them part of his family. While Helios rages against submitting to Octavian, Selene adopts a diplomatic path to ensure her survival and her brothers'. Selene discovers hidden powers within herself to fight for her Egyptian beliefs and proves an active, vibrant take-charge protagonist as she goes toe to toe with Octavian and staunchly defends her people. Readers will eagerly look forward to the next installment. (Jan.)