The Last Heiress
A Novel of Tutankhamun's Queen
by
Book Cover & Preview Text
I forget everything and rush to Pharaoh's chambers, swept along by the awful fear that my father is dead. Oh, let my abi live! Tutankhaten hasn’t let go of my hand; he holds it firmly as he brings me through the crush of soldiers and officials. Vizier Ay cuts past us as he darts towards the king’s chambers. When the servants and guards clear from our path, I see my Father in his open chested chamber robe, standing tall beyond his gilded doorway. He’s surrounded by Ay, Horemhab, and a handful of elite Nubian guards. He is alive, unharmed! I want to rush into his arms. But I cannot, because my sister bursts in sobbing dirty kohl-stained tears, running to him. Father’s molten, broiling stare stops her cold beside Tutankhaten and me. He speaks only to Ay and Horemhab, his voice a jagged hiss as he rattles off instructions for locking down the palace. Only then do I look about the room; I immediately grab Tutankhaten’s arm in horror. A young man-really just a boy only a few years older than us-lies dead on the floor. One of Father’s golden diadems, complete with a flowing white and gold nemes cloth, is on his head, as if he had snuck in and tried it on. His arms and legs are twisted and seized into his body, as if he had died wrapping himself into knots. Thick blood drips like syrup through his clenched teeth. Tutankhaten's eyes are fixed on the poor boy, before they flicker to Father, full of awful, crushing understanding. This agonizing death was meant for our allmighty Father! Once Horemhab takes his soldiers away, Father kneels down before the dead servant boy. His lips curl in disgust as he reaches for his diadem and head cloth, but Vizier Ay interrupts him."Allow me, Your Majesty." Father stays his hand, clenching his fingers into a huge, hard bronze fist. Ay-with a minimum of contact-gently slides the diadem off, and holds it up to the wide saucer of flame beside him. After only a moment’s examination, he says, "Ah… See here. They have made small incisions into the metal, and likely coated it in some venom. When the roughened gold scratched against his head, he was finished." Ay gazes in wonder at my father. "Someone very close has betrayed you, Your Majesty." My father stands slowly. He gives one final look to the dead servant on the floor, before motioning for two burly guards to take him away. I peer on him once more as he’s carried roughly off; he was a pretty boy, with a rosebud mouth and a sweeping of kohl around his eyes. But the warmth of life is gone from his soft cheeks. Though my father has executed hundreds, this boy is the first dead person I’ve ever seen. Father stops pacing before the wide, high window. He stands in the flooding sunlight, his palms spread open as if in prayer. His voice is as quiet as a whisper, but somehow so strong it carries through the room. "So be it, then. Let them come with all they have. I am ready. I’ve been ready all my life."
Formats
Book Details
About the Book
At the close of ancient Egypt’s ambitious Eighteenth Dynasty, power, art, and learning have reached a zenith. Due to the nation’s yearly flooding, steady harvests, and plentiful gold, Egypt is the richest nation in the world. Ruling over this paradise is Pharaoh, considered a god-on-earth by his people. But on the death of Amunhotep III, his son, known to history as the Heretic King Akhenaten, enters into a war with the powerful priesthood of Amun and claims ownership of the souls of his people. He raises a new god for Egypt to worship, and banishes the ancient gods from the land. The consequences of this will lead to the downfall of the ruling dynasty, the very family that had made Egypt into a mighty empire. The delicate and beautiful third daughter of Akhenaten and Nefertiti, Princess Ankhesenamun knows nothing but power and luxury. Her mother Nefertiti rules Akhenaten’s heart and other wives as her father rules the land. But when Nefertiti fails to give Akhenaten the son he desires, the princess’s pampered world begins to fall apart. And at the height of Akhenaten’s triumph over his people, an unexpected tragedy strikes the land, giving those oppressed a new reason to fight. Soon the chaos outside the King’s House explodes within, tearing the royal family apart. Watching from the shadows is Prince Tutankhamun. His mother was a princess, but she died after his birth, and he has grown up on the edge of the king’s favor because of Nefertiti’s strong influence. The crown, which he feels is his by right, is expected to go Nefertiti’s oldest daughter, but Akhenaten refuses to name an heir. Attended as the son of a god but isolated from his family, Tutankhamun spends his days surpassing his tutors, gaining his omnipotent father’s attention only by extreme achievement or reckless courage.
About the Author
Stephanie Liaci is a young first time author who has been passionate about Ancient Egypt all her life. She lives outside New York City with her husband, their babies, and their gardens.