Review of Dark Goddess
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Jeffrey S Brown
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Review of Dark Goddess
[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Dark Goddess" by M C Jones.]
The patronage of ordinary folk by the nobility is fraught with peril. Mother Nefret knows this, but she values justice enough to put her life in danger as she searches for the killer of Lady Meret-Amen, a noblewoman of Ancient Egypt. Death by scorpion sting is unusual enough to raise suspicion and demands the immediate identification and capture of a suspect, guilty or not. Lord Seneb requests that Nefret investigate the murder, casting her into the center of controversy and testing her promises to the living and the dead.
Nefret is the village midwife and healer, so her involvement in the investigation raises the hackles of the rest of lord Seneb’s family. The murdered woman, lady Meret, was not popular with anyone save her husband, who had died fighting for the Pharoah, so the suspect pool is relatively large. A young secretary is falsely accused and convicted of the crime. Nefret continues searching for the real culprit and soon finds herself targeted for assassination if she doesn’t stop poking about.
Dark Goddess presents an engaging whodunit told from the perspective of the lower classes of Egyptian society in the time of the Pharaohs. It tells of the food, the clothing, and the living conditions, providing a vivid backdrop for the action. You can almost feel the burning heat of the day. Some scenes jump forward in time, leaving the reader to figure out when they are and creating confusion, which is a drawback.
All of the characters are well-developed, with distinctive behaviors and voices. The gods of the Egyptian pantheon are numerous, and the book describes their areas of influence well and shows their effect on the people of this time. Some of the political environment is also described, corruption and all, adding flavor to the mix.
Grammar and spelling errors did affect my reading flow negatively, but this is still a good book. There are scenes of sexual assault that may cause problems for some readers, but the lack of graphic description makes Dark Goddess still acceptable for young adult and adult readers. I give the book four out of five stars.
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Dark Goddess
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
The patronage of ordinary folk by the nobility is fraught with peril. Mother Nefret knows this, but she values justice enough to put her life in danger as she searches for the killer of Lady Meret-Amen, a noblewoman of Ancient Egypt. Death by scorpion sting is unusual enough to raise suspicion and demands the immediate identification and capture of a suspect, guilty or not. Lord Seneb requests that Nefret investigate the murder, casting her into the center of controversy and testing her promises to the living and the dead.
Nefret is the village midwife and healer, so her involvement in the investigation raises the hackles of the rest of lord Seneb’s family. The murdered woman, lady Meret, was not popular with anyone save her husband, who had died fighting for the Pharoah, so the suspect pool is relatively large. A young secretary is falsely accused and convicted of the crime. Nefret continues searching for the real culprit and soon finds herself targeted for assassination if she doesn’t stop poking about.
Dark Goddess presents an engaging whodunit told from the perspective of the lower classes of Egyptian society in the time of the Pharaohs. It tells of the food, the clothing, and the living conditions, providing a vivid backdrop for the action. You can almost feel the burning heat of the day. Some scenes jump forward in time, leaving the reader to figure out when they are and creating confusion, which is a drawback.
All of the characters are well-developed, with distinctive behaviors and voices. The gods of the Egyptian pantheon are numerous, and the book describes their areas of influence well and shows their effect on the people of this time. Some of the political environment is also described, corruption and all, adding flavor to the mix.
Grammar and spelling errors did affect my reading flow negatively, but this is still a good book. There are scenes of sexual assault that may cause problems for some readers, but the lack of graphic description makes Dark Goddess still acceptable for young adult and adult readers. I give the book four out of five stars.
******
Dark Goddess
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: 2084 by Rob Standridge
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Mark Lazarus
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Sounds like a gripping murder mystery with rich historical detail, though the time jumps and errors might be a bit distracting. I like that it explores Ancient Egypt from the perspective of ordinary people—that’s not something you see every day.
