“I hoped to become a legend, but I forgot what all stories must have: a monster. I could not have known that monster would be me.”
3.5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
This historical fiction “retelling” gives Cleopatra the mic to tell her own story, her way, a more modern perspective decentering men, as Cleopatra’s story has been distorted by historians.
“It is a reminder that not all roads lead to Rome. Let it not be the center of your history, for propaganda is a tool favored by the West.”
Cleopatra’s story is captivating from the start, dealing with loss and becoming a pharaoh. We follow Cleo’s journey into motherhood, her romances with Caesar and Marcus Antonius. This is no non-fiction biography, though.
This style was more of a memoir, with Cleopatra often breaking the fourth wall, speaking to the readers and referencing what was to come, which felt a little jarring. The pacing throughout this book was pretty slow to begin with, making it difficult to get into at first, but things picked up a lot towards the end.
Saara El-Arifi’s prose is beautiful, making it worth reading.
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