Queen of Kings

October 24, 2011
The blurbs compare Headley's Cleopatra-gone-bad fantasia to Diana Gabaldon and Neil Gaiman, but it's likely that the Anne Rice fans will find more to like here. Though there are some lovely romantic scenes at the outset, this is no romance. The Egyptian capital of Alexandria is under siege by the vengeful Octavian, out to punish Marc Antony for choosing loyalty to Cleopatra over Rome, and over Octavian's sister, whom Antony has divorced. Antony dies within the first few pages, and Cleopatra seeks to strike a bargain with the ancient lion-headed goddess, Sekhmet, to bring him back. The deal goes bad, as all such bargains must, and the question becomes not whether Antony will live again, but what price will Sekhmet extract from Cleopatra for the queen's audacity? Part horror, part history, and all tragedy, the story is not likely to please romance fans. But for those who enjoy the eroticized violence and stylish nightmares of the Rice tradition, Headley delivers a vivid dose.

May 15, 2011

In retelling the story of one of the most fascinating women of history, Headley (The Year of Yes: A Memoir) has penned a dark mix of paranormal romance and historical thriller. Cleopatra, seeing her country conquered by Rome and hearing that her beloved husband, Marc Antony, had committed suicide, turns to dark magic to defend herself against the forces gathered against her. But she unleashes a power she's unable to control and is transformed into a vampiric creature. What follows is a blending of history and mythology of epic proportions. According to the author's website, this title is intended as the first of a trilogy. It will be interesting to see where Headley takes her Cleopatra next. VERDICT Readers who enjoy grand stories steeped in history yet rewritten with a dark, magical twist may be intrigued by this depiction of Cleopatra.--Crystal Renfro, Georgia Inst. of Technology Lib., Atlanta

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2011
Cleopatra will exact her revenge, even if she has to cross over to the dark side to do it. Just when you think the subject and the character of Cleopatra have been exhausted, Headley adds a new twist to the timeworn legend by blending history, fantasy, and epic battle scenes in this intriguing genre bender, the first volume in a projected trilogy. Blaming Octavian for the death of her beloved Antony, Cleopatra strikes a bargain with the devil or, in this case, the warrior goddess Sekhmet. Trading her human life for an eternity as a blood-guzzling shape shifter, the queen sets out to settle the score with her old nemesis. All roads, even those in the shadowy netherworld, eventually lead to Rome and a reunion with her one true soul-mate. Can Cleopatra defeat Octavian, bring Rome to its knees, and even conquer death itself? Readers will keep turning the pages to find out.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)

March 15, 2011

It is not an asp that Cleopatra takes to her breast in this novel. It is Sekhmet, the daughter of Ra, the Sun God, summoned by the distraught queen and thereafter shifting into the form of a viper.

Antony, defeated at Actium, is besieged at Alexandria by Octavian, fragile boy turned emperor. A false message from the Roman camp reaches Antony saying that Cleopatra has betrayed him. Cleopatra, however, has retreated to the couple's fortress mausoleum and conjured a spell written by the old god-kings, a spell discovered and translated by Nicolaus, a scholar. With its incantation, Cleopatra became that which the Romans labeled her: fatale monstrum. Headley (The Year of Yes, 2007) carries the reader beyond history, beyond Shakespearean drama, and into the realm of angry gods, shape-shifters and vampires. Imbued with Sekhmet's power, Cleopatra becomes a night creature, flesh burnt by sun and metal, nourished only by human blood. Cleopatra, bent on revenge for the death of Antony, must watch as Octavian, her nemesis, provokes the murder of Caesarion, her son by Julius Caesar. Octavian then carries Cleopatra's three remaining children to Rome. After a visit to temple at Thebes, where a priestess keeps watch in the name of Sekhmet, Cleopatra shape-shifts into a lioness, steals aboard a slave ship and is transported to Rome. Octavian has been declared emperor, taking the name Caesar Augustus, but he still fears Cleopatra, and so he gathers three sorcerers from the Empire's edges to protect him, one of whom conjures up Antony from his ashes. Headley's complex plot also includes visits to Hades, circuses and gladiators, an epic battle at Avernus and the seven children of Sekhmet (plague, famine, earthquake, flood, drought, madness and violence) loosed upon the world.

First of a trilogy, this book, replete with descriptive language and a magical narrative, will appeal to fans of the fantasy genre.

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December 1, 2010

What does Cleopatra do when her beloved Antony kills himself? She strikes a bargain with the warrior goddess Sekhmet and becomes a vampire...I mean, a shapeshifting immortal with a thirst for blood. What follows is a series of fierce battles in the realm of the supernatural and possibly a meditation on the power of love. However this sounds, Headley has interesting credentials; she's a playwright, founder of the Memoirists Collective, and author of the offbeat The Year of Yes.

Copyright 2010 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.