The Barbarian
Dorchester, August, 2004.
Paperback, 351 pages.
ISBN: 0843953799
In this sequel to The Conqueror, the powerful first book in the series,
Judith E. French continues the saga of Roxanne, Warrior Princess
and consort to Alexander the Great. It is 315 BC in Alexandria,
Egypt and Roxanne is suffering from amnesia after losing her
husband and her son. She is living in the palace of Ptolemy, the Pharaoh.
Ptolemy tells her that she is an Egyptian aristocrat and that he loves
her dearly. Although she is troubled by mental flashes of her previous life,
she accepts Ptolemy's word and tries to adjust to her circumstances.
But when the handsome Barbarian Kayan arrives,
he tells Roxanne that she is a great Warrior Princess that he loved
for years -- before Alexander took her away from him. Now Roxanne
must decide if she prefers a gilded cage to an uncertain future of
freedom with Kayan.
The Barbarian is an exhilarating, sweeping tale of conquest, passion, love and loss. Judith French has the gift of bringing ancient Egypt, Persia and Greece to life with her lush and sensual descriptions. Roxanne herself is a bit of an enigma: a complex woman, she has depth and fire. Ptolemy and Kayan are vivid, memorable characters whose passion for the beautiful Roxanne causes untold violence. Ms. French never loses sight of her characters in this sprawling epic: Roxanne and Kayan are vibrant and memorable, as is this very well-written romance.
The Barbarian is available for purchase on Amazon.com
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This review was published in the September-October, 2004 of The Internet Writing Journal.
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