The Horus Road: Lords of the Two Lands - Hardcover

Gedge, Pauline

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 156947236X ISBN 13: 9781569472361

Publisher: Soho Pr Inc, 2001

Synopsis

The Hyksos - interlopers from Asia Minor with Cretan and Minoan trading connections - ruled Egypt for over two hundred years, after the end of the Middle Kingdom. Seqenenra Tao of Weset roused the native princes to rebellion but died before they could achieve success. His second son, Kamose, assumed command and led a sweep up the Nile to the Hyksos Pharoah's delta stronghold. Then Kamose was assassinated by his own allies, and young Ahmose, the surviving Tao prince, was wounded.
In The Horus Road it is the women of the Tao family who must hold the native forces together until Ahmose recovers and, ultimately, leads the Egyptians to triumph.
The Horus Road concludes a trilogy, beginning with The Hippopotamus Marsh, followed by The Oasis, that brings to vivid life the passions and intrigues which ushered in the great Eighteenth Dynasty.

About this title

About the Author

Pauline Gedge is the author of eight novels, including Child of the Morning, Lady of the Reeds, and The Hippopotamus Marsh: Lords of the Two Lands, Volume 1, all available from Soho Press.

Reviews

Adult/High School-This concludes Gedge's stunning trilogy, in which the royal Tao family reunites Upper and Lower Egypt, drives out the land's foreign Hyksos rulers, and establishes ancient Egypt's 18th Dynasty. The Hippopotamus Marsh (2001) told of the origins of the war, in which the Egyptian patriarch Sequenra led an ill-fated rebellion. In The Oasis (2000, both Soho), his older son Kamose carried on the fight in a ruthless-but ultimately inconclusive-drive northward down the Nile. In this volume, Ahmose, the last surviving Tao male, finally takes the walled Hyksos fortress in the Delta, pursues the foreign king to his desert stronghold beyond the Horus Road, and reclaims the greatest royal treasures. As he and Egypt's other hereditary princes wage their war against the "Desert Princes," the genial and moderate Ahmose grows into a strong and innovative military leader. Meanwhile, back home in Westet, the remarkable women of the Tao family-Ahmose's grandmother, his mother, and his sister-wife-maintain order and prepare for peace, revealing a genius for designing and administering governmental systems that will guide the new Egypt in its future prosperity. This is not just a tale of war but also a compelling family saga and a moving story of personal challenge, growth, and responsibility, and readers who get caught up in it will find an ancient time brought vividly to life. Although The Horus Road can be read independently, it is best enjoyed as the final chapters in a single, memorable work.

Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Chronicling the struggle between Egypt's native kings and the foreign Setiu rulers during the 12th dynasty, Gedge's Lords of the Two Lands trilogy sweeps to completion in this hefty final volume (following The Hippopotamus March and The Oasis). Although readers unfamiliar with the previous novels may peruse the helpful foreword, a list of 62 characters featuring such confusingly similar names as Ahmose, Ahmose-onkh, Ahmose Abana and Ankhmahor may daunt newcomers. Ahmose Tao, youngest son of the first rebel pharaoh, takes up the reins of power against Setiu King Apepa, who has claimed the uplands and caused the death of Ahmose's father and brother. Upon crowning himself King, Ahmose leaves the village of Weset and his sister/wife, Aahmes-nefertari, to lead the army toward Het-Uart, the Setiu royal home. They plan to storm the walled city and seize control of the crucial Horus Road. When Apepa's greatest general dies in battle, he closes the city, and Ahmose's army must hold vigil until Het-Uart crumbles. Back in Weset, Queen Aahmes-nefertari is lavishly rebuilding her family's empire and enjoying the authority accorded her by her husband's absence. When Ahmose returns, their growing coolness toward each other is exacerbated by the death of their daughter and another ill-fated birth. Ahmose leaves again for battle, where Apepa escapes his army and flees to Rethennu. As the Egyptians continue their march after Apepa, Ahmose endeavors to oust the Setiu, unite the realm and restore glory to his gods, whatever the price. Gedge's meticulous research is rendered in able prose; unfortunately, the novel often sinks under the weight of historical detail and long, drawn-out battle scenes. More fictionalizing and a few editorial cuts would have made the going less laborious.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Soho Pr Inc
• Publication date: 2001
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 156947236X
• ISBN 13: 9781569472361
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 507