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The Goddess Queen
QUEEN OF EGYPT. WARRIOR OF ROME. THE FATE OF AN EMPIRE.
The Roman Republic is crumbling, torn apart by rivalries. Egypt is a wellspring of wealth, but its rulers have squandered their advantage and ended up hopelessly indebted to the protection racket that called itself Rome.
Now a woman, as Pharaoh, has a chance to reclaim what Egypt has lost. And a disgraced Roman commander has his chance to reclaim his sword and wield it to build an empire unlike anything the world had seen.
Their stories collide in a maelstrom of ancient history, high politics and power. This is the story of Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen who confronted and contested the power of Rome. And Antonius, the soldier who might be her salvation or her downfall.
The Roman Republic is crumbling, torn apart by rivalries. Egypt is a wellspring of wealth, but its rulers have squandered their advantage and ended up hopelessly indebted to the protection racket that called itself Rome.
Now a woman, as Pharaoh, has a chance to reclaim what Egypt has lost. And a disgraced Roman commander has his chance to reclaim his sword and wield it to build an empire unlike anything the world had seen.
Their stories collide in a maelstrom of ancient history, high politics and power. This is the story of Cleopatra, the Egyptian queen who confronted and contested the power of Rome. And Antonius, the soldier who might be her salvation or her downfall.
Audible Audio
Published September 1, 2026
About the author
Alice Roberts
44 books867 followersAlice May Roberts is an English anatomist, osteoarchaeologist, physical anthropologist, palaeopathologist, television presenter and author.
Roberts studied medicine and anatomy at Cardiff University, qualifying in 1997 as a physician with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MB BCh) degree, having gained an intercalated Bachelor of Science degree in anatomy. She earned a PhD in paleopathology in 2008 from the University of Bristol.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Roberts studied medicine and anatomy at Cardiff University, qualifying in 1997 as a physician with a Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MB BCh) degree, having gained an intercalated Bachelor of Science degree in anatomy. She earned a PhD in paleopathology in 2008 from the University of Bristol.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
July 12, 2026
Overall I’d say it was a pretty enjoyable read, not lyrical or overly descriptive for a fiction but still a good read. It was well researched and as factually accurate as it could be from the place setting and glimpses into the ruling system important to the story.
There were a few things that made me bump it down to a 4, there was no smut but more like a factual description of the glimpses of sex between characters, some would fade to black while others would be almost clinical. Slightly weird to read through but that could just be me.
The time jumps while necessary were a lil jarring but got use to it.
There were a few things that made me bump it down to a 4, there was no smut but more like a factual description of the glimpses of sex between characters, some would fade to black while others would be almost clinical. Slightly weird to read through but that could just be me.
The time jumps while necessary were a lil jarring but got use to it.
July 26, 2026
Received an advanced copy of this through work and was absolutely delighted to have it in my hands.
When Rome was busy conquering the Mediterranean, Egypt held one of its greatest Pharaohs from across Ancient history in its palm. Not a man, but a woman of nine tongues. Emerging as lady of the two lands, reclaiming her right to rule from her brother and embodying Egypt’s greatest Goddess: Isis ✨
Archaeologist Alice Roberts , who I really admire, has a magnificent eye for detail. Roberts has managed to deftly sew the flesh back onto the skeleton of our well beloved Cleopatra. Stepping away from Cicero’s poisonous propaganda that has seeped through time, and blending material culture and history to make this as immersive as possible. I can’t help but be enamoured by almost every reimagining of Egypt’s Goddess Queen. This I have really enjoyed, savouring every smell and vision of Alexandria along the way. The breadbasket of antiquity and home at the time to the greatest Library the eyes have ever paid witness to. I wish I could have seen it ✨
Formidable women make an appearance across this story, including Fulvia and Calpurnia. We see Charmion as a diplomatic sidekick rather than a simple handmaiden attending to her majesty. It was really exciting to see more of that side of Cleopatra’s golden court and to see female minds working together. Snatches of conversation and agency give you an idea of how they must have felt in their respective positions. Oh if the entire Mediterranean world had been ruled by a woman ✨
This time we also have Marcus Antonius’s story, which makes this fictional piece the success that it is. Far from a Roman brute, typical tyrant or infatuated fool willing to be swallowed up in a game of geopolitics. More of a mercurial character looking to soak up the divine magic and spiritual wealth of Egypt. I love that this isn’t written as the build up to a saucy romance, but a passionate meeting of two distinct civilizations. A tremendous force to be reckoned with. Some of Marcus’s chapters were my favourite from the entire book, burning with the complexity of a fallen commander and wounded lion caught between duty and the arms of the Eastern Empire. It feels very true to his memory ✨
When Rome was busy conquering the Mediterranean, Egypt held one of its greatest Pharaohs from across Ancient history in its palm. Not a man, but a woman of nine tongues. Emerging as lady of the two lands, reclaiming her right to rule from her brother and embodying Egypt’s greatest Goddess: Isis ✨
Archaeologist Alice Roberts , who I really admire, has a magnificent eye for detail. Roberts has managed to deftly sew the flesh back onto the skeleton of our well beloved Cleopatra. Stepping away from Cicero’s poisonous propaganda that has seeped through time, and blending material culture and history to make this as immersive as possible. I can’t help but be enamoured by almost every reimagining of Egypt’s Goddess Queen. This I have really enjoyed, savouring every smell and vision of Alexandria along the way. The breadbasket of antiquity and home at the time to the greatest Library the eyes have ever paid witness to. I wish I could have seen it ✨
Formidable women make an appearance across this story, including Fulvia and Calpurnia. We see Charmion as a diplomatic sidekick rather than a simple handmaiden attending to her majesty. It was really exciting to see more of that side of Cleopatra’s golden court and to see female minds working together. Snatches of conversation and agency give you an idea of how they must have felt in their respective positions. Oh if the entire Mediterranean world had been ruled by a woman ✨
This time we also have Marcus Antonius’s story, which makes this fictional piece the success that it is. Far from a Roman brute, typical tyrant or infatuated fool willing to be swallowed up in a game of geopolitics. More of a mercurial character looking to soak up the divine magic and spiritual wealth of Egypt. I love that this isn’t written as the build up to a saucy romance, but a passionate meeting of two distinct civilizations. A tremendous force to be reckoned with. Some of Marcus’s chapters were my favourite from the entire book, burning with the complexity of a fallen commander and wounded lion caught between duty and the arms of the Eastern Empire. It feels very true to his memory ✨
September 15, 2026
What was that 😭
Want to Read
May 7, 2026NEED NEED NEED NEED 😍😍😍
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
This book was (regrettably) god awful for the 70 odd pages I read. I know 70 pages is not usually a good measure of a book but there were some fundamental issues that run throughout this book and will undoubtedly continue through the rest of the book that hamper readability so much that I don’t want to keep reading.
So where to start?
I’ll start on a positive because there weren’t many; the initial characterisation of cleopatra was okay. It wasn’t that in depth, and you don’t get much insight into her psyche beyond snarky comments that indicate that she doesn’t like her younger brother Ptolemy and she finds politicking a bit boring at times. Additionally, the concept is interesting - a novel charting the rise of Cleopatra as the ‘Goddess Queen’. That’s the end of my positives. Now I must rant.
Antonius (Mark Antony) initially seemed interesting enough even if the attempts to characterise him as a laddish, brusque military man who womanises everyone at every opportunity came across as forced and consequentially jarring. Each chapter that followed was more difficult to read. Roberts has missed the mark here. The characterisation is so unsubtle and he comes across as reprehensible. Whether that was the intention or not, it’s done so crudely. I think it’s possible to construct Antonius’ character in that way without doing it in such a vulgar manner.
My first observation was that Alice Roberts - a world-renowned, fantastic historian of the prehistoric and classical era - takes pains to capture historical accuracy at every opportunity. On paper this seems admirable but, in practice, it doesn’t work. Just like the ‘Napoleon’ and ‘Gladiator’ movie, artistic depictions of historical events or eras have to take liberties in the name of entertainment. No, they are no longer perfectly historically accurate but they make for (generally) entertaining watches. The nitty-gritty of history isn’t sexy or flashy and that’s why some bits get left out or aspects get changed. Roberts falls into the trap of sacrificing any semblance of a narrative, characterisation or readability to maintain some form of ‘historical accuracy’. The prose is dry and dull, as Roberts constantly drops snippets of - admittedly - interesting details about ancient Egyptian history and culture, name-dropping characters and names of months and points of religious interest throughout the text BUT in doing so, the narrative contains no substance. Cleopatra does ultimately feel two-dimensional and her thoughts come across as petulant and annoying, the supporting cast are given no time at all, certain pages are solely exposition and to be honest most of the book feels like exposition. As a likely symptom of Roberts’ role as a historian, the book reads like either a novelised non-fiction or a dramatised documentary - page 56 exemplifies this well if anyone had access to a snippet and wanted to know what I refer to. The structure reinforces this idea as certain chapters solely show a festival tradition or a religious procession that doesn’t advance the plot but simply exists to show that these things happened. This would be brilliant detail in a non-fiction about the life of cleopatra but in the fiction format, it doesn’t work at all.
I have a brilliant comparison with ‘Hera’ by Jennifer Saint that I have started since deciding to put ‘The Goddess Queen’ down, in that this book makes Roberts’ books’ shortcomings even more glaring. In the couple chapters I’ve read of ‘Hera’, Saint has begun to develop an interesting character in Hera, she has taken time to build out the world in a manner that is interesting and engaging, and she has included details about the world of the gods which aren’t trying to be ‘historically accurate’ but still are still able to paint a vivid image of an era without dropping exposition in every other sentence. The comparison falls short in that there is more flexibility with mythology but I still think it serves the purpose of demonstrating how Roberts’ book could have been enhanced tenfold by acknowledging that historical accuracy can be maintained without cramming thousands of details down the reader’s throat to the point where there’s no entertaining narrative substance left.
I wish I wasn’t so down on this book because I’m all for more historical fiction that challenges the centuries-old propaganda around certain figures from history that has given us false impressions but the execution in this book was so poor. Roberts has omitted zero details about culture, religion, characters that were present, historical facts and because of this, there’s barely any story and it doesn’t make for an enjoyable read in the slightest.
So where to start?
I’ll start on a positive because there weren’t many; the initial characterisation of cleopatra was okay. It wasn’t that in depth, and you don’t get much insight into her psyche beyond snarky comments that indicate that she doesn’t like her younger brother Ptolemy and she finds politicking a bit boring at times. Additionally, the concept is interesting - a novel charting the rise of Cleopatra as the ‘Goddess Queen’. That’s the end of my positives. Now I must rant.
Antonius (Mark Antony) initially seemed interesting enough even if the attempts to characterise him as a laddish, brusque military man who womanises everyone at every opportunity came across as forced and consequentially jarring. Each chapter that followed was more difficult to read. Roberts has missed the mark here. The characterisation is so unsubtle and he comes across as reprehensible. Whether that was the intention or not, it’s done so crudely. I think it’s possible to construct Antonius’ character in that way without doing it in such a vulgar manner.
My first observation was that Alice Roberts - a world-renowned, fantastic historian of the prehistoric and classical era - takes pains to capture historical accuracy at every opportunity. On paper this seems admirable but, in practice, it doesn’t work. Just like the ‘Napoleon’ and ‘Gladiator’ movie, artistic depictions of historical events or eras have to take liberties in the name of entertainment. No, they are no longer perfectly historically accurate but they make for (generally) entertaining watches. The nitty-gritty of history isn’t sexy or flashy and that’s why some bits get left out or aspects get changed. Roberts falls into the trap of sacrificing any semblance of a narrative, characterisation or readability to maintain some form of ‘historical accuracy’. The prose is dry and dull, as Roberts constantly drops snippets of - admittedly - interesting details about ancient Egyptian history and culture, name-dropping characters and names of months and points of religious interest throughout the text BUT in doing so, the narrative contains no substance. Cleopatra does ultimately feel two-dimensional and her thoughts come across as petulant and annoying, the supporting cast are given no time at all, certain pages are solely exposition and to be honest most of the book feels like exposition. As a likely symptom of Roberts’ role as a historian, the book reads like either a novelised non-fiction or a dramatised documentary - page 56 exemplifies this well if anyone had access to a snippet and wanted to know what I refer to. The structure reinforces this idea as certain chapters solely show a festival tradition or a religious procession that doesn’t advance the plot but simply exists to show that these things happened. This would be brilliant detail in a non-fiction about the life of cleopatra but in the fiction format, it doesn’t work at all.
I have a brilliant comparison with ‘Hera’ by Jennifer Saint that I have started since deciding to put ‘The Goddess Queen’ down, in that this book makes Roberts’ books’ shortcomings even more glaring. In the couple chapters I’ve read of ‘Hera’, Saint has begun to develop an interesting character in Hera, she has taken time to build out the world in a manner that is interesting and engaging, and she has included details about the world of the gods which aren’t trying to be ‘historically accurate’ but still are still able to paint a vivid image of an era without dropping exposition in every other sentence. The comparison falls short in that there is more flexibility with mythology but I still think it serves the purpose of demonstrating how Roberts’ book could have been enhanced tenfold by acknowledging that historical accuracy can be maintained without cramming thousands of details down the reader’s throat to the point where there’s no entertaining narrative substance left.
I wish I wasn’t so down on this book because I’m all for more historical fiction that challenges the centuries-old propaganda around certain figures from history that has given us false impressions but the execution in this book was so poor. Roberts has omitted zero details about culture, religion, characters that were present, historical facts and because of this, there’s barely any story and it doesn’t make for an enjoyable read in the slightest.
September 4, 2026
The Goddess Queen brings ancient history to life through a dramatic combination of historical fiction, political intrigue, power, ambition, and personal conflict. Set during a turbulent period when the Roman Republic was beginning to fracture and Egypt was struggling under increasing Roman influence, the novel places Cleopatra and Antonius at the center of a story shaped by competing ambitions and the fate of empires.
The relationship between Cleopatra and Antonius provides the novel with a compelling emotional and political foundation. Cleopatra is presented as a ruler determined to reclaim what Egypt has lost, while Antonius is a disgraced Roman commander seeking his own path back to power. Their meeting creates a fascinating tension between two people whose personal choices could have consequences far beyond their own lives.
The political dimension is equally engaging. Egypt's wealth, Rome's growing influence, rivalries within the Roman Republic, and the struggle for control create a setting where alliances can quickly become opportunities for betrayal. The story has the scale of an epic historical drama while keeping its focus on the individuals attempting to survive and shape an increasingly unstable world.
What makes the novel especially appealing is the opportunity to encounter Cleopatra and Antonius through a fresh fictional interpretation. Rather than treating them simply as familiar historical figures, The Goddess Queen explores their ambitions, vulnerabilities, relationships, and competing visions of power. The combination of ancient history, high politics, romance, conflict, and questions of leadership gives the story broad appeal for readers interested in both historical authenticity and immersive storytelling.
With a Goodreads rating of 3.57 from 7 ratings and 6 reviews at the time of the supplied listing, The Goddess Queen is still at an early stage of its reader presence. As Alice Roberts's first novel, its focus on Cleopatra, Antonius, Egypt, Rome, and the dramatic political world of the ancient Mediterranean provides strong opportunities to introduce it to historical fiction readers, ancient history enthusiasts, book clubs, and audiences fascinated by one of history's most enduring royal figures.
The relationship between Cleopatra and Antonius provides the novel with a compelling emotional and political foundation. Cleopatra is presented as a ruler determined to reclaim what Egypt has lost, while Antonius is a disgraced Roman commander seeking his own path back to power. Their meeting creates a fascinating tension between two people whose personal choices could have consequences far beyond their own lives.
The political dimension is equally engaging. Egypt's wealth, Rome's growing influence, rivalries within the Roman Republic, and the struggle for control create a setting where alliances can quickly become opportunities for betrayal. The story has the scale of an epic historical drama while keeping its focus on the individuals attempting to survive and shape an increasingly unstable world.
What makes the novel especially appealing is the opportunity to encounter Cleopatra and Antonius through a fresh fictional interpretation. Rather than treating them simply as familiar historical figures, The Goddess Queen explores their ambitions, vulnerabilities, relationships, and competing visions of power. The combination of ancient history, high politics, romance, conflict, and questions of leadership gives the story broad appeal for readers interested in both historical authenticity and immersive storytelling.
With a Goodreads rating of 3.57 from 7 ratings and 6 reviews at the time of the supplied listing, The Goddess Queen is still at an early stage of its reader presence. As Alice Roberts's first novel, its focus on Cleopatra, Antonius, Egypt, Rome, and the dramatic political world of the ancient Mediterranean provides strong opportunities to introduce it to historical fiction readers, ancient history enthusiasts, book clubs, and audiences fascinated by one of history's most enduring royal figures.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
3.5 rounded up.
I was really looking forward to Alice Robert's fictional retelling to Cleopatra and Antonious, especially knowing it would have a historian's eye for detail.
The Goddess Queen is told from the perspective of both Cleopatra and Antonious in alternative chapters, starting from the first year of Cleopatra's reign to the very end. This way, we get a perspective on both of their lives way before they meet each other. Its an incredibly detailed book that covers a long span of history, with a lot of the detail brought to life with the author's description of how they both lived, how they ate, what they wore etc. That was a incredibly rich way to tell the story, but sometimes it took me out of the fictional story narrative.
I enjoyed seeing the world through both of their eyes separately, but its a shame that their meeting and relationship starts really quite late in the book, I was expecting a bit more of that given the way the book was marketed.
A lot of the language was incredibly colloquially, which on the one hand - why wouldn't have been colloquial and casual in their respective ancient greek/egyptian/latin but sometimes that can take you out of the time period.
SPOILER:
.
.
.
There are some choices made that didn't work for me, though the author absolutely has free reign to offer new fictional alternatives - but Caesarion not being Caesar's son and of her priest didn't work for me, but I can see the motivation. Cleopatra's romantic relationship with Calpurnia though? Can't say this was a choice that works for me at all.
Overall, its well worth a read given the detail, it covers a wide time period and its a great way to learn more about the Roman Republic, but some of the retelling choices didn't work for me.
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for an advanced review copy!
I was really looking forward to Alice Robert's fictional retelling to Cleopatra and Antonious, especially knowing it would have a historian's eye for detail.
The Goddess Queen is told from the perspective of both Cleopatra and Antonious in alternative chapters, starting from the first year of Cleopatra's reign to the very end. This way, we get a perspective on both of their lives way before they meet each other. Its an incredibly detailed book that covers a long span of history, with a lot of the detail brought to life with the author's description of how they both lived, how they ate, what they wore etc. That was a incredibly rich way to tell the story, but sometimes it took me out of the fictional story narrative.
I enjoyed seeing the world through both of their eyes separately, but its a shame that their meeting and relationship starts really quite late in the book, I was expecting a bit more of that given the way the book was marketed.
A lot of the language was incredibly colloquially, which on the one hand - why wouldn't have been colloquial and casual in their respective ancient greek/egyptian/latin but sometimes that can take you out of the time period.
SPOILER:
.
.
.
There are some choices made that didn't work for me, though the author absolutely has free reign to offer new fictional alternatives - but Caesarion not being Caesar's son and of her priest didn't work for me, but I can see the motivation. Cleopatra's romantic relationship with Calpurnia though? Can't say this was a choice that works for me at all.
Overall, its well worth a read given the detail, it covers a wide time period and its a great way to learn more about the Roman Republic, but some of the retelling choices didn't work for me.
Thank you to Simon and Schuster for an advanced review copy!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
I was delighted to receive an early proof copy of this wonderful fictional retelling of Antonius and Cleopatra and I absolutely adored it!
Alice Roberts breathes new life into this legendary story, balancing historical accuracy and fiction PERFECTLY, It’s atmospheric, dramatic and the most perfect book anyone who loves historical fiction with an edge!
Alice Roberts breathes new life into this legendary story, balancing historical accuracy and fiction PERFECTLY, It’s atmospheric, dramatic and the most perfect book anyone who loves historical fiction with an edge!
September 14, 2026
I really wanted to love this, but it felt so brief - no aspect of her life was ever fully developed. Also, way too much Anthonius in a book entitled "The Goddess Queen".
Additionally, I think without a clear understanding of how the Roman Republic worked, you'd have struggled to understand Anthonius' chapters.
Additionally, I think without a clear understanding of how the Roman Republic worked, you'd have struggled to understand Anthonius' chapters.
September 13, 2026
As my version was signed by Alice I’ve given it 4 stars however without that it might have only been worthy of 2.
Having read most of Alice Roberts excellent non fiction this I must say was somewhat of a disappointment…..and to cap it all what a potty mouthed Cleo….
Having read most of Alice Roberts excellent non fiction this I must say was somewhat of a disappointment…..and to cap it all what a potty mouthed Cleo….
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews