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Death of a Princess
When the Pharaoh's beautiful eleven-year-old daughter, Isis, dies under suspicious circumstances, rumours fly around the harem of "Mer-Wer," Meryet, the harem's beautician, learns that the princess was poisoned, and must race against time to find the culprit--before she becomes the prime suspect Her investigation pits her against jealous queens and concubines, and plunges the reader into a world of seething intrigue. Set in Ancient Egypt during the reign of the mighty Ramesses II, "Death of a Princess" is a spellbinding mystery.
122 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 10, 2010
This review is for my own purposes, so feel free to ignore it.
I didn't dislike this book, but I didn't love it either.
The lexile is a little low for the 7th grade curriculum... That, and I don't think it would mesh with the lower level readers either, because it takes a little to get into, and the names are so confusing. (And a 117 page book shouldn't take too long to develop...)
Stuff that ties into the State Standards:
Egypt
Nile River
Delta
Ancient Egyptian Achievements in Art
Polytheism
Mummification
Social Structure
Geason could have easily added a bit about theocracy, but it seemed lacking to me.
I don't think it's what we're looking for, but I'll pass it along.
I didn't dislike this book, but I didn't love it either.
The lexile is a little low for the 7th grade curriculum... That, and I don't think it would mesh with the lower level readers either, because it takes a little to get into, and the names are so confusing. (And a 117 page book shouldn't take too long to develop...)
Stuff that ties into the State Standards:
Egypt
Nile River
Delta
Ancient Egyptian Achievements in Art
Polytheism
Mummification
Social Structure
Geason could have easily added a bit about theocracy, but it seemed lacking to me.
I don't think it's what we're looking for, but I'll pass it along.
February 24, 2018
When I spotted this book for two bucks at my local used bookstore, I scooped it up because a) I love Ancient Egypt, b) I thought it could be a great pair with The Golden Goblet or Mara, Daughter of the Nile (adore, adore, adore), c) It's skinniness suggested it would be accessible for lower-level readers, and d) it was two bucks! Unfortunately, this one was a HUGE disappointment on all fronts.
Meryt-Neith, our main character, is a royal perfumer/beautician at age fourteen. In the backstory, she was an apprentice, but when her mistress died, apparently everybody thought it was just a great idea to let a fourteen year old take over. Despite her holding an adult job, most of the other characters treat her like a child.
Other than the above strangeness concerning Meryt's adult-or-not status, the book is crammed with historical detail about the setting. You'd think this would be a good thing, but it's all delivered so didactically that it's nearly unreadable. The denseness of unfamiliar words and concepts would make it an extremely challenging read for any young reader, and the book strangely chooses not to shy away from the fact that Rameses II had a habit of marrying his own daughters. One of the plot threads resolves around two of the harem girls competing to win Pharaoh's attention, one of whom's mother is a queen. The dots aren't quite connected, but even young readers won't have to be that astute to realize she's trying to attract the interest of her own father. Later, some of the daughters Rameses historically married are explicitly called his "daughter-queens."
The problem is that any reader skilled enough to make it through the gauntlet of dense info-dumping and mature enough to handle historical incest, is going to be bored to tears with the simplistic plot and dull prose of this book. The mystery is basic, enough, although it could have been a least a little interesting if the writing style wasn't clunky and if any of the characters actually made the reader care about them. The heroine isn't even smart enough to figure out the mystery on her own, despite being given tons of clues, but instead has to be handed everything by a magic cat. Do not recommend.
Meryt-Neith, our main character, is a royal perfumer/beautician at age fourteen. In the backstory, she was an apprentice, but when her mistress died, apparently everybody thought it was just a great idea to let a fourteen year old take over. Despite her holding an adult job, most of the other characters treat her like a child.
Other than the above strangeness concerning Meryt's adult-or-not status, the book is crammed with historical detail about the setting. You'd think this would be a good thing, but it's all delivered so didactically that it's nearly unreadable. The denseness of unfamiliar words and concepts would make it an extremely challenging read for any young reader, and the book strangely chooses not to shy away from the fact that Rameses II had a habit of marrying his own daughters. One of the plot threads resolves around two of the harem girls competing to win Pharaoh's attention, one of whom's mother is a queen. The dots aren't quite connected, but even young readers won't have to be that astute to realize she's trying to attract the interest of her own father. Later, some of the daughters Rameses historically married are explicitly called his "daughter-queens."
The problem is that any reader skilled enough to make it through the gauntlet of dense info-dumping and mature enough to handle historical incest, is going to be bored to tears with the simplistic plot and dull prose of this book. The mystery is basic, enough, although it could have been a least a little interesting if the writing style wasn't clunky and if any of the characters actually made the reader care about them. The heroine isn't even smart enough to figure out the mystery on her own, despite being given tons of clues, but instead has to be handed everything by a magic cat. Do not recommend.
May 30, 2019
When the Pharaohs beautiful young daughter, Iris, comes to her unexpected demise, Her friend who works for the palace as a beautician, Meryet, looks into Iris's death. Meryet finds that she was poisoned, and realizes it is a race against time to find the killer before it might happen again. Worst yet the killer might know she is looking for evidence against them. For in the palace there is many to suspect.
April 13, 2025
This was one of my favourite books as a child. 15 years later I decided to read it again, and I can see where my love for ancient history, murder plots and strong female characters arose from. Reading this book was nostalgic and transported me into the harem of Mer-Wer the same way it did when I was 10 years old. I think I’ll always have a soft spot for the quick witted and brave meryet, and her oils and perfumes and strength and fierce loyalty to her friends.
October 5, 2019
Very intriguing plot and characters. Simple writing. If I were a young child, perhaps I would rate this a 4-star. An enjoyable read, and I learned a number of new things about Ancient Egypt.
February 3, 2024
I had to read this in 2020 for school and it was the worst part of that year for me
February 21, 2024
Interesting little book set in Ancient Egypt
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May 19, 2011 The book Death of a Princess was a very interesting book. This book was a cool book because you got to enter the mind of someone who was wrongly accused of killing the princess. This book takes place in Egypt. This book was very vivide it was almost like you were there when they were talking about the wind blowing and sand blowing around it was almost like you could see the sand.
Through the whole book i got a message from it and that message was honesty you have to be honest in everything you do. This book had alot of problem solving. They had to try and figure out who killed the princess but they had no proof of anyone. At first i thought this book was going to be really boring because the cover didnt look like it was going to be a very good book, but as i kept reading I relized that it actally was a really good book.
This book has a c;ear picutre about what was going on I understood everything they Susan was trying to show/say in the story. I also understood the charecters, you could see all of there different personalities through out the whole story.
This is now one of my favorite books and i would recomind it for anyone to read. I dont really think that it is a boy or girl book I think eather would enjoy it. My favorite thing about the book was that it is not like all the other books its not the kind of book that everyone is writing now.
Through the whole book i got a message from it and that message was honesty you have to be honest in everything you do. This book had alot of problem solving. They had to try and figure out who killed the princess but they had no proof of anyone. At first i thought this book was going to be really boring because the cover didnt look like it was going to be a very good book, but as i kept reading I relized that it actally was a really good book.
This book has a c;ear picutre about what was going on I understood everything they Susan was trying to show/say in the story. I also understood the charecters, you could see all of there different personalities through out the whole story.
This is now one of my favorite books and i would recomind it for anyone to read. I dont really think that it is a boy or girl book I think eather would enjoy it. My favorite thing about the book was that it is not like all the other books its not the kind of book that everyone is writing now.
June 13, 2015
For me, this book was a very fast read (I'm a fast reader though, and the book was short), and I found there was a lot of telling rather than showing. I didn't feel like the mystery of Isis' death gripped me enough, and I could sort of guess what had happened before the answer was finally revealed. There are some words that would challenge a child's vocabulary, but a little challenge is always a good thing to broaden a kid's learning of the language.
One thing I was impressed by, although I found a couple mistakes (as pointed out in my reading status updates for this book), was the author's clear and thorough research into Ancient Egypt. While at times, the information generated felt like it slowed down the plot, for the most part it was just enough to let the reader understand what was going on and how it all happened, especially in the mourning procession at the end of the book.
So, while it might not be a five-star book, I think it's a good start for young readers who are fascinated by Ancient Egypt and want to get their little paws on anything to do with aforementioned era.
One thing I was impressed by, although I found a couple mistakes (as pointed out in my reading status updates for this book), was the author's clear and thorough research into Ancient Egypt. While at times, the information generated felt like it slowed down the plot, for the most part it was just enough to let the reader understand what was going on and how it all happened, especially in the mourning procession at the end of the book.
So, while it might not be a five-star book, I think it's a good start for young readers who are fascinated by Ancient Egypt and want to get their little paws on anything to do with aforementioned era.
December 16, 2015
I really enjoyed reading Death of a Princess. I would definitely recommend this book. In the beginning of the book, it is kind of slow. Once you get farther in the book, it gets better. In the book, a princess poisons another princess. Then when people figure out who did it, the princess goes to jail. This taught me the lesson to never do anything mean to people. Especially my friends.
August 13, 2015
A historical fiction book young readers can enjoy... I thought it was simple enough to understand, yet the mystery was well-developed. It was nicely wrapped up in the end and had some information about what was taken from real life and what the author made up.
October 8, 2010
This book was somewhat boring. Their were many characters with difficult names. I almost abandoned the book but I needed it for one of my generes.
July 14, 2018
Death Of A Princess
Geason, Susan
looking at Cleopatra and her life and times its very brief and would be better if it did not explain her death as a mysterious aspect.
April 21, 2012
who doesn't love a decent murder mystery every now and again?
December 1, 2012
This book has some good, solid, historical details, but a mediocre plot.
January 14, 2016
It was alright kinda boring
May 27, 2016
OMG this was soo good!!! I love Ancient Egypt and setting this story there was absolute genius. I am completely blown away...YAAAAAY!!!
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November 24, 2017Read in middle school
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews