Maathorneferure, his chief wife, was indeed the daughter of the Hittite king. Ramesses II took her as his wife after the signing of the peace treaty (incidentally, the first known of all peace treaties.)
Although Ramesses had more than a hundred offspring, we do not even know most of their names. It is entirely possible that one of them was named Ri-Hanna, but not highly likely. I simply liked the name.
The Viziers Khay and Nefferonpet were real, both being active during the reign of Ramesses II. However, there is no evidence of Khay having been murdered or of Nefferonpet being found out as a traitor.
If there really was a Homer and where and when he lived is not known. Most sources place him in the time between 800 and 400 BC, while other ancient sources put him in the time of the Trojan War, ca. 1200 BC., This provided a welcome chance for me to relocate him to the court of Ramesses as a young man writing the first drafts of his Iliad and Odyssey.
The same largely applies to Moses. Archaeologists and bible scholars fight to this day if and when Moses lived. An exodus is actually mentioned in the Bible, but not in older Egyptian writings. We do know that the Pharaoh Ramesses used Hebrew slaves for building his new capital of Pi-Ramesses. Since many experts view the time of the 19th Dynasty as the probable time of the Exodus, using a character with this name made sense to me. Of course, I have no way of knowing if our young Moses is THE Moses. In our story, Moses is just a young slave and not adopted, as the Bible has it. With regard to slaves: I tried to realistically picture what life as a slave was like in those days. Thanks to old Hollywood movies, images are imprinted on our brains of maltreated bodies driven by whip-wielding monsters to pile up gigantic stone blocks into pyramids in scorching heat; however, in antiquity, slaves were merely those who occupied a lowest kind social status. There were scribes, soldiers and slaves, who served as servants and farm workers. Normally, they were not treated badly, as they represented an investment of sorts for the owner.
MORE NETI-KERTY ADVENTURES:
THE MUMMIFIER'S DAUGHTER
A Mystery set in Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt, 1233 BC
This is Young Neti-Kerty‘s dream: To follow in her father’s footsteps and become the first female mummifier in Thebes.
Shabaka, the secretive Prefect, the Pharaoh’s special envoy charged with combating crime in the capital of the Pharaoh’s empire, also often makes use of Neti Kerty’s special talents. With her powers of deduction and knowledge of the dead, she has already helped solve many crimes.
But then the unimaginable happens. Her parents are cruelly murdered, and Neti-Kerty’s small, idyllic world shatters. Together with Shabaka the Prefect, she embarks on the search for her parents‘ murderer. Surviving many shared adventures, they stumble upon a monstrous conspiracy...
The Mummifier's Daughter carries us back to a land steeped in gods, god-kings, ritual and magic. It paints for the reader a detailed picture of Pharaonic Egypt in all its shadowed glory. Faithfully recreating one of the most remarkable eras in Egypt’s history, bestselling author Nathaniel Burns weaves a shudderingly ominous tale of ancient Egypt’s mysteries with a cast of characters the modern reader will recognize even though millenia have passed.
So light up the incense, sit close to the light and draw back the curtains on the shadowed past with this
gripping tale of love and intrigue among the living and the dead in one of history’s most intriguing civilizations.
OTHER BOOKS BY NATHANIEL BURNS
PRIDE AND HONOUR
The Battle For Saxony
Europe, in the year of the Lord 772
Like a bloody storm, Charlemagne’s armies ravage early medieval Europe, leaving devastation and misery in their wake. They have subdued the kingdom of the Langobards, defeated the duchy of Bavaria; they threaten the Moors in the west and, in the south, the pope in Rome.
Yet Charlemagne has even more ambitious plans: he covets the Saxon territories in the north. The Saxons put up an unexpectedly fierce resistance. When Charlemagne’s troops destroy the Irminsul shrine, the Saxon holy of holies, there ensues a struggle to the death. Led by the legendary Duke Widukind, for decades the Saxons fight savagely for their beliefs and their independence. And they will have their revenge...
The extraordinary novel, Pride and Honour, is a completely revised and rewritten version of the surprise initial success of Honor and Glory by Nathaniel Burns. The author took many of his readers‘ tips, reviews and advice to heart to make his fascinating tale about Charlemagne and the Saxon King Widukind an even better read. Take this suspenseful, captivating and exciting journey back into Europe’s Dark Ages to meet the pivotal figure of Charlemagne and one of his greatest adversaries.
Pride and Honour will transport the reader right into the heart of this legend-shrouded part of the Early Middle Ages. With his story, Nathaniel Burns has woven a a rich, dark tapestry of one of the pivotal periods in medieval European history. His historically accurate descriptions rich in authentic detail bring this remote, strife-ridden world to life again before your very eyes.
Go ahead, stoke the fire in the hearth, draw your armchair closer and dive into this wonderful historical novel full of royal intrigue, warriors, and battles of a bygone Europe…
THE SECRET OF WILLOW CASTLE
A Historical Gothic Novel
When Rebecca Lennox receives a proposal from Sir Montague Chastain, she welcomes the chance to escape from poverty - but her new home is a maze of dark secrets, and temptation beckons in the form of her husband’s cousin Mervyn.
As she battles against her forbidden passion and Sir Montague’s strange machinations, Rebecca realises that her only hope for survival is to unlock the secrets of Willow Castle…
Table of Contents
Publisher’s Note:
Prologue
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MORE NETI-KERTY ADVENTURES:
OTHER BOOKS BY NATHANIEL BURNS
Princess of Egypt - A Mystery in Ancient Egypt Page 19