When We Were Gods: A Novel Of Cleopatra (2002) - Plot & Excerpts
When We Were Gods / 0-609-80889-3Falconer shows his prowess yet again at bringing history to life, in a vivid landscape, dominated by a powerful (and yet deeply politically vulnerable woman) who is frighteningly compelling. Falconer seems to specialize in strong women who are fundamentally unreliable narrators and sometimes anti-heroes and yet we are drawn to their courage and we admire their drive and ambition, even when we do not agree with their motives. You see this in "Feathered Serpent", as Malinali maneuvers the Spaniards to destroy her captors and their empire. You see this in "The Sultan's Harem", as the vicious Hurrem manipulates her husband and owner into demolishing his own kingdom. And now we see this in When We Were Gods, as Cleopatra struggles to survive and prosper as more than just a Roman fiefdom. Falconer woman are emotionally strong, and Cleopatra is no exception. Her romances with Julius Caesar and Marcus Antonius are initially motivated out of a fierce instinct for survival and a calculated gamble at something more - prosperity, greatness, lineage. Yet Cleopatra is not made of marble - she comes, over time and in spite of herself, to deeply and passionately love her two Roman "husbands" despite their betrayals. She comes to welcome their embraces, to continue to be shocked and hurt by their betrayals, and to cry at their deaths. Rome was, Falconer correctly notes, a deeply racist culture in many ways, with laws against marrying foreigners or giving property to children of foreigners, and Falconer notes this in the treatment Cleopatra receives at the hands of her two Roman lovers. They will give her illegitimate children, but not their oaths of marriage. They will take her money and her army, yet they will not share their victories with her. Yet, despite all this, both men choose to overcome that tradition and upbringing and prove their faithfulness at the end - Julius, with an illegal will acknowledging his child; Antony, with refusal to save his own life by turning Cleopatra over to Octavian, even though he fears death. These men are truly strong, overcoming prejudices that have been ingrained in them from childhood, and Falconer praises them subtly for this feat, even through the veil of Cleopatra's fears and angers, the veil that makes her a compelling, yet unreliable narrator and forces us to weigh the actions of those around her against her interpretation of those actions and judge for ourselves. I love this because Falconer specializes in unreliable narrators, and we see this in Cleopatra. She is wise, intelligent, and cunning, but we cannot believe everything she tells us. She is not the goddess that she believes herself to be, and she is not always the wonderful mother that she has decided she is. Her intense frustration and hatred of men is understandable - she has been betrayed countless times - but she comes to realize that she has been unfair to men - and to Romans - late in the novel, when the man she thought was most faithless of all has instead been pining for his leprous wife for decades. It is then that Cleopatra realizes that male, female, Egyptian, or Roman are all tags and names that are meaningless - one either is or isn't faithful, depending on one's character and choices. This is, I think, the crux of Cleopatra - the realization that dynasties come and go, but humanity thrives on.~ Ana Mardoll
When We Were Gods tells the story of the queen of the Nile and her life. Chosen to rule by her father, Cleopatra watches and learns. When she ascends to the throne, she heeds her father's advice about the nest of vipers she rules. She navigates the pitfalls of family and Rome to secure her rule. Cleopatra dreams of creating an even bigger empire and forms a political and romantic alliance with Julius Caesar. Convinced he is her Orisis, she urges him to declare himself king of Rome and marry her. Her dreams are killed at the hands of Caesar's assassins. A new god soon comes calling on the Egyptian Isis. Marc Antony as the new Dionysus makes Cleopatra his divine consort. But the new Dionysus is no Julius Caesar. Cleopatra casts her die with the unpredictable and charming Antony. But their destiny lies with fate herself.This wonderful novel begins with Cleopatra's rule and follows her story to the end. Falconer shows the queen for the cunning intelligent woman she was. But her intelligence was no match for her heart and passion. Even as a powerful woman, she was still at the mercy of the whims of unfaithful Roman men. Falconer's Caesar showed more humanity while Antony was simply a mess. The end of the queen of the Nile was simply heartbreaking. If you like Margaret George's Memoirs of Cleopatra, you will love this book. After all, one can never get tired of Cleopatra.
What do You think about When We Were Gods: A Novel Of Cleopatra (2002)?
I could not put this book down. The writer does such a great job of making you feel as though you and the main character are one, you truly see into the thoughts behind her actions. You see the good, the bad and the ugly. I really appreciated the authors attention to detail regarding the cities visited and the culture of the times, he painted a very vivid picture.There is a lot that I admire about Cleopatra and what we know about her, however, knowing the outcome already was heartbreaking, you keeping hoping that it will end differently.
—SansSouci
When We Were Gods: A Novel of Cleopatra is a very good book. I didn't know a whole lot about her before I read this book, and though most of it is indeed fiction, it seems to me that it is based in fact. We have never found the tomb of Cleopatra and Marc Antony, so we can't be sure of everything in their lives. This book tells a great story, from the first day of her reign until the last days of it. It is a long book, over 500 pages, but it doesn't seem to be while you are actually reading it. Anyone interested in Egypt, Cleopatra, or Marc Antony would enjoy this read.
—Sarah Bykowski
This was an OK book. It was interesting in that it covered Cleopatra's early life, as much as it could. What her life in the royal house was like with a mousy brother who was supposed to rule. We also got a quick tour of what it was like being with Celius Juser. Um. Sulius Jeezer. Oh, heck. Whatever his name is!The best part is that we got an idea of what kind of queen she might have been, and why Egypt was so rich. And I do mean RICH. She knew something of national management, if anything in this book, and history, are accurate.We also got to know a likable woman with a few hopes and dreams and a desire to keep her family line going. An ambitious dream for a woman back then.It did have a few flaws in it, but if you're up for an easy read with some interesting tidbits of history thrown in, go for it.
—Marichee
