Lydia Storm

This book was a foray into new ground for me, as it was my very first e-book! (I've fallen shamelessly in love with my Kindle.) I figured that I'd start with fairly familiar territory, so I purchased "Cleopatra's Secret". It's the story of Antony and Cleopatra, with Cleopatra also the keeper and guardian of Egypt's ancient wisdom and mysteries. It turned out to be an interesting (and somewhat confusing) blend of romance, politics, and metaphysics.
I kept wondering as I read whether Ms. Storm had fully made up her mind as to which genre she was trying to write in. There seemed to be several stylistic shifts throughout the book, from romance/erotica to historical to metaphysical and back again. I felt as if different scenes had been written in various styles and then put together, instead of letting some of the more thematic elements wind their way through the entire story seamlessly. The transitions between sex scenes were the most jarring for me, because the writing became florid and somewhat cliche, to the point that I actually felt rather uncomfortable and found myself skipping those scenes.
If you are fairly familiar with the chronology of Cleopatra's life, be prepared to have it rearranged or changed outright. I was a bit thrown by that at first, but I can see why the changes were made, as they fit the story that is being told. History isn't the only thing that has been tweaked in this book, either. Many of the mystical elements of the story bear anachronisms based on current metaphysical thought. (For example, I have not read any ancient texts or seen any historical references to the ancient Egyptians using chakras.)
All of that being said, if you're willing to approach this book as an original story rather than as a retelling of history it's actually quite an interesting read. Cleopatra's attempts to balance religion, state, and a personal relationship that are often at odds with each other are well portrayed, especially at the emotional level. There was also a very nice symmetry brought about with a neatly portrayed Isis/Nepthys analogy that I thought was very well done.
Less well done was Antony's portrayal. It was rather like watching a train wreck; I simply couldn't look away. It seems that a lot of authors are willing to fall back on the drunken Antony, besotted by women and this Antony is somewhat worse than the usual. Part of my frustration with Cleopatra from time to time was that she wouldn't realize that she could do better than him. Not that the real Antony didn't have his flaws, but this Antony seems barely able to function without anyone holding his hand.
"Cleopatra's Secret" appealed to me most when I stopped looking at it as a form of historical fiction; I'm not a hardcore historical purist but I've spent so much time in this time period that many of the elements of the story were discordant to me. It was much easier to approach the book as metaphysical fantasy, because that is what the author seems to be most comfortable with. Other historical purists may want to give this book a pass, but if you don't mind anachronisms in your metaphysical studies then you may find something interesting here.… (meer)