by Stephanie Dray | Dec 2, 2010 | Cleopatra Selene, Lily of the Nile, Miscellany, My Works, Research
The heroine of my debut novel, Lily of the Nile, is Cleopatra’s daughter, the young Princess of Egypt who would be marched as a chained prisoner through the streets of Rome. At the end of a Roman triumph–that military parade during which generals celebrated...
by Stephanie Dray | Aug 31, 2010 | Cleopatra Selene, FAQ, Fun Stuff
Though no ancient sources directly link the two monarchs, it’s difficult to write a novel about the life of Cleopatra’s daughter Selene without referencing one of her mother’s bitterest enemies–Herod the Great, a villain of the New Testament....
by Stephanie Dray | Aug 3, 2010 | Cleopatra Selene
When Cleopatra was wooing Marc Antony, she bet him that she could spend an outrageous fortune on a single meal. He doubted her. In response, she is said to have dissolved a valuable pearl in vinegar and gulped it down. But is the story true? No one knows for certain,...
by Stephanie Dray | Jul 5, 2010 | Cleopatra Selene, FAQ, Research
The story of Cleopatra’s death, as handed down to us by her conqueror, is that she killed herself by means of a poisonous snake. According to Suetonius, the stunned Octavian summoned snake charming Psylli to suck the poison from puncture wounds found on her arm....
by Stephanie Dray | Jun 6, 2010 | Cleopatra Selene, FAQ
In Professor Duane Roller’s new biography of Cleopatra, he theorizes there might have been some small part native Egyptian blood flowing through Cleopatra’s veins. I hope that is true. But even if it weren’t, there is no way to exaggerate the...
