When We Were Gods : A Novel of Cleopatra Paperback - 2002

Darkness, cold stone under her fingertips, shadows dancing on the walls, torches flickering in the downdraught of the tunnels. So cold, and damp as death down here, and it was long moments before her eyes became accustomed to the darkness.

She heard them before she saw them, their sinuous coilings and cold slithering, as they retreated before the light of the torches. She felt her muscles freeze. She was unable to look away, her limbs paralyzed by the horror in the pit below. There were hundreds of them, countless deaths sliding upon and under, eyes glinting like chips of garnet. The executioner's storehouse.

There an asp, its tongue flicking in and out of its slit mouth in agitation, sensing their presence. Its bite caused agonizing pain that spread to the whole body, and the affected limb was soon covered with ugly purple blotches and swellings. Its victim soon began to retch, and then lost control of bladder and bowels. An ugly death, reserved for criminals who were to be doubly punished.

And there, its slender body banded with yellow and brown, the hooded cobra, the divine symbol of Upper Egypt, the royal emblem of pharaoh and Ptolemy alike. The Greeks called it basilisk, or little king. In the Book of the Dead the hooded cobra was the symbol for everlasting life.

Its bite was deadly but relatively painless. After a short time its victim's eyes began to droop, and then they fell quickly into a deep sleep from which they did not return. The fangs left two small marks from their bite, but there was no other disfigurement to the body, granting dignity in death. It was the way chosen for her older sister, Berenice, after she had rebelled against her father and tried to usurp his throne.

Now her father put his mouth close to his ear, she felt the wiry hairs of his beard tickle her face. "This is the world you have inherited," he whispered to her. "Every palace is filled with snakes, twice as deadly as these. You will live in such a nest all your life and you must learn to be as sinuous as these serpents, use your venom as wisely, and to strike without hesitation if you are to survive. Do you understand?"

"I understand," Cleopatra answered.

She was ten years old.


From the Hardcover edition.

“A sensual and imaginative portrait of a great queen’s life and times, her fortunes played out against a backdrop of rich pageantry.” —bookreporter.com

“In a prose style as provocative as the scent of Lebanese cedar and vivid as Eastern sun on white marble, Falconer interweaves the themes of power and politics, love and desire. . . . ” —Library Journal

“Spectacular historical fiction blazing with intrigue, romance, and dramatic action. The author interweaves the fast-paced narrative with authentic period details that vivify the exotic splendor of ancient Egypt. Falconer paints an enthralling fictional portrait of one of the most powerful and beguiling women of all ages." —Booklist