Ramses the Damned: The Passion of Cleopatra by Anne and Christopher Rice continues the story of the immortal Ramses the Great, a former Pharaoh of Egypt. I read The Mummy decades ago and forgot most but a vague outline if the story. All major plot points in The Mummy are refreshed when relevant to Ramses the Damned. In no way did I feel lost reading the second book this far from the first. I imagine any reader just starting with this installment would not need to read the first to enjoy it.
Ramses and his newly immortal fiancee Julie learn of Cleopatra's escape from the fire they thought ended her existence. Cleopatra is desperate to learn more about the strange things happening to her since her resurrection, driving her to confront Rames after he abandoned her. As Cleopatra nears Rames and Julie, other Immortals reveal themselves. Without knowing the intent of these individuals, Ramses, Julie, and Cleopatra must decide who best to align themselves with to remain safe.
It has been some time since I read an Anne Rice novel. This book was an excellent reminder of how much I enjoy her supernatural beings. The characters were sympathetic in a very human way. They are all trying to find a sense of self, belonging, and humanity, especially those with the gift of immortality. The subject of reincarnation of the soul is a prominent one. My favorite part of this story was how this relates to Cleopatra. Ramses and Cleopatra are everything you would believe ancient Egyptian royalty to be. The addition of Bektaten and Saqnos stirred things up for the characters in a thrilling, edge of your seat kind of way. I almost wanted to just hang out with these characters in their original timeline. Aristocratic England, or even America, in 1914 is not my favorite setting.
The authors paint a very vivid picture when describing their scenes. Instead of a character crumpling a piece of paper an tossing it, one reads this -
“So she took the newspaper clipping and crumpled it in her fist as one might a dispatch from an enemy in war. Then, once she had crushed it into a ball, she dropped it to the floor.”
This attention to detail does an excellent job of immersing one in the world. I am however more of a big picture reader. The new Immortals/ characters introduced paired with the vivid descriptions, was a minor cause of frustration for me. I got a bit bogged down by it on occasion. Getting to the point where all the characters intersected was mildly tedious. In the end, the side stories were necessary, and once everyone's lives came together, it was worth it.
Overall I was very pleased with this book. It made me nostalgic for Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. All opinions are my own and may not match that of others. I encourage all readers to come to their own conclusions. I voluntarily received an ARC copy of this book through NetGalley.
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