From Publishers Weekly
An epic fictional romance between Alexander the Great and an Amazon queen drives the latest from Shan Sa (
Empress). As a boy, Sa's Alexander is abused by his father, King Philip of Macedonia. Alexander grows into a cruel and narcissistic youth with an unquenchable thirst for revenge. His political ambitions blossom under the tutelage of Aristotle, and after his father's assassination, Alexander sets off to conquer Greece, Persia and Egypt. When he meets Alestria, the young queen of the Amazons (a mythical tribe of nomadic, male-spurning female warriors from the eastern steppes), he has perhaps met his match in love and war. Told in the extravagant voices of Alexander and Alestria, and of Alestria's protector and confidante, Ania, there's little subtlety in this sweeping, heroic romance. But strewn amid the pageantry and clamor are fascinating details about Alexander's world and about the legendary Amazons, who, if they existed at all, might have been his contemporaries—and equals.
(July) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
"A dramatically imagined tale of a love affair between Alexander the Great and Alestria, queen of the Amazons. . . . Written with the unironic portentousness of an ancient myth, the novel nonetheless has modern and moving insights into such hot-button topics such as violence and gender." (Washington Post )
"Imagine a romance between Alexander the great and the queen of the Amazons and you have Alexander and Alestria, by author Shan Sa." (National Examiner )
A sweeping, heroic romance. . . . Fascinating details about Alexander's world and about the legendary Amazons, who, if they existed at all, might have been his contemporaries -- and equals. (Publishers Weekly )
"This reimagining of the life of Alexander the Great by the author of Empress would be a good choice for book groups, contrasting well with Stephen Pressfield's The Virtues of War. . . . She writes here as a poet, blending image, action, and character in a rhythmic stream." (Library Journal )
"Told in the extravagant voices of Alexander and Alestria, and of Alestria's confidante Ania. . . . Strewn amid the pageantry and clamour are fascinating details about Alexander's world and the legendary Amazons, who, if they existed at all, might have been his contemporaries-and equals." (Finch's Quarterly Review Blog )
"Sa, author of Empress (2006), takes a huge historical leap in this entertaining fictional biography of Alexander the Great. . . . Romance, action, and intrigue combine to set the stage for a pageturning romp through alternate history. (Booklist )
