Daughter of Egypt

Daughter of Egypt explores the lives of two powerful women separated by thousands of years. Hatshepsut lived in 1486 BCE in Thebes, Egypt. Evelyn Herbert lived in the 1920s in Hampshire, England. She grew up in Highclere Castle and went with her father Lord Carnarvon and his friend Howard Carter to Egypt every summer. They were excavating the royal tombs for treasure. The book was published on March 24, 2026

The publisher's summary:

In the 1920s, archeologist Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon of Highclere Castle made headlines around the world with the discovery of the treasure-filled tomb of the boy Pharaoh Tutankhamun. But behind it all stood Lady Evelyn Herbert―daughter of Lord Carnarvon―whose daring spirit and relentless curiosity made the momentous find possible.

Nearly 3,000 years earlier, another woman defied the expectations of her time: Hatshepsut, Egypt’s lost pharaoh. Her reign was bold, visionary―and nearly erased from history.

When Evelyn becomes obsessed with finding Hatshepsut’s secret tomb, she risks everything to uncover the truth about her reign and keep valued artifacts in Egypt, their rightful home. But as danger closes in and political tensions rise, she must make an impossible choice: protect her father’s legacy―or forge her own.

Propelled by high adventure and deadly intrigue, Daughter of Egypt is the story of two ambitious women who lived centuries apart. Both were forced to hide who they were during their lifetimes, yet ultimately changed history forever.

The story was told in an alternating format. Four or five chapters were devoted to Hatshepsut and then four or five to Lady Evelyn. I quickly became interested in Hatshepsut. She was a pharoah in her own right and this impressed me. Her political strategies helped elevate her to Queen, Regent and then Pharoah. I don't know if her machinations were true to life or imagined by the author. Lady Evelyn or Eve didn't excite me until her parents allowed her to travel with them to Thebes for archaeological digs. Her story then picked up. Her mother was trying to marry her off so Eve had to attend balls in both England and Cairo. She wasn't interested in marriage yet but never really met anyone who wanted a smart wife and she intended to continue her educational pursuits. Eve was fascinated with Hatshepsut. Howard Carter shared this fascination and they would select places to dig based on where they thought her tomb was located. Lord Carnarvon was none the wiser.

The politics of 1920s Egypt was a part of the story. There were Egyptian insurgents who were fighting for Egypt’s independence. In the story it took about ten years. Before the insurgents became successful, the laws allowed Carter and Carnarvon to keep whatever artifacts they dug up. They got rich by selling a few pieces but both men had huge private collections of Egyptian art. After the first elections on Egypt those laws were changed. The nation then owned everything found in the tombs. We know from history that this archeological team discovered King Tutankhamun's tomb. 

I enjoyed reading about both women's passion to be more than society allowed. Both achieved their wishes and the book had a feminist feel good vibe that I am always attracted to. I have read other accounts of Hatshepsut’s life and it never gets too old for me. She is such a captivating character from history. There is much more to the story though. Alot of pages are devoted to the archeological excavations and the banter between Carter and Lord Carnarvon.

I loved the book. I am rating it 5 out of 5 stars.