Bilqis is born to a jinni mother in the ancient lands of Saba, what is now known as Yemen.  Bilquis' birthday come with a prophesy- that she will have a great destiny to fulfill.  Bilqis doesn't seems to have the same talents as a jinn as her mother, but is easily able to soak up all of the knowledge that her mother can bring her.  As a young adult, Biqis learns of one of the jinn powers that she can use-her power of sensuality. After discovering the power of sex, Bilqis' world changes and opens. Then, tragedy strikes that leads Bliqis on a mission of revenge.  With her mission, Bilqis learns more of the terrible King ruling over Saba.  As Bilqis continues her journey, her destiny becomes clear- to end the King's regime and become the leader that the people need.

The full story of Bilqis, the Queen of Sheba is lost to history.  I have read several other versions this amazing Queen's story, but none quite like this.  Autumn Bardot is known for her strong female characters as well as erotic story lines.  Confessions of a Sheba Queen definitely falls firmly in erotic historical fiction, which isn't something I normally read, but I really enjoyed this.  Bilqis' story combined with the erotic story line makes for an intense and absorbing plot. From the beginning Bilqis jinn parentage and destiny add a sense of purpose to the story.  Even without her jinn heritage, Bilqis' character is strong, intelligent, and willing to put others first.  I liked that the jinn part of her parentage allowed Bilqis to use sex and her sensuality as a source of power and clarity in her life and allowed her to grow as a person.  The sex scenes were all unique, imaginative and used very modern language. However, what I appreciated most were the ties to what little history we do know of Bilqis.  I loved the lavish descriptions of the temple of Awwam and Bilqis' time with King Solomon. Richly absorbing and passionate, Confessions of a Sheba Queen creates a great blend of erotica and historical fiction.


This book was received for free in return for an honest review. 

Half-sisters Bilkis and Makeda are daughters of the Mukarrib or chieftain of Saba. When a flood overruns the land, Bilkis does her best to protect Makeda, but Blikis is swept away in the waters for her efforts. Bilkis is believed to have perished in the flood, but is found by merchants making their way to Yisrael. On their journey, Bilkis' caravan is attacked and she is claimed by the King of Yisrael. Bilkis soon learns the ways of a Queen and orchestrates people and events to her whims. Bilkis grows and secures her son to the throne, ruling still through him. She decides a temple should be built and is surprised when stonemason Yeltzer is chosen for the job. In Saba, Makeda has earned her place as Mukarrib after her father passed and her mother sacrificed after building a dam to secure water for Saba's future. Years pass and the earthen dam is soon to fail. When Makeda learns of a builder of stone, she follows a a trader to Yisrael to discover her sister once again. 

The story of the Queen of Sheba is veiled in mystery. The time period of around 550 BCE is not very well documented, however Marc Graham manages to bring the stories of Bilkis, Makeda and Yeltzer alive. In addition to these characters that the narrative alternates between, the landscape, dwellings, rituals and beliefs are richly described. I was amazed at how well I could connect with the lives of these people that lived so long ago. Their motivations and emotions resonated through the years. Bilkis and Makeda's relationship as well as their choices made while Queen were incredibly interesting. Bilkis and Makeda are two sides of the same coin, both strong leaders who are destined to rule; yet, one is guided by force and manipulation and the other with care and sympathy for her people. Yeltzer's character as the builder of the Temple of Urusalim was fascinating to follow, his life seemed destined to be continuous trial and heartbreak and he always seemed to make to best of his situation. The journeys of all three characters ends with the promise of more, and I would love to read more. The story of these characters and the writing carries through and resonates throughout many years creating a harmony of time and place, bringing to life a story of people who have only been known to us through a few verses of religious texts. 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Sheba - A.K. Michaels Book Reviewed: Sheba (A Wolf’s Hunger #4)
Author: A.K. Michaels
Publication Date: 7/21/2017
Reviewed by: Tammy Payne- Book Nook Nuts
My Rating: 5 Stars


REVIEW
I read this book in a box set:

Oh, my goodness what a treat this book was. For anyone who has read the A Wolf's Hunger books, you know the Hunger hits when an Alpha finds their soul mate who almost always is in danger.
Well, hang on to your Kindle because we get one exciting story here. Sheba and Fox are going to take us all on a journey, unlike anything you have read. I totally enjoyed this one, and I hate to say it, but I think so far it's the best one yet.

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I was really excited about this book mainly because a lot of the books I read are really lacking in diversity. I really wanted to love this book and there were some parts that I did, but the main character kind of killed some of my enjoyment. 

 

I was not really a fan of Shabnam throughout the book, until maybe the very end, but even then I still didn't really like her as a character. She was selfish and way too obsessed with a boy that she barely knew. She falls in love with Jaime in a very short amount of time and that really put me off from the romance. She was also a terrible best friend and at least she acknowledges this to an extent. The first thing she says to Farah when they start talking again is that she's in love. Not "I'm sorry I abandoned you" or even "how are you?". I really enjoyed the fact that Farah voiced my same thoughts when they talked about their falling out.

 

Shabnam also took it upon herself to scrutinize her parents marriage/romance/sex life and I just found this weird. She had been "in love" for maybe a month so what gave her the authority to say that they weren't happy or in a loving marriage? It seems that she was comparing her relationship with Jaime to her parents', but those aren't really two comparable relationships. I didn't like her father as a character, he just didn't seem to work very well and I guess that was the point, but honestly I didn't really see the point of him behaving that way. 

 

Thankfully, Shabnam didn't ruin the book for me. I absolutely loved Farah and honestly wished that she was the main character. I thought that her self discovery and journey to figure out where she fit in as a Muslim was so much more interesting than Jaime and Shabnam's relationship. She was a badass feminist and so much of what she said was so important. 

 

I also enjoyed the incorporation of poetry throughout the book. It was interesting and unique, especially because I had never encountered that type of poetry before. I also enjoyed the difference between Shabnam and Farah's experiences as Muslims. They both have such a different relationship with their own culture and I thought that portraying that was really important, especially Farah's experience. 

 

The book showed a lot of promise, especially with the side characters. I think that it's something important for people to read, even if it might not have the best main character.  

 

*I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! 

The Queen of Sheba may be just a myth to some, with no archaeological evidence to back up her existence.  However, to many cultures, her life and death on their lands holds great value and significance.  When Dr. Richard Lyon, an expert on the Queen believes that he is close to finding the place where she is buried, he is murdered.  Meanwhile, undercover agent for Israeli Intelligence, Omar Zagouri has uncovered a tomb in Jerusalem with some clues connected to the Queen.  As soon as news of the findings surface, many dangerous organizations and people begin vying to be the ones to find the tomb, or even destroy it.

An exciting historic thriller with many twists and turns.  There were a lot of points of view to keep up with, Omar and fellow agent Mia, Dr. Lyon’s protégés Lucas and Jade, Alem a crewmember who found the first tomb and Queen Sheba herself.  While the mystery and conspiracies happening in the present were all intriguing, it was the Queen’s narrative that captured me.  The Queen’s insight, bravery and boldness captivated me as well as the author’s very imaginative and detailed take on her story from the very little we know about her.  I was also happy to get to read more about Omar, who caught my attention in Beneath. His character shines as he weaves his way in and out of dangerous situations with the help of Mia.  I would still love to know more about his background, hopefully that will be in future books. 

 

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.