The year is 1477 B.C.E. and history is about to change... Hatshepsut, the Great King's Wife, is thrust into a world of intrigue and politics when her husband, Pharaoh Thutmose, dies suddenly, leaving Egypt with an heir who is barely two years old. The Queen must step into the role of leader, and there are few whom she can trust. When Hatshepsut is crowned as Pharaoh, she grooms her daughter, Neferure, to take the place of heir, rather than Thutmose's infant son from another woman. Neferure, though young, is still older than the boy who should by all rights be king. The future of Egypt rests in the hands of a single woman, the most powerful woman in the ancient world. Can Pharaoh Hatshepsut's people accept her unorthodox reign, and her plans to usurp the men's place as rulers of a Kingdom, decreeing that only women are suitable leaders?
About the Author: Markie Madden was born August 19, 1975, in Midland, Texas. She grew up in the small town of Flushing, Michigan. While in high school, she took creative writing and was a photographer for the school newspaper. In 1993, she won the National Quill and Scroll Society award for best photo in a high school paper. She began writing her first novel, Once Upon a Western Way, while still attending school. Markie is now married with two teenage daughters, two rescue dogs, and her horse, Athena, who is featured on the cover of her horse care guide, Keeping a Backyard Horse. She tried many times over the years to publish her novel, first on her own, and then hiring a literary agent, all without success. In early 2012, after getting her first smart phone and e-reader application, Nook, she discovered the world of self-publishing through a website called Smashwords. She finally published Once Upon a Western Way through this distributor in April, 2012. By December of 2014, Markie was the successful publisher of three books, her first published work, Once Upon a Western Way, now available in print as well as e-format, as well as a self-help guide to horse care, Keeping a Backyard Horse, available in print and e-format, and her cancer memoir, My Butterfly Cancer, available in print, e-format, and audio-book. In 2015, Markie enrolled in the world-wide National Novel Writing Month, a challenge to writers everywhere to write a 50,000 word novel in just 30 days, in the month of November. On November 25, 2015, she crossed the threshold, exceeding her word count goal of 50,000 words. She is a winner of National Novel Writing Month. Her winning NaNoWriMo novel, Souls of the Reaper, was released in March of 2016. Currently, Markie lives in the small town of Fisk, Missouri, with her family, her dogs, and her horse. She is still writing and is working on her crime/paranormal series called The Undead Unit Series. Fang and Claw, Souls of the Reaper, Blood Lust, and Siren Song are now available. Book four, Siren Song, was her Nano 2016 novel and was released in April of 2017. She is also working on something entirely new for her, a historical series called the Pharaoh Queens Series, set in ancient Egypt. The first book, The Pharaoh's Destiny, is due for release in June of 2017, book two, The Pharaoh's Decree, is due out in 2018. She is also developing a political thriller called Toxic Seed.