The Eunuch Neferu

Rating:
Summary: What an Intriguing Tale!
Review: I could not believe how easily I slipped through the sands of time to find myself in the world of Egypt in the first century BC! The story flowed flawlessly and it was incredibly easy to read, however, VERY difficult to put down. Mr. Marsche seems to have been very concerned for the evolution of his characters! Kebryn arrives from out of the desert with virtually no social grace and then rises to become an equal in the eyes of his lover! The Eunuch Neferu really brought to life for me a time and place I would never have thought to venture. It gets a little steamy here and there, but steamy in the sense of what we all do in real life without talking about it. I can't give away any of the details without feeling as though I've revealed the entirety. This book will capture, enrapture and seduce its readers and I say hats off to Daniel Tegan Marsche - and thank you as well. The Eunuch Neferu truly touched my heart and I believe I will be reading it again and again.

Rating:
Summary: interesting premise, poorly executed
Review: The story is promising and nicely conceived: a comely peasant boy comes to the attention of a handsome Roman general in Roman-ruled Egypt. This kind and indulgent benefactor elevates him as his companion - and sweeps him into his bed. The boy pays a price (castration) for his good fortune, but rapidly grows into his new role.

I wanted to like this book, but it wouldn't let me.

The author's enthusiasm is obvious, though the details gleaned from his background research often slow the pacing as much as set the scene. The story is engaging, despite generally turgid writing. Readers who become distracted by authorial carelessness will find problems. Punctuation and paragraphing are eccentric, and there are maddeningly frequent errors of the bare/bear, lie/lay variety. "Wanton" and "gush" are used so often that they warrant a drinking game. Anachronistic language ("anal retentive", "defense mechanism", "okay", "Zen", French phrases) clashes with the antique tone the author aims for. I say "aims for", because the end product is often stilted. A representative sentence (p. 180): "The experience could only be described as fulfilling and I could not help but to wonder why these feelings of such completion and contentment could not be sustained in a manner, which would implement them as the constitutional foundation of my constancy." The writing is bloated and unnecessarily ornate, leading to many obscure and outright inappropriate word choices, my favorite being "the north... was festooned with barbarians". A festive image, but bizarre in context. Lack of precision ripped me out of the narrative so often that halfway through I began skipping anything that did not bear directly on the plot. This would be forgivable in an amateur's work found at on the web, but it's a serious flaw in a book for sale. A simpler presentation would have served the story better than a thesaurus-driven quest for the flavor of ancient times. Only for forgiving, uncritical readers.