Mini Video Festival - Pop Music Videos Referencing Ancient Egypt

Since I write a paranormal romance series under the banner "Gods of Egypt" and I usually post something to do with either the books or the lore of ancient Egypt, I thought it might be fun today to feature a few song videos that use ancient Egyptian-like backgrounds - please enjoy!

This one reminds me of my newest novel, MAGIC OF THE NILE...





My DANCER OF THE NILE would appreciate some of the intricate dancing in this classic:
 

And this oldie but goodie is just for fun:

Tales of the Egyptian Gods - Warrior of the Nile

VS sez: One from the Archives! I just released a new book set in Ancient Egypt, MAGIC OF THE NILE, and thought I'd revisit a previous book, which is a standalone story set in ancient times...(post revised a bit  to update!)

Here were snippets from three of the reviews at the time the book came out:

RT Book Reviews: "4 Stars...HOT...you're in for the most romantic desert story since Elizabeth Taylor's Cleopatra. Khenet and Tiya are realistically resigned to their joined fates and the distrust-turned-love will make hearts clench." October 2013

Night Owl Romance Reviews: Top Pick  5 Stars "...another awesome read by  the wonderful storyteller Veronica Scott."

KIRKUS REVIEWS: "...Scott's ancient Egyptian milieu should pique the interest of historical-romance readers looking for a story set outside the usual scenery..."

 If you read my posts here regularly on the 13th of the month, you know how much I love all things having to do with life along the Nile, untold centuries ago.

(Yes, I did kinda get hung up on using "Nile" in my titles, I'll freely admit. Carina Press decided to add "Gods of Egypt" for some variety I think, LOL.)

Here's the story for Warrior:

Egypt, 1500 BCE

Lady Tiya is bound to the service of the goddess Nephthys, who plans to sacrifice Tiya’s body to protect Egypt from an ancient terror. She embarks to meet her grim fate alone but for the hardened warrior Khenet, who is fated to die at her side. Tiya’s dreams of love and family now seem impossible, and Khenet, who is the last of his line, knows his culture will die with him. Struggling with the high cost of Nephthys’s demands, both resolve to remain loyal.

Neither expects the passion that flowers when Tiya’s quiet courage and ethereal beauty meet Khenet’s firm strength and resolve. On a boat down the Nile, their two lonely souls find in each other a reason to live. But time is short and trust elusive.

Without the willing sacrifice of Tiya and Khenet, a great evil will return to Egypt. How could the gods demand their deaths when they’ve only just begun to live?

Here's a short excerpt from midway through Chapter One to tempt you a tiny bit. The scene takes place in the temple of the goddess Nephthys:

Khenet felt a breeze swirl around him emanating from the closed door. Glancing over his shoulder to look, he saw the pins holding the bolts on the door to the innermost sanctum slowly turning. As he watched, one fell to the floor with a crash, followed a moment later by the other. The door drifted open very slightly, light blazing through the narrow opening and at the sides.

            “The goddess is present,” said the high priest, clutching his staff so hard his knuckles went white. “Everyone is dismissed and may leave the inner sanctum, except for Lady Tiya and Pharaoh’s representative.”

            Tiya gave her relieved cousin a hasty kiss as the man who’d been holding her earlier rushed forward to remove the woman from the dais, carrying her out of the sanctum, followed by their family members. Tiya’s father came to brush a kiss on her cheek before rejoining his impatient young wife and her brother and they too left.  Khenet saw that while Tiya didn’t glance after them, she did hastily wipe away a tear.

            Murmuring prayers of praise and thanksgiving, the other priests filed out of the room.

            Going down the steps, he offered Tiya his help in leaving the dais. “Allow me.”

            She rested her fingers on his hand just long enough to keep her balance before snatching her hand back, wrapping her sheer, fringed shawl more closely around her. Preceding him up the stairs to the door of the innermost sanctum, Tiya held herself tall and dignified.

He restrained a sigh. If she’s as haughty and rude as all her kind, this will be a long journey. But the other would have driven me to distraction with her interminable weeping, should Nephthys have selected her.

The high priest regarded them solemnly. “We go to meet the goddess. Nephthys wishes to assess both her Daughter and the guardian.”

“I’m ready,” Khenet said, fists clenched.

Tiya just nodded.

Checking to see that everyone else had left the chamber before walking to the partially open doors, the priest flung the gilded panels wide open. Light streamed out and Khenet heard the buzzing of wasps, as if he was about to step into a hive of the angry creatures. Tiya shrank back a little, took a deep breath and followed the priest.

Not knowing what he expected, never having been in the innermost sanctum of a temple before, other than once as a boy to swear allegiance to Horus, Khenet sized up the room in a quick glance as he crossed the threshold. The room was dominated by a ten foot tall statue of the goddess, with her arms out to the sides, palms up, her proud face carved as if she was staring directly at anyone foolish enough to enter her domain. The sculptor had depicted Nephthys wearing a tightly fitting, pleated sheath and the entire statue had been covered in gold, which gleamed in the unearthly light the goddess herself was providing. A gleaming collar of turquoise, coral and lapis lay across the statue’s chest, matching earrings affixed to the shell-like ears. The strong scent of the lotus threatened to choke him

“The goddess is present,” whispered the priest, going to his knees, arms crossed over his chest, head down.

Tiya muttered a little prayer and knelt, copying the man’s pose. Khenet planted his feet well apart, in a fighter’s stance and stood. I’m here in Pharaoh’s place and he wouldn’t kneel to any goddess. Besides, I swear no fealty to Nephthys.

Amazon  for kindle and audiobook  Carina Press   AllRomance eBooks    Barnes & Noble

DANCER OF THE NILE and Renenutet the Snake Goddess

VS sez: One from the Archives. I just sent the new book, Magic of the Nile, back to the formatters so hopefully it'll be out in  a week or so.

One of the aspects of writing paranormal romances about ancient Egypt that I enjoy most is being able to include the gods and goddesses in the action. Isis, queen of the gods, and Horus the Falcon appear in pretty much every book of mine but then I search for a way to feature a lesser-known (to us) deity as well. For my latest book, Dancer of the Nile, I started with the idea that Nima, the title character, was the daughter of a disgraced priestess, who had been granted one final wish by the snake goddess Renenutet. The wish wasn't for the priestess, but for her child, to be redeemed in the future, at some time of dire need.

As she grew up, Nima wore her amulet with the sacred bead faithfully, but she wasn't sure the wish would be granted.  and when the enemy kidnaps her, she begs the goddess Renenutet to help her, with no result. The ancient Egyptians relied a great deal on amulet beads, wearing them in life and placing them inside tombs to help the spirit of the deceased win safe passage to the Afterlife. King Tut, for example, had 143 small amulets made of gold, carnelian, faience and , turquoise placed inside the wrappings of his mummy, including one that was serpent-headed.  Here's the description of Nima's amulet from the novel, as Kamin, the hero examines the bead:

Holding her hand carefully in his much bigger one, Kamin examined the single glazed oval bead, about two inches long, threaded on a simple black leather thong, knotted loosely to circle her wrist. Pale aqua green in color, the flat bead under the glaze had a partial hieroglyphic on one side and a raised, snakelike design on the other, with two tiny enameled flowers flanking the reptile’s head. 

During the course of the novel, Nima encounters her patron goddess (not going to give any spoilers here).  I described one such encounter last year in this column, when the novel was still in the Work In Process stage. You can read that post here. For today, here's another short snippet of an exchange between Nima and the somewhat testy Great One Renenutet:

“Foolish girl, you squander the weapons I gave you.”

Renenutet—for it was the snake goddess herself, in human form—reached past Nima’s shoulder, holding out one hand. The remaining three snakes flew through the air to her like tiny arrows, wrapping themselves around her wrist to create a fabulous bracelet.

Heart pounding, Nima sank down on the bed.

Stroking the living bracelet as if to calm the snakes while frowning at Nima, the goddess said, “You can’t call the snakes of Nebu merely to amuse yourself, girl.”

You didn’t exactly provide me a scroll of instructions with the gift. Nima bit her tongue as she left the bed to go to her knees before the Great One. “I’m grateful for your continued assistance, my lady.”

I’m proud to say DANCER OF THE NILE hit the Amazon Best Seller list the first day, in the Romance=>Ancient World category. Thank you to everyone who purchased the book, giving it such a terrific head start,  and I hope you’ll enjoy the story!

DANCER OF THE NILE is AVAILABLE on Amazon   Barnes & Noble   All Romance eBooks  iTunes

And here's the latest Kay Perry video for her song "Dark Horse" - she portrays the magic of ancient Egypt in her own wonderful style - enjoy!

Perfume of the Pharoahs

 VS sez: here's one from the archives today, revised a bit...
Warrior of the Nile is my second paranormal romance set in Ancient Egypt, Dancer of the Nile is my third and the fourth -  Magic of the Nile - will be out in March.. Since I knew I would be doing a post here on the Paranormal Romantics blog this week, I was scanning through the manuscripts last night, to see what might inspire me as a topic to write about, and I came up with – perfume!

The Egyptians loved and treasured perfume, starting with the scent of the blue Nile lotus, which they

wore in garlands, as wreaths, and carried singly or in bouquets. Curiously the flower was not often used as an ingredient for actual perfume. Perhaps the Egyptian belief that a strong scent of lotus in the air meant a Great One was present kept the mere mortals from usurping the concentrated lotus essence for themselves.

 Khenet, the warrior in my book's title, has several encounters with the goddess Nepthys during the novel, none of them very comfortable. He does indeed learn to watch out for that overwhelming perfume as a sign she’s near. Here’s the first time they meet, deep in the inner sanctum of her temple:

“Do you find me attractive, warrior?” she asked, her voice husky, honey sweet and low pitched. Not waiting for an answer, she swayed across the chamber to confront him, one hand on her hip. “It’s been many centuries since I took a human lover.”

Lotus perfume surrounded him, making him dizzy. Choosing his words very carefully, Khenet couldn’t help thinking the situation felt like a trap. “With all due respect, Great One, such radiant splendor is too much for a mortal man to experience.”

Nephthys laughed. “Well spoken, I see Pharaoh has sent me a diplomat disguised as a rough soldier.”

He opted for silence. Yeah I learned a lot in my years at Court, especially how great ladies like to be complimented.

 Perfume was so important to the Ancient Egyptians that there was even a special deity, Nefertum, assigned to be “…guardian and protector of the perfume and oil makers, protector and god of the sacred lotus. Osiris is the body of the plants, Nefertum is the soul of the plants, the plants purified. The divine perfume belongs to Nefertum living forever.”*

He was usually depicted as a very handsome young man, with a crown of lotus flowers. Some legends say his tears at the dawn of time became the human race. Egyptians often carried small amulets depicting him as good luck charms… and that was about the extent of Nefertum’s responsibilities. Watching over the all important perfume was a full time job apparently!

Just as we have our favorite brands of perfume today, expecting every bottle of Chanel No 5 to smell exactly the same, the Egyptians had detailed recipes for their favorite scents, including Susinum (lilies, myrrh & more), Cyprinum (henna) and Mendesian (myrrh, cassia, resins & more). They conducted an international trade in this luxury. To signify his dominion over Egypt, which was so identified with the perfume industry, Julius Caesar is said to have scattered alabaster perfume bottles to the crowds at his triumphal parades in Rome.

We’re barely scratching the surface of this topic and I’m already out of space but I’ll take it up again another day…there’s still the tale to tell of the sunken cargo ship carrying blue glass, fragrant materials and a golden scarab bearing the cartouche of Nefertiti…were they bringing exotic ingredients to be made into a special scent just for her? 

Always more mysteries and questions when it comes to Ancient Egypt – thank goodness!

What's your favorite scent? Currently I alternate between Very Hollywood by Michael Kors and  Tresor by Lancome....

 See you next month…

ABOUT Warrior of the Nile:
RT Book Reviews sez: “4 Stars HOT…you’re in for the most romantic desert story since Elizabeth Taylor’s Cleopatra…”

Amazon  Carina Press   AllRomance eBooks    Barnes & Noble

*Hymn to Nefertem, 18th dynasty
Steve Van Toller, G. H. Todd: Fragrance: Psychology and Biology of Perfume, 1992 Springer, p.290

Cover Reveal AND New Series Book Trailer Gods of Egypt

Things have been pretty busy lately, what with Warrior of the Nile coming out from Carina Press on the 16th (next week - EEP!) and I just revealed the cover for the next book in this connected series, Dancer of the Nile. I think the heroine, Nima, looks so strong and determined! Starting with Dancer of the Nile, I'm self publishing the series. I've been a "hybrid author" for awhile, self publishing my best selling science fiction romances, so in for a penny, in for a pound, as they say!

I also commissioned a series trailer from the wonderful Theresa McClinton, of Making It Reel, for the Egyptian series. Collaborating with her was so much fun and our goal was to create a video that would invite the viewer into the faraway, ancient land along the Nile. Let me know what you think, please!

But before we get to the video, let me give you the story blurb for Warrior of the Nile, since he'll be arriving in just three days!

Egypt, 1500 BCE

Lady Tiya is bound to the service of the goddess Nephthys, who plans to sacrifice Tiya’s body to protect Egypt from an ancient terror. She embarks to meet her grim fate alone but for the hardened warrior Khenet, who is fated to die at her side. Tiya’s dreams of love and family now seem impossible, and Khenet, who is the last of his line, knows his culture will die with him. Struggling with the high cost of Nephthys’s demands, both resolve to remain loyal.

Neither expects the passion that flowers when Tiya’s quiet courage and ethereal beauty meet Khenet’s firm strength and resolve. On a boat down the Nile, their two lonely souls find in each other a reason to live. But time is short and trust elusive.

Without the willing sacrifice of Tiya and Khenet, a great evil will return to Egypt. How could the gods demand their deaths when they’ve only just begun to live?

Here's the brand new trailer:

Renenutet the Snake Goddess - Excerpt from Dancer of the Nile

Since I just celebrated a birthday this week, I decided to take a look at some Ancient Egyptian traditions surrounding a person’s birth. Apparently they didn’t make much of a fuss over individual’s birthdays, not even Pharaoh’s. Festivals and celebrations were more likely to be tied to important dates in the cycles of the Nile, or the key events of a ruler’s reign, such as a great victory in battle. The Egyptians did celebrate the birthdays of some of the gods, however.

Their calendar was quite accurate, consisting of twelve months with 30 days each. Unfortunately this system left them five days out of sync with the Earth’s journey around the Sun every year, so the practical Egyptians solved the problem by slotting in some celestial birthdays. Osiris, Horus, Seth, Isis and her sister Nepthys received the honor of a day set aside for them.

The precise details of the ancient festivals are lost in time, but I can imagine there was feasting, drinking, dancing and a good time was had by all, don’t you suppose?

The Egyptians had beliefs centered around the birth of a child, however, including the idea that when you were born, the snake headed, cobra goddess Renenutet whispered your secret name in your ear. I’ve written Renenutet into one of my Tales of the Nile (currently a Work in Progress), as a protector for my heroine, although it’s not easy to summon the Great One. My heroine, Nima, Dancer of the Nile, and Kamin,  the warrior traveling with her, are trapped by black magic hyenas.

Here’s an excerpt from the WIP:

“I was an observer at a ceremony for Renenutet the snake goddess once,” Kamin said.

Shutting her eyes for a moment,  Nima shuddered.  “Yes, but I’m terrified of snakes.”

“If the goddess is attuned to you and sends her serpents to aid us, they won’t turn on you, I swear. What do we have to lose?” He held her away from him, gazing into her pale face.

“Magic for magic.” Nima nodded. “What do we do?”

“I’ll have to cut the amulet off.”  Reaching for his knife, Kamin raised one eyebrow, waiting for her permission.

               Nima swallowed hard.  

              Carefully he inserted the tip of the blade under the knotted black leather cords and slashed the bracelet free, catching the clay bead as it fell. “Do we have any bread left?”

                “You’re hungry at a time like this?” Reaching for the packs, she rummaged through the contents, coming out with a piece of flat bread.

                “Renenutet is a goddess of grain and harvests. Bread is the closest to a proper offering we can get on this rock,” he chided. Holding the bead carefully, he got up and walked to the edge of the ledge, checking on the hyenas. A chorus of eerie howls rose as he peered over the precipice.  “Still prowling. I had no real hope of their giving up and slinking away.”

                “What do we do now?” She rubbed her bare wrist.

                Setting the bread in the sunniest spot on the rock, Kamin laid the bead in center, pushing it into the soft bread and coiling the broken ends of the black thong in a circle. “I need one drop of your blood, sweetheart, so the great one hears the call through your bond with her –“

                 “You have a certain grim logic to this insane idea, soldier. Should I be concerned how much you know about black magic?”

                Gritting her teeth against sharp pain for a brief moment while Kamin made a small incision in her wrist with his belt knife, Nima clenched her fist in the fabric of her dress.

Kamin stood up. “I’m done. Let’s see if this will work.”

                As he moved the knife slowly over the bead, Nima watched first one, then two drops of her ruby blood fall onto the raised snake design on the amulet’s surface, coating the entire bead without dripping off the edges. Kamin laid the knife aside and spread his hands out, palms up. “Great One Renenutet, we pray most earnestly for you to send us thy servants, the black cobras of the rocks, to kill the hyenas waiting below. We ask for the one intervention you promised this woman’s mother, when you whispered Nima’s name into her ear at birth. Our need is dire and Egypt’s fate may rest on our shoulders.”

                Eyebrows raised, hand extended toward her, he nodded expectantly.

                Pure panic froze Nima’s vocal cords for a moment. I don’t know any chants! What does he want me to add?  She swallowed past the lump in her throat, licked her lips. “Please, if my mother meant anything to you, as a dancer, as your priestess, help Kamin and me now,” Nima said.

                A  thin tendril of black smoke spiraled up from the bead. Kamin half lifted Nima  away from the spot as first the bead and then the bread burst into angry purple black flames. Writhing in the fire’s grasp, the leather thongs grew, splitting in two and then splitting again,  lengthening, fattening and spreading beyond the circle of the offering, in a tangle of tails. Nima screamed as eight black cobras raised their heads from the center of the fire circle, sinuously weaving and entwining around each other, red eyes gleaming, black tongues flicking. Hood pulsating, a ninth cobra, black like the others but with a golden head, reared four feet off the surface of the rock. Lowering its heavy head the snake extricated itself from the tangle of lesser snakes, slithering  toward Nima.

               

And that’s a good place to leave it, for this blog post LOL. I’m editing as fast as I can, to be able to submit the manuscript to my publisher! A very happy birthday to any of my fellow Libras who might be reading this post - how did you (or will you) celebrate?