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* ArrangedMarriage: Thutmose and Inanni. Neither are very happy with the idea.
to:
* ArrangedMarriage: Thutmose and Inanni. Neither are very happy with the idea. idea; Thutmose resents Innani and views her as uncultured (at least initially), while Inanni misses her homeland enormously and has no desire whatsoever to live in Egypt, especially once she learns what Thutmose really thinks of her. [[spoiler: Fortunately, Thutmose begins to treat Inanni more kindly, and their mutually-unwanted engagement is ultimately called off so Inanni can go home to her family.]]
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* CreepyBlueEyes: Many people see Mara's eyes as unnatural and creepy.
to:
* CreepyBlueEyes: Many people see Mara's Mara is blue-eyed, which was extremely rare in AncientEgypt (granted, her origins are ambigious, as she's a slave who doesn't know much about her own background). Although some characters think of her eyes as unnatural unique and creepy.pretty, many view them as strange, unnerving, or even demonic.
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* DoubleAgent: Mara. Also Sahure.
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* DoubleAgent: Mara. Also Sahure.The entire plot of the book hinges on Mara being a DoubleAgent for multiple different people, double-crossing her masters and prioritizing her own freedom before eventually falling in love with Sheftu.
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* EveryManHasHisPrice: This is basically Sheftu's life philosophy, and he's proven right time and again, only for him to discover Mara is [[spoiler: being tortured because [[SubvertedTrope she refused to betray him for a bribe]]]].
to:
* EveryManHasHisPrice: This is basically Sheftu's life philosophy, and he's proven right time and again, only for him to discover Mara is [[spoiler: being tortured because [[SubvertedTrope she refused to betray him for a bribe]]]].
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* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: UsefulNotes/{{Hatshepsut}} and Count Senmut
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose. To be entirely fair, though, the book was written in 1953, when information about Hatshepsut was either undiscovered or not readily available.
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well - though she thinks a nice, luxuriant beard would work wonders.
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose. To be entirely fair, though, the book was written in 1953, when information about Hatshepsut was either undiscovered or not readily available.
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well - though she thinks a nice, luxuriant beard would work wonders.
to:
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: UsefulNotes/{{Hatshepsut}} and Count Senmut
Senmut.
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungryvillainess, villainess whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose. To (To be entirely fair, though, the book was written in 1953, when information about Hatshepsut was either undiscovered or not readily available.
available.)
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive aswell - though well—though she thinks a nice, luxuriant beard would work wonders.
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as
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* TheIngenue: Inanni
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* TheIngenue: Inanni is a sweet and somewhat naive princess who was brought to Egypt to marry Thutmose as part of an ArrangedMarriage orchestrated by Hatshepshut.
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* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as a great lord and a lowly interpretor who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
to:
* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as a great lord and a lowly interpretor interpreter who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
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* WhatBeautifulEyes: Mara's blue eyes (extremely rare in Egypt) are considered this by Sheftu and a few others. The other main reaction is to see them as creepy.
to:
* WhatBeautifulEyes: Mara's blue eyes (extremely rare in Egypt) are considered this by Sheftu and a few others. The other main reaction is to see others (although many characters view them as creepy.unnatural and disconcerting instead).
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* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepsut and Count Senmut
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* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepsut UsefulNotes/{{Hatshepsut}} and Count Senmut
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''Mara, Daughter of the Nile'' is a YA novel by Eloise [=McGraw=] that is equal parts espionage thriller and romance novel, set in Ancient Egypt.
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''Mara, Daughter of the Nile'' (1953) is a YA novel by Eloise [=McGraw=] that is equal parts espionage thriller and romance novel, set in Ancient Egypt.
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* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask: Hatshepsut has shades of this, although she's portrayed as an antagonist.
to:
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rich idiot with no day job was disambiguated by TRS. As is typical with wick cleaning projects, zero-context examples are deleted as it's impossible to tell if they're actually examples of anything.
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* RichIdiotWithNoDayJob: ''Sheftu''
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''Mara, Daughter of the Nile'' is a YA novel by Eloise [=McGraw=] that is equal parts espionage thriller and romance novel, set in Ancient Egypt. The plot follows the slave girl Mara as she is sold by her brutal master, only to find herself drawn into two rival plots that involve the throne of Egypt. While at first acting only for herself, Mara finds herself falling for one of her two masters and believing in his cause. But maintaining her tenuous double life grows more and more difficult, and her failure to do so has consequences that change the course of Egypt's history.
to:
''Mara, Daughter of the Nile'' is a YA novel by Eloise [=McGraw=] that is equal parts espionage thriller and romance novel, set in Ancient
The plot follows the slave girl Mara as she is sold by her brutal master, only to find herself drawn into two rival plots that involve the throne of Egypt. While at first acting only for herself, Mara finds herself falling for one of her two masters and believing in his cause. But maintaining her tenuous double life grows more and more difficult, and her failure to do so has consequences that change the course of Egypt's
----
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* AncientEgypt: Naturally.
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---> '''Thutmose''': Well favored? In truth he is almost ugly, but no woman ever knows it.
to:
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* DeadlyDecadentCourt: Hatshepsut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
to:
* DeadlyDecadentCourt: DecadentCourt: Hatshepsut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
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fatGirl is detroped per TRS
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* FatGirl: The Egyptian characters see Inanni as this. Due to Egypt's hot climate, ancient Egyptians tended to keep very slim. Mesopotamian cultures, just like the neighboring Greeks, tended to value fuller figured women.
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* BarefootCaptives: Mara doesn't have sandals until she's pretending to be a free woman. As a slave in Zasha's home,s she was barefoot.
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* BarefootCaptives: Mara doesn't have sandals until she's pretending to be a free woman. As a slave in Zasha's home,s home, she was barefoot.
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* ATasteOfTheLash: Zasha, and later Hatshepsut's lackeys, beat Mara with a whip as punishment.
* BarefootCaptives: Mara doesn't have sandals until she's pretending to be a free woman. As a slave in Zasha's home,s she was barefoot.
* CorporalPunishment: Mara gets this a lot, first from Zasha in retaliation for acting out as a slave and later from Chazdar in an attempt to get information about the plot to overthrow Hatshepsut.
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* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose.
to:
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose. To be entirely fair, though, the book was written in 1953, when information about Hatshepsut was either undiscovered or not readily available.
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* SympatheticSlaveOwner: Oddly enough for a book about a BeautifulSlaveGirl, most of the main characters are this, including [[spoiler: Mara and Sheftu themselves at the end.]] It's a case of TruthInTelevision; most, if not all, noblemen and women in Ancient Egypt would have owned slaves. (That being said, people like Zasha, who overwork and physically abuse their slaves, are still treated as abhorrent.)
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Added tropes
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* AncientEgypt: Naturally
to:
* AncientEgypt: NaturallyNaturally.
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* BornIntoSlavery: Maybe, maybe not. Mara has been a slave for virtually her entire life, but she has vague memories of living in a luxurious home as a very young child. It's never made clear whether she was a slave there, too, or a free child.
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* CreepyBlueEyes: Many people see Mara's eyes as unnatural and creepy.
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* NotUsedToFreedom: Mara's been a slave for so long that she's excited to be given basic necessities while pretending to be a free woman.
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Some grammar.
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* GuileHero: Both Mara and Sheftu
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* GuileHero: Both Mara and SheftuSheftu.
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* JadeColoredGlasses: Both Mara and Sheftu sport these
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* JadeColoredGlasses: Both Mara and Sheftu sport thesethese.
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* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as great lord and lowly interpretor who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
to:
* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as a great lord and a lowly interpretor who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
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* ThirdActMisunderstanding: Mara's double life breaks down, leading to Sheftu [[spoiler: nearly]] assasinating her to protect his identity.
to:
* ThirdActMisunderstanding: Mara's double life breaks down, leading to Sheftu [[spoiler: nearly]] assasinating nearly assassinating]] her to protect his identity.
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* VillainousHarlequin: Sahure the juggler
* WarriorPrince: Thutmose
* WarriorPrince: Thutmose
to:
* VillainousHarlequin: Sahure the juggler
juggler.
* WarriorPrince:ThutmoseThutmose.
* WarriorPrince:
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* TheWisePrince: Thutmose, if you substitute "melancholy" for "brooding"
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* TheWisePrince: Thutmose, if you substitute "melancholy" for "brooding" "brooding."
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* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancée]]: Inanni
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* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancée]]: InanniInanni. Thutmose's initial angry revulsion fades as he comes to see Inanni as a person rather than another insult by his half-sister, but he still doesn't want to marry her. She'd much rather go home to Syria herself.
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* BattleButler:
to:
* BattleButler: Sheftu's got one. Officially he doesn't know about the plot. But they both know he does.
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[[quoteright:250:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mara_daughter_of_the_nile.jpg]]
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* FatGirl: Poor Inanni.
to:
* FatGirl: Poor Inanni. The Egyptian characters see Inanni as this. Due to Egypt's hot climate, ancient Egyptians tended to keep very slim. Mesopotamian cultures, just like the neighboring Greeks, tended to value fuller figured women.
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* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well.
to:
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well.well - though she thinks a nice, luxuriant beard would work wonders.
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* FemmeFataleSpy: Mara has definite elements of this. Note, however, that her employer didn't ''intend'' for her to captivate the leader of LaResistance into revealing nearly all his secrets to her.
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* MataHari: Mara has definite elements of this. Note, however, that her employer didn't ''intend'' for her to captivate the leader of LaResistance into revealing nearly all his secrets to her.
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Spy Couple was voted to redirect
to Agents Dating. Zero Context Examples and bad entries are being removed.
to Agents Dating. Zero Context Examples and bad entries are being removed.Deleted line(s) 60 (click to see context) :
* SpyCouple: Mara and Sheftu, essentially
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* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign Fiancée he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
to:
* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign Fiancée fiancée he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
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* DeadlyDecadentCourt: Hatshepshut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
to:
* DeadlyDecadentCourt: Hatshepshut's Hatshepsut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
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* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Sheftu's rebellion sees Hatshepshut as this.
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* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Sheftu's rebellion sees Hatshepshut Hatshepsut as this.
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* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepshut and Count Senmut
to:
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepshut Hatshepsut and Count Senmut
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* SheIsTheKing: Hatshepshut, as in RealLife. It's even noted that she wears masculine attire and a false beard in court.
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* SheIsTheKing: Hatshepshut, Hatshepsut, as in RealLife. It's even noted that she wears masculine attire and a false beard in court.
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* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask: Hatshepshut has shades of this, although she's portrayed as an antagonist.
to:
* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask: Hatshepshut Hatshepsut has shades of this, although she's portrayed as an antagonist.
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* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Inanni ''wants'' to be the gentle girl to Thutmose's brooding boy, but Thutmose only sees her as his [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted]] FunnyForeigner [[DisposableFiance Fiancee]].
to:
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Inanni ''wants'' to be the gentle girl to Thutmose's brooding boy, but Thutmose only sees her as his [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted]] FunnyForeigner [[DisposableFiance Fiancee]].Fiancée]].
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* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign fiancee he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
to:
* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign fiancee Fiancée he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
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* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancee]]: Inanni
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* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancee]]: Fiancée]]: Inanni
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moved to namespace
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''Mara, Daughter of the Nile'' is a YA novel by Eloise [=McGraw=] that is equal parts espionage thriller and romance novel, set in Ancient Egypt. The plot follows the slave girl Mara as she is sold by her brutal master, only to find herself drawn into two rival plots that involve the throne of Egypt. While at first acting only for herself, Mara finds herself falling for one of her two masters and believing in his cause. But maintaining her tenuous double life grows more and more difficult, and her failure to do so has consequences that change the course of Egypt's history.
!!This book provides examples of:
* AncientEgypt: Naturally
* ArrangedMarriage: Thutmose and Inanni. Neither are very happy with the idea.
* TheArtfulDodger: Mara has the attitude and the skills, but she's ''not'' satisfied with life on the streets.
* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: Thutmose gets an understated one at the end, when he returns to the throne room wearing the royal cobra. Everyone kneels instantly. He then confers an awesome moment of countship on Sheftu.
* BattleButler:
* BeautifulSlaveGirl: Mara, who's even described as "a lily plucked from the gutter." However, unlike the typical BeautifulSlaveGirl, she doesn't wait to be rescued, but finagles her own path through sheer cleverness and audacity. And she's mostly successful at it.
* BecomingTheMask: Mara, not only to her role as an agent for the king, but also as Inanni's companion.
* BelligerentSexualTension: Mara and Sheftu have the "Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy" style that plays itself out in biting skirmishes of words and wit.
* BilingualBackfire: When Thutmose curtly rejects Inanni at their first meeting, Mara can't bear to let her know the truth, so translates it as "His highness welcomes you to Egypt." Only to be met with Thutmose's shocked stare and remember too late that he speaks Babylonian.
* BilingualDialogue: Mara speaks both Egyptian and Babylonian fluently. She is the translator for Princess Inanni, who only speaks Babylonian, to Thutmose, who understands both Babylonian and Egyptian, but refuses to speak Babylonian. To make matters even more complicated, Mara and the king are exchanging coded messages for use in LaResistance, while Mara must tell Inanni some sort of appropriate polite comment or question.
* BoxedCrook: Sheftu ''thinks'' Mara is this, as he believes her to be a runaway slave. In reality, she was bought and employed by his archnemesis and he has no hold on her whatsoever. Well, except for ThePowerOfLove.
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Inanni ''wants'' to be the gentle girl to Thutmose's brooding boy, but Thutmose only sees her as his [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted]] FunnyForeigner [[DisposableFiance Fiancee]].
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Count Senmut and Lord Naresh are portrayed as the Ancient Egyptian nobility version of this.
* CunningLinguist: Mara, whose fluency in Babylonian lands her in the position of interpreter for the princess.
* [[DatingCatwoman Dating Batman]]: Mara finds herself falling for the heroic Sheftu, even though betraying him to the queen's agents would bring her rich rewards, including freedom and wealth.
* DeadlyDecadentCourt: Hatshepshut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
* DoubleAgent: Mara. Also Sahure.
* EveryoneCanSeeIt: Sheftu is ''very'' annoyed when he realizes that he and Mara are this--to the point that a drunken UpperClassTwit who knows nothing about their double lives can comment on it
* EveryManHasHisPrice: This is basically Sheftu's life philosophy, and he's proven right time and again, only for him to discover Mara is [[spoiler: being tortured because [[SubvertedTrope she refused to betray him for a bribe]]]].
* EvilChancellor: Played with in that Count Senmut is definitely a villain, but seems loyal to his queen (although he's looking out for himself first and foremost).
* FatGirl: Poor Inanni.
* FeedTheMole: Sheftu's test of Mara's loyalty. She passes, but she wasn't the only mole he fed.
* FunnyForeigner: In-story, this is how Inanni and the rest of the Syrians are viewed, but Inanni herself is a very sympathetic character and the parts of the book from her perspective show that she finds Egyptian customs every bit as strange as they find hers.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Sheftu's rebellion sees Hatshepshut as this.
* GrumpyOldMan: Nekonkh, although his grumbling and belief that the past was better are shown to be justified within the book's plot.
* GuileHero: Both Mara and Sheftu
* TheHeart: Inanni, Mara's only real friend and the one who gently guides her to an unselfish understanding of herself and her world.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepshut and Count Senmut
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose.
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well.
---> '''Thutmose''': Well favored? In truth he is almost ugly, but no woman ever knows it.
* TheIngenue: Inanni
* IntergenerationalFriendship: Mara and Nekonkh, who seems to see Mara as the daughter he never had.
* JadeColoredGlasses: Both Mara and Sheftu sport these
* LaResistance: The faction that Sheftu leads on behalf of the king is basically this.
* LongHairIsFeminine: Inanni's hip-length hair is just one of many cues of her gentle and nurturing personality.
* MataHari: Mara has definite elements of this. Note, however, that her employer didn't ''intend'' for her to captivate the leader of LaResistance into revealing nearly all his secrets to her.
* MundaneLuxury: Basic makeup and non-ragged clothing are this for Mara when she first assumes her role as the princess's interpreter.
* MysteriousPast: Mara has vague memories of being a free child in a wealthy household, and Sheftu wonders if she was a child of noble birth stolen and sold into slavery. The truth is never revealed.
* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign fiancee he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
* TheNondescript: Sheftu employs this deliberately when acting as Sashai, or in another capacity for his rebellion.
* OccultBlueEyes: Mara has blue eyes, which are extremely rare in AncientEgypt. Most characters, including her love interest, see them as exotically beautiful, but a few of the characters find them creepy or demonic.
* OldRetainer: Irenamon to Sheftu. Also, Ashor and Miphtahyah, the proprietors of the Inn of the Falcon.
* PlayingBothSides: Mara's original plan, before BecomingTheMask threw everything out the window.
* PlayingCyrano: Subverted. Mara tries to do this for Inanni--translating her nervous stammerings as gracious, regal conversation, and translating the king's grumpy, uninterested remarks as romantic compliments...but she forgets that the king is ''also'' a CunningLinguist and can speak the language.
* PluckyGirl: Mara, without a doubt.
* RegentForLife: How Hatshepsut assumed her power.
* RightfulKingReturns: Thutmose's assumption of the throne is portrayed this way.
* RichIdiotWithNoDayJob: ''Sheftu''
* SculleryMaid: Mara was this as a slave in Zasha's house.
* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as great lord and lowly interpretor who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
* ServileSnarker: Mara.
* SheIsTheKing: Hatshepshut, as in RealLife. It's even noted that she wears masculine attire and a false beard in court.
* ShowSomeLeg: Mara gets in and out of the palace by flirting with a young guard at a little-used gate.
* SpyCouple: Mara and Sheftu, essentially
* TheSpymaster: Sheftu for Thutmose, Nareth for Hatshepsut. [[DoubleAgent Mara works for both of them.]]
* StreetUrchin: Mara frequently resorts to stealing food on the streets when her masters starve her, and she longs for "gold and freedom" above all things.
* ThirdActMisunderstanding: Mara's double life breaks down, leading to Sheftu [[spoiler: nearly]] assasinating her to protect his identity.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Mara and Inanni for Thutmose.
* TrustPassword: Sheftu gives Nekonkh a Trust Password for Mara: "Tell her I have not forgotten what I said last night when I took her in my arms." Nekonkh is repulsed by Sheftu's cold-bloodedness, as he is to use the Trust Password as part of Mara's loyalty test.
* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancee]]: Inanni
* VillainousHarlequin: Sahure the juggler
* WarriorPrince: Thutmose
* WhatBeautifulEyes: Mara's blue eyes (extremely rare in Egypt) are considered this by Sheftu and a few others. The other main reaction is to see them as creepy.
* [[WhenSheSmiles When He Smiles]]: Sheftu. Another male character mentions that Sheftu is actually so plain as to be almost ugly, but his smile (along with his super-suaveness) prevents any woman from realizing this.
* TheWisePrince: Thutmose, if you substitute "melancholy" for "brooding"
* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask: Hatshepshut has shades of this, although she's portrayed as an antagonist.
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!!This book provides examples of:
* AncientEgypt: Naturally
* ArrangedMarriage: Thutmose and Inanni. Neither are very happy with the idea.
* TheArtfulDodger: Mara has the attitude and the skills, but she's ''not'' satisfied with life on the streets.
* AwesomeMomentOfCrowning: Thutmose gets an understated one at the end, when he returns to the throne room wearing the royal cobra. Everyone kneels instantly. He then confers an awesome moment of countship on Sheftu.
* BattleButler:
* BeautifulSlaveGirl: Mara, who's even described as "a lily plucked from the gutter." However, unlike the typical BeautifulSlaveGirl, she doesn't wait to be rescued, but finagles her own path through sheer cleverness and audacity. And she's mostly successful at it.
* BecomingTheMask: Mara, not only to her role as an agent for the king, but also as Inanni's companion.
* BelligerentSexualTension: Mara and Sheftu have the "Elizabeth Bennett and Mr. Darcy" style that plays itself out in biting skirmishes of words and wit.
* BilingualBackfire: When Thutmose curtly rejects Inanni at their first meeting, Mara can't bear to let her know the truth, so translates it as "His highness welcomes you to Egypt." Only to be met with Thutmose's shocked stare and remember too late that he speaks Babylonian.
* BilingualDialogue: Mara speaks both Egyptian and Babylonian fluently. She is the translator for Princess Inanni, who only speaks Babylonian, to Thutmose, who understands both Babylonian and Egyptian, but refuses to speak Babylonian. To make matters even more complicated, Mara and the king are exchanging coded messages for use in LaResistance, while Mara must tell Inanni some sort of appropriate polite comment or question.
* BoxedCrook: Sheftu ''thinks'' Mara is this, as he believes her to be a runaway slave. In reality, she was bought and employed by his archnemesis and he has no hold on her whatsoever. Well, except for ThePowerOfLove.
* BroodingBoyGentleGirl: Inanni ''wants'' to be the gentle girl to Thutmose's brooding boy, but Thutmose only sees her as his [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted]] FunnyForeigner [[DisposableFiance Fiancee]].
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Count Senmut and Lord Naresh are portrayed as the Ancient Egyptian nobility version of this.
* CunningLinguist: Mara, whose fluency in Babylonian lands her in the position of interpreter for the princess.
* [[DatingCatwoman Dating Batman]]: Mara finds herself falling for the heroic Sheftu, even though betraying him to the queen's agents would bring her rich rewards, including freedom and wealth.
* DeadlyDecadentCourt: Hatshepshut's court is portrayed like this: being made up of Hatshepsut's hangers-on--most of whom are out for their own profit, those secretly loyal to Thutmose--most of whom are out for their own profit, and [[UpperClassTwit those too stupid to realize what's going on.]]
* DoubleAgent: Mara. Also Sahure.
* EveryoneCanSeeIt: Sheftu is ''very'' annoyed when he realizes that he and Mara are this--to the point that a drunken UpperClassTwit who knows nothing about their double lives can comment on it
* EveryManHasHisPrice: This is basically Sheftu's life philosophy, and he's proven right time and again, only for him to discover Mara is [[spoiler: being tortured because [[SubvertedTrope she refused to betray him for a bribe]]]].
* EvilChancellor: Played with in that Count Senmut is definitely a villain, but seems loyal to his queen (although he's looking out for himself first and foremost).
* FatGirl: Poor Inanni.
* FeedTheMole: Sheftu's test of Mara's loyalty. She passes, but she wasn't the only mole he fed.
* FunnyForeigner: In-story, this is how Inanni and the rest of the Syrians are viewed, but Inanni herself is a very sympathetic character and the parts of the book from her perspective show that she finds Egyptian customs every bit as strange as they find hers.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: Sheftu's rebellion sees Hatshepshut as this.
* GrumpyOldMan: Nekonkh, although his grumbling and belief that the past was better are shown to be justified within the book's plot.
* GuileHero: Both Mara and Sheftu
* TheHeart: Inanni, Mara's only real friend and the one who gently guides her to an unselfish understanding of herself and her world.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: Hatshepshut and Count Senmut
* HollywoodHistory: While the details of day to day life in Egypt are mostly correct, the book portrays Hatshepsut as Thutmose's half-sister, while she was really his stepmother, and casts her as a power-hungry villainess, whose vanity threatens to bankrupt Egypt. Modern historians view her as an excellent ruler who actually had a good relationship with Thutmose.
* InformedFlaw: We are repeatedly told that Sheftu is nothing special to look at. But since most of the book is from Mara's point of view and she thinks he's the hottest thing since desert bonfires, it doesn't have a lot of impact. Incidentally, Inanni finds him attractive as well.
---> '''Thutmose''': Well favored? In truth he is almost ugly, but no woman ever knows it.
* TheIngenue: Inanni
* IntergenerationalFriendship: Mara and Nekonkh, who seems to see Mara as the daughter he never had.
* JadeColoredGlasses: Both Mara and Sheftu sport these
* LaResistance: The faction that Sheftu leads on behalf of the king is basically this.
* LongHairIsFeminine: Inanni's hip-length hair is just one of many cues of her gentle and nurturing personality.
* MataHari: Mara has definite elements of this. Note, however, that her employer didn't ''intend'' for her to captivate the leader of LaResistance into revealing nearly all his secrets to her.
* MundaneLuxury: Basic makeup and non-ragged clothing are this for Mara when she first assumes her role as the princess's interpreter.
* MysteriousPast: Mara has vague memories of being a free child in a wealthy household, and Sheftu wonders if she was a child of noble birth stolen and sold into slavery. The truth is never revealed.
* NiceToTheWaiter: One of the turning points for Mara in deciding which side to take is when Thutmose asks Inanni, the foreign fiancee he does not want, which vase she prefers and then makes a gift of it to her. It also has a big impact on Inanni, even after she finds out the truth of their relationship, and is part of the reason she helps Mara at the end.
* TheNondescript: Sheftu employs this deliberately when acting as Sashai, or in another capacity for his rebellion.
* OccultBlueEyes: Mara has blue eyes, which are extremely rare in AncientEgypt. Most characters, including her love interest, see them as exotically beautiful, but a few of the characters find them creepy or demonic.
* OldRetainer: Irenamon to Sheftu. Also, Ashor and Miphtahyah, the proprietors of the Inn of the Falcon.
* PlayingBothSides: Mara's original plan, before BecomingTheMask threw everything out the window.
* PlayingCyrano: Subverted. Mara tries to do this for Inanni--translating her nervous stammerings as gracious, regal conversation, and translating the king's grumpy, uninterested remarks as romantic compliments...but she forgets that the king is ''also'' a CunningLinguist and can speak the language.
* PluckyGirl: Mara, without a doubt.
* RegentForLife: How Hatshepsut assumed her power.
* RightfulKingReturns: Thutmose's assumption of the throne is portrayed this way.
* RichIdiotWithNoDayJob: ''Sheftu''
* SculleryMaid: Mara was this as a slave in Zasha's house.
* SecretRelationship: Mara and Sheftu's WillTheyOrWontThey and BelligerentSexualTension have to be kept secret during their cover lives as great lord and lowly interpretor who barely have an excuse to interact. [[EveryoneCanSeeIt Of course, people notice anyway]].
* ServileSnarker: Mara.
* SheIsTheKing: Hatshepshut, as in RealLife. It's even noted that she wears masculine attire and a false beard in court.
* ShowSomeLeg: Mara gets in and out of the palace by flirting with a young guard at a little-used gate.
* SpyCouple: Mara and Sheftu, essentially
* TheSpymaster: Sheftu for Thutmose, Nareth for Hatshepsut. [[DoubleAgent Mara works for both of them.]]
* StreetUrchin: Mara frequently resorts to stealing food on the streets when her masters starve her, and she longs for "gold and freedom" above all things.
* ThirdActMisunderstanding: Mara's double life breaks down, leading to Sheftu [[spoiler: nearly]] assasinating her to protect his identity.
* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Mara and Inanni for Thutmose.
* TrustPassword: Sheftu gives Nekonkh a Trust Password for Mara: "Tell her I have not forgotten what I said last night when I took her in my arms." Nekonkh is repulsed by Sheftu's cold-bloodedness, as he is to use the Trust Password as part of Mara's loyalty test.
* [[UnwantedSpouse Unwanted Fiancee]]: Inanni
* VillainousHarlequin: Sahure the juggler
* WarriorPrince: Thutmose
* WhatBeautifulEyes: Mara's blue eyes (extremely rare in Egypt) are considered this by Sheftu and a few others. The other main reaction is to see them as creepy.
* [[WhenSheSmiles When He Smiles]]: Sheftu. Another male character mentions that Sheftu is actually so plain as to be almost ugly, but his smile (along with his super-suaveness) prevents any woman from realizing this.
* TheWisePrince: Thutmose, if you substitute "melancholy" for "brooding"
* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask: Hatshepshut has shades of this, although she's portrayed as an antagonist.
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