An Egyptian Tale: Amulets of Princess Amun-Ra, by Veranice Berry, is a magical adventure through the palaces and streets of ancient Egypt. The gods and goddesses directly affect the lives of the humans.

Princess Izzi’s (Iz-eye-ruh, not Izzy) life is fascinating, a magical-realism trip through ancient Egyptian history. Her mother has a mystery illness that comes and goes with the Nile’s seasons. The royals live in a palace, surrounded by art of the gods and attended by servants. Izzi is the princess and future pharaoh, in the style of Hatshepsut, powerful women in the royal family can inherit the throne, even if Izzi must someday share it with her arranged future husband. But Izzi also has to deal with cliquish mean girls at school. (Fortunately, Izzi will gain better friendships over the course of the novel!)

In Amulets of Princess Amun-Ra, the gods take an active interest in human lives, but the gods aren’t always on the same side. These powerful, ancient deities have feuds and alliances.  It’s easy to imagine the animal-human creations in Egyptian art as the warring gods in this story. The titular bracelets are artifacts of extreme power, and the gods aren’t quite sure what happened to them and where they are. Supernatural powers and supernatural experiences are constantly part of this exciting adventure.

Without revealing too much about the twists and revelations of this adventure, Izzi’s story comes to connect with Neenhokano’s story. Neenho is a local boy just her age, an orphan, who lives a simple life with his aunt. He sees special visions, while he dreams of using his impressive speed and fast reflexes to join the army.  Like Izzi and her cliquish classmates, though, he also has to deal with bullies and jerks.  A nice touch of realism in this fantasy adventure.

This adventure leads Izzi, Neenho, and the others through a beautiful, magical ancient Egyptian world, with a story full of palace intrigue, supernatural drama, and moments of warm, realistic friendship. There’s often a feeling of suspense and danger in Amulets of Princess Amun-Ra, but fortunately our Izzi gains more friends and allies.  I started reading out of curiosity, wondering how the author would imagine and share a fantasy ancient Egypt, but soon I was pulled into the gods’ drama.

The ending is satisfying, but leaves plenty of questions open. There’s already a sequel by the same author,  which continues the story of our Izzi and Neenho in ancient Egypt.