Cleopatra

Cleopatra is often portrayed as a woman ruled by emotion rather than reason; a queen hurtling towards inevitable self-destruction. But these tales of seduction, intrigue, and suicide by asp have obfuscated Cleopatra's true political genius. Stripping away our preconceptions, many of them as old as Egypt's Roman conquerors, Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley offers a magnificent biography of a most extraordinary queen.--From publisher description.