My guest today is award-winning author Judith Starkston, a
classicist who feeds her obsession with the Bronze Age world of the Greeks and
Hittites by writing historical fiction and fantasy. The first book of her
Hittite series, Priestess of Ishana, is
available FREE on Amazon Oct 2-6
in anticipation of the upcoming release of the second title in the series, Sorcery in Alpara.
From Judith:
I write historical fantasy based on the Bronze Age Hittites
(c. 1275 BCE)—an empire of the ancient Near East nearly buried by the sands of
time. In spite of the vivid glimpses of this lost kingdom brought to light by
recent archaeology and the decipherment and translation of many thousands of
clay tablets, there still remain vast gaps in historians’ knowledge. To be
honest about my imaginative filling of those gaps, my storytelling combines
fantasy and history.
For instance, I give my historical figures fictional names,
though often only minimally different from their real names. I also let the
magical religious beliefs of these historical people find full expression in
the action. My “quarter turn to the fantastic,” to borrow Guy Gavriel Kay’s
phrase, allows me to honor what we actually know while also owning up to my
inventive extensions. Allowing room for the fantastical elements suggested by
Hittite culture makes for the best storytelling.
The main character of my series, Tesha, is based directly on
the historical Hittite queen Puduhepa. I chose to name her Tesha after the
Hittite word for “dream” because Puduhepa was famous for visionary dreams sent by
her goddess. Part of the appeal of writing a series based on Puduhepa comes
from the model of female leadership she offers. She reigned for decades over
the most powerful empire in the world at that time.
The Hittite empire stretched across what is modern Turkey
and parts of Syria and down into Lebanon. It was thus close to Mesopotamia and
borrowed a great deal from that and other Near Eastern civilizations. Hittite
tradition about queenship, however, is distinctly different.
Hittite queens, unlike all the surrounding realms, held
independent office for life. When their husbands died, they continued to rule,
usually as co-rulers with their sons. The Hittite state allowed a full political
role for these women. At the same time, Puduhepa took this allowed role to an
active extreme not seen for other Hittite queens. Perhaps there were many other
politically energetic queens who are not noted in our scanty historical
accounts, but, interestingly and misogynistically, the other active queens we
read about are renowned for killing off female rivals by sorcery and scheming
to put their sons on the throne and negative acts like these. Puduhepa appears
to be an anomaly, despite the powers granted to women by Hittite tradition. However,
if there had not been this long tradition of respect for the role and status of
queen, Puduhepa’s unique personality would not have had room to express itself.
She enforced laws in her land to bring about fair justice,
even when she had to decide court cases in favor of foreign merchants against
her own citizens. She diplomatically corralled Pharaoh Rameses II into a peace
treaty that, frankly, she and her husband Hattusili needed more than Egypt did,
and she made it last. She held her power with her husband, but they shared
equal control, a reality demonstrated visually on the peace treaty drawn up
with Egypt. On one side of the version made of solid silver for public display,
Puduhepa pressed her seal. On the other side, her husband placed his. They did
have a joint seal they could have used, but on this most impressive
accomplishment, their independent seals appear. Her judicial decrees and
letters to world rulers frequently have only her name and seal on them—she
didn’t need her husband’s blessing to administer her authority.
Puduhepa’s international correspondence is extensive. In
comparison, we know of only two letters addressed to the Hittite court by
Puduhepa’s Egyptian contemporary, Ramses’ wife Naptera, and those letters
contain primarily polite greetings from one woman to another. Among Puduhepa’s
extant letters are diplomatic exchanges with the kings of Cyprus, Babylonia and
other countries. In one letter she grants lands to vassal kings under her sole
authority. The Hittite expression, equivalent to “Your Majesty” was “My Sun”
and it gets applied to both Puduhepa and Hattusili in the correspondence.
There was an exclusive group in the Late Bronze Age Near
Eastern world. Certain kings referred to each other as “brother,” but only the
kings of highest power: primarily Egypt, Babylonia and the Hittite Empire.
Later, when Assyria’s power was on the rise, an Assyrian king was begrudgingly
granted the right to use the term “brother” when addressing the Egyptian or
Hittite kings. So how did Ramesses II refer to Queen Puduhepa? As “sister.” He
didn’t give his own queens this high status.
Puduhepa ruled in a society that gave her legal rights to
her power, unlike the surrounding kingdoms of the ancient Near East, but she
also made more extensive use of those rights than any other Hittite queen. Part
of this arises from her brilliance and personality. Part also came from the
close partnership she shared with her husband. Their love for each other and
genuine trust seems to have granted her extraordinary talents the room to
flourish. Her accomplishments offer a worthwhile model for the modern world as
much as a window into the ancient one.
“What George
R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones did for the War of the Roses, Starkston has done
for the forgotten Bronze Age Hittite civilization. Mystery, romance, political
intrigue, and magic…”
-Amalia Carosella
A curse, a conspiracy and the clash of
kingdoms. A defiant priestess confronts her foes, armed only with ingenuity and
forbidden magic.
An award-winning epic fantasy, Priestess of Ishana draws on the
true-life of a remarkable but little-known Hittite queen who ruled over one of
history’s most powerful empires.
A malignant
curse from the Underworld threatens Tesha’s city with fiery devastation. The
young priestess of Ishana, goddess of love and war, must overcome this demonic
darkness. Charred remains of an enemy of the Hitolian Empire reveal both
treason and evil magic. Into this crisis, King Hattu, the younger brother of
the Great King, arrives to make offerings to the goddess Ishana, but he
conceals his true mission in the city. As a connection sparks between King
Hattu and Tesha, the Grand Votary accuses Hattu of murderous sorcery. Isolated
in prison and facing execution, Hattu’s only hope lies in Tesha to uncover the
conspiracy against him. Unfortunately, the Grand Votary is Tesha’s father, a
rash, unyielding man, and now her worst enemy. To help Hattu, she must risk
destroying her own father.
If you like a
rich mixture of murder mystery, imperial scheming, sorcery, love story, and
lavish world-building, then immerse yourself in this historical fantasy series.
See why readers call the Tesha series “fast-paced,” “psychologically riveting,”
and “not to be missed.”
A curse that consumes armies, a court full of traitors, a
clutch of angry concubines and fantastical creatures who offer help but hate
mankind.
Tesha’s about to become queen of a kingdom under assault
from all sides, but she has powerful allies: her strategist husband, his crafty
second-in-command, and her brilliant blind sister.
Then betrayal strips her of them all. To save her marriage
and her world, she will have to grapple with the serpentine plot against her
and unleash the goddess Ishana’s uncontrollable magic—without destroying
herself.
“Based on historical events in the Bronze Age, Starkston
wraps history and magic together in an unforgettable package.”
