Inez Olivera is the daughter of two archaeologists and yearns to go with them to Egypt and catalogue the ancient world. However, when tragedy strikes and her parents disappear, she escapes the confines of her life in Argentina to join her uncle’s expedition in Cairo. Inez is a gifted illustrator who can sense the magic hidden in artifacts, and once she discovers a golden ring that used to belong to a queen of Egypt, she begins her mission to discover the Queen’s lost tomb.

Ibañez’s story is set in 1880s Cairo, drawing on real historical fact to supplement the fantastical. As a result, Egypt is a truly magical setting, with gorgeous descriptions of food, nature, art and history. The magical element of the world-building feels a little underdeveloped by contrast, I thought it was going to make up a much bigger part of the story.

However, enchanted objects are still an interesting aspect of Inez’s mission, especially her ability to interact with ancient memories stored in the ring. Inez is the standout of the story; she was an absolutely breathtaking protagonist filled with determination and spark. A major theme of the book is the contemporary discrimination of being a woman interested in the masculine-dominated, colonial field of archaeology. But

Inez has a ‘won’t take no for an answer’ attitude and she never lets anyone tear her down. Some of the backlash against her comes from the secondary character Whitford Haynes, her uncle’s apprentice, and even if you can see their eventual ‘rivals-to-lovers’ dynamic from a mile away, their banter is still very entertaining.

What the River Knows is a fun YA read with a great plot and characters, and absolutely delivers on crafting a unique historical setting.

Reviewed by Rachel Denham-White
Age Guide 13+

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born and raised in Boca Raton to a pair of Bolivian immigrants, matured in Orlando and currently living my adult life in Maitland, Florida. I’m an avid movie goer, a giant word nerd, and talented in mispronouncing basic English words, which is just the beginning of my endearing quirks.

I love to doodle, cook, and read (sometimes a book a day—I know, I should really go outside more). I freely admit to loving the heck out of Young Adult literature (Potter!) and am a raving romantic sentimentalist—I adore Austen, James, Hardy and Wharton. I’m big on imagination, traveling, trivia about world history, and getting to the heart of the things. I have a profound fondness for all things Anthropologie.

Visit Isabel Ibañez’s website