Scales of Honesty (The Egyptian Empire)
by Laura Greenwood
My Rating: 4 stars
Genre: Alternate History Urban Fantasy/ Mythology/ Paranormal Romance
Age Category: New Adult
Type of romance: m/f
Blurb:
Being a priestess for the goddess of truth and justice is not for the faint-hearted.Taia always thought she and fellow Ma’at Blessed priest, Metjen, were inseparable. When he starts avoiding her, she questions whether their bond is as strong as she thought it was.
A big festival to celebrate the temples in London comes with a test of Taia’s devotion and the goddess of truth and justice is not one to displease.
Can Taia and Metjen figure out what’s causing the problems between them before they risk losing the blessing of their goddess?
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Scales of Honesty is a standalone set in the Egyptian Empire series. It is an urban fantasy set in an alternative version of London where the Egyptian Empire never fell.
If you love Egyptian mythology, alternative worlds, temple politics, and workplace romances, you should start The Egyptian Empire world books today!
My Review
I received a free copy from the author and voluntarily reviewed it.
I had just started this book when the author released an expanded version of it, so I accepted the review copy for that and switched to the expanded version. I had only read a few chapters of the first version so far and it was fun to see the expanded version had more scenes there and showed more insight in what the Ma’at Blessed do in the temple as well as expanding upon Taia and Metjen’s relationship, so I am definitely glad I read the expanded version instead.
In preparation for starting the Scales of Justice series I wanted to read the two companion stories set in this world. The Apprentice of Anubis series sadly wasn’t for me as I couldn’t stomach al the stuff about embalming and such, but I loved the idea of this world where the Egyptian Empire never fell and I am excited to be able to read some of the stories set in it now as well as the Scales of Justice series.
Scales of Honesty has an appearance of Ani the main character of the Anubis series, but I found it was still easy to enjoy it without knowing all the details, although it was clear there was more to Ani’s story then there is here. And I feel it works well to make you curious about that series, but not feel too lost when reading Scales of Honesty first.
Okay back to the actual book. I really enjoyed this one. It was so fun reading about Taia and seeing what her life as a Ma’at Blessed is like. She can tell when someone’s lying or tells the truth and this can be tough to deal with at times, not only is it hard for her to make friends, but she can also tell when her Blessed partner Metjen lies to her one day. I liked reading about Taia and learning about who she was. I liked her sense of justice and dedication to Ma’at, but it’s also clear her Blessed sense can be difficult to deal with at times. I thougyt she was a likable main character and I liked seeing her interact with Metjen as well as become friends with Ani.
The romance is very sweet and I liked seeing Metjen and Taia figure things out and see the beginnings of their romance. This is a friends to lovers romance and I liked how clear it was they already knew and cared about the other a lot before it turned into romance. I thought they made for a great couple. I liked the dynamic between Metjen and Taia and also seeing how they complemented each other in their daily life as well as work.
The world building is so interesting with the Egyptian Empire never falling and there being all these temples for Egyptian gods now in London and how it works with people getting selected as Blessed, I also liked learning about the two different types of Ma’at Blessed and their different powers. The world building is all very interesting and I can’t wait to read more about this world.
To summarize: I got the expanded version of this story that released in 2025 and I really enjoyed reading it. I liked Taia and seeing her romance with Metjen develop. The story and world building is very interesting, there’s a lot about what it’s like being a Ma’at Blessed and the two different types of Ma’at Blessed and how they work together as partners. I liked seeing Taia and Metjen work together and complement each other in their daily lives as well as work. There is a cameo appearance of Ani from the Anubis series, which I haven’t read. I thought it worked well and made me curious, but not feeling too lost. I look forward to reading the other companion story and then starting the Scales of Justice series.
Now, that would be a fascinating world if Egyptian Empire never fell, but spread. Good timing that you were able to get the expanded version before you got very far into the story.
I thought the concept and world building of this series with the Egyptian empire not falling was very interesting. I was so happy with the timing and could read the expanded version before I got too far into it. I already saw some changes and additional scenes in the part I read, so definitely nice she made an expanded version.
This sounds unique. I know how much you enjoy this author.
It sure was unique. I really like this author’s books, she has so many great series.
Interesting premise! I’ve always been fascinated by Egyptian stuff, so it might be a fun read for me as well. Thanks for sharing this one!
https://lisalovesliterature.bookblog.io/2025/06/16/e-galley-review-look-before-you-leap-miss-prentices-protegees-2-by-virginia-heath/
I never really had an interest in Egyptian stuff, but I still really enjoyed this one. So if you already like Egyptian stuff I can see how that might be even more fun. I can definitely recommend the series set in this world.