Queen of Persia
is a loose adaptation of the Book of Esther by preciious-diamondz on Wattpad.
Hadassah of Susa is taken from her home so that the keeper of Xerxes's harem can find the latter a new queen. Adopting the name "Esther", she hides any evidence of her Jewish heritage. However, one of the king's ministers, Haman the Agagite, plans to eliminate Persian Jewry after Esther's uncle, Mordecai, refuses to bow to him.
Due to the nature of the story, all spoilers will be unmarked.
Tropes of Susa:
- Ambition Is Evil: Haman aspires to be revered by everyone in Persia as the king's most trusted minister.
- Assassination Attempt: Bigthana and Theresh make an attempt to poison Xerxes mid-story, thwarted by Mordecai and Esther's intervention.
- Choke Holds: When Haman's attempt at begging Esther for his life fails, he attempts to strangle her to death, and is promptly assumed to have been attempting to rape Esther.
- Deceased Parents Are the Best: Esther is an orphan, her parents having been killed when she was just a young girl, and Mordecai having subsequently raised her.
- Evil Chancellor: Haman is an ambitious, and vicious minister to king Xerxes.
- Evil Is Petty: Because Mordecai won't bow, Haman vindictively tries to arrange a genocide against the Jews.
- Final Solution: Haman plans to extinguish all of Persian Jewry because of one man who won't bow to him.
- Horrible Judge of Character: Xerxes initially convinces himself that Haman is a loyal minister, and that he is upstanding, and even takes his word regarding the elimination of the Jews. He is even initially unwilling to listen to Esther’s concerns about Haman's character.
- Impossibly Tacky Clothes: Xerxes rejects Josie of Cush due to her Gaudy outfit consisting of a large amount of jewelry, including a tiara, seeing it as disrespectful and an insult to his intelligence.
- Kneel Before Zod: Haman has other people bow before him on a regular basis. Mordecai's refusal to comply makes him and his people a target for destruction.
- Nice Girl: Esther makes a habit of being personable with all of the other candidates for queen, as well as the servants.
- Nice to the Waiter: Esther habitually treats the servants with dignity, in contrast to the other candidates who are condescending to the help.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: Xerxes posits that being a queen isn't all about sitting around and looking pretty.
- Refusal of the Call: Mordecai points out the flaws in Esther thinking that she will be safe from destruction if she doesn't use her position of power to do the right thing.
- You Can't Go Home Again: Regardless of whether she becomes a queen or a concubine, Hadassah comes to terms with the fact that she may never see her family again, and hopes to become queen so that she can at least see the man who raised her, her uncle Mordecai, a minister to the king, on occasion.
