THE ANCIENT PROPHECY

A curse spans four millennia in this debut novel–the first of a series–about Egyptians, modern archeologists and the pyramids.

The Ancient Prophecy opens in Giza, Egypt, just as the builders of the Great Pyramid fit the last stones in place. As the ceremony celebrating the completed accomplishment takes place, an unearthly whisper summons a group of priests to a chamber deep inside the monumental structure. There an awful figure hands each of them a necklace decorated with a star, one for each pantheon of major Egyptian gods. All except one who had received the totem of Seth, the god of evil, are then released to make their way to the outside world. The narrative next jumps forward approximately 4,000 years to contemporary times. This section, comprising the bulk of the book, begins as a family of archeologists experiences a fateful–and, to two of them, fatal–encounter while exploring the pyramids. The sole survivor, a young girl, finds herself in possession of a golden necklace, the last thing given to her by her deceased parents. The necklace, along with the girl’s desire to explore her puzzling past, provides the centerpiece around which the balance of the action revolves. It’s a head-spinning adventure, with glowing-eyed spooks summoned regularly from within black clouds and scary voices echoing at every turn. Despite the author’s often-quirky diction and occasional abrupt switches in verb tense, the plot pulls the reader smoothly through the action, and the scenes from ancient Egypt have the feel of an authentic fable. The youthful heroine who serves as the book’s central character displays admirable courage as she pursues the fateful truth, dogged by the archaic curse.

While the writing is in need of polish, the book remains an Egypt tale well worth reading and the series shows potential.