A bold, atmospheric tale of murder set amid the ruins of a mystifying ancient civilization.
A swiftly paced, imaginative Egyptian murder mystery anchored by a randy band of tomb raiders.
Dedicated to “everyone who has ever been entranced, thrilled, and mesmerized by the glory, grandeur and mystery of ancient Egypt,” Michaelson’s (Romosa, 2013, etc.) thriller is set in Cairo’s sweeping Valley of the Kings, home to scores of pharaohs’ tombs. Professor Omar Sayeed, an esteemed archaeologist, leads an intrepid excavation troupe of Sorbonne University students into intricate, multichambered tomb “KV5.” This communal burial site, which supposedly holds the sarcophagus of the first son of Pharaoh Ramesses II, would bear proof of the presence of Hebrew slaves in Egypt, a fact validating Sayeed’s life’s work. The hefty importance of the dig isn’t lost on others who prefer to keep the site sacred, such as the cryptic cult Sons of Ramesses, who for centuries and with deadly force have been protecting the Ramissede dynasty burial grounds from desecration. Also challenging the professor’s work is Sayeed’s professional rival and archnemesis, Arthur Guttman. A hot lead redirects the exploration team elsewhere to excavated ancient ruins in Luxor, where six clay vases are unearthed containing papyrus scrolls scripted with curses on anyone who desecrates the tomb. With Guttman’s henchmen on his tail, Sayeed and his crew return to Cairo to continue the excavation of KV5, but death threats toss two unexpected characters into the fray: the professor’s daughter, Yasmin, and Dr. Parker Ashworth, a pathologist and fledgling archaeologist. Both ably sleuth through the suspense from Egypt to Paris and continue the good professor’s excavation spadework as danger lurks ever closer. Is Guttman capable of coldblooded murder, or has an ancient spectral curse been unleashed across the Cairo desert? Bringing the precious mythology of ancient Egypt into clear focus, Michaelson’s fascinating Egyptian lore adds an appealing narrative boost, while his deft characterizations further bolster the serpentine nature of this rousing mystery.
A bold, atmospheric tale of murder set amid the ruins of a mystifying ancient civilization.Pub Date: Nov. 21, 2013
ISBN: 978-1490974675
Page Count: 278
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.
Sisters work together to solve a child-abandonment case.
Ellie and Julia Cates have never been close. Julia is shy and brainy; Ellie gets by on charm and looks. Their differences must be tossed aside when a traumatized young girl wanders in from the forest into their hometown in Washington. The sisters’ professional skills are put to the test. Julia is a world-renowned child psychologist who has lost her edge. She is reeling from a case that went publicly sour. Though she was cleared of all wrongdoing, Julia’s name was tarnished, forcing her to shutter her Beverly Hills practice. Ellie Barton is the local police chief in Rain Valley, who’s never faced a tougher case. This is her chance to prove she is more than just a fading homecoming queen, but a scarcity of clues and a reluctant victim make locating the girl’s parents nearly impossible. Ellie places an SOS call to her sister; she needs an expert to rehabilitate this wild-child who has been living outside of civilization for years. Confronted with her professional demons, Julia once again has the opportunity to display her talents and salvage her reputation. Hannah (The Things We Do for Love, 2004, etc.) is at her best when writing from the girl’s perspective. The feral wolf-child keeps the reader interested long after the other, transparent characters have grown tiresome. Hannah’s torturously over-written romance passages are stale, but there are surprises in store as the sisters set about unearthing Alice’s past and creating a home for her.
Wacky plot keeps the pages turning and enduring schmaltzy romantic sequences.Pub Date: March 1, 2006
ISBN: 0-345-46752-3
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: June 24, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2005
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.
A violent surfacing of adolescence (which has little in common with Tarkington's earlier, broadly comic, Seventeen) has a compulsive impact.
"Nobody big except me" is the dream world of Holden Caulfield and his first person story is down to the basic, drab English of the pre-collegiate. For Holden is now being bounced from fancy prep, and, after a vicious evening with hall- and roommates, heads for New York to try to keep his latest failure from his parents. He tries to have a wild evening (all he does is pay the check), is terrorized by the hotel elevator man and his on-call whore, has a date with a girl he likes—and hates, sees his 10 year old sister, Phoebe. He also visits a sympathetic English teacher after trying on a drunken session, and when he keeps his date with Phoebe, who turns up with her suitcase to join him on his flight, he heads home to a hospital siege. This is tender and true, and impossible, in its picture of the old hells of young boys, the lonesomeness and tentative attempts to be mature and secure, the awful block between youth and being grown-up, the fright and sickness that humans and their behavior cause the challenging, the dramatization of the big bang. It is a sorry little worm's view of the off-beat of adult pressure, of contemporary strictures and conformity, of sentiment….
A strict report, worthy of sympathy.Pub Date: June 15, 1951
ISBN: 0316769177
Page Count: -
Publisher: Little, Brown
Review Posted Online: Nov. 2, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 1951
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
APPRECIATIONS
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