Egypt

Starred review from September 5, 2011
British author Drake’s dramatic finish to his trilogy set in ancient Egypt is every bit the equal of its standout predecessors, Nefertiti and Tutankhamun. The 18th dynasty remains in jeopardy as the head of Egypt’s armies, General Horemheb, poses a threat to Tutankhamun’s widow, Ankhesenamun, who has limited political support. In a desperate gambit, the young Egyptian queen dispatches Rahotep, a police detective once known as “the best Seeker of Mysteries” in Thebes, to the land of the Hittites, the country’s bitterest enemies, to persuade their ruler to marry one of his sons to her. To make the hazardous journey, Rahotep must break a promise to his family and set aside a search for a killer “strangely skilled at beheading teenage Nubian boys.” Everything works, from the dogged but flawed hero to the seamless melding of the murder inquiry with the larger political intrigue.

February 1, 2012
Ancient Egypt's chief detective undertakes a secret mission away from home just as the government at Thebes is inconveniently in turmoil. A disturbing tide of violence in Thebes leaves chief detective Rahotep, who narrates in crisp first person, a bit disillusioned. The murder and decapitation of several Nubian boys have given him a severe case of insomnia. Rahotep also works occasionally as a bodyguard for his wealthy friend Nakht, who fails to lift him from his dark mood. Things go from bad to worse with the abrupt death of the young Pharaoh, King Tutankhamun. In her struggle to hold her newfound power, his widow, Queen Ankhesenamun, reminds Rahotep of his close bond with her mother and his promise of protection. She sends him on a secret mission north with Nakht to persuade Suppiluliuma, the King of the Hitties, to sanction the marriage of one of his sons to the Egyptian Queen. Rahotep's daughters entreat him not to go, and with reason. The arduous trip involves nearly two weeks of daily northward travel. His adventure leads to the murder of one of his friends, who is a member of his caravan and, as the result of a papyrus left in the victim's mouth, the discovery of a dangerous opium ring. Maps, a cast list and quotations from The Book of the Dead are welcome accouterments to Drake's third Rahotep mystery (Tutankhamun: The Book of Shadows, 2010, etc.). It moves a bit slowly into the realm of mystery but offers a consistently fascinating and believable portrait of ancient Egypt.

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Starred review from November 15, 2011
Well, this is hardly cause for celebration. Not because the book is badfar from it; it's greatbut because it's the final volume in Drake's magnificent trilogy of ancient Egyptian mysteries starring Rahotep, a detective in the Thebes police force. Having already worked cases involving Nefertiti and Tutankhamun, Rahotep should be accustomed to dealing with the royal family, but when Tutankhamun's widow, Ankhesenamun, enlists the detective's assistance in a daring plan to keep the dynasty from crumbling (the plan involves a political arrangement with the Hittites, the major enemies of Egypt), Rahotep has a very bad feeling. He's also seriously distracted. His ex-partner, Khety, has been murdered and the body methodically disassembled, mostly while the man was still alive, by the soldiers of a new drug cartel operating in Thebes. There are a lot of thrillers set in ancient Egypt, but here's what sets Drake's trilogy apart: each volume sounds like it was written at the time it's set, during the eighteenth dynasty, about 3,300 years ago, and then translated into modern English. This book is full of noirish phrasings, modern-day slang, and characters who might feel right at home in a contemporary mystery novel. Some might accuse Drake of anachronistic prose, but many will find genius in his words. Like the best adapters of Shakespeare, he makes it work. This much can be stated with assurance: this novel will be a huge hit with fans of the series, of Egypt-themed mysteries, of period mysteries, of modern-day thrillers, andwhat the heckanyone not included in those groups. The only downside is that, if Drake sticks to his guns, this will be the final Rahotep mystery. A shame, that.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)