There are some great mysteries out there set in ancient Egypt such as Lynda S. Robinson’s excellent Lord Meren series, P. C. Doherty’s Amerotke and Lauren Haney’s Lieutenant Bak. All are amazing authors and I remain a loyal and devoted follower of them, but I was blown away by Nick Drake’s Nefertiti: The Book of the Dead, his debut mystery novel featuring detective Rahotep from Thebes.
Rahotep is summoned to the new capitol city being built by King Akhenaten and his wife-queen Nefertiti, whose beauty is still revered today even after many centuries. Nefertiti has disappeared and Rahotep’s unorthodox methods of investigation have earned him the assignment, chosen by the King himself to find her before the festival inauguration of the city mere days away.
He wonders why he was called from distant Thebes from his wife and three daughters, and over more senior Medjay officers. The Medjay are similar to today’s police forces. Even before he reaches the capitol city, an attempt is made on his life. Things deteriorate once he arrives. The chief of the Medjay, Mahu, takes an immediate dislike to him. Rahotep encounters obstacles at every turn and his life is threatened on a daily basis.
That was one of the least-liked parts of the book. For half of the novel, the guy didn’t seem to get a break. In a city where everyone wants to hear news of the queen, it seems nobody wants Rahotep to find her and they will keep him from his goal, no matter the cost.
However, the imagery Drake pours into the story is very vivid and gives a magnificent and unflattering view of life in ancient Egypt, where the poor are invisible and yet treated worse. Life under the desert sun is miserable except for those privileged enough to have gardens with trees for shade. Drake brings the culture, environment and the daily rigors of scraping out an existence to life for the reader.
Drake also writes candidly of the multitude of power struggles and corruption of greedy official whose only goal was to see how much money they could hoard, regardless of who was killed or how many. It shatters the images of glitz and glamour that are sometimes used to illustrate and romanticize the lives of kings, queens and their subjects. Ancient Egypt was a dangerous place to live, even for nobility.
Rahotep is almost cliché as the lowly detective being chosen for an impossible mystery on such a grand scale that is most certainly out of his league. But he quickly becomes a hero that the reader can understand, sympathize with and cheer for. Rahotep’s faithful and loyal assistant Khety is also a wonderful character for the reader to enjoy. Together, they make an interesting duo that persevere in their search for the truth against insurmountable odds.
Simply put, Drake’s Egyptian mystery Nefertiti: The Book of the Dead is an awesome read.
Rahotep is summoned to the new capitol city being built by King Akhenaten and his wife-queen Nefertiti, whose beauty is still revered today even after many centuries. Nefertiti has disappeared and Rahotep’s unorthodox methods of investigation have earned him the assignment, chosen by the King himself to find her before the festival inauguration of the city mere days away.
He wonders why he was called from distant Thebes from his wife and three daughters, and over more senior Medjay officers. The Medjay are similar to today’s police forces. Even before he reaches the capitol city, an attempt is made on his life. Things deteriorate once he arrives. The chief of the Medjay, Mahu, takes an immediate dislike to him. Rahotep encounters obstacles at every turn and his life is threatened on a daily basis.
That was one of the least-liked parts of the book. For half of the novel, the guy didn’t seem to get a break. In a city where everyone wants to hear news of the queen, it seems nobody wants Rahotep to find her and they will keep him from his goal, no matter the cost.
However, the imagery Drake pours into the story is very vivid and gives a magnificent and unflattering view of life in ancient Egypt, where the poor are invisible and yet treated worse. Life under the desert sun is miserable except for those privileged enough to have gardens with trees for shade. Drake brings the culture, environment and the daily rigors of scraping out an existence to life for the reader.
Drake also writes candidly of the multitude of power struggles and corruption of greedy official whose only goal was to see how much money they could hoard, regardless of who was killed or how many. It shatters the images of glitz and glamour that are sometimes used to illustrate and romanticize the lives of kings, queens and their subjects. Ancient Egypt was a dangerous place to live, even for nobility.
Rahotep is almost cliché as the lowly detective being chosen for an impossible mystery on such a grand scale that is most certainly out of his league. But he quickly becomes a hero that the reader can understand, sympathize with and cheer for. Rahotep’s faithful and loyal assistant Khety is also a wonderful character for the reader to enjoy. Together, they make an interesting duo that persevere in their search for the truth against insurmountable odds.
Simply put, Drake’s Egyptian mystery Nefertiti: The Book of the Dead is an awesome read.
1 comment:
wsxwhx706, my browser doesn't support Chinese characters, so maybe you can translate into English and resubmit your comment?
Thanks!
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