The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh by Carolyn Arnold - Book Review

Book: The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh

Author: Carolyn Arnold

Publication date: 17 April 2018

Genres: Historical fiction, mystery, adventure, action

"The fate of the world could be at stake."

"Not to make too dramatic a statement, but yes, it could be."

The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh by Carolyn Arnold is the second standalone instalment in the Matthew Conner Adventure series.

Archaeologist and adventurer Matthew Connor receives a phone call from friend and former lover, Alex, to join her on what could be the discovery of a lifetime in Egypt. Alex says that she may have uncovered a pharaoh's tomb AND the famed mythical Emerald Tablets.

Anyone who gets hold of the Emerald Tablets will acquire the secrets of the universe along with major wealth and power, so the myth goes. However, if they fall into the wrong hands, well the world as we know it would be in great peril.

Thrill-seeker Matthew Conner, who is renowned for uncovering or rather debunking historical myths, travels to Egypt with his friends Robyn and Cal. There they meet Alex and her team, who have discovered a possible map that should lead them to the lost pharaoh's tomb and the tablets.

"The perspiration on [Robyn's] brow nearly chilled into a sheet of ice. She had a bad feeling about this, but if she let her body go still to inspect what was going on, her panic would cause her to sink."

The lost pharaoh is believed to be son of Khufu, and I must applaud Arnold for the massive research she has done and put into the novel, making it realistic and plausible. There are a lot of historical tidbits in the book, which prompted me to do my own research after I finished reading.

One of the things I loved about The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh is that Arnold does not depict Egyptians as backward people on camels as most "Mummy" and Hollywood movies do. The book is set in modern day Egypt, after 2011.

Although the prologue is the first step of the discovery of what could be the lost pharaoh, the actual visit does not take place until a few chapters later.

"The terrain was sand, but it wasn't without its beauty. The sunlight refracted off the surface, making it look like a sea of diamonds."

The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh is rich in characters, good, evil, and in-between. One of those memorable and sometimes humourous in a matter-of-fact way was Jasper, the one they called The Snake Whisperer because of his ability to deal with snakes. He could also decipher hieroglyphics.

A big chunk of the book handles character relationships, including the aftermaths of the events that took place in book 1, The City of Gold, and how it affected the group, straining certain emotions and making for added tension. Cal is the most impacted by the previous adventure as his fiancé was kidnapped – and nearly raped – and their lives were on the line. Having said that, I must stress that The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh can be read as a standalone. I hadn't read book 1 and didn't feel I was lost at any point while reading.

There is a lot of introspection, especially as Cal struggles with the opportunity to join Matthew on his adventure to Egypt, while at the same time maintain his relationship with his fiancé.

"If he went away with Matthew, he could probably kiss Sophie's smile goodbye. But was he truly prepared to give up these adventures altogether?"

We also get a lot about the Robyn-Matthew relationship and as the novel progresses the Matthew-Alex relationship.

In addition, to the strained emotions between Cal and his fiancé, and Robyn struggling with the Alex-and-Matthew connection, anger surfaces between Alex and her team. So there is a lot of emotional play throughout the book.

Although narrated in the third person, there are several points of view in the novel, but it is clear who is thinking: Robyn, Matthew, Cal, or Alex. Each view point comes with its emotions and highlights certain ideas and aspects of the adventure.

Character development is evident for the main characters, and I can guess that as the series progresses, they will continue to grow and learn more about themselves.

I like how Carolyn Arnold sneaks in humor whenever possible. Cal is fairly superstitious and is hilarious to say the least; he's also very down-to-earth and makes for great relief, despite his internal struggle, during the course of the novel.

"The wall says our pharaoh was assassinated and his name was stripped from him. It goes on to say that his spirit would be at unrest for eternity."

As an Egyptian, I'm proud to say that The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh is a well-written must-read centred around my country, which is depicted in a positive way. The book kept me on edge all the way.

Overall, The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh is an action-packed exciting adventure set in modern day Egypt with lots of history, laughs, and a mystery or two.

Nadaness In Motion has reviewed other books by Carolyn Arnold from the McKinley Mystery series. Check out Coffee Is Murder (with an excerpt), Halloween Is Murder and Money Is Murder.

As for Arnold's psychological thriller books, check out On the Count of Three (Book 7 in the Brandon Fischer series), Past Deeds, and What We Bury (Book 10 in The Detective Madison Knight Mystery Series)

Note: I received an Advanced Reader's Copy of The Secret of the Lost Pharaoh by Carolyn Arnold in exchange for an honest review. 

About Carolyn Arnold

CAROLYN ARNOLD is an international bestselling and award-winning author, as well as a speaker, teacher, and inspirational mentor. She has four continuing fiction series—Detective Madison Knight, Brandon Fisher FBI, McKinley Mysteries, and Matthew Connor Adventures—and has written nearly thirty books. Her genre diversity offers her readers everything from cozy to hard-boiled mysteries, and thrillers to action adventures.

Both her female detective and FBI profiler series have been praised by those in law enforcement as being accurate and entertaining, leading her to adopt the trademark: POLICE PROCEDURALS RESPECTED BY LAW ENFORCEMENT™.

Carolyn was born in a small town and enjoys spending time outdoors, but she also loves the lights of a big city. Grounded by her roots and lifted by her dreams, her overactive imagination insists that she tell her stories. Her intention is to touch the hearts of millions with her books, to entertain, inspire, and empower.

She currently lives just west of Toronto with her husband and beagle and is a member of Crime Writers of Canada and Sisters in Crime.

Connect with Carolyn Arnold via her Website, Twitter, Facebook, and Newsletter. 

Sunken City

With no cloud in sight, the sun shone bright, its rays penetrating the crystal blue water of the Mediterranean Sea.

Ela sprung from the water, catching the early warmth on her bare skin; the sea spread before her without a soul in sight. She inhaled the morning air and dived again, for a new day meant new places to be and new sites to see. She glided on the water heading straight to what her friends called The Sunken City.

As soon as her eyes caught glimpses of it, she realised her friends had every reason to gloat for it was beyond anything she had ever seen with huge red-rock statues of men in ancient garb and women carved from black stone; she remembered her father telling her tales of a mighty people who lived here centuries ago; they were called Pharaohs.

These images are taken from The Daily Mail's article on the discovery of the Sunken City of "Heracleion" near Alexandria, Egypt. The first is of the god Hapi and the second is of Isis.

This is my entry for this week's five-sentence fiction prompt: RUINS, hosted by Lillie McFerrin, who was kind enough to host my prompt this week.

Comments are highly appreciated.

2014 Egypt Reading Challenge

After seeing several annual book-reading challenges and joining two myself, I decided to start one with the theme being books set in my home country EGYPT. 

The aim of this challenge is simple: remembering the ancient civilisation that started on this land thousands of years ago, seeing its development, its tumultuous history and modern-day Egypt. In otherwords, bringing the spotlight on a country rich with history and potential.

The challenge rules are simple:

·        Books must have a setting in EGYPT.

·        Books can be in ANY language. (since several of the ones I’m reading will be in Arabic)

·   Books can be in ANY format (e-books, paperback, audio; you name it, it counts)

·        Short story collections are fine. Anything that counts as a book.

·        Books can be written by Egyptians or non-Egyptians.

·        Books about Ancient Egypt are of course welcome and encouraged. (These include non-fiction as well)

·   Books for this challenge can be included in any other challenge participants are taking part in.

**NOTE: Books read on/from 1st of January 2014 with the challenge setting can be included in your list. 

To join the challenge, please create a blog post with the challenge logo and add it via the InLinkz button below with your name and the name of your blog. For example: Nada @ Nadaness In Motion. If you don't have a blog, put your Twitter URL in the URL section when you sign up.
If you don’t have a blog, just post your name and Twitter handle here (and revert back to this page every month or so with your reading progress).  

I have two beautiful challenge logos for you so feel free to pick one or both in your sign up post.

Created by Sara Ahmed

Created by Sara Ahmed 

At the end of each month or quarter if you prefer, I’d like you to post the books you’ve read for this challenge. It might help give the others some ideas about what else they might like to read. At the end of the year, let’s see how many books you had planned to read and how many you’ve actually read. You don’t have to decide now on the number of books or level.

We can discuss books in common here on my blog or on Goodreads.

I will – ask my friends to – create badges for each set of achievements.

Craftsman/Craftswoman 1-5 books

Scribe 6-10 books

Priest/Priestess 11-15 books

Vizier 16-20 books

King/Queen of Egypt 21+ books

If you’ve written books about Egypt, please e-mail me or post them below.

Some suggested titles:

English Books:

·        Any books by Naguib Mahfouz (as most if not all of them are set in Egypt)

·        Before the Throne by Naguib Mahfouz (it’s a novella)

·        Shiri by D.S. Taylor*

·        Tutankhamun Speaks by Cheryl Carpinello

·        The Scribe and the Lotus by Bakr Fahmy*

·        ¼ Gram by Essam Youssef (trans. Loubna Youssef)

·        Murder on the Nile by Agatha Christie

·        Storm Cycles by Roy Johanson

Arabic Books: (Just a few examples since the list is endless)

·        أي كتب لنجيب محفوظ (أمام العرش/يوم قُتل الزعيم/ثرثرة فوق النيل/ثلاثية نجيب محفوظ)

·        ¼ جرام – عصام يوسف

·        2 ضباط – عصام يوسف

·        شكلها باظت – عُمر طاهر

·        تاكسي – خالد الخميسي

·        الفيل الأزرق – أحمد مراد

·       تراب الألماس – أحمد مراد

·       Cilantro اسكندرية – كريم هشام

·       مكان (18 قصة قصيرة)

·        

.Feel free to add me on Goodreads.
Note: Books with an asterisk (*) have been reviewed on this blog.

Ask your questions or leave your comments and suggestions here.

Shiri - Book Review

Shiri by D.S. Taylor begins unlike any other novel, especially the way it opens; “She was born a woman, and her father had yet to forgive her for that.” (p. 6). The protagonist Shiri is a 15 year-old girl who lives with her parents in the small town of Yaham, in Palestine. The Shepherd King sends his soldiers to recruit men from towns and villages to fight the Pharoah Tuthmosis.

Ethan, a friend of Shiri’s, tells her that Princes wear gold. Accordingly, one of the significant images in the first part of the novel is related to gold and how it contrasts between characters and their personalities. When Shiri sees Prince Amenhotep for the first time, “[her] eyes widened as a chariot gilded in a strange yellow metal that seemed to shine like the sun pulled up before them. Gold … the chariot is covered in gold” and “Astride the chariot like some hero of old stood a warrior trimmed in gold.” Shiri later realises that this so-called Prince is “no hero; no prince come to save the day. This was a demon, a monster wreathed in cold, unfeeling gold.”

I loved these images and how one of the most precious metals is depicted as harsh, “cold and unfeeling”.

I liked how the author showed Shiri’s childish infatuation with Joseph; Taylor conveys the struggle in a teenager’s heart very well.

The most important theme in the novel is that of sacrifice and ironically the one who sacrifices the most is Shiri herself, the young shepherd girl from a small and distant town. One would think that the one with the most to sacrifice would be Joseph since he seeks to avenge the death of his father and the abduction, rape and murder of his mother; but in truth it is Shiri who sacrifices the most for everyone. And worst of all, her sacrifices go unnoticed until the end.

Other themes include love, betrayal, slavery, abuse, the master-slave relationship, and immorality, especially that of the temple priests.

I also loved the contrast in personalities; Shiri is a 15 year-old peasant girl and yet she has a stronger character than the Shepherd Prince himself and not just on one occasion but throughout the novel. She is intelligent, strong-willed, voices her opinions and is never afraid to fight back – unless it will hurt someone she loves. In fact, her ability to speak broken Egyptian impresses Joseph. “He raised an eyebrow clearly impressed; few amongst the peasant folk could speak so much as a word of any tongue but their own.” (p. 82)

We see Shiri’s character develop and age through the troublesome experiences she undergoes. She is wise beyond her years and gains more wisdom as the novel unfolds and as she moves from orphaned shepherd girl to slave to mother. She progresses, handling every stage in her life and every hurdle thrown at her all the while bearing a specific cause in mind. She is strongly contrasted to Joseph, the Shepherd Prince.

The novel contains a lot of abuse both verbal and physical, while some of it bothered me a bit, and only because I wasn’t expecting it, I would still recommend that the novel be read by adults over 18 or better over 21.

The most amusing character for me in Shiri is Solon, the old weapons-maker for the Godking Tuthmosis. Solon is like the court jester in medieval plays; he is honest, wise, sarcastic and funny. He makes for excellent humour and comic relief in the novel.

The novel moves at a quick and enjoyable pace. It is quit hard to put Shiri down and when it ends, the reader cannot believe it. I couldn’t imagine waking up the following morning and not seeing what Shiri will do next!

A 4.5-star rating is in order J

Find D.S. Taylor on Twitter: @DSTaylor1 and Goodreads. 

The Scribe and the Lotus

The Scribe and the Lotus by Bakr Fahmy is a historical fiction novel set in ancient in Egypt in the years 2169 – 2167 BC. The main character is a Scribe called Thut-Nefer, who constantly attempts to become one with or achieve his Maat, which “creating truth and upholding the balance”. In other words, he strives for justice and its application.

The story tackles ancient Egypt where King Ibi and his governors wreak of corruption, greed and injustice, where poverty is prevalent and where the people hope that justice would be served one day; “Corruption is eating at us, from the inside out.” (p. 35)

The pace of The Scribe and the Lotus is slow, as it mostly deals with Thut-Nefer’s reflections, thoughts and philosophy concerning the ancient texts he has memorized. The blue lotus flower is a dominant theme throughout the novel and it always appears as a source of relaxation, meditation and revelation. It has a strong effect on Thut-Nefer and allows him to transcend the boundaries of human life. The novel mixes philosophy with politics and modern-day problems.

There are several instances of rise in tension such as the disappearance of Nar, Thut-Nefer’s friend, and the appearance of the jackal but these instances only act as a means to push the novel forward.

The novel is filled with beautiful imagery – many of which are associated with the blue lotus flower. Amongst these images are “The scribe’s mind is as sharp as the ibis’s beak and can draw blood, especially when it’s being provoked.” (p. 15); “That girl has a special magic about her. It must be from her perpetual contact with the lotus, as if the plant entwines itself around her body and soul, creating a unison of the seen and the unseen, finally blossoming into one singularly beautiful flower… When I stare into this blue lotus blossom’s brilliance, my eyes become imbued with her very essence, her light. When I breathe in her sacred fragrance, my nostrils dilate as if I’m standing at the Other World’s garden gate.” (p. 63).

One of the significant images in the novel is “The rat has begotten a ferocious appetite, just like the crocodile, and the crocodile has become filthy, just like the rat” (p. 32 and 33). This comparison between the rat and crocodile is both interesting and significant. Thut-Nefer applies it to humans and the political image reveals how the greedy have become corrupt and how the evil or the corrupt have become greedy; there is a mixing of evils.

The Scribe and the Lotus is not an average novel for it is very philosophical and contains many references to texts written in ancient Egypt. Bakr Fahmy relies on these texts and quotes several throughout his novel, giving it a heavy weight in the historical fiction genre.

It is not an easy or light read and I personally felt that there was extensive use of verbose language, which did not appeal to me, but in some instances, it fitted the text since the main character is a Scribe in the Holy City of Men-Nefer. The story is written in the third person but using the present tense, which was rather undigestable to me at first and which took me a very long time to get used to.

It is quite obvious that the author, Bakr Fahmy, has done extensive research to write and compile such a heavy-weighted novel. He must be lauded and applauded for that. The novel is set in ancient Egypt so the language has an archaeological and ancient nature to it. The use of references and quotes, gives credibility to the historical side of the story. The author has also made many good choices with his selection of ancient Egyptian texts and references.

There were some spelling inconsistencies in the novel such as the spelling of Sakkara and Saqqara; also, the reference to the doctor or physician as “Swnw” and later as “Swnswn”. This annoyed and confused me a fair bit.

Though the final chapter in The Scribe and the Lotus is the shortest chapter in the entire novel, it is also the perfect conclusion to such a piece as it links the present with the future. In many instances, the reader, and particularly an Egyptian or Arab reader, feels that what is to come is similar to the recent Egyptian Revolution that took place in January 2011.

Though it is not a light read, The Scribe and the Lotus is an interesting novel that mixes philosophy with modern day ailments and problems. It is a novel that distinguishes itself in the historical fiction genre.

Overall rating: 4/5 stars.

Check out Bakr Fahmy’s website here. 

Like his page on Facebook here. 

Follow Bakr Fahmy on Twitter here.

Buy his book here.