Paneb the Ardent (The Stone of Light, Volume III)
Corrupt officials, vengeful Libyans, assassination attempts, threats of civil war and the contemplated separation of North and South American history? Not here. Welcome to the colorful, ancient world of Upper Egypt as depicted by Egyptologist Jacq in his second series to cover the sandy region, after his five-volume Ramses project. In this third installment in a projected four-volume set, he focuses on the strife between Seti II and his son Amenmessu as each sets himself up as pharaoh. Painted against a backdrop of power struggles, women who poison the water supply out of boredom, hot desert sex, herbal medicine and superstition, Jacq's tale involves a little-known art society: the Brotherhood, made up of craftsmen of the Place of Truth, who create the magnificent tombs of the pharaohs in the sacred Valley of the Kings. It is their mission to guard the precious Stone of Light, the invaluable tool that enables them to fashion items of incomparable beauty. There is a traitor in their midst, however. Will this traitor discover the hiding place of the Stone of Light, and will he somehow threaten all of the good work of the most superior craftsman of all, the eponymous Paneb? Readers of Jacq's previous series as well as those who are familiar with the earlier two in this one will undoubtedly find satisfaction in this offering. However, there is an important murder left unresolved at the end, which works fine as a cliffhanger for loyal readers, but not for those picking this up as a stand-alone item.Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.