by Wilbur Smith
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by Wilbur Smith
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by Wilbur Smith
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by Wilbur Smith
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by Wilbur Smith
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Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
A bestselling writer in England but not as yet well-known here, Smith ( Elephant Song ) may attract a wider audience with this compulsively readable historical novel based on the little-known facts behind the Hyksos invasion of Egypt, circa 1780 B.C. Containing all the standard elements of great adventure--intrigue, romance, greed, cruelty and furious action--the yarn is spun by the clever eunuch Taita, who reports on events with an irony akin to a 20th-century sensibility. Taita is the slave of Egypt's scheming Grand Vizier Lord Intef, whose daughter Lostris is in love with Tanus, a young army officer whose father's demise was brought about by Intef's greed. Knowing of his daughter's love, Intef devises a plan for her to become the bride of Pharaoh Mamose. These maneuvers set the stage for the story of two warring Nile kingdoms, the arrival of the Hyksos and the ultimate exodus of the Egyptian court, now ruled by Queen Lostris. Taita is a curious creation. We know that he is clever and wise, but we don't know how he became so learned or what his country of origin is. The brilliant slave invented a system for calculating the rise and ebb of the Nile, is extremely knowledgeable in the ways of healing, improves upon the wheel and trains horses (both of which were brought to Egypt by the invading Hyksos). He is also clever enough to manipulate the Pharaoh into believing that he is the father of Prince Regent Memnon, the offspring of a forbidden tryst between Lostris and Tanus. Somehow, this doesn't ring true. At times the prose is curiously flat and juvenile (it could be Everyday Life In Ancient Egypt), but the events covered in this narrative have enough intrinsic interest to sustain the reader through to the rewarding and satisfying conclusion. An author's afterword claims that this is a rewritten version of scrolls discovered in a tomb newly opened in 1988. 150,000 first printing; $150,000 ad/promo.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
Lostris, a new princess of ancient Egypt, is in love with the dashing army officer Tanus, whom she has known since childhood. But a nobleman who ruined Tanus's father and schemes to do the same to Tanus gets in the way. Determined to win Lostris and win revenge for his father, Tanus sets out with his army to rid the kingdom of the bandit clans that leech the wealth of the kingdom. The story is told from the perspective of Taita, a eunuch slave. Strutting about with all the substance of cardboard, the tale's comic book characters manage to have talents and characteristics that emerge just in the nick of time to move the story along. Narrator Dick Hill does his best to breathe some life into the story line. Quite often, Taita's narrative comes to a dead halt as he explains some fact or ritual that usually has little relevance to the action. Still, it is these compelling details of ancient Egyptian life that are the saving grace of the story. Despite its handicaps, River God moves along at a fair pace and should find an audience among fans of escapist novels. Recommended for large fiction collections.
Susan B. Lamphier, Somerville P.L., Mass.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
Susan B. Lamphier, Somerville P.L., Mass.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Audio Cassette edition.
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THE RIVER lay heavily upon the desert, bright as a spill of molten metal from a furnace. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
THE RIVER lay heavily upon the desert, bright as a spill of molten metal from a furnace. Read the first page
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