Product Description

Lord Amerotke, Pharaoh’s Chief Judge, is already in the middle of a murder case when it seems that there is another grave murder to investigate. One of Egypt’s great heroes has been brutally killed and Pharaoh Hatusu herself has decided to intervene. She believes that General Balet’s murder is only the beginning and she calls on Judge Amerotke for help. There is more to link the deaths than originally meets the eye - but can Amerotke track down the killer before he strikes again?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #95513 in Books
• Published on: 2002-04-01
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

About the Author
Paul Doherty was born in Middlesbrough. He studied History at Liverpool and Oxford Universities and obtained a doctorate for his thesis on Edward II and Queen Isabella. He is now headmaster of a school in north-east London and lives with his family in Essex.

Customer Reviews

He's done it again! Another brilliant read from Paul Doherty
For all those who don't know the author yet: Doherty writes about murder mysteries in ancient and medieval times. This is a book from his series set in ancient Egypt. He truly excells, not only in writing intriguing murder mysteries set in ancient times, but also in bringing the culture and its people closer to you. He has a veritable knack for making you feel part of that civilisation, as if you were Doherty's star-sleuth Amerotke, Pharao's Chief Judge yourself, piecing together all the clues and finally revealing the killer.

In this book, Amerotke is faced with the murder of a young, handsome scribe when a second murder is committed. A veteran war hero, member of the much revered Slayers of Seth is found killed. Amerotke discovers that the deaths are linked and sets out to find the killer as soon as possible.

Doherty's eye for detail gives an incredible insight into the lives of the ancient Egyptians and tastefully describes the emotions and daily life of characters in every caste. His characters are very lifelike and the recurring characters such as Amerotke and his servant Shufoy feel like old friends to me already. If you are interested in ancient Egypt and if you like murder mysteries, you should definitely read the Slayers Of Seth. The Mask of Ra, The Horus Killings and The Anubis Slayings are also page turners and definite must reads!

Enough said, I hope I've intrigued you enough to buy this brilliant book :-)

Not bad at all...
Paul Docherty is an author whom I find to be rather hit and miss. His books set in Canterbury are, frankly, dull. His books set in Egypt are astounding. What is particularly gratifying is that Docherty's knowledge of Ancient Egyptian mythology, beliefs, customs and practices is amazingly accurate. He also bases his stories around actual people, such as the Pharoh Dynasty the stories are set under. The central characters are the Pharoh Queen Hatusu and, as ever, Amerotke, Chief Judge in the Hall of Two Truths.

This story is based around the question of gender...can a woman really occupy the Throne of the Pharoh? Can a mere woman really be permitted to rule the land and people of the Nine Bows? Should not a man, her son, who while he is only five, wear the crown? Somebody thinks he should, and Hatusu shouldn't, because those who discover proof that she can are murdered one by one.

The plot is intriguing and the characters colorful, distinct and believable. On the down side, Dochertys' books do have a "samey" feel to them....there's a plot and murder, Amerotke investigates, is nearly killed himself and eventually unmasks the real culprit. However with a different storyline each time, there is enough difference to keep reading and keep you from guessing the end, too.

Recommended to those who are interested in life in Ancient Egypt, and don't mind a whodoneit thrown into the bargain. I certainly don't mind!

Murder in the first degree
In the past few months, I have read all of the previous books in this Egyptian series by Paul Doherty and this new release came just at the right time.

It takes the well established characters from the previous books through another ever rising list of gruesome murders, with Lord Amerotke, the egyptian style detective of these plots bringing logic to the chaos and confusion reigning all around him.

Again, as with all these books, I was drawn further and further into the story with every page. Indeed, when reaching the end, putting the book down was nearly unbearable.

However, whilst this book gave me the intrigue of past tales in the series, it did little further for the character development of our now recognised heroes, something which - if put right - could only enhance future editions of this series.