Early History: Ancient Egypt, North Africa, and the Carthaginians

Historical Novels and Fantasies

• Gustave Flaubert -- Salambo; lush and exotic, a fascinating book about Hamilcar's Carthage:

  The Carthaginians of SALAMBO had to be savage and benighted barbarians, they had worshipped serpents, crucified lions, sacrificed their children to Moloch, trampled armies to death with elephants, but they had slaughtered, lusted, and agonized superbly. -- Edmund Wilson

  Flaubert's masterpiece, to my mind -- forget about Madame Bovary. But you should also check out "Herodias" in the Three Tales, which does a similar exotic job on Salome and John the Baptist. It is arguably one of the best short stories ever written (by a Frenchman, anyway); ranks up there with Faulkner's "Spotted Horses," set in a Mississippi that is just as bizarre in its way as Carthage or Judea.

Detective Stories Set in Egypt

• Agatha Christie -- Death Comes As the End; an experiment in historical detection for which you have to give her credit, but not altogether successful

• Lynda S. Robinson -- Lord Meren ('Eyes and Ears of the Pharaoh') in the court of Tutankhamun; start of a very nice series; well researched, even if the characters seem anachronistic in that they behave like Washington politicians at their worst, and there is a touch of Regency Romance in the style (actually, those nuances are what make these books fun).

  A List of the Books So Far:

  • Murder in the Place of Anubis: Introduces Lord Meren, Eyes and Ears of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen.
  • Murder at the God's Gate: His adventures continue; it becomes clearer that he his King Tut's chief spy/chief of police.
  • Murder at the Feast of Rejoicing: Beginning to get the drift of this series, which is to track down the murderers of Queen Nefertiti.
  • Eater of Souls: Best one so far -- a "Jack the Ripper" killer distracts Meren from his hunt for the real conspirators.

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