Book Review : City of The Dead by T. L. Higley

Product Details:

Genre: Historical Fiction

Publisher: B&H Books; First Edition first Printing edition (March 1, 2009)

Paperback: 400 pages

ISBN-10:0805447318
ISBN-13: 978-0805447316

Synopsis:
Up from the sands of Egypt rises the Great Pyramid, where Hemiunu, Pharaoh’s Grand Vizier, commands the historic building project as he orders his life—with justice, truth, and precision. But when a series of murders at the site threatens chaos, Hemi must abandon his legacy to hunt down the killer who may be closer than he would like to think. Can he restore justice to the city before his careful life and work are destroyed, or will a mysterious people and their strange God uncover the secret past that Hemi has tried to forget?

My Review:

I am truly fascinated by this book. City of the Dead, the second novel of the Seven Wonders Series by T. L. Higley brings us on a journey to the past to ancient Egypt, when The Great Pyramid of Giza (also called the Pyramid of Khufu and Pyramid of Cheops) is built.

The story is fast-paced and well-written. It captured my attention from the moment I set my eyes upon the first page of the book. I find myself completely immersed in the story when the murder cases occur one by one, with no witnesses and clues at all. Nothing except a golden mask laid on the face of each of the victims.

I like Neferet's character. She is kind and helpful, and has great faith in God. She even shows mercy to the killer. I think the killer is quite pathetic in some ways. The killer wants to avenge the death of a beloved one by blaming the deaths of Hemiunu’s friends on him. After the truth is revealed, the killer does something that you would never expect. The story is full of twists and turns, and there are a few everyone’s-a-murder-suspect situations. This time, I didn’t guess correctly the true identity of the person behind all the murder cases.

We can also read about Christianity in the few appearances of The People of The One in the novel. They support each other physically (food) and spiritually (caring words), and they are always willing to help their friend even if it will endanger their own lives.

Another thing I love about this novel is that the author uses flashback techniques to reveal more information of Hemiunu's childhood, little by little. A past that haunted him in his dreams... This contributes to the plot by telling the readers the killer's motive and it makes the story even more exciting and gripping!

City of The Dead is an engrossing novel full of suspense, intrigue, mystery, and a tinge of romance, combining accurate historical facts with an interesting storyline. I hope I can read all the novels in the Seven Wonders Series by T. L. Higley!

Rating : 9/10

I'd like to express my deepest gratitude to Tracy for sending me a paperback copy of City of The Dead! THANK YOU, TRACY!

{Tracy is offering some Egyptian souvenirs for one of my lucky readers! This contest is open to US/Canada residents only! Hint : Leave a comment on this review for 2 extra entries!}

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