The Last Secret of the Temple - Softcover

Sussman, Paul

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0553814052 ISBN 13: 9780553814057

Publisher: Bantam Book, 2006

Synopsis

A pulse-pounding, roller coaster of an adventure.

When the body of hotel owner Jan Weiss is discovered at Malqata, an archeological site on the west bank of the Nile, it looks like a routine investigation for Inspector Yusuf Khalifa of the Luxor police. But the more the detective finds out about Weiss, the more he is reminded of the brutal killing of an Israeli woman at Karnak years ago -- a murder for which he has always suspected the wrong man had been convicted. Despite opposition from his superiors and his own misgivings about working with the Israelis, Khalifa re-opens the case and teams up with hard-nosed Jerusalem detective Arieh Ben Roi.

At the same time journalist Eva Town receives an anonymous letter at her Jerusalem home. It requests her help in contacting “Al-Mulassam” (“The Veiled One”), a Palestinian extremist leader she has recently interviewed; in return it offers her the scoop of a lifetime.

Against a backdrop of escalating violence between Israelis and Palestinians, Eva follows up the cryptic letter while Khalifa and Arieh slowly uncover the unpleasant truth about Jan Weiss. Their investigations intertwine as they all get further in to the web of duplicity and intrigue that has at its center an ancient artifact of such potent symbolism that it could plunge the Middle East into an all-out war.
From the Trade Paperback edition.

About this title

About the Author:

Paul Sussman’s two great passions are writing and archaeology. He fulfills the former by working as a freelance journalist and the latter by spending two months a year excavating in Egypt. His first novel was The Lost Army of Cambyses. He lives with his wife in London.
From the Trade Paperback edition.

Review:

"'The intelligent reader's answer to The Da Vinci Code: a big, fat satisfying archaeological puzzle'" * INDEPENDENT * "Not just a tightly-plotted, richly-observed, thought-provoking thriller, but one with a soul...The compelling mix of tough, page-turning suspense, archaeology, history and characters caught up in the brutal politics of the Middle East, make this a timely and authentic novel. Paul Sussman builds his story with the meticulous strokes of a craftsman...His storytelling comfortably blends historical mystery with unflinching contemporary suspense, all of it told through utterly convincing depictions of setting and character. Inspectors Khalifa and Ben-Roi are heroes of our age: conflicted, harassed, noble and, most crucially, very human. I hope we see more of them very soon." -- RAYMOND KHOURY, bestselling author of The Last Templar "Another sure fire winner from a gifted storyteller." -- STEVE BERRY, bestselling author of The Templar Legacy "Sussman's brilliant novel...shines a light into a bloody part of the world, where it is hard to tell enemy from friend, and where ancient debts of pain and murder echo to the present. Here is a thriller on a par with the best literature out there. Challenging, shocking, evocative...it should be required reading during these harsh times" -- JAMES ROLLINS, bestselling author of The Judas Strain "'Ambitious, large-scale adventure...Sussman's fastidious research into the novel's setting grants everything a plausibility...his millennia spanning plot functions as a colourful backdrop'" * GOOD BOOK GUIDE *

About this edition

• Publisher: Bantam Book
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0553814052
• ISBN 13: 9780553814057
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 720