Cities of the Dead

Rating:
Summary: Slow, creepy tale of Egyptian magic may try patience.
Review: Offering further proof that there are no narratively fast moving mummy stories, Cities of the Dead is a very methodically paced thriller that may frustrate those wanting a more vibrant horror spectacle. The patient reader may enjoy the loving attention to detail, the lush atmosphere, and that some chills are finally generated in the novel's latter half, thus fulfilling its promise in that department. Recommended to those who enjoy the tease more than the pay off.

Rating:
Summary: Michael -- What happened!
Review: Ok. I like this book, a lot. But it is very slow going -- like the others have said it contains a vast store of imagery and characterisation. This novella is for intelligent men/women with the patience and humility to soak up all the double meanings, sly moslem inferences and .. of course... the darling Maspero!

The plot is driving and evocative, although a little predictable. This man, Paine, is a very gifted author! I'm totally suprised this book has been allowed to slide from print. Although... given the nature of the composition/editing, it wouldn't suprise me if the publishers went bust. They clearly massacred Cities of the Dead.

I love to read works like this and would reccommend anyone let themselves be cast adrift in a time we all associate with conservatism, adventure and better manners! Still, it has a flaw which bumps it right off my top spot:

The end. Having ploughed through 200 pages of wonderfully scripted re-animation and some of the finest characters I have ever read -- Paine ends the tale with a rather wet (and briefer than a teenager's first time!) ending. Boom. The roof falls in. Dah. Dah.

Whaaaaat! I can't imagine Mr. Paine _ever_ intended that to be the end of this otherwise fantastic novel....

I'm very, very saddened that the author wasn't allowed to shape his work into a sound and satisfying climax.

None-the-less, thumbs up on this one!

Rating:
Summary: Good Fluff Horror for Egyptology Fans
Review: The book though slow in parts is still a favorite of mine as it stars as it's lead "detective" my favorite Egyptologist -- Howard Carter! So -- read the Carter's accounts of the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb in 1923 and then read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Good Fluff Horror for Egyptology Fans
Review: The book though slow in parts is still a favorite of mine as it stars as it's lead "detective" my favorite Egyptologist -- Howard Carter! So -- read the Carter's accounts of the discovery of Tutankhamen's tomb in 1923 and then read this book.