Nefertiti: The Book of the Dead by Nick Drake

This week, rather than focusing on what a book group has been discussing, I wanted to recommend a book I have been reading myself. Since this book is by a debut fiction author, Nick Drake, I am hoping that I can steal a march on you and recommend a book you have not heard about. I think you should really try Nefertiti:the Book of the Dead. Though at times the plot gets a little confusing, I think you will put the book down well satisfied and looking forward to the next installment of the planned trilogy.

The story is set in ancient Egypt at the time of Akhenaten, the king who for political reasons dismantled the ancient structure of priests and gods and put in its place the worship of himself, as the incarnation of the one god, Aten, the sun disk. Our likeable hero, detective Rai Rahotep of the Egyptian secret police is summoned to Akhenaten, the new city built in the desert, to solve a mystery before the festival to celebrate the founding of the new regime. Should Rahotep fail he will be put to death, along with his young family. The mystery is the disappearance of Nefertiti, whose appearance at the festival is essential to Akhenaten to shore up his crumbling reign and equally crumbling city.

Nick Drake does an excellent job of describing the politics of the time, and also vividly depicts the palaces and streets of the city. The background details to me were one of the strengths of the book that kept me engaged. Even clothing and furniture is described, as well as the squalor of the ordinary people, who are not beneficaries of the new order as the rich are. The backstreets and the River Nile itself come into play a lot as Rahotep pursues suspects or is pursued himself. There is plenty of action and adventure in this book, together with some bloody and gruesome scenes of torture. Though there is a mystery to solve, this book is both longer and more complex than a traditional mystery. I think fans of Robert Harris’ Pompeii will enjoy this.

Things to think of as you read:
What does Drake have to say about love and family. Are there different kinds of love?
What are the motives of some of the great men described in the book? Are their characters well-developed? Are their motives believable?
Drake describes obsession and even madness. Is his depiction convincing?
One reviewer thought that the book had “a convincing aura of suspense.” Would you agree? What did you think of the scenes in the Otherworld?
What is the importance of the Nile and the Red Land?

Other authors of Egyptian mysteries:
Lynda Robinson
P. C. Doherty