A cruise down the Nile, a camel ride around the pyramids, lunch in the shadow of the Sphinx… And a very dead body!
1924. Lady Eleanor Swift and her butler Clifford are touring the great, ancient sights of Egypt on a much-anticipated extended vacation. But when the pair arrive at the docks in Cairo expecting to board the luxurious paddle steamer advertised in their brochure, they are baffled by the crumbling old cruiser waiting for them. And things only go from bad to worse as death stalks the decks of the SS Cleopatra…
Two days into the trip one of their fellow passengers, Lieutenant Baxter, is found shot dead in his locked cabin. Immediately suspicious and desperate to see justice done, Eleanor discovers a half-finished note addressed to her hidden in Baxter’s travelling trunk. In it he asks her to deliver a vitally important letter to the authorities at their next stop down river: a priceless treasure worthy of a king has been stolen and an innocent man’s life hangs in the balance.
But before the sands of time wipe away all evidence on board, Eleanor must uncover who among the other travellers wanted Baxter dead. Was it the anxious archaeologist who doesn’t have an alibi, the reptile expert with a passion for the murderous Nile crocodile or the art dealer with a devious secret?
With the killer readying to strike again much closer to home, can Eleanor dig up the truth before she’s trapped in a tomb under the pyramids forever?
A gripping and twisty 1920s murder mystery set in Egypt, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Lee Strauss!
My Rating:
Favorite Quote:
Follow your heart, darling girl. That alone can steer your feet best.
My Review:
I adore Lady Swift, she is unconventional, lively, rich yet generous, and a feisty gal several generations before her time. Her latest adventure is a rather complicated mystery with almost everything Egypt has to offer: tomb robbers, murders, snakes, and a confounding and nearly impossible-to-solve mystery, all while cruising down the Nile. Too bad her fun-loving staff had but a small part of this installment but worse yet, no involvement of her favorite policeman and fiance, but thankfully Clifford was always there to provide his astute and clever wry observations as well as the necessary lock picks and the deft hand in using them.
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