The Poisoner of Ptah

When 3 scribes are poisoned in front of her during a ceremony but not the Libyans who drank the wine first, without any indication of what the poison was or how it was administered, the Pharaoh Hatusu (Hatshepsut) calls on her loyal judge Lord Amerotke to find the culprit. With his usual keen eye for detail and remarkable reasoning, he solves not only how this happens but discovers information about two older poisoning crime waves! Series mysteries involving Ancient Egyptians in Ancient Egypt are hard to find - P.C. (Paul) Doherty, Lauren Haney, and Lynda Robinson are among the best of the few writers. Each one - Doherty's Amerotke, Haney's Bak, and Robinson's Meron are all supersluths without the benefit of modern crime solving technology, yet masterfully capture the criminals using their own wiles. Each also manages to be threatened with death in each book. If you love historical mysteries, or ancient Egypt, be prepared to be enthralled.

Book Club Review The Poisoner of Ptah P.C. Doherty Our book club's book for February was THE POISONER OF PTAH, by P.C. Doherty. We chose this one because we have been wanting to read a historical mystery to take us away from the cold and misery of winter. A lot of good suggestions came up, but we decided to focus on ancient Egypt. We had read another Egyptian book last year (one of the Mamur Zapt titles) and we were very disappointed in that one, so we figured we should not give up on Egypt just because that book was not what we had hoped for. By process of elimination, we arrived at this one, and we were glad we did. At the signing of a peace treaty between Egypt and Libya, three people die violently as the result of a poisoning of their wine bowl. The murderer is suspected to be the notorious Poisoner of Ptah, who had been arrested and sent to a desert prison camp several years ago--but who, it turns out, has escaped and made his way back to Cairo to try to clear his good name. Our chief investigator is Amerotke, who is "Chief Judge of Egypt" and also detective. While we watch Amerotke unravel the case, we also learn a good deal about the politics of the time (with Egypt pretty much loathed by all its neighbors, who are envious of its wealth and status), as well as the personalities of the female pharaoh Hatshepsut (called here "Hatusu") and her working-class lover, Senenmut. If these names sound slightly confusing, don't worry--you are not alone, which the author must have realized, because he very cleverly included a list of characters' names at the beginning of the book, and it is very helpful for about the first half. That is a small complaint, however, as we really did enjoy this book. It was perhaps a bit slow to start, but the way Doherty evokes the sights, sounds, and smells of ancient Egypt is remarkable. Doherty also manages to juggle many strands of courtly intrigue with politics and the sort of "locked room" murder investigation, all while keeping the book moving at a nice clip. We quite liked Amerotke, who is a kind-hearted family man with a nice wife and two kids, and found him warm and smart. Perhaps we would have liked a bit deeper characterization of him, but this didn't interfere with our enjoyment of the book. We also found the character of the poisoner to be quite effectively drawn and enigmatic. The working out of the mystery is a little less satisfying than the rest of the book--though it has been properly prepared for. We speculated that when a book is as rich a pageant as THE POISIONER OF PTAH, the resolution of the mystery is going to seem small in comparison. Overall, we enjoyed the book, which we found to appeal to both the women and the men in our group, and we thought we would like to read more in the future. To be honest, I had not heard of P.C. Doherty before, but it turns out he is a very prolific writer who uses several pseudonyms, including Paul Doherty (those books take place in medieval t

A series of mysteries besets Pharaoh Hatusu (Hatshepsut), the Court, the Temple of Ptah and the household of a wealthy merchant as the serial killer, the Poisoner of Ptah also called the Rekhet ("Poison Demon") is rumored to have escaped his distant prison and is wreaking havoc again in Thebes. Or are the Libyans involved somehow, mysterious suing for peace and a treaty when three scribes are poisoned during a public ceremony? Chief Judge in the Hall of Two Truths, Lord Amerotke, with his friend and servant, the disfigured dwarf, Shufoy, attempt this complicated puzzle, where no motives are clear and events seem unconnected. I enjoyed this mystery a great deal. There is also action and suspense: prison escapes, minor skirmishes, political plots, love triangles and intrigues from the criminal underground to the merchant classes to the Courts of the Pharaoh. Although this is, I think, the sixth book in this series, it can easily stand alone.

Ptah, the Egyptian god, brought the world into reality. In Doherty's book we are thrown headfirst into 1478 B. C., which is the ruling period of Pharaoh Hatusu. Not only was she a woman and queen but also a warrior, avenger and vindicator. Captives are lined up as sacrifices and the Pharaoh is ready to sign a peace treaty with Libya. Her main goal is to prove to Naratousha, a principal Libyan war chief, that the power of Egypt was invincible. To seal the deal, the Libyans and three Egyptian scribes drank from the sacrificial wine, and a relieved Hatusu relaxed-and then her three scribes, Kharfur, Nebseni and Menkhep, died from poisoning. This event precipitated a legion of deaths by poison and supposed drowning thought to be related to Rekhet, who was found guilty years earlier of poisoning others at the Pharaoh's court. Amerotke, who is the Chief Judge from the Halls of Two Truths, is assigned to investigate the deaths. Confounding is the fact that the powders used to poison are untraceable and Amerotke finds that he is pitted against an intelligent, wily opponent and criminal, who may not be Rekhet after all. The Chief Judge travels to Thebes and the of author Doherty, plus his historical knowledge and fantastic story telling, provide the reader with an irresistible insight into the period, breathing 21st Century life into an ancient period. A dynamic page turner, and while ancient terms might seem difficult, Doherty's skill as a writer prepares you for complicated names and different civilized times. Armchair Interviews says: This is another excellent book by prolific British writer Paul Doherty.

In 1478 B.C. Pharaoh Hatusu rules Egypt with a firm but gentle hand. She feels no major internal threats to her keeping the throne in spite of her gender. Her biggest concerns come from outside her kingdom as foreign rulers assume she is weak because she is female. Still, she negotiates peace treaties with her royal peers for the betterment of her nation. While working on a treaty with Libya, three Egyptian scribes die apparently by poison. Hatusu directs her Chief Judge in the Hall of Two Truths Lord Amerotke to uncover the identity of the killer. The prime suspect is Rekhet, who just escaped from incarceration having been sent to prison for life for royal poisonings. Amerotke finds a link between Rekhet and the Libyans that makes him wonder if the foreigners are negotiating in bad faith. The Lord Amerotke Ancient Egypt investigations continue to be some of the best whodunits on the market. The latest tale THE POISONER OF PTAH is an excellent entry both as a mystery and as a historical thriller. Amerotke is terrific as he holds the story line together with his investigation while the support cast helps bring to life Ancient Egypt and to a degree Libya through its delegation. This series (see THE ASSASSINS OF ISIS, THE MASK OF RA, HORUS KILLING and THE SLAYERS OF SETH) remains top of the line. Harriet Klausner