This noir PI mystery is set in 1153 B.C., in the Egyptian city of Thebes. After the axe-hacked corpse of the elderly, nearly blind priestess Hetephras is discovered floating in the Nile during the Feast of Osiris, Semerket, an alcoholic still heartbroken by his divorce, is re-appointed to his former post--the Clerk of Investigations and Secrets--and given the responsibility of discovering who is responsible for her murder. While some Egyptian officials endorse Semerket's assignment because they believe that his gift (or curse) of uncovering and speaking inconvenient truths will be of use in finding the killer, others do so because they believe Semerket's personal problems will ensure that the crime will remain forever unsolved...which is exactly what they'd prefer. Copyright (C) Muze Inc. 2005. For personal use only. All rights reserved.