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Papyrus: A Thriller
With Papyrus, John Oehler "delivers a fusion of mainstream thriller and historical fiction reminiscent of "The Da Vinci Code."..".
347 pages, Paperback
First published August 11, 2013
389 people are currently reading
260 people want to read
About the author
John Oehler
7 books20 followersI began life as an exploration geologist. My work took me to about fifty countries and introduced me to cultures, people, and settings that provide inspiration for my novels. Besides challenging situations, I love science, history, the arts, and animals, all of which figure in my stories.
Since retiring from full-time geology in 2000, I have completed three novels. All have won awards.
APHRODESIA, published in October 2012, is a mystery/suspense story centered on fragrances and focused on one particular perfume that turns out to be a powerful aphrodisiac, so powerful it drives some people to kill their lovers in a fit of insatiable lust. APHRODESIA has received excellent reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and Amazon customers. Here is a link to the Amazon page for both paperback and Kindle versions: http://www.amazon.com/Aphrodesia-Nove...
PAPYRUS, an adventure/thriller set to be published in 2013, tells the story of an African woman who, while working on her PhD thesis in the Cairo Museum, discovers hidden writing on a papyrus written by Queen Tiye to her youngest son, Tutankhamun. The secret text shatters conventional wisdom and launches her on a quest to find Tiye’s tomb. PAPYRUS reached the semi-finals of the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel competition.
TEPUI, an adventure/thriller scheduled for publication in late 2013, follows a burn-scarred botanist who, guided by a 16th-Century Spanish manuscript, treks into the remote highlands of Venezuela in search of a plant thought to have died out with the dinosaurs. What he finds should have been left unfound. TEPUI won 1st Place at the 2004 Pacific Northwest Writers conference.
I am fortunate to be a member of two fine critique groups. And I’m happy to share what I have learned with other writers.
Since retiring from full-time geology in 2000, I have completed three novels. All have won awards.
APHRODESIA, published in October 2012, is a mystery/suspense story centered on fragrances and focused on one particular perfume that turns out to be a powerful aphrodisiac, so powerful it drives some people to kill their lovers in a fit of insatiable lust. APHRODESIA has received excellent reviews from Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and Amazon customers. Here is a link to the Amazon page for both paperback and Kindle versions: http://www.amazon.com/Aphrodesia-Nove...
PAPYRUS, an adventure/thriller set to be published in 2013, tells the story of an African woman who, while working on her PhD thesis in the Cairo Museum, discovers hidden writing on a papyrus written by Queen Tiye to her youngest son, Tutankhamun. The secret text shatters conventional wisdom and launches her on a quest to find Tiye’s tomb. PAPYRUS reached the semi-finals of the 2009 Amazon Breakthrough Novel competition.
TEPUI, an adventure/thriller scheduled for publication in late 2013, follows a burn-scarred botanist who, guided by a 16th-Century Spanish manuscript, treks into the remote highlands of Venezuela in search of a plant thought to have died out with the dinosaurs. What he finds should have been left unfound. TEPUI won 1st Place at the 2004 Pacific Northwest Writers conference.
I am fortunate to be a member of two fine critique groups. And I’m happy to share what I have learned with other writers.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews
January 26, 2023
Enjoyable romp and romance through the fields of Egyptian history and archaeology. Tends to be just a bit predictable but fun.
January 21, 2014
I’ve wanted to read this book since the second I saw its cover. Mainly because John Oehler wrote it and I really enjoy his writing. I read and reviewed Aphrodesia awhile back and I swear I blushed for a month, so I knew Oehler’s writing was phenomenal. Add my obsession for all things Egyptian, and I was completely sold.
Many times this level of anticipation won’t work out well for a reader. There’s too much pressure on the book. How could it possibly live up?
Papyrus took my expectations in stride and out did itself. It is now one of my favorite pieces of Egyptian fiction.
Historical fiction all the way, there are still two different timelines – the ancient past (the 18th Dynasty of Egypt) and the not so ancient past (1977, during the war between Eritrea and Ethiopa). I enjoyed the banter and flirtation between these timelines and the story. It was woven together well and never missed a beat or left the reader feeling out of sorts with the rhythm of the tale.
In 1977, Oehler’s Rika Teferi is both a scholar and a warrior of Eritrea. This was an attribute so enticing for my black belt and book nerdy self that I spent two hours in a local Starbucks devouring this book instead of watching the Broncos beat the Patriots on Sunday. I loved her for her strength, her beauty, and ultimately for her intelligence.
Dive into ancient Egypt and Queen Tiye is completely riveting, especially since most my academic studies have focused on Hatshepsut and Nefertiti. It was refreshing to have Akhenaten’s mother be the focus, as I don’t think she is as common a fictional pursuit as other Eqyptian Queens. (The only one I can think of off the top of my head is Pauline Gedge’s The Twelfth Transforming – also stellar writing, but I was apparently so disappointed with the story it seems I have given that title away.) I do not own any nonfiction work devoted primarily to Tiye either, but Oehler’s version of her offered a pretty tempting reason to go find some.
As always Oehler handles the story arch with such grace and ease – I am jealous. He writes stories where things happen. Not just anything, but powerful and exciting things. Foreign countries, different times, bombs, planes, diplomats, ancient manuscripts, tombs, revolutionaries, romance…! His books are award winners with good reason and he is one of Houston’s best kept secrets. It is amazing to me that this was Oehler’s first novel.
Many times this level of anticipation won’t work out well for a reader. There’s too much pressure on the book. How could it possibly live up?
Papyrus took my expectations in stride and out did itself. It is now one of my favorite pieces of Egyptian fiction.
Historical fiction all the way, there are still two different timelines – the ancient past (the 18th Dynasty of Egypt) and the not so ancient past (1977, during the war between Eritrea and Ethiopa). I enjoyed the banter and flirtation between these timelines and the story. It was woven together well and never missed a beat or left the reader feeling out of sorts with the rhythm of the tale.
In 1977, Oehler’s Rika Teferi is both a scholar and a warrior of Eritrea. This was an attribute so enticing for my black belt and book nerdy self that I spent two hours in a local Starbucks devouring this book instead of watching the Broncos beat the Patriots on Sunday. I loved her for her strength, her beauty, and ultimately for her intelligence.
Dive into ancient Egypt and Queen Tiye is completely riveting, especially since most my academic studies have focused on Hatshepsut and Nefertiti. It was refreshing to have Akhenaten’s mother be the focus, as I don’t think she is as common a fictional pursuit as other Eqyptian Queens. (The only one I can think of off the top of my head is Pauline Gedge’s The Twelfth Transforming – also stellar writing, but I was apparently so disappointed with the story it seems I have given that title away.) I do not own any nonfiction work devoted primarily to Tiye either, but Oehler’s version of her offered a pretty tempting reason to go find some.
As always Oehler handles the story arch with such grace and ease – I am jealous. He writes stories where things happen. Not just anything, but powerful and exciting things. Foreign countries, different times, bombs, planes, diplomats, ancient manuscripts, tombs, revolutionaries, romance…! His books are award winners with good reason and he is one of Houston’s best kept secrets. It is amazing to me that this was Oehler’s first novel.
August 11, 2014
I love books set in other countries, especially countries that I find intriguing yet have no desire to visit such as Egypt. This story opens with just the right amount of description of place and time. It is set in the 1980's when technology began to speed ahead. The technology here is a plane equipped with the type of sonic radar that can see below ground.
The story opens with Riki Teferi spilling coffee on an ancient papyrus she is supposed to be examining as part of a research project in the Cairo museum. She tries to hide the papyrus so that her supervisor won't see what she's done. She manages to hide it in her clothing just as an American man stumbles upon her small workroom. He is the specialist that is testing the plane.
Later Riki discovers that her coffee washed away a layer of ancient writings to reveal another message beneath that tells the story of an Egyptian Queen and her monotheistic religion unheard of before. The Queen's burial place has never been discovered. Could the plane uncover it? And will this exacerbate the war between Eritrea and Ethiopia if they try to uncover it? And will the Egyptian military even let their plane leave the Cairo airport?
A lot of intrigue leads the reader to quickly turn pages to find out. A great read.
The story opens with Riki Teferi spilling coffee on an ancient papyrus she is supposed to be examining as part of a research project in the Cairo museum. She tries to hide the papyrus so that her supervisor won't see what she's done. She manages to hide it in her clothing just as an American man stumbles upon her small workroom. He is the specialist that is testing the plane.
Later Riki discovers that her coffee washed away a layer of ancient writings to reveal another message beneath that tells the story of an Egyptian Queen and her monotheistic religion unheard of before. The Queen's burial place has never been discovered. Could the plane uncover it? And will this exacerbate the war between Eritrea and Ethiopia if they try to uncover it? And will the Egyptian military even let their plane leave the Cairo airport?
A lot of intrigue leads the reader to quickly turn pages to find out. A great read.
September 28, 2020
Highly entertaining book. I can see this materialize in a new “Indiana Jones Adventure.”
All the elements for a thriller are here. Well placed and set to delight a reader on a trip to the land of Pharaohs.
How did John Oehler think about creating these characters? Because, they really mixed well in this novel. Well done!
All the elements for a thriller are here. Well placed and set to delight a reader on a trip to the land of Pharaohs.
How did John Oehler think about creating these characters? Because, they really mixed well in this novel. Well done!
October 19, 2015
This was a decent book. Not amazing and not terrible. It's toted as being in the same vein as The Da Vinci Code, but I found that to be untrue. This book was much too slow to be likened to The Da Vinci Code.
In fact, I found myself skimming a lot because some parts of it were downright boring. It pains me to admit that because I hate skimming, but there it is. The parts told in ancient times (from Tiye's POV) and when they were in the tomb were, without doubt, the most interesting aspects of the book. Unfortunately, that was only about 20% of the book.
I think my least favorite part of the book was Hassam. Honestly, I think the book would have been 5 stars without him. If he was not in the book, then the silly chases would not have occurred, and they were somewhat torturous to read about--not interesting at all.
Another weak area was the romance. David and Riki had no chemistry together whatsoever. I wish their relationship had been kept platonic as it was much more believable that way. The other characters were forgettable.
I've done a lot of complaining so far, but really, this book wasn't a loss. I did like the plot quite a bit, and I've been interested in Tiye for several years. Although I fall in the "camp" that believes she was Tutankhamun's grandmother, it was quite intriguing to read this different viewpoint, and I rather liked it. Reading about the different items in her tomb was fascinating. Also, the cover art is gorgeous.
Overall, it was a static read--something to pass the time--but not something I'll remember for years to come.
In fact, I found myself skimming a lot because some parts of it were downright boring. It pains me to admit that because I hate skimming, but there it is. The parts told in ancient times (from Tiye's POV) and when they were in the tomb were, without doubt, the most interesting aspects of the book. Unfortunately, that was only about 20% of the book.
I think my least favorite part of the book was Hassam. Honestly, I think the book would have been 5 stars without him. If he was not in the book, then the silly chases would not have occurred, and they were somewhat torturous to read about--not interesting at all.
Another weak area was the romance. David and Riki had no chemistry together whatsoever. I wish their relationship had been kept platonic as it was much more believable that way. The other characters were forgettable.
I've done a lot of complaining so far, but really, this book wasn't a loss. I did like the plot quite a bit, and I've been interested in Tiye for several years. Although I fall in the "camp" that believes she was Tutankhamun's grandmother, it was quite intriguing to read this different viewpoint, and I rather liked it. Reading about the different items in her tomb was fascinating. Also, the cover art is gorgeous.
Overall, it was a static read--something to pass the time--but not something I'll remember for years to come.
January 28, 2014
Just completed PAPYRUS by John Oehler. Wonderful read about Rika Teferi who accidentally spills tea on an 18th Dynasty papyrus written by Queen Tiye, the mother of King Tut, and discovers a hidden message. If you enjoy Egyptian antiquities, a strong female character, and a bit of sexual tension, you'll enjoy this thriller. Mr. Oehler has used his knowledge from previous work experiences to write a crisp, action-generated novel.
This novel was recommended to me by author and blogger, A. K. Klemm, for which I'm grateful. I understand how the novel was a semi-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and must mention the striking PAPYRUS cover designed by his wife Dorothy that complements the story.
This novel was recommended to me by author and blogger, A. K. Klemm, for which I'm grateful. I understand how the novel was a semi-finalist in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award and must mention the striking PAPYRUS cover designed by his wife Dorothy that complements the story.
November 9, 2019
This was a pretty good thriller. Lots of action, tense situations, an interesting plot line, engaging characters. I liked the back and forth between the present and the ancient past.
July 13, 2021
Papyrus
This is a nice change from the typical archeological thrillers.
It's great to read a story about less known figures in history and what their rule meant to overall shaping of Egypt.
Unfortunately, as the book mentions, the military regimes in Africa as well as men even with a bit of power are ready to destroy it all.
The book is a great read and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys ancient stories.
I am hoping that there will be another part of this story coming soon.
This is a nice change from the typical archeological thrillers.
It's great to read a story about less known figures in history and what their rule meant to overall shaping of Egypt.
Unfortunately, as the book mentions, the military regimes in Africa as well as men even with a bit of power are ready to destroy it all.
The book is a great read and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys ancient stories.
I am hoping that there will be another part of this story coming soon.
November 12, 2013
"When my time is come, you will bury me in a bath of restorative oils. It will be done while the breath of life is still in me."
- Queen Tiye’s burial instructions in Papyrus.
In Papyrus, Queen Tiye, the mother of Tutankhamun, journeys up the Nile to be buried alive in a bath of restorative oils. Later in the book there is a scene in which the modern-day explorers smell these oils.
Immersed in Papyrus I enjoyed visiting places that I have never been like Sudan, Eritrea and Egypt.
The female protagonist, Rika, is a freedom fighter turned scholar from Eritrea who discovers a written-over papyrus in the secured study area of the Cairo Museum. The hieroglyphs appear to reveal the whereabouts of the lost tomb of Queen Tiye. Various agendas by other characters provide tension for the race to locate the tomb which is not in Egypt. Rika also has eyes "like fire trapped in black opal".
The novel also weaves in and out of ancient and modern Egypt as we follow the twilight years of Queen Tiye and the changes in Egyptian spiritual and cultural beliefs.
There is love, there is action, there is war and peace and a high octane plane chase above airspace crossing several international borders. And the obligatory John Oehler jail scene (last time Yemen, this time Egypt). There are also great descriptions including scent descriptors of various times and places.
"She also smelled his aftershave. Six years in Europe had accustomed her to the idea of male fragrances and taught her they reflect personality. To her, his leathery scent conveyed understated masculinity. A distraction she didn’t need.
- Rika
Her window, opened just a centimeter, admitted the flinty smell of baked earth
Rika replaced the mirror and removed that tray. Beneath it she found alabaster jars with the desiccated remains of unguents and creams, a chalcedony dish of black kohl for darkening the eyelids, calcite perfume phials that still smelled of juniper, cinnamon, and civet.
She pressed her nose to the soft curls and inhaled a faint, tallow scent of soap made from animal fat.
He liked the fragrance of jasmine that trailed after her.
Chests of sandalwood and cedar infused the air with heavenly fragrance.
The man’s gray suit had dark crescents under the arms and wafted an odor like day-old fish."
The ending is unexpected; John Oehler could teach a course in creative writing. I took the day off work to read this but wish I had made it last over a weekend or a week. Was it a thriller? Yes it was a techno-thriller.
Photos of the book's locations at Olfactoria's Travels
John Oehler on Smell in Writing
- Queen Tiye’s burial instructions in Papyrus.
In Papyrus, Queen Tiye, the mother of Tutankhamun, journeys up the Nile to be buried alive in a bath of restorative oils. Later in the book there is a scene in which the modern-day explorers smell these oils.
Immersed in Papyrus I enjoyed visiting places that I have never been like Sudan, Eritrea and Egypt.
The female protagonist, Rika, is a freedom fighter turned scholar from Eritrea who discovers a written-over papyrus in the secured study area of the Cairo Museum. The hieroglyphs appear to reveal the whereabouts of the lost tomb of Queen Tiye. Various agendas by other characters provide tension for the race to locate the tomb which is not in Egypt. Rika also has eyes "like fire trapped in black opal".
The novel also weaves in and out of ancient and modern Egypt as we follow the twilight years of Queen Tiye and the changes in Egyptian spiritual and cultural beliefs.
There is love, there is action, there is war and peace and a high octane plane chase above airspace crossing several international borders. And the obligatory John Oehler jail scene (last time Yemen, this time Egypt). There are also great descriptions including scent descriptors of various times and places.
"She also smelled his aftershave. Six years in Europe had accustomed her to the idea of male fragrances and taught her they reflect personality. To her, his leathery scent conveyed understated masculinity. A distraction she didn’t need.
- Rika
Her window, opened just a centimeter, admitted the flinty smell of baked earth
Rika replaced the mirror and removed that tray. Beneath it she found alabaster jars with the desiccated remains of unguents and creams, a chalcedony dish of black kohl for darkening the eyelids, calcite perfume phials that still smelled of juniper, cinnamon, and civet.
She pressed her nose to the soft curls and inhaled a faint, tallow scent of soap made from animal fat.
He liked the fragrance of jasmine that trailed after her.
Chests of sandalwood and cedar infused the air with heavenly fragrance.
The man’s gray suit had dark crescents under the arms and wafted an odor like day-old fish."
The ending is unexpected; John Oehler could teach a course in creative writing. I took the day off work to read this but wish I had made it last over a weekend or a week. Was it a thriller? Yes it was a techno-thriller.
Photos of the book's locations at Olfactoria's Travels
John Oehler on Smell in Writing
February 22, 2022
Papyrus. P-why-did-I-buy-this
Why does every single review say it’s nothing like the Da Vinci code and that it’s quite stale to read? Well because it’s true. It's more accurately a sexist, racist, one-god-is-best propaganda filled, bore of a book. Dang shame I had to buy this so I could add it to my Ancient Egyptian fiction collection. Heavy emphasis that this book is fiction.
The very first pages are the acknowledgments. Apparently the man who wrote this has been developing it since 1968 when a gasoline company paid for his many trips to Egypt. He apparently wrote this story with the idea that Tiye was Tut’s birth mother, and makes quite the rude claim that he does not believe in the newfangled ideas, technology, and facts that beg to differ. Instead this book is tangled to be a kind of ‘what if’ scenario, quite the gracious way of saying ‘historical fiction’ written by somebody who doesn’t take historical fact into context. In usual fashion of self published writers and people with no historical degree or background, he talks a lot about the process, and how he came to write such a glorious story without you the reader even having opened the book fully.
The story takes place in 1983 and does not fully revolve around ancient Egypt, instead it’s about current day Egypt, Eritrea, and Nubia? It’s about some people named Rica and David, (for the record he tries to sexually assault her immediately in chapter 4, and the book ends with her saying she loves him so there's that) they are trying to find Tiye’s tomb but instead get caught up in a secret police government cross country scandal.
It’s weird to see the book’s take on the Akhenaten monotheism, and by weird I mean biased. Ironically on page 8 a character says “History is vital“. The epilogue even has the audacity to say that the Aten uprising was the pinnacle of Egyptian civilization. It’s a weird mix between the author’s bias and you the reader not being sure if the characters actually care that much for this brand new fake Aten god they’ve barely been introduced to by this old lady. Yet we the audience, are demanded to believe that. That’s right fellow reading audience he does not credit any historical sources at the end.
It’s impossible to talk about Tut’s and Akhenaten’s reign, without discussing ancient Egypt’s religion. The more pagan-multiple-god mythos of the time, was brutally removed and replaced with a singular one. This abrupt change in their belief system caused many to riot, in fact once they went back to their polytheistic ways thanks to Tr wanting to restore balance, the Egyptian people hunted down and removed any and every trace of Aten. How does this book discuss this? By taking the more Christian approach and saying that Aten, the singular God, helped turn Egypt into a utopia, where human rights flourished, how their language changed, and how the art style altered to be more truthful. Gag. But because feminism I guess it wasn’t actually Aten behind all of this, it was Tiye.
I guess you can just keep going with the flow by saying this is an artistic interpretation, whatever. Tiye might also be crazy because she is insisting on being apparently “buried alive” (back in my day we just called it drowning) in oil. For no real reason, Tut is her favorite child and she has chosen him to be special and to share secrets with. There’s only about five chapters with her in it, and the papyrus she leaves behind is the most important part of the book. Its just so flat and un-detailed as to WHY we should care.
The book is mostly filled with military and government jargon about peacekeeping and terrorism, it’s not engaging until characters discover a new mystery to the tomb or when it travels back in time to give you an unnecessary story (that doesn't further the plot) about Tiye. I don’t know how you can write a story about two idiots trying to find a tomb with a drone and equate it to someone trying to overthrow your government. It took them 40 pages before the end of the book to even find the tomb. THAT'S how padded this dreck is.
To one’s real surprise, Rica is kind of the reincarnation of Tiye, and is so overcome with the items of beauty in the tomb that she doesn’t think about helping her own country and wants to keep this old lady‘s items to herself.
The book ends with Rica blowing up the entrance to Tiye’s tomb to thwart her brother and looking on at the sun, believing in Aten. There’s a reason this Aten-awful book is only available on Amazon. May you go with Amun.
This book constantly changes characters POV, for no real reason, it could’ve just stayed in the third person; describing each event; but no, we get like five characters each fighting with one another for their dumb individual plots. Only to end with them finding the tomb and sealing it back up, only for them to hint that Tiye had magic, and only to end with the black lady falling in love with the white man that tried to assault her.
—-
I absolutely love to punish self-published writers. My favorite lazy and poorly written lines are:
“There’s writing under the writing!”
“Wheezing like an old whore.”
“Your brother is a bad man.”
—
After a quick Google search, John Oehler is a white man, surprised? I’m sure you are. Yet he decides to write the black female main character as someone who easily falls in love with a white man who sexually assaults her. Plus we get this gem of male writing prowess:
Page 46: She winced as the brittle edge of the papyrus bit into her nipples, one of the few times she wished she owned a bra.
Granted this scene was her trying to hide the papyrus, but she still got caught with her boobs out. No male character had to hide anything down their crotch with it bumping against their penis. Ugh. Then she sleeps with David, because you know heterosexual sex really drives home a story about finding a tomb. No really it’s a sentence that her being able to find the tomb sexually turned her on.
Why does every single review say it’s nothing like the Da Vinci code and that it’s quite stale to read? Well because it’s true. It's more accurately a sexist, racist, one-god-is-best propaganda filled, bore of a book. Dang shame I had to buy this so I could add it to my Ancient Egyptian fiction collection. Heavy emphasis that this book is fiction.
The very first pages are the acknowledgments. Apparently the man who wrote this has been developing it since 1968 when a gasoline company paid for his many trips to Egypt. He apparently wrote this story with the idea that Tiye was Tut’s birth mother, and makes quite the rude claim that he does not believe in the newfangled ideas, technology, and facts that beg to differ. Instead this book is tangled to be a kind of ‘what if’ scenario, quite the gracious way of saying ‘historical fiction’ written by somebody who doesn’t take historical fact into context. In usual fashion of self published writers and people with no historical degree or background, he talks a lot about the process, and how he came to write such a glorious story without you the reader even having opened the book fully.
The story takes place in 1983 and does not fully revolve around ancient Egypt, instead it’s about current day Egypt, Eritrea, and Nubia? It’s about some people named Rica and David, (for the record he tries to sexually assault her immediately in chapter 4, and the book ends with her saying she loves him so there's that) they are trying to find Tiye’s tomb but instead get caught up in a secret police government cross country scandal.
It’s weird to see the book’s take on the Akhenaten monotheism, and by weird I mean biased. Ironically on page 8 a character says “History is vital“. The epilogue even has the audacity to say that the Aten uprising was the pinnacle of Egyptian civilization. It’s a weird mix between the author’s bias and you the reader not being sure if the characters actually care that much for this brand new fake Aten god they’ve barely been introduced to by this old lady. Yet we the audience, are demanded to believe that. That’s right fellow reading audience he does not credit any historical sources at the end.
It’s impossible to talk about Tut’s and Akhenaten’s reign, without discussing ancient Egypt’s religion. The more pagan-multiple-god mythos of the time, was brutally removed and replaced with a singular one. This abrupt change in their belief system caused many to riot, in fact once they went back to their polytheistic ways thanks to Tr wanting to restore balance, the Egyptian people hunted down and removed any and every trace of Aten. How does this book discuss this? By taking the more Christian approach and saying that Aten, the singular God, helped turn Egypt into a utopia, where human rights flourished, how their language changed, and how the art style altered to be more truthful. Gag. But because feminism I guess it wasn’t actually Aten behind all of this, it was Tiye.
I guess you can just keep going with the flow by saying this is an artistic interpretation, whatever. Tiye might also be crazy because she is insisting on being apparently “buried alive” (back in my day we just called it drowning) in oil. For no real reason, Tut is her favorite child and she has chosen him to be special and to share secrets with. There’s only about five chapters with her in it, and the papyrus she leaves behind is the most important part of the book. Its just so flat and un-detailed as to WHY we should care.
The book is mostly filled with military and government jargon about peacekeeping and terrorism, it’s not engaging until characters discover a new mystery to the tomb or when it travels back in time to give you an unnecessary story (that doesn't further the plot) about Tiye. I don’t know how you can write a story about two idiots trying to find a tomb with a drone and equate it to someone trying to overthrow your government. It took them 40 pages before the end of the book to even find the tomb. THAT'S how padded this dreck is.
To one’s real surprise, Rica is kind of the reincarnation of Tiye, and is so overcome with the items of beauty in the tomb that she doesn’t think about helping her own country and wants to keep this old lady‘s items to herself.
The book ends with Rica blowing up the entrance to Tiye’s tomb to thwart her brother and looking on at the sun, believing in Aten. There’s a reason this Aten-awful book is only available on Amazon. May you go with Amun.
This book constantly changes characters POV, for no real reason, it could’ve just stayed in the third person; describing each event; but no, we get like five characters each fighting with one another for their dumb individual plots. Only to end with them finding the tomb and sealing it back up, only for them to hint that Tiye had magic, and only to end with the black lady falling in love with the white man that tried to assault her.
—-
I absolutely love to punish self-published writers. My favorite lazy and poorly written lines are:
“There’s writing under the writing!”
“Wheezing like an old whore.”
“Your brother is a bad man.”
—
After a quick Google search, John Oehler is a white man, surprised? I’m sure you are. Yet he decides to write the black female main character as someone who easily falls in love with a white man who sexually assaults her. Plus we get this gem of male writing prowess:
Page 46: She winced as the brittle edge of the papyrus bit into her nipples, one of the few times she wished she owned a bra.
Granted this scene was her trying to hide the papyrus, but she still got caught with her boobs out. No male character had to hide anything down their crotch with it bumping against their penis. Ugh. Then she sleeps with David, because you know heterosexual sex really drives home a story about finding a tomb. No really it’s a sentence that her being able to find the tomb sexually turned her on.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 19, 2016
Full of heart but needs some structural work
The premise of the book offers a fun"what if?" scenario.
The book does not live up the to adventure it proposes, yet is readable, but not compelling.
The premise of the book offers a fun"what if?" scenario.
The book does not live up the to adventure it proposes, yet is readable, but not compelling.
April 3, 2016
#1 - this should not be compared to The DaVinci Code. #2 - I had a very hard time staying interested in this book. I love reading this type of book.... But this one is lacking. The characters aren't that interesting and there just seemed something off in the details of the story.
March 29, 2018
Yes!!!!
From the beginning to end, definitely a thriller. I love any books about about ancient Egypt. I Will have read his other books now!
From the beginning to end, definitely a thriller. I love any books about about ancient Egypt. I Will have read his other books now!
February 13, 2022
David wants to prove to the world that his ground penetrating imaging not only works, but has multiple applications. Rika is trying to write her dissertation and return home to Eritrea to rejoin the fight for liberation. As Rika shows David an ancient papyrus written by Queen Tye during the 18th dynasty, they spill tea on the priceless artifact. They soon discover that there is other writing beneath the black ink. Using David's imaging system, they are able to get photographs of what is written beneath. The newly revealed writing points to way to Queen Tye's tomb and possibly untold wealth. The photographs are seen by the museum director when he visits Rika's hotel room. He is intrigues by a papyrus he has never seen before. Enter the Egyptian equivalent to the FBI, the Sudanese government, and Efrem (Rika's brother and a commander in the Eritrean military) and the suspense and thrills begin..
January 28, 2020
Fascinating read
Incredible read! I have always been in love with Egypt and her cultures since I received a small slate colored pyramid as a child from my parents. They were both avid readers and encouraged my dive into it. I read everything I could get my hands on! This brings me back to old memories and created more. I felt like I was really there living the same experiences due to this well written book. The characters were brought to life with skill and focus. The good being great and the bad so evil shivers ran down my spine. Thanks for an excellent read!
Incredible read! I have always been in love with Egypt and her cultures since I received a small slate colored pyramid as a child from my parents. They were both avid readers and encouraged my dive into it. I read everything I could get my hands on! This brings me back to old memories and created more. I felt like I was really there living the same experiences due to this well written book. The characters were brought to life with skill and focus. The good being great and the bad so evil shivers ran down my spine. Thanks for an excellent read!
January 16, 2021
First of all this should not have been likened to The Da Vinci Code, this was slow and boring and I had to push myself to finish it. There was no chemistry at all between the main characters and it felt very pushed. I found myself skimming through some parts because they were either overly technical or just dumb. I found I really couldn’t submerge myself in this book, I didn’t care about the characters and I didn’t care what happened to them, it all felt very flat.
March 26, 2021
A Wild Rude
This is the third book I've read by this author. I enjoy the adventure if the story and the good characters. You really like the good and really dislike the bad. Oehler's novels are based on factual times and events that are fictionalized (?) to create meaningful dialogue and a complete story. You'll enjoy the story and expand your thought processes, as well as learning a bit about history along the way.
This is the third book I've read by this author. I enjoy the adventure if the story and the good characters. You really like the good and really dislike the bad. Oehler's novels are based on factual times and events that are fictionalized (?) to create meaningful dialogue and a complete story. You'll enjoy the story and expand your thought processes, as well as learning a bit about history along the way.
November 18, 2017
A wonderful thriller!
I love the way that history and today's times are weaved together. I especially love the ending which I won't ruin for anyone! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves ancient Egypt as I do! I believe this author is well worth reading his wonderful stories as they are true can't put it down stories!
I love the way that history and today's times are weaved together. I especially love the ending which I won't ruin for anyone! I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves ancient Egypt as I do! I believe this author is well worth reading his wonderful stories as they are true can't put it down stories!
August 4, 2020
Great read!
This book is about a young modern day archeology student whose life parallels with the life of Tiye , mother of Tutenkahmen. It will appeal to those readers who enjoy reading about mystery, history, archeology, anthropology, and ancient burial rights along with a tiny bit of romance. I enjoyed it a lot and will look for more from this author.
This book is about a young modern day archeology student whose life parallels with the life of Tiye , mother of Tutenkahmen. It will appeal to those readers who enjoy reading about mystery, history, archeology, anthropology, and ancient burial rights along with a tiny bit of romance. I enjoyed it a lot and will look for more from this author.
February 7, 2018
Awesome story
Started a little slow, but picked up pace. Set in Egypt, with ties to ancient tombs and gods. In the end, I had actual chills with the feeling of really being in a superior presence.
Started a little slow, but picked up pace. Set in Egypt, with ties to ancient tombs and gods. In the end, I had actual chills with the feeling of really being in a superior presence.
December 24, 2021
Nice
The book put a different twist to an old story. The plot was pretty well thought out. The characters played their roles perfectly. I will have to look into more from this author.
The book put a different twist to an old story. The plot was pretty well thought out. The characters played their roles perfectly. I will have to look into more from this author.
April 10, 2022
What a wonderful read!
History mingled with imagination! I was on the edge of my chair at times and filled with wonder too! This is a must read for anyone needing adventures and excitement!
History mingled with imagination! I was on the edge of my chair at times and filled with wonder too! This is a must read for anyone needing adventures and excitement!
October 11, 2022
Generally good
Started a bit slow and somewhat annoying at times. Some parts are a bit far-fetched. But overall, now that's its done, it was generally a good read. I've read better and Lord knows I've read far worse.
Started a bit slow and somewhat annoying at times. Some parts are a bit far-fetched. But overall, now that's its done, it was generally a good read. I've read better and Lord knows I've read far worse.
August 9, 2017
I learned some interesting things in this book, but it turns out that my interest in Papyrus isn't sufficient to carry me through the whole thing.
June 1, 2018
Great story
Fun read if you like mysteries and tales of ancient Egypt. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
Fun read if you like mysteries and tales of ancient Egypt. I am looking forward to reading more from this author.
January 7, 2020
Good read but not at the top of my favourites
It’s a good mix of action, mystery and romance. The problem I had with it was the lack of ending and leaving the end open ended did not sit too well with me.
It’s a good mix of action, mystery and romance. The problem I had with it was the lack of ending and leaving the end open ended did not sit too well with me.
March 21, 2022
Papyrus
This book was entertaining and well written, I found the book to be very minor magic about the ancient Egypt of which we know little. Thank you for this yarn.
This book was entertaining and well written, I found the book to be very minor magic about the ancient Egypt of which we know little. Thank you for this yarn.
November 17, 2022
This book was a slow burn but wow, the last 20% turned into a real page-turner that truly redeemed the book for me. Icing on the cake is that I learned some Egyptian history to boot!
December 22, 2022
Excellent Story
The ancient. The modern. The technology bridging ancient and modern. The age old wars of every time and the greed of man. Great story!
The ancient. The modern. The technology bridging ancient and modern. The age old wars of every time and the greed of man. Great story!
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