Arthur Phillips

Obsessed Oxford-educated Egyptologist Ralph Trilipush risks his professional reputation and his fiancée's fortune on a search for the tomb of an apocryphal pharaoh, while an Australian detective embarks on a global search for a murderer, two quests that culminate in an explosive confrontation. By the author of Prague. Reader's Guide included. Reprint. 60,000 first printing.

A Novel

The Egyptologist

Melody Izard

The Egyptian Kings desired immortality and thought that surely their power and position and command over the minions and advanced scientific knowledge could bring them just that. They ordered their local strong men and not so strong men to carry stones and dig tombs and arrange gold and jewelry and dead, mummified cats and whatever else they thought they might need or want while living for eternity after their earthly life came to a close. But they had to make a choice. Should they build this eternal resting place as a shrine so that they could enjoy immortality here on earth in the form of creating continuous memories of how wonderful and powerful and good looking and virile they were while they ruled Egypt? Should they trust that future kings would use resources to protect their body and the booty they were enjoying while sealed up in the everlasting tomb under the pyramid? Or should they seek to hide their tomb from any potential grave robbers so that they could get pleasure from their gold and incense and cats forevermore without fears of having anyone bust through the chamber door with or without knocking and plundering all the things they so carefully assembled for ensuring that the afterlife would never be boring? The Egyptologist explores this whole question of what in the world was really important when trying to plan for an everlasting life. The novel uses an epistolary structure to tell the story of an Egyptologist who is looking for the last Egyptian King of Egypt’s “Middle Kingdom”. But it is also explores the individuals search for what is a “good life” and how you want to be remembered, and how can you go about making sure those things you don’t want to be remembered are buried deep, deep in chamber number 15 after you aren’t here to influence anyone’s opinion of yourself. 

But it’s really not as serious as all that. It’s a little bit funny and frivolous too.

The Egyptologist A Novel

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