The Egyptian by Layton Green: Book Review

Sites of Interest: Author's Site

Published: 8/21/2011
Kindle/Nook | Genre: Mystery/Thriller

If you had the opportunity would you drink from the elixir of life? Such is the burning question in The Egyptian, Layton Green's latest Dominic Grey adventure.  I have to admit, I have fallen madly in love with Dominic Grey - he's a man's man.  The tortured soul who has the integrity and saintliness of the pope. A strong character that other men can relate to and think of as the good friend who keeps his word and your secrets.


The Egyptian is Grey's first religious cult case assignment from Professor Viktor Radek whom we met in The Summoner.  Viktor is independently wealthy and voraciously addicted to absinthe.  The Professor is an expert in religious phenomenology "the practical, objective study of religion, as opposed to the subjective.  The analysis of the cultural effect of belief and perceived phenomena on the believer."  Basically, Viktor investigates religious cults around the world and met Dominic Grey in The Summoner.  Now Grey is in Viktor's employ and The Egyptian leads Grey to Bulgaria and Cairo seeking a cult searching for the fountain of youth while leaving a slew of dead bodies in their wake.

The Egyptian was a bit different from The Summoner in that the religious cult was not a long-standing cult but a recently developed phenomena. In this book there were many technical terms having to deal with science, aging, and cellular transformation.  At times I had to look up science terms which made reading The Egyptian both a learning experience and a pleasurable read.

I loved the history included in The Egyptian.  Cairo and the pyramids, Bulgaria and the monks, the population of Cairo v. the population of New York, Egyptian gods and primitive cave dwellers....all fascinating and descriptive knowledge shared.  The history mixed with the psychology of cults, the philosophy of mankind, and Grey's struggle with the demons inside make for one hell of a great read!  Layton Green has created a tragic hero in which we can all reflect upon scores of Grey's same internal philosophical and theological questions.

For me, I cannot wait until the next Dominic Grey novel - The Diabolist.  I do believe Layton Green has moved into my top 5 author category - not an easy feat to attain!  As The Egyptian is the second novel in the Dominic Grey series, it would be better to read The Summoner first; however, you can read either as a stand-alone novels.  But whatever you do, if you like a great adventure with a strong male lead (that you can swoon over - or share a beer with), then by all means, pick up The Egyptian!

I received a complimentary copy of The Egyptian for review.

Happy Saturday!

if you like this book then perhaps you will like:

The Summoner by Layton Green

The Archangel Project by C.S. Graham

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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