Genre:
Humor/Mystery/Adventure
Description:
Wendy
Darlin joins her archaeologist boyfriend, Professor Roger Jolley, in
a quest across Egypt looking for a lost artifact for the Egyptian
Antiquities Society that will assist them in locating Antony and
Cleopatra’s burial tomb. All they had to do was get from Cairo to
the Temple of Taporisis Magna alive. However, not everyone is who
they say they are and they find themselves running for their lives.
Author:
Barbara
states on her blog, “My writing history began humbly enough when I
started an underground newspaper in Catholic grade school. I was
threatened with excommunication by the nuns so I went further
underground. I’ve packed many adventures into my life excusing even
the disasters as ‘material for my next book.’… I enjoy doing
playful things with language, blending two distinct words to create a
new word… I now write criminally funny fairy tales ripped from the
headlines… shaken, not stirred, and served with a twist and a
chuckle.”
This
is Ms. Silkstone’s third novel in her Wendy
Darlin series. She has
three other comedic mystery books along with her “true fiction,”
The Adventures of a Love
Investigator, 527 Naked Men & One Woman.
Silkstone contributed to the anthology Indie Chicks and The WG2E
All-For-Indies Anthologies: Spring Hop Edition. Her books are also
available on Audible.com. You can connect with Ms. Silkstone at her
new blog although she’s been messing with us by posting recently on
her old blog, too. Her facebook page is yet another option. I also
feel like I should add that Ms. Silkstone hosts The Second Act Cafe
that is dedicated to getting even by having fun.
Appraisal:
The
non-stop action starts in the first chapter with Wendy hurling a
large glass ashtray, the only weapon she could find, into the nose of
an assassin on their sixth floor hotel room balcony in Cairo, sending
him toppling over the railing. His body apparently disappears from
the sidewalk and Wendy and Roger are followed on a comedic run
through a crowded Egyptian market place. Poor Wendy, she is one smart
gal and very capable, but things just seem to happen to her.
Unsurprisingly, Wendy soon becomes instrumental in being able to
fulfill their quest.
With
the addition of characters like Habib, Petri Dische, and librarian,
wannabe-author Fiona Feelgood, who was looking for her own Egyptian
treasure and material for her book Erotica for Dummies, put me in
mind of Silkstone’s own true fiction book, The
Adventures of a Love Investigator.
Then there is the mystery of who is legit and who is involved in the
antiquities black market. The way Ms. Silkstone plays with words is
unrivaled and the way she incorporated segments from favorite movie
clips was genius. She uses sharp wit throughout her stories, her
plots are strong, and the action nonstop. I really enjoyed reading
about Wendy and her tomb raiding adventures and hope to see more of
Habib and quite possibly Tickemoff, the friendly street peddler, in
future Wendy Darlin books.
FYI:
This
story stands on its own, and is young adult appropriate.
Added
for Reprise Review: Cairo
Caper was a nominee in
the Mystery category for B&P
2014 Readers' Choice Awards. Original review ran September 12, 2013
Format/Typo
Issues:
No
issues with editing or formatting.
Rating:
***** Five Stars
Reviewed
by: ?wazithinkin
Approximate
word count: 55-60,000
words
2 comments:
Thank you! You made Wendy very happy!
Thanks for dropping in and commenting, Ms. Silkstone.
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