The Lion Of Cairo by Scott Oden
Cairo, 1167 AD. On the banks of the river Nile, from a palace of gold and lapis lazuli, the Fatimid Caliph al Hadid rules over a crumbling empire. His city is awash with intrigues and in the shadow of the Grey Mosque, generals and emirs jockey for position under the scheming eyes of the powerful grand vizier, Jalal. In the crowded Souk, these factions use murder and terror to silence their opposition...Egypt is bleeding and the scent draws her enemies in like sharks: the Sultan of Damascus, the pious Nur al-Din, whose master is the rival Caliph of Baghdad; Shirkuh, the swaggering Kurd who would lead the armies of Damascus to victory and then, of course, Amalric, Christian king of Jerusalem whose insatiable greed knows no bounds. Yet the Caliph of Cairo has an unexpected ally: an old man who lives in a place that even eagles fear. He is Shaykh al-Jabal, called the Old Man of the Mountain, and it is he who holds the ultimate power of life and death over the warring factions of the Moslem world, and it is he who sends his greatest weapon into Egypt, to serve the Caliph. He is but a single man but he is an Assassin: the one they call the Emir of the Knife...
The mark of exceptional historical fiction is its creation of an alien world so convincing (and peopled by such fascinating characters) that the reader never wants to go back to the real oneScott Oden delivers exactly that in The Lion of Cairo, a tale of that reads like a cross between the 'Arabian Nights' and a Hollywood blockbuster. Men of Bronze and Memnon put Mr Oden squarely on the historical fiction map. The Lion of Cairo assures his place in the very front rank. -- Steven Pressfield Filled to the brim with assassins and concubines, caliphs and street thugs, the devout and the heretical. It's partly a swashbuckling historical, partly a tale of palace intrigue, partly a fast and furious espionage yarn. A terrific trip into Cairo's exotic past. Just pray the Emir of the Knife is on your side. -- David Anthony Durham
Scott Oden was born in 1967 in Indiana, and raised in rural North Alabama where he still lives. His fascination with Egypt and the ancient world began at school when a teacher showed his class slides from the Tutankhamun Exhibition. He studied history and English at the University of Alabama before pursuing the usual variety of odd jobs - from delivering pizza to clerking at a video store. His previous novels were the acclaimed Men of Bronze and Memnon.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780593061251 |
| ISBN 10 | 059306125X |
| Title | The Lion Of Cairo |
| Author | Scott Oden |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Transworld Publishers Ltd |
| Year published | 2010-07-22 |
| Number of pages | 416 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |