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Pharaoh - A Novel
Jerusalem, 586BC, the Kingdom of Judah is on the verge annihilation by the Babylonians. In the chaos the Prophet Jeremiah rushes to save the sacred Ark of the Covenant. As he locates the preordained hiding place which will make it impossible to be found, he makes a terrible discovery....
The Middle East, in the early 2000s. William Blake, a renowned Egyptologist has been ca...more
The Middle East, in the early 2000s. William Blake, a renowned Egyptologist has been ca...more
Mass Market Paperback, 358 pages
Published
by McArthur & Company
(first published 1999)
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Oserei dire il "solito"; come al bar. Non ti delude, ma non ti sorprenderà neanche. un libro che scorre via con buon ritmo (molto più di altri) passate le prime 50-100 pagine un po' più statiche. La trama, quando svelata, ha qualcosa di affascinante che sfocia nella fantastoria (ma sarà cosi' inverosimile??) ma non posso dirvi perché senza rovinare la sorpresa. Anche nel libro, quando si rivela uno dei misteri la trama continua comunque a grande ritmo aggiungendo molta suspance per i protagonist...more
I wanted to enjoy this book more than I actually did, Manfredi's other book "Alexander the ends of the world" is one of my favourites, so it was an unpleasant surprise.
Pharaoh reads somewhat rambling and clunky to be honest, and also gets wrapped up into a rather tiresome plot which has one too many coincidences and a serendipitous ending that stretches the incredulity to breaking point.
Despite all the weak points, it's rather prophetic in that it concerns international terrorism and was writte...more
Pharaoh reads somewhat rambling and clunky to be honest, and also gets wrapped up into a rather tiresome plot which has one too many coincidences and a serendipitous ending that stretches the incredulity to breaking point.
Despite all the weak points, it's rather prophetic in that it concerns international terrorism and was writte...more
I picked this book up purely because I found the cover interesting.
I then read the book in about three sittings finishing it late at night.I really enjoyed this book not great literature, but a cracking good read with a number of denouements and twists I did not expect. I will certainly look out for Manfredi in the future.
I then read the book in about three sittings finishing it late at night.I really enjoyed this book not great literature, but a cracking good read with a number of denouements and twists I did not expect. I will certainly look out for Manfredi in the future.
Although I enjoyed this book very much I could have split it into two parts and happily just read one of the parts. I read it primarily for the historical story of the "unknown Pharaoh" discovered in the holy land. This for me was the most interesting theme and the "what if" slant was quite enough to keep me interested and made a really good plot. I personally was not so interested in the politics of the Middle East portrayed in a fictional way and found my self skimming those parts to hurry to...more
Pharaoh was an all right book. It combined a few different elements that you wouldn’t think would necessarily work together, especially in a book that only just scrapes over the 300-page mark, but Valerio Massimo Manfredi has wound it together in a way that seems to work.
Naturally, there is the Egyptian side of things: Pharaohs, archaeology, tombs in the desert. The main character, William Blake, uses dialogue as a way to express his clear knowledge on the subject without overwhelming the reader...more
Naturally, there is the Egyptian side of things: Pharaohs, archaeology, tombs in the desert. The main character, William Blake, uses dialogue as a way to express his clear knowledge on the subject without overwhelming the reader...more
I expected this to be an average read but thoroughly enjoyed it. Disgraced Egyptologist William Blake is approached by a mining company to investigate an untouched tomb they've discovered whilst drilling in the Middle East. He isn't told where he's going and everyone seems a little cagey. The tomb turns out to be that of a pharoah, but why was he buried so far from the Valley of the Kings? William begins his investigations into the identity of the pharaoh and soon realises that he's hit on somet...more
Trashy, with some of the lamest dialogue I have come across in ages. Perhaps it's from the translation. He really should have used third person narrative instead. It gets quite exciting towards the end but I had to suspend credulity as the plot twists got so preposterous. Aside from which it was quite good fun. Probably won't be chasing up this author unless I want more of the same, which is seldom.
The cover claims it 'shows Dan Brown how it should be done' but for me this book not in the same league even if in the same genre. I think the translation might be the reason it feels a little clunky sometimes, but I still wanted to turn the next page most of the way through. Good material for a Saturday matinee movie - it was an interesting read overall but not as mind blowing as I would wish for.
I found it a boring and too politicized. I cant understand why Middle East and religion always has to be connected with war and deaths and terrorists...I mean I can understand it but this is literature and I would prefer to read sth different than what I read. Sth purely about Egypt and the Pharao and the Holly Grail etc etc. Anyway Manfredi is one of my favourite authors and if I didnt had his bookS while being at univesrity I would have jumped from a roof.
A very in between book. I read it to bridge a gap between my obsessive reading habits of the same authors, and though I enjoyed the read and finished it with a happy heart that I had read it, I didn't come away with any real feeling one way or another about the story.
Glad I have read it, enjoyed it, probably wouldn't read it again.
Glad I have read it, enjoyed it, probably wouldn't read it again.
2/10
Solita sbobba: l'eroe è un uomo comune, pur se intelligentissimo e coltissimo, e viene coinvolto all'improvviso in un'avventura incredibile nella quale troverà l'amore della sua vita (bellissima e intelligentissima pure lei, manco a dirlo) e si scontrerà con uomini pericolosissimi e malvagyssimi, uscendone puntualmente indenne. Questa voltà c'è pure la Sconvolgente Rivelazione stile Dan Brown che minaccia di far crollare la fede di milioni di persone, ma visto che non vogliamo far piangere l...more
Solita sbobba: l'eroe è un uomo comune, pur se intelligentissimo e coltissimo, e viene coinvolto all'improvviso in un'avventura incredibile nella quale troverà l'amore della sua vita (bellissima e intelligentissima pure lei, manco a dirlo) e si scontrerà con uomini pericolosissimi e malvagyssimi, uscendone puntualmente indenne. Questa voltà c'è pure la Sconvolgente Rivelazione stile Dan Brown che minaccia di far crollare la fede di milioni di persone, ma visto che non vogliamo far piangere l...more
En una tumba egipcia es encontrado el cuerpo de un faraón, que resulta ser Moisés. Novela que argumenta que el único Dios de las tres religiones monoteístas es un fraude.
Leído en enero de 2004.
Leído en enero de 2004.
Mar 19, 2012
Amit Shetty
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
1st-impressions-last
A very good & instresting concept has been portrayed in this book using the current tensions between Israel and the Islamic World.Valerio plays it beautifully. A must read.
This is a departure from the author's usual offering, with a more contemporary story about the Middle East. However, there is still some historical content! A good read.
All about adventure and unstoppable action can be found in this book. The author is having the charisma to draw the scenes in front of the reader’s eyes.
Very much in the style of the Bible of Clay but veering towards the action and no so much about the moral decisions of the characters.
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The first book I read by this author and am so glad he has written others, a really good mix of past and present.
something was definitely lost in the translation. Most of his books I quite like, but not this one.
Enjoyed it but some bits I think got lost in translation with some of the conversations between characters.
The book was entertaining. It is a thriller quite in the mold of Dan Brown's books. I was a bit disturbed by the forced attempt to be sexy by the author, he manages to merely objectify the only female character here, which is irritating as the heroine is quite an intelligent person in her own right. Like Dan, it would have been better to keep the romantic entaglements to the last.
As for the claims made in the book, I can merely shrug. Dan Brown was brave enough to make some categorical statement...more
As for the claims made in the book, I can merely shrug. Dan Brown was brave enough to make some categorical statement...more
Decent read, but I wouldn't really recommend it. There are better ways of spending time.
Ricordo di aver pensato: "Manca solo Rambo!"
Not his best but still enjoyable.
average
page 79
And he left, losing himself in the crowd.
Last line from Pharaoh. Like The Oracle, this differed from Manfredi’s usual approach by basing much of the story in the present. Pharaoh is a contemporary thriller, whose plot is constructed by mixing elements of the very distant past with the present. It’s not my favourite Manfredi novel, as I prefer his stories that remain set in the past. The politics didn’t really appeal to me but the history was interesting enough.
Last line from Pharaoh. Like The Oracle, this differed from Manfredi’s usual approach by basing much of the story in the present. Pharaoh is a contemporary thriller, whose plot is constructed by mixing elements of the very distant past with the present. It’s not my favourite Manfredi novel, as I prefer his stories that remain set in the past. The politics didn’t really appeal to me but the history was interesting enough.
I'm only giving this two stars instead of one because it was a fast, easy read, but goodness...what a terrible book. It's like Dan Brown, but 1000 times more cliched. The characters are ridiculous and complete caricatures, the plot is just silly, and the whole thing reads like a forgettable American action movie. If he had just stuck to the historical stuff, it would have been much better.
It's a very nice book. It's easy to read, fun, andit's the sort of book you want to take in one stand. Valerio Massimo Manfredi is very good at writting about historical facts and making a plot out of it (or with it).
There are a few things that I consider happened too fast or a bit hard to believe, but there was also a few pleasant surprises.
There are a few things that I consider happened too fast or a bit hard to believe, but there was also a few pleasant surprises.
Well not bad... not exactly good... I guess that I found that the characters were well defined but bland, sometimes... insipid. They also have low chemistry between each other. Makes for a dull read. So why finish it? I reached more then half before having formulated an opinion. To paraphrase: In for a half, in for all.
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Valerio Massimo Manfredi (born 1943) is an Italian historian, writer, archaeologist and journalist. He was born in Piumazzo di Castelfranco Emilia, province of Modena and is married to Christine Fedderson Manfredi, who translates his published works from Italian to English. They have two children and live in a small town near Bologna.
Valerio Massimo Manfredi defines himself as an "Ancient World To...more
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May 11, 2010 11:13pm