The Mummy, or Ramses the Damned is the story of a girl, a mummy, family finances, murder and love. Quite a combination, but very believable, if you like this kind of stuff.
Lawrence Stratford, a very waelthy British shipping magnate, has given control of his company to his brother Randolph, and returned to Egypt, where is is a respected archeologist. With his friend Samir, he discovers an amazing tomb. THe Tomb of Ramses, who everyone thought had died 1,000 years before the date on the tomb. In a rush of discovery, Stratford opens the tomd and finds a mummy case and a bust of Cleopatra, and many scrolls and other artifacts.
He opens the case and finds a mummy. As he translates and reads the scrolls, he discovers that the tomb does belong to Ramses. However, the story the scrolls tell is impossible! Ramses says he was friend and advisor to Cleopatra, who lived long after Ramses died. Or did he?
Unfortunately for Lawrence, his nephew, who has a real drinking and gambling problem, pushes his way into the tomb and murders the elderly gentleman. This heinous crime begins a journey for Julie Stratford, his daughter, Samir and Elliott Savarell, Lawrence's friend and father of Julie's finacee'.
Family finances, murder, theft, secrets and love follow the trail of The Mummy from Egypt to England and back to Egypt. Anne Rice spins a tale that is well crafted and detailed. She obviously did her research and understands much of ancient Egypt and the study of its ruins and remains. If you believe in magic and curses, forever lasting love and devotion, and stories where the bad guy gets exactly what he deserves, you will really love this one!
It is a very easy read and all you have to do is pay attention and keep the characters straight. You do have to pay attention to the money - who has it and who wants it. If you do that, you will find yourself deep into a book that will definitely keep you up all night. I just wish Anne Rice had written more about this subject. Maybe someday there will be another Ramses book from this author. And if there is, I will pay full price for it!
Title: The Mummy
Author: Anne Rice
Review by: CL7 Kali D'or