The Jackal's Head

The Jackal's Head by Elizabeth Peters
published by Dell Books
Copyright 1970

The Curse of the Dead and
the Treachery of the Living ...

Young and lovely Althea Tomlinson had
hoped never to return to the Valley of the
Kings. Here her father was disgraced and de-
stroyed amid the ancient tombs and treasures
that had been his life's work. From here Al-
thea fled to New York, to start life anew.

But now a strange message from a dying fam-
ily servant and a bizarrely marked newspaper
on her doorstep had brought her back ...
back to face the brilliant, ruthless man who
had brought her father to ruin ... back to un-
earth a secret from beyond the grave ... back
to find herself trapped in a labyrinth of sus-
picion and fear, with a corpse at every turn
and the jackal-like laughter of a murderer
echoing everywhere ...

I would like to say that I have had more than my share of experience with the "Treachery of the Living" but you don't see me running from place to place. Althea flees to New York and now seems to be fleeing the Valley of the Kings. It wouldn't surprise me if she fled to Egypt originally to begin with. Althea's father looks to have been an archaeologist and if he wasn't able to "unearth a secret from beyond the grave" I don't see how how our little Miss nomad plans to do it.

I was excited when I got to pick this one up a few weekends back. The cover is a great twist on our theme but just a deserving of swift escape.