“Parker Bilal whisks the reader straight to the dark heart of Cairo.” –
The Economist
It is the summer of 2001, and in Cairo’s crowded streets, the heat is rising . . .
A string of unsolved murders are fanning the embers of religious hatred. Hired to investigate threats made against a hapless travel agent, Makana finds himself drawn to Meera, a woman who needs his help. But Makana’s troubled past in Sudan is trying to lay claim to him once again, this time in the form of a businessman with a powerful secret.
When Makana witnesses a brutal killing, he attracts the attention of both the state security services and a dangerous gangster family. His search for answers takes him from the labyrinth of Cairo to the city of Luxor and an abandoned monastery near the tombs of the pharaohs, where he uncovers a web of intrigue, violence, and secrecy that reaches deep into Egypt’s political heart.
“[An] excellent crime novel . . . More please.” —Literary Review
“As gripping as the [The Golden Scales] . . . His skills are evident in the pace, confidence, and emotional truth of this brilliant novel.” —Sunday Times
“A superb novelist . . . Like all the best crime fiction, Bilal’s story has a depth and resonance which stretches far beyond its cast of characters into the wider world.” —The Independent