The Hidden Oasis

by Paul Sussman

Book Overview

The Hidden Oasis opens in 2152 BC with eighty priests setting out under cover of darkness into Egypt's Western Desert, dragging with them a sled on which rests a mysterious object swathed in cloth. Four weeks later, having reached their destination, the priests calmly slit each other's throats. Four thousand years later in present-day Egypt, professional rock climber Freya Hannen arrives for the funeral of her sister, Alex, a Saharan explorer. From the outset, Freya is suspicious of claims that Alex had taken her own life, and sets out to uncover what really happened to her sibling. In her quest for the truth Freya joins forces with Alex's friend, English academic Flin Brodie, a world authority on the prehistory of the Sahara. Flin is also searching for answers--he has devoted his career to tracking down a mythic hidden oasis. In this propulsive, nail-biting thriller--all the more engrossing because Sussman himself has worked extensively as an archaeologist in Egypt--we follow Flin and Freya on an unforgettable adventure.At stake are not simply the answer to one of archaeology's greatest mysteries--the location of the legendary lost oasis of Zerzura--but also the key to the astonishing, terrifying secret that lies at the oasis's heart.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802119182
• ISBN13: 9780802119186
• Release Date: October 2009
• Publisher: Atlantic Monthly Press
• Length: 560 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.6" x 6.0" x 9.0"

Customer Reviews

How to Extend Your Workout

Just open the cover of Paul Sussman's latest, hop on a treadmill and get ready to add fifteen minutes to your workout when you cant put it down. Plan on less sleep, less food and less TV, too. Tell your loved ones it's only temporary. With his third bookk, Sussman hits it out of the park with a fantastic tale that leaves you breathless as you zoom through modern Cairo, dig into ancient Egypt, flee from thuggish arms dealers and duplicitous spooks, and journey deep into the Sahara for a finish that abandons reason and leaves you exhausted to enjoy the final roller coaster of fun.

Enjoy the sand

This is a well written work for the more than casual reader. The locations and history described will educate and entertain. At many points in the novel you can almost feel the sand in your shoes and the thirst in your throat. Although this is a work of fiction the physical and social conditions described are most likely very accurate. It is in hardback so it will travel well. Dave Hall

Sussman Delivers ... Again

Paul Sussman's new The Hidden Oasis delivers the high-energy fix I've learned to expect from his work. As in The Lost Army of Cambyses and The Last Secret of the Temple, Sussman's new work is extremely well written, particularly the dialogue. His characters, even the evil ones, are completely believable. My favorite character is Detective Khalifa, with the Luxor, Egypt police force, who was so prominent in Sussman's first two novels. I'm encouraged that there is a popular Muslim good guy in current writing. Sussman's books deliver just the right amount of archaeological background to avoid interference with the story flow. The maps in the front of the books, although lacking some of the important locations mentioned in the books, are very helpful and informative. The glossary of Middle Eastern terms is instructive and an added bonus. I would recommend all of Sussman's books to anyone who loves a believable, current, action-packed mystery, and especially to anyone who loves archaeology. I expect, with the deep research involved, that we will have to wait way too long for another gift from this very talented author.

fast-paced action-packed Egyptian archeological thriller

In Egypt, former CIA operative Alex Hannen commits suicide. Her estranged sister American mountain climber Freya arrives in Cairo for her funeral; but even before reaching Egypt, she has had a hard time picturing Alex killing herself. In Cairo, Freya quickly concludes that her sibling was murdered because the doctor who ruled suicide had no idea her sister could not have injected morphine into herself as Alex was down right phobic in her fears of needles. Though they had a schism Freya vows to get justice for her sibling. Frey becomes friends of Alex's buddy, pre-dynasty Egyptologist Flin Brodie, who is working a dig in the western desert in search of the legendary lost for almost four millennia at theOasis at the End of the World of Zerzura. As he gets closer to the find of the century, Flin and Freya are soon in deep trouble from assassins who may be working for the government. The third Egyptian archeological thriller (see THE LOST ARMY OF CAMBYSES and THE LAST SECRET OF THE TEMPLE) is a fast-paced action-packed thriller that keeps reader attention throughout even with some enigmatic late implausible twists. Like its two predecessors the story line has a modern day Indiana Jones like feel to it as one thing leads to another especially when Freya and Flin meet. Fans will enjoy Paul Sussman's solid though by the book suspense saga as the lead couple appear reaching their end in ironically a paradise Oasis at the End of the World. Harriet Klausner

An Amazing well-crafted thriller!

I bought this book early last week as I've read both previous books by Paul and enjoyed them immensely and figured that I could not go wrong with such a strong author and I was right! I finished this book in less than a week and enjoyed his inital character & plot building as well as to details about archeology & Egypt. Half way into the book, he had his hooks set in me we were off to the races - who were the bad/good? guys/gals?, then mix them all together in with chases/break-ins/climbs/falls - all this combines for a roaring great fun book. At the end, I learned to love his main characters as well even as I knew their fears & loves. Overall, a highly recommended read!