Very engaging little stories, very atmospheric and easy to read.more More than once he thwarts the Englishman's plans in a firm but gentle manner, sometimes saving his life. His relationship with the Englishman is like that of kindly adult towards a mischievous child of whom he is very fond but knows that he can't be trusted for one moment. Abu-Tabah is a very likable Muslim clergyman, kindly and tolerant, not at all fanatic. More than once he th Most of the stories are about the same two characters,Iman Abu-Tabah, and his friend, an unnamed, unscrupulous Englishman who works on commission for a shady company called Moses, Murphy &Co."purveyors of fake antiquities". Most of the stories are about the same two characters,Iman Abu-Tabah, and his friend, an unnamed, unscrupulous Englishman who works on commission for a shady company called Moses, Murphy &Co."purveyors of fake antiquities".
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You can get this book for free from the Gutenberg Project site. Three (3.0) solid Stars for the intrigue and the fun of watching Abu Tabah outsmart, outwit, and best Pasha Kernaby. I might re-read this collection some day. Remember Rohmer was a very successful author and wrote to earn money, not to change the world (except for “The Orchard of Tears.) So, his opinions and attitudes both reflect and rely on British Colonialism as well as the hunger of his readers for outré and sensationalist literature. It’s there and so are other elements that I think were deliberately used to entice readers.
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Having read a lot of Rohmer in one long and stretched out series I tend to ignore the racist elements that are there and often form the backbone of others’ reviews. Where Rohmer collected his knowledge isn’t identified, but he is clearly fascinated with the culture and strives to paint a world that allures the reader and his own characters. In a few places the story revolves around the supernatural more than the human element. They do continue with the mystical elements of the East as in the first six. The rest of the tales are a mish-mash of Cairo-based stories and they have no common protagonist. (Another example of the Easterner being able to outwit the Westerner.) Time and time again he manipulates events and Kernaby himself to deprive the agent of the treasures that belong to Egypt. On the other hand the Imam Abu Tabah is a respected and feared individual who not only holds authority from his holiness, but is said to be a master magician.
Kernaby is an old Egyptian hand and treats Cairo as he would London or Paris not afraid to go when and where he is required.
The first six tales all feature a for-profit, English relic hunter and his nemesis (sort of) Abu Tabah. In my year-end frenzy to write reviews for the several books I read during the past few months I’m going to be very brief and skip individual story essays for now. (There are exceptions to this as I noted in my review of his other collection, The Haunting of Low Fennel: see the story “The Turquoise Necklace”.) Of course in Rohmer’s world the Western (White) man is going to be superior to and more able than the Eastern man virtually every time. Set in and around Cairo primarily these tales involve the clash of people and culture from West and East. Tales of Secret Egypt is another collection of short stories by prolific author Sax Rohmer that does not involve his arch-fiend Fu Manchu. I tip my hat to the fine folks at Project Gutenberg: virtually every title I have or will be reading in the near future comes from them.
Since emulating a yo-yo, I continue to rely on the old-style Kindle 3G for any non-technical reading. Re-revised forward to these overseas reviews: Set in and around Cairo primarily these tales inv The review from afar – No. 14 Re-revised forward to these overseas reviews: Since emulating a yo-yo, I continue to rely on the old-style Kindle 3G for any non-technical reading.
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