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The Buried Pyramid (Tor Fantasy) |
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Author:
Jane Lindskold
By Tor Books
Average Customer Rating:   
List Price: $7.99
Our Price: $0.75
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Product Description
Plucky young Jenny Benet, a recently orphaned American girl who was raised on the Wild West frontier and educated at a Boston finishing school, has come to Egypt in company with her uncle Neville Hawthorne, a prominent British archaeologist. They're part of a team investigating the legendary Buried Pyramid, the tomb of the pharaoh Neferankhotep -- who may also have been Moses the Lawgiver.But they're not the only ones interested in the site. Another party, led by the opulent and treacherous Lady Audrey Cheshire, is shadowing theirs. Someone who signs himself "The Sphinx" has been sending threatening letters -- written entirely in hieroglyphics. In Egypt, an ancient and shadowy organization seems determined to keep the tomb from being discovered.But mortals may not be all that stands in their way.
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In which I expected quite a bit more., 2007-08-08
I hadn't really read Lindskold until a year or so ago. But then a blog that I frequently read pointed me towards Child of a Rainless Year which I absolutely loved. So when I was in Wisconsin and saw this book, I picked it up for the airplane ride.
All smirking Jerome K. Jerome references aside (I'll read To Say Nothing of the Dog if that's what I'm looking for) I have to say that there is very little of value in The Buried Pyramid. Hard to believe that it was written by the same writer as Child of a Rainless Year.
There's a wonderfully bigoted opening scene when the main character escapes by virtue of the fact that the fact that he knows that while the Bedouin would kill a woman, they won't kill a valuable animal. There is some kind of excuse buried in here about the character reflecting the prejudice of the supposed time period, but not much of one-- in the moment it is pretty clear that the character is supposed to be right for believing this. That was the first major strike for me.
The second major strike was the journey of the characters through the desert where a kitten is brought along for no better reason, apparently, than the aforementioned Jerome K. Jerome reference. (It also assists the plot later on, but obvious deus ex machina is nearly as bad as pointless literary trainspotting.) It violates pretty much everything sensible about the character, who is supposed to be the most sensible one in the group.
There's some bit with the gods which is kind of interesting, actually, but then which is immediately ruined by the strange, irritating and apparently completely meaningless post-judgement sequence. Actually, this bit really shows the problems that I had with the material-- nothing was at stake for these characters. I never really had the feeling that any outcomes were in doubt.
I think since I liked Child of a Rainless Year so much, then I have kind of decided to pretend that I never read this book. I'm hoping the rest Lindskold's writing follows more in the one tradition than the other.
Leaps to the Stars....Falls in the Mud, 2007-01-20
Lindskold has written a very good airplane book: easy to read, moderately entertaining, and quickly forgotten. What could have been a very deep and engrossing book turns out to be a puff of cotton candy, a sweetish treacle that satisfies for the immediate moment and yet leaves no lasting warmth in the literary tummy.
The story, as told above, is centered around two main characters: Sir Neville and Jenny Benet. Sir Neville had been to Egypt before as a soldier and fancies himself an archaeologist first and foremost and Jenny Benet is his cousin who was raised in America. The most important things to remember from these two characters is that Sir Neville has connections through an old acquaintance, Eddie, whenever he needs them and Jenny 's upbringing in America was SO well-rounded that she can basically produce any skill on demand to fill gaps in the storyline. Add an Egyptologist that knows every facet of history and you have a team that cannot fail.
And herein lies the problem with this story.
Since Sir Neville and Eddie can basically do whatever they want in Egypt thanks to connections or Eddie's conversion to Islam and since any challenge is conquered by the genius skills of Jenny (who not only is a frontier doctor, but also a tough fighter, an excellent shot and a well-mannered, boarding school-trained solver of complex puzzles) there is no real challenge in any of the situations they face. A cursory 60's Batman-style association string figures out the puzzles ("Hmmm...sausage...television....soda pop.....THE JOKER!") and Stephen the Egyptologist can read any heiroglyphic and knows any fact about ancient history; where is the thrill of danger and clever action/quick wit that saves the day? There is none. You can easily skip pages whenever the intrepid group encounters a tiny difficulty, since it will definitely be solved in record time. Each character is a static, video game character that has a special skill or five and can be called on and develops in much the same manner. There is no real development of closeness or maturity in Jenny: she is a tough-as-nails fighter genius doctor when she arrives and is one when the story is over. Even when a character dies, he is forgotten about by everyone (and even the subcharacter that spends the previous 2/3rds of the book FAWNING over him) within a few pages as if he had never existed. All the plots look contrived to be as easy to solve as possible or at least a diversion from the team's goal. It's like going on the Safari boat at Disney World and seeing the "dangerous" animatronic hippo come out of the fake river so the tour guide can shoot it with the toy gun to save the day.
And then we get to the last third of the book and its deus ex machina ending. 1. heroes are trapped in an INESCAPABLE room by the bad guys. 2. Heroes find a way out of the INESCAPABLE room. 3. Heroes find RA THE SUN GOD AND GUIDE HIS BOAT FOR HIM BECAUSE HIS FRIENDS THOTH AND ISIS ARE SOMEHOW MYSTERIOUSLY NOT THERE. 4. Shenanigans ensue! 5. Judgement by Osiris and a useless interlude that is easily won. 6. VICTORY!!!
The book itself is an easy and quick read because there is no substance to it. It's calorie-free and the characters never develop beyond their introductory profiles. The first parts of the book paint such a mysterious picture and promise so much possible intrigue and interpersonal development in the relationships between Neville and Jenny and also Neville and Eddie, who could be struggling with his total conversion to Islam and reconcile his native Englishness with his chosen path. But this never happens. Neville is enchanted with the "villain" when he needs to be and is helpless whenever she needs to manipulate him. Huzzah.
Read this book if you're trapped on a 7-hour flight, but skip it if you're looking for something with bite and substance.
Before Indiana Jones there is Jenny Benet +++, 2006-02-26
This "old-fashioned" novel by Jane Lindskold moves briskly from one scene and theme to another, but with rich detail. Its lead character, Jenny Benet, is an EDUCATED American wild west woman. She adventures with mostly Victorian British, yet key players are a British Muslim convert and a "quiet" Egyptian native. The scenes and themes are mostly Egyptian native, however. But there are other settings and players, including wild west American, Victorian Britain, Imperial German, Italian and Egyptian Coptic. So the scenes, themes and players flow in a rich, balanced diversity, with direct and subtle contrasts. [...]
The plot twists and turns, with mysteries and puzzles along the way. I enjoyed breaking about half the coded messages on my own, and just went onward in any case, not wanting to lose momentum. Some of the scenes and players are very funny, and there are times when certain players get quite their just due. Egyptian tradition and speculation are woven into the whole saga and its scenes, themes, and players. The way of the Old Gods interacts with the "modern" Christian and Muslim characters in a wonderful style. Amazing that "legalistic theology" can be such a natural story matrix. Before Indiana Jones there is Jenny Benet.
Not up to her earlier standard, 2006-01-19
The story of a recently orphaned girl - Jenny Benet - who instead of becoming a frontier doctor travels back to UK to be reared by her uncle Neville. Upon arrival she finds that he is about to start out on an archeological expedition to find a hidden pyramid. When uncle neville sets out, Jenny, and her guns, are brought along. The expedition is hampered by threats from a fellow archeologist party and a religious sect bent on protecting the pyramid, and helped by cryptic warnings from an anonymous source. The book start out with a bit of backstory to the search, and end with a suddenly appearing egyptian pantheon.
My problems with the story are many. Most prominent is the simplicity and childlike way the story is told - 50 pages in I actually had to make sure it wasn't just a bad childrens book I had picked up - and the sudden tacking on of a 'fantastic' ending that is not in any way made believable or plausible.
I hoped for better..., 2005-08-03
I first found Lindskold through When the Gods are Silent, an excellent book. Then Donnerjack, her completion of one of Zelazny's unfinished works, was excellent as well. I read the first three of her wolf novels; very good. So I had high hopes for The Buried Pyramid. Unfortunately, the first eighty percent of the book struck me as childish without the childlike sense of wonder, and as leading to a great climax. Also unfortunately, the great climax was nothing but a radical change in form, the sudden appearance of great magics and jarringly useless gods, and epic adventures compressed into paragraphs. I'll go try the 4th of her wolf novels now.
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 813
EAN: 9780765341594
ISBN: 076534159X
Label: Tor Books
Manufacturer: Tor Books
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 512
Publication Date: 2005-02-01
Publisher: Tor Books
Release Date: 2005-02-01
Studio: Tor Books |
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