FernFolio

When traitors to the Two Lands kill his master, the Kushite spy Setka, and track him into the desert, fourteen year-old Nebi knows he must overcome the pain of his injuries, and get to Thebes. Charged by Setka to reveal to the Princess Amonirdis what they have learned about a plot by many Egyptian nobles to form an alliance with Assyria, seize North and South Egypt, and then march on Kush, Nebi survives a gruelling trek through the desert, and is granted what turns out to be an almost disastrous audience with the Princess. As soon as he has recovered enough from his injuries to travel, Nebi is sent south by ship to Napati, capital of the Kushite Kingdom, and home to King Piankhy, ruler of Kush and the Two Lands.
News of the plot to overthrow Kushite control of North and South Egypt puts King Piankhy’s armies on a war footing. Soon tens of thousands of archers, javelineers, and chariots are marching north to meet the rebel forces. Fluent in Mesh, the language of North Egypt, and trained as a scribe, Nebi accompanies the Kushite army as an assistant to young Prince Shebitku, nephew to the King, and watches and listens as the great military leaders of Kush plan a campaign that is as brilliant as it is, at times, foolhardy.
Sheb, a young prince eager for fame and glory, and intent upon proving himself to King Piankhy as a strong contender for heir to the throne, and Nebi, a farmer turned scribe turned spy, rapidly form a kind of friendship, but one that is tried by Sheb’s less than scrupulous approach to maat, honour. Yet the two young men are drawn together by their love of horses and their bravery in the face of danger. When the Kushite forces reach the besieged city of Hensu, a huge rebel army awaits them, and Nebi and Sheb are relegated to the sidelines as stretcher-bearers and watch as one of the greatest military campaigns in Egyptian history begins to unfold.
Rise of the Golden Cobra is a terrific adventure story, one that is made all the more gripping by the insights into ancient military warfare and strategy. This book is sure to appeal to lovers of historical fiction!
FernFolio Editor