Customer Reviews

Slayer of Gods

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Now in his fifth year as the pharaoh, Tutankhamun continues his efforts to restore the ancient ways that his predecessor Akhenaten disdained. Tutankhamun somewhat finds success in returning to the old capital of Memphis and worshipping the ancient gods instead of just Aten. However, Tutankhamun has never fully recovered from the sudden disappearance of Akhenaten's Queen Nefertiti, who acted like a mother towards him.

Detective Lord Meren learns who poisoned Nefertiti, but not the identity of the high-ranking instigator of the dastardly act. To provide some closure for his King, Meren begins a dangerous journey to uncover a truth cloaked in a deadly conspiracy that could prove quite deadly to him, his enlisted partner the Babylonian spy Anath, and even his family.

The sixth Lord Meren Ancient Egypt mystery is the best of a powerful series as Lynda S. Robinson combines fact with conjecture and turns it into a wonderful historical fiction novel. The story line is clever and fourteenth century BC Egypt appears thriving today. The cast, including real persona, adds to the feel of authenticity and plausibility. Historical fiction and mystery aficionados will derive joy from SLAYER OF GODS.

Harriet Klausner

I agree with both the reviewer from Guatemala and the reviewer from Georgetown Texas. The series started out splendidly, but the modernization of the characters (particularly the Nancy Drewization of Bener) leaves a great deal to be desired. The reason I read historical mysteries is to immerse myself in a culture that is as alien to contemporary life as any Star Trek episode. I also would give it a 3.5 were that possible-it's better than a 3, but doesn't deserve a 4. Ms. Robinson, please return to the cultural norms of 1300 B.C!!

Slayer of Gods is the sixth title in Robinson's Lord Meren series, which takes place in the mid 1300s BC. This one takes place during year five of the boy king Tutankhamun's reign.

King Tut has assigned Lord Meren to an 11-year-old mystery. They are both sure the King's foster mother, Nefertiti, did not die of the plague, but of foul play. Lord Meren, god-king's chief protector and investigator, his adopted son Kysen, and daughter Bener are put in danger as they search for the evil that murdered a queen and continues to lurk in the heart of Egypt. Also helping Meren is the woman warrior known as the Eyes of Babylon, Anath. As the story moves from place to place, traps turn foul, unclear clues surface, and the list of suspects grow.

Ms. Robinson's characters are intriguing to say the least. Her passion for Egypt's history is unmistakable as it merges effortlessly with her gift for writing mysteries.

Against the backdrop of King Tut's Egypt, Lynda S. Robinson has set up a series of mysteries that truly bring the era to life. The struggle of re-building faith in the years following the devastating rule of heretic Pharaoh Akhenaten and his bride Nefertiti makes for fascinating and entertaining reading.

Lord Meren, the Pharaoh's chief protector and investigator, is recovering from injuries sustained while previously attempting to resolve the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of the Queen. It is an 11-year old mystery that deeply distresses Tutankhamun and it's solving has expanded to involve Lord Meren's family members, trusted assistants and even Anath, the Eyes of Babylon. The field of suspects has narrowed, the circumstances of Nefertiti's last days are becoming clearer and the resolution is both exciting and satisfying.

Indeed, this is the best novel of the series as it provides clear means and motive for the mystery. There are red herrings aplenty and Robinson relies much less on supernatural trappings and solutions that appear in earlier books. I may not agree with her fictional interpretation of history, but I genuinely applaud her skill at weaving a highly entertaining and enlightening novel. Highly Recommended.

Readers of this suspenseful, colorful, and mesmerizing series have wondered for quite a while--Who Did It? Who poisoned Queen Nefertiti, the beautiful queen of the heretic pharaoh Akhenhaten! In “Slayer of Gods,” author Lynda S. Robinson feels enough is enough and brings the longest “narrative hook” in mystery fiction to a close. Thank goodness! This is not to say that this series, now numbering six, isn’t worth the time it takes (years, if you read them as they were published!). Dr. Robinson expertly weaves the historic with the histrionic and has, truly, legions of followers. Her narrative description seems unquestionable, her knowledge of history keen, and her grasp of the basics of mystery writing far exceeds the minimal!

This series, her “Lord Meren” adventures, is set in the 14th century B.C. and young Tutankhamun is on the throne (and we know it’s only a brief sit!), but his “eyes and ears” (Lord Meren) is directed to solve the queen’s death, questionable under any circumstances. Of course, delving into this investigation is far more complicated than it would seem. Conspiracies abound--some real and some imaginary. Lord Meren discovers that numerous plots continue to run rampant--from the priests in the temples to outside instigators who stand to gain, not only with Nefertiti’s death, but that of her husband.These enemies of the state do not hesitate to kill the opposition, often quite cruelly (as we’ve seen in the previous five episodes, too). In “Slayer of Gods,” Meren finally has his suspects narrowed to one. It is up to him to catch him, never a more dangerous fiend to be found, a killer who will stop at nothing, as he represents issues far greater than the death of any single invidivudal. Along with Anath, ( She’s the “Eyes of Babylon”), a sexy spy herself, Lord Meren is determined to find the truth, even at the cost of his own life. Again Meren’s household (daughters and adopted son) aid in this quest. Author Robinson does not disappoint us. Episode Number Six, now, has been worth the wait! ...

Was anyone else disgusted by the whole Meren-Anath thing? I don't want to seem like a prude and I am glad that it appears as if Meren's finally getting over his wife's death, but geez. It's a tribute to the writer that she has the skill to make a reader cringe with the charachter's humiliation, but still. Ouch. And I was hit by how surreal the party to catch the killer was. It was more Murder, She Wrote than a sensible action by charachters I feel I know. I commend readers who slogged their way through the whole thing - I was forced to skim sections of it. Thank you for the effort, Ms. Robinson, but please, for the next one (hopefully) spend more time showing us the charachters we love, not out-of-place actions that don't fit with the developed charachters thus far. As much as I didn't like this one, the suggestion of the real murderer at the end was intriguing and would make a good sub-plot for a sequel. I also think that the first four books in this series are worth weight in gold - masterpieces of the craft. Please, please try to revive the quintessence of these books in the next one.

Hold on, Slayer of Gods disappoints on several levels, slim book though it is. The most serious is the sudden 'modernization' of the familial, political and adversarial relationships of Lord Meren. Alas, Slayer of Gods has catapulted somewhere into the recent past. The family is out of control (Nancy Drew, aka Bener, vies with a sadly credulous Frank Hardy, aka Kysen, whose years at his adopted father's side and abusive childhood seem to have had no effect in wiseing him up, to help solve father's thorny mystery); the villiany is plotted by a criminal mastermind, a Professor Moriarity/Fu Manchu-type, assisted by a sexy, amoral daughter-prostitute-spy; and the cause of all the hubbub, that living god guy, pharoah, doesn't really know what he wants--his majesty demands his vengeance, but, whoops, ok, if it makes you happy we won't take our righteous vengeance after all, and I don't even need to brood about it a bit, let me decide right here on the street. I'm a regular guy. Certainly brings things to a tidy and quick conclusion. Sigh. And I won't even go into the "dad's away at the first cataract, let's throw a house party to trap the killer."

Lynda Robinson has fallen into what seems to be a common and unfortunate trap among historical mystery writers. They start off with compelling heroes, place them in their own time and place, with all that implys re human relationships, attitudes, beliefs and how their actions are circumscribed by them, and then show how they can solve a mystery. Great stuff, often, for one or two books, but then the need to continue the saga causes writers to lose their way. 'Modernization' of relationships and actions kill the magic and the anachronisms appear. This is what has happened in Slayer of Gods. Robinson started off her series with originality and charm, combining a compelling hero, Lord Meren, with an almost unimaginably exotic setting, ancient Egypt, and brought them alive, deftly making both character and place seem authentic--while plotting a good mystery. She never lost sight of the fact, however, light though her touch was, that she was writing about a time, place and people as foreign to us as aliens from another world. Human beings, sure, ancient empire, ok, but outright similarities to modern behavior and actions were few and far between so one never felt that Meren and co. were just westerners of the past century dressed up in wigs and pleated kilts. There's not even a melting incense cone in sight. It's all a great disappointment, and I hope Ms. Robinson can find her way back to her earlier style. Lord Meren deserves more respect.

"Slayer Of Gods" the latest installment in the Lord Meren detective series is a delicious morsel from beginning to end. Set in the 14th century B.C., during the reign of the boy king Tutankamun. Tutanhkamun is beginning to show signs of the stress of running an empire fought with intrigue and danger, restoring the old gods,as he worries about the murder of his second 'mother' the great queen Nefertiti. It is up to Lord Meren, the "Eyes and Ears" of pharoah to solve this murder mystery. We find Lord Meren recuperating from the wounds he suffered when he took an arrow intended for the king. Meren fears that murderer who has managed to kill all the witnesses and former servants of the queen is getting desperate and is closing in on him. Meren recruits the services of the intriguing and mysterious Anath the 'Eyes of Babylon to aid him in uncovering the identity of of the killer. Together they embark on a perilous journey to the Horizon of Aten the former capital of the heretic king Ahkenaten and also to find the former bodyguard of Nefertiti, Sebek. While Meren is away his son Kysen and daughter Bener caught up in their own investigation which lead to Bener's kidnapping and the posioning of Kysen. Ms Robinson adeptly tranports the reader to 14th century Egypt, she weaves together an intricate web of danger and deceit, it is finest work to date. Slayer of Gods is a must read for historical mystery buffs. May your 'Ka' continue to rise.

This is the sixth in Robinson's historical mystery series featuring Lord Meren, Eyes and Ears of the Pharoah. In this outing, the quest for Queen Nefertiti's murderer continues.

This book unlike the first five seems to have more flaws than the others. Robinson felt compelled to tell us the story of Lord Meren's life being saved by Ay, of Kysen's adoption by Lord Meren, etc. All these stories were told in previous books. Was it being used as filler in this book? Perhaps.

And yes, there are certain "modernizations" in this book that were not in previous books, particulary that of his daughter - too modern by far even assuming that Lord Mere was a liberal father, which was not mentioned in previous books.

This is the second book in a row that the mystery of who killed Nefertiti is the primary focus and Lord Meren's relationship with his family the secondary focus. The series was much more interesting when a mystery was the primary focus and Lord Meren himself was the secondary focus. And to add insult to injury, the mystery of who poisoned Nefertiti is not really solved at the end of the book either.

The history remains interesting as does Robinson's descriptions of the day-to-day events.

I wish I had the choice of giving this 3.5 stars - it doesn't really deserve four stars, but it's better than three stars. I'll read her next book, if there is one, but if it is as lackluster as this one was, it will be the last I read. There are just too many other good historical mysteries out there (for instance, Roberta Gellis' series) to waste time on the same book rehashed three or four times.

By the time I'd gotten to "Slayer of Gods," I'd gobbled up the previous five in order, thereby attaining the level of anticipation of a hammerhead shark in a sea of Egyptian blood. I must say it was sheer pleasure to chomp through this one. Ms. Robinson is in the best narrative form of the whole series. There are no serious breaks in the flow and action and the whole meal was over in wink, leaving me still quite bloodthirsty for more. Don't peek at any plot details! The previews reveal too much. I have to say that I figured this one out almost immediately, and I think you will too. But it's wonderfully done from a dramatic and character perspective. I give it only four stars because, to me, the plot has a many holes. Enough to make me uncomfortable, and I'm not the fussy type. Nevertheless, a scrumptious --and very suspenseful-- gobble.