Valley of Obsessions [Paperback]

Betty Gordon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 11, 2011

Desiree's passion for ancient Egyptian culture leads her on a dangerous trip down the Nile. Can Desiree Roberts leave her law career in Texas and become a 1980's Egyptian? Will the country that has captivated her since childhood embrace her, or will it lead her down dangerous paths fraught with deception and betrayal? As Desiree follows her dreams and treks through shifting sands, she enters portals of pharaohs long since entombed. Her obsessions lure her into alien territory filled with suspicious characters-where someone wants to end her fantasies. How far will he go?

Product Details

• Paperback: 250 pages
• Publisher: L & L Dreamspell (March 11, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1603182829
• ISBN-13: 978-1603182829
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,683,397 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Betty Gordon is a native Texan who moved from Dallas to the Houston area to fulfill her destiny--creating sculpture and writing that would challenge and entertain viewers and readers.
Betty has a degree in Professional Writing and graduate degrees in creative writing and visual arts.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fabulous! Just Like Mrs. Pollifax Novels, April 26, 2011

By 

Laura (Chicago) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Valley of Obsessions (Paperback)

I rec'd a free copy of this book from the author and I loved it. The characters were memorable and sympathetic. Desiree Roberts is a life long fan of Egyptology and is making a once in a lifetime trip to Egypt. She is traveling with her friend Cassandra (Sandy) Olson. Desiree attracts men like flies to honey and this trip is no exception. Sandy is a paralegal for a family law firm in Houston and takes the trip to help fulfill her friend's dream of going to Egypt. Part of the trip included a boat trip down the Nile to Luxor. Also on the boat trip was Italian Mike Lapuccio who was infatuated with Desiree, Richard Daniels, a quiet but grumpy advertising executive from Houston, Todd and Amanda Pritchard from London as well as Egyptian husbands and wives Annipe and Minkabh and Dalila and Sandiki. The 2 couples were born in Cairo but have been living in England for years. Every other year they travel to their homeland to reconnect with their roots. The Pritchard travel to Egypt annually. Amanda did not approve of Desiree's behavior and was not quiet about it. Ammanda could not stand the fact that her niece was in awe of Desiree and yelled at Desiree to stay away from her frequently. Vickie Sanders was a friend of a friend of Desiree's. Paul Barlow is Vickie's lover. Both of them are private detectives. A lawyer turned cab driver named Femi who was also infatuated with Desiree and Cairo Hilton employee Hemi round out the list of characters.

The story opens with Sandy and Desiree being inside King Tut's tomb. Desiree feels Tut caressing her cheek and running his hands through her hair. The experience scared her and they had to leave the tomb immediately. The 2 discuss the matter with the Egyptian couples and are told it is not an unusual occurrence. However, they decline to discuss what it means. The next day Desiree is found dead in Opet's Chapel in Karnak wearing Egyptian garb but no head dress. Sandy calls a friend in Houston for help. The friend contacts private investigator Vickie Sanders who gets on the next plane to Cairo. After meeting up with Sandy, Vickie begins her investigation. However, she finds clues that frighten her so she calls her boyfriend Paul and asks him to travel to Cairo ASAP. Paul arrives soon and the investigation begins to takes shape.

The pace was fast. I read this in one sitting, staying up to midnight to finish it. The clues were expertly hidden and I was surprised by the ending. I think that this could be the beginning of a wonderful series. It would have been nice for Desiree to be the protagonist of the series but she is, unfortunately, dead. Highly recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Reviewed for Midwest Book Review, September 3, 2011

By 

Christy Tillery French "reviewer/writer" (Powell, TN) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Valley of Obsessions (Paperback)

Desiree Roberts talks her best friend Sandy Olson into sharing her lifelong dream of visiting Egypt. While there, the two take a boat drip down the Nile, where Desiree makes friends with mysterious Italian Mike Lapuccio and loner Richard Daniels, an advertising executive from Houston, TX, as well as two Egyptian couples. But Desiree provokes the ire of English businesswoman Amanda Pritchard, who is jealous of the relationship between Desiree and her niece. When Desiree and Sandy return to the Cairo Hilton, Desiree begins to date Lapuccio and Daniels. After clubbing with Lapuccio one night, she never makes it back to her hotel room. Lapuccio claims he left Desiree at the elevator after which she was seen getting into the taxi of her friend Femi, who holds a law degree yet makes his living driving a cab. Her body is found in Opet's Chapel in Karnak dressed in authentic Egyptian clothing except for the head gear. Sandy hires Vicki Sanders to come to Egypt to investigate the murder, and Vicki finds herself mired in a plethora of suspicious characters who surrounded Desiree. When her life is threatened, her boyfriend, fellow investigator Paul Barlow, joins her in Egypt and Vicki, Paul and Sandy begin looking into the backgrounds of the people with whom Desiree had contact, upping the number of suspects and placing their lives in danger.

Betty Gordon has penned a fine mystery here packed with plenty of red herrings and nail-chewing suspense. Her descriptions of Egypt and its historical monuments are captivating and enhance the plot. Characterization is well-done and the page-turning story well-written.

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling, Page Turner Mystery, December 11, 2011

By 

Cornelia Amiri "LONG SWORDS, HOT HEROES, AND ... (Houston, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Valley of Obsessions (Kindle Edition)

This thrilling, page turner mystery is set in Egypt and the main characters are from Houston TX. It has strong female characters. This exciting mystery also includes exotic tidbits about Egypt thrown in. I highly recommend it.