Napoleon's Pyramids

Here's the most recent of my book reviews for The Oregonian. I had never been a fan of historical thrillers, but this one was kind of a fun read.

A thrilling trip to beauty, mystery and fear
Sunday, February 18, 2007
MIRIAM WOLF

I f they had ever met, Philip Marlowe and Ethan Gage, the hero of William Dietrich's newest historical thriller "Napoleon's Pyramids," might have become fast friends. They're both clever and handy with firearms; they're morally complex; they're often caught up in situations they don't fully understand, situations that lead to them getting shot at, being beaten or waking up with snakes in their bedrooms. And they both appreciate a well-executed example of the female form.

The difference is that while Marlowe prowled Los Angeles in novels by Raymond Chandler, Gage accompanies Napoleon Bonaparte in his 1798 military campaign in Egypt. The general is hoping to conquer Egypt on the way to snatching India from British control. Gage is along as one of a team of "savants," scientists that accompany Bonaparte to help unlock the mysteries of the pyramids.

Gage's savant credentials are weak at best. An American, Gage was apprenticed to Benjamin Franklin, who taught him enough about electricity to perform a few parlor tricks. The real reason behind his recruitment is a medallion Gage won in a Paris poker game. Although the golden medallion with vaguely Egyptian markings seems innocuous enough, people seem to want it pretty badly, and dead bodies start piling up in Gage's wake.

Once in Egypt, Gage becomes allied with Astiza, a beautiful servant who is definitely more than she seems -- she speaks several languages, worships the goddess Isis and can kill a snake with aplomb. Meanwhile, Gage also proves himself to Napoleon, not as a savant, but through his battle skill with his preferred weapons -- long rifle and tomahawk.

Dietrich is great at bringing these historic battles to life. His description of the Battle of the Nile, in which England's Admiral Nelson destroyed Bonaparte's ships in the harbor near Alexandria, is particularly poignant, all smoke and chaos and fear. Dietrich also slyly shows some parallels between Napoleon's Middle East misadventure and a more modern one:

"When the Egyptians understand that we're here to liberate, not oppress, they'll join us in the fight against the Mamelukes," notes Bonaparte.

"Victory is sometimes more untidy than battle. An assault can be simplicity itself; administration an entangling nightmare."

Dietrich evokes the beauty and mystery of Egypt. He lets us wonder at the pyramids and other monuments that rose out of the desert, full of secrets and mysteries. And he doesn't neglect the thriller part of the historical thriller genre. We follow Gage as he faces down assassins, frees a band of slaves, sneaks through a sequestered harem at midnight, crawls through secret passageways in pyramids that no one has seen for millennia. And all the while, Gage wins us over with his American charm and gumption.

Dietrich discusses "Napoleon's Pyramids" 7 p.m. Sunday at Borders Bridgeport Village, 7227 S.W. Bridgeport Road, Tigard; and 7 p.m. Monday at Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing, 3415 S.W. Cedar Hills Blvd., Beaverton.

Miriam Wolf recently reviewed "Sacred Games" by Vikram Chandra for The Oregonian.