The Murder of King Tut - Tapa blanda

JAMES PATTERSON is one of the best-known and biggest-selling writers of all time. His books have sold in excess of 365 million copies worldwide. He is the author of some of the most popular series of the past two decades - the Alex Cross, Women's Murder Club, Detective Michael Bennett and Private novels - and he has written many other number one bestsellers including romance novels and stand-alone thrillers. James is passionate about encouraging children to read. Inspired by his own son who was a reluctant reader, he also writes a range of books for young readers including the Middle School, I Funny, Treasure Hunters, House of Robots, Confessions, and Maximum Ride series. James has donated millions in grants to independent bookshops and has been the most borrowed author of adult fiction in UK libraries for the past eleven years in a row. He lives in Florida with his wife and son.

With the novelist's speculative "what if . . . ?" and the researcher's historical legwork, using X-rays, forensic clues, and previous period research, Patterson and Dugard try to prove that King Tutankhamen was murdered. The story shifts between the present to Egyptologist Howard Carter's early-twentieth-century journals to 1347 BC Thebes and the boy king's life. Joe Barrett's slightly sandpapery voice makes the moments in feel as if Patterson himself is speaking. In addition, Barrett's "veddy" British Howard Carter is fun and informative. In the ancient Egyptian sections, with their romance and court intrigues, Barrett's reading quivers with excitement. Are the authors' conclusions scientifically grounded? Do they take too many liberties? The bottom line: The storytelling works, and Barrett's performance makes this three-thousand-year-old possibly true crime an engaging listen. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine