Review of Bird in a Snare
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BWHarold
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Review of Bird in a Snare
[Following is a volunteer review of "Bird in a Snare" by N.L. Holmes.]
Amen-hotep, known to the reader as "Hani" is an emissary and diplomat who has faithfully served Egypt and the sitting Pharaoh his entire life. He is also the gifted detective and the main character in N.L. Holmes's Lord Hani Mysteries series. Bird in a Snare is the first book of the series. I found this book and was drawn into the idea that mysteries could be set in ancient Egypt. I was doubly interested because the writer is an archaeologist. I wasn't disappointed, Ms. Holmes built a world that I could immerse myself in.
Hani and his family have been in service to the Pharaoh for generations. Hani comes from a long line of diplomats. His wife is a chantress (similar to a priestess) for Amen. This puts his family in very high standing with the Egyptian court. Hani is also a gifted orator and he has the ability to read people. Because of his extreme likeability, Hani is asked to entertain a visiting tribal leader known as the Hapir. The visit goes well and Hani reports his experience with the leader to the Pharaoh.
Shortly after the visit, Hani is notified that the Hapir has been murdered. He is appointed to go and investigate the murder, and flush out the killer. After some resistance from his wife, Hani sets his eyes for the lands up North. He brings with him his secretary Maya, a dwarf who has won Hani's respect through his work ethic. The two proceed to unravel the events and circumstances surrounding the leader's death. What they find is a pit of intrigue neither one of them expected.
When I signed on for a "cozy" mystery in Egypt, I wasn't sure what I would get. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of character and world-building Ms. Holmes put into the piece. I liked Hani's family and I understood the dynamics almost immediately. The lead is certainly a man who values his family and reputation above all else. He is also fun to read about when he is using his signature charm on the nobles and other people he encounters during his investigation. Hani is likable and it is even summed up by the Pharaoh when he says, "everybody's happy when Hani comes." He certainly is a delightful character and interesting to follow throughout the story. The book is well written and it is a fast-paced read.
Some of the negatives I found in this book are, the cast of characters is MASSIVE. The author even included a special section at the beginning to inform the reader which character was who and how they were related to Hani, if at all.
The story begins when Hani's second daughter is thirteen, by the end of the book she is seventeen. Sadly, that is the only way I could tell how much time had passed during the story. Hani is sent over to investigate and he mentions he may be gone a year, but after that, I lost track of how much time was passing in the story. The mystery is still at the forefront of Hani's mind, but he also has to deal with a shift in political power and the dubious status of his family within the court. Towards the end of the story, I was grateful for the index of names so I could remember what these characters had to do with Hani's investigation.
By the time Hani returns to his suspects, I was lost as to who was who and why he was speaking to them. If you don't mind a large number of characters to keep track of, then the long and often very similar names may not bother you. Oh, and this book does mention child molestation. It's not graphic, but it is mentioned numerous times. It is handled as the evil it is, so I wasn't rattled too much, but some readers may want to skip this one if it is a trigger for you.
Hani is a character I would like to meet again, I will just have my index of characters handy to keep me up to speed. I will also add that Maya, the secretary, spends some time in the narrator's seat. At first, I wasn't sure if I liked him, but as the story unfolded, I grew to appreciate Maya and his dedication to Hani and his family. They were a perfect odd couple that made their journey fun to read and it made me root for Maya toward the end.
As I said earlier, the story is a fast read, but I noticed a typo. It wasn't something that took me out of the story, but it was noticeable. My confusion of the characters is the main reason I am rating this book a 3 out of 4 stars. After a while, the characters started to melt together, and I was always happy when Hani was back with his family. That was easy to follow and it felt good to see a man happy in his environment instead of surrounded by snakes.
If you enjoy historical fiction, especially ancient history settings, then the Lord Hani series is worth looking into. Mystery lovers will enjoy the mystery and hopefully be surprised by the answer. I know I was, the answer is just complicated enough to keep the reader interested but simple enough to understand. Lord Hani won me over and I look forward to seeing him return in the next book.
******
Bird in a Snare
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Amen-hotep, known to the reader as "Hani" is an emissary and diplomat who has faithfully served Egypt and the sitting Pharaoh his entire life. He is also the gifted detective and the main character in N.L. Holmes's Lord Hani Mysteries series. Bird in a Snare is the first book of the series. I found this book and was drawn into the idea that mysteries could be set in ancient Egypt. I was doubly interested because the writer is an archaeologist. I wasn't disappointed, Ms. Holmes built a world that I could immerse myself in.
Hani and his family have been in service to the Pharaoh for generations. Hani comes from a long line of diplomats. His wife is a chantress (similar to a priestess) for Amen. This puts his family in very high standing with the Egyptian court. Hani is also a gifted orator and he has the ability to read people. Because of his extreme likeability, Hani is asked to entertain a visiting tribal leader known as the Hapir. The visit goes well and Hani reports his experience with the leader to the Pharaoh.
Shortly after the visit, Hani is notified that the Hapir has been murdered. He is appointed to go and investigate the murder, and flush out the killer. After some resistance from his wife, Hani sets his eyes for the lands up North. He brings with him his secretary Maya, a dwarf who has won Hani's respect through his work ethic. The two proceed to unravel the events and circumstances surrounding the leader's death. What they find is a pit of intrigue neither one of them expected.
When I signed on for a "cozy" mystery in Egypt, I wasn't sure what I would get. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of character and world-building Ms. Holmes put into the piece. I liked Hani's family and I understood the dynamics almost immediately. The lead is certainly a man who values his family and reputation above all else. He is also fun to read about when he is using his signature charm on the nobles and other people he encounters during his investigation. Hani is likable and it is even summed up by the Pharaoh when he says, "everybody's happy when Hani comes." He certainly is a delightful character and interesting to follow throughout the story. The book is well written and it is a fast-paced read.
Some of the negatives I found in this book are, the cast of characters is MASSIVE. The author even included a special section at the beginning to inform the reader which character was who and how they were related to Hani, if at all.
The story begins when Hani's second daughter is thirteen, by the end of the book she is seventeen. Sadly, that is the only way I could tell how much time had passed during the story. Hani is sent over to investigate and he mentions he may be gone a year, but after that, I lost track of how much time was passing in the story. The mystery is still at the forefront of Hani's mind, but he also has to deal with a shift in political power and the dubious status of his family within the court. Towards the end of the story, I was grateful for the index of names so I could remember what these characters had to do with Hani's investigation.
By the time Hani returns to his suspects, I was lost as to who was who and why he was speaking to them. If you don't mind a large number of characters to keep track of, then the long and often very similar names may not bother you. Oh, and this book does mention child molestation. It's not graphic, but it is mentioned numerous times. It is handled as the evil it is, so I wasn't rattled too much, but some readers may want to skip this one if it is a trigger for you.
Hani is a character I would like to meet again, I will just have my index of characters handy to keep me up to speed. I will also add that Maya, the secretary, spends some time in the narrator's seat. At first, I wasn't sure if I liked him, but as the story unfolded, I grew to appreciate Maya and his dedication to Hani and his family. They were a perfect odd couple that made their journey fun to read and it made me root for Maya toward the end.
As I said earlier, the story is a fast read, but I noticed a typo. It wasn't something that took me out of the story, but it was noticeable. My confusion of the characters is the main reason I am rating this book a 3 out of 4 stars. After a while, the characters started to melt together, and I was always happy when Hani was back with his family. That was easy to follow and it felt good to see a man happy in his environment instead of surrounded by snakes.
If you enjoy historical fiction, especially ancient history settings, then the Lord Hani series is worth looking into. Mystery lovers will enjoy the mystery and hopefully be surprised by the answer. I know I was, the answer is just complicated enough to keep the reader interested but simple enough to understand. Lord Hani won me over and I look forward to seeing him return in the next book.
******
Bird in a Snare
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Bird in a Snare by N.L. Holmes
