The Lion of Cairo by Scott Oden

In the brilliantly written Lion of Cairo, a young Caliph's life is threatened by a power hungry Vizier who keeps him in a drug induced state languishing away unaware of the threat to him. A bored and curious young harem girl, Parasytis, wiles away her time discovering hidden secrets within the walls of the palace. While exploring a hidden passageway, Parasytis soon learns of the threat to the young Caliph's life, risks her own to prevent his being poisoned, and hurries to find a trusted friend to help her in saving Rashid al Hasan. Unfortunately, her efforts are thrwarted but in her effort to help the young Caliph, she is able to secure extraordinary and unusal help from her own close companion, a woman of the streets, named Yesamine. In the meantime, a special assassin by the name of Assad has made his way from the mountains of Afghanistan to help secure the safety of Cairo as well. The story is primarily about the assassin who has a special sabre which possesses extraordinary powers to inflict an enemy with savagery unlike any that has been known in the world of Islam. Finally, besides all the intrigues regarding the power struggle to unseat the caliph so that the greedy vizier can gain control of the great throne, there are also subplots that bring in the Order of the Templars who are trying to gain Cairo for Christianity. Cairo is a city of beggars and prostitutes who pepper the story with intrigues that soon persuade this reader that there is nothing in Islam that is worth saving. God is Great is uttered often to understand that the will of Allah is such that all will die, all are equal, and that little matters so long as it is the will of Allah. There is probably only one person in this story who has any cause to believe that there is some good in all of Islam, and that is Parasytis who had the nerve to save the Caliph when nobody else would lift a finger except to keep him drugged and in a state of extreme incompetence. Naturally, Parasytis had to let her street urchin go to find help to assist the Caliph so that Yesamine becomes a tragic figure when she learns that her own mother figure, a young prostitute daughter of the King of Thieves, is killed. Yesamine vows revenge, and finds herself the victim of forces much larger than herself. This book is a long detailed account of evil as practiced in Cairo during the time of the crusades. The Caliph does find an aide in the assassin but as his city is about to be destroyed by the potentiality of a unified army of Islamics united with Christians, the Caliph has to find a way to resolve the situation at least temporarily to prevent the total destruction of his capital. The assassin Assad is the hero of the story if one can call a man whose use of a sword that he does not fully comprehend a hero. He is the central figure who at least possesses judgement and loyalty in an environment that knows only greed, ambition, and evil intent. Author Scott Oden writes so skillfully in developing the sights and sounds of ancient Egypt that the reader is enthralled simply by his prose. He does handle the variety of subplots masterfully, developing intense characters whose actions appeal to the sense of wonder about this strange, desolate city. The King of Thieves and his daughter are intriguing characters who give some insights into the bazaars and markets of ancient times. This is perhaps the only area in this novel in which characters appear to be somewhat common, normal, and possibly even good. I admit that by the time I finished reading this book I thought of present day Islam which is falling like a house of cards with each and every ruler seemingly being overthrown by some agitation that is swelling from within. It is an excellent novel, full of tension, mystery, romance, and an excess of evil that makes one wonder if there is any hope for any who are of that particular faith. Since I am not a believer in the Islamic faith, I find it fascinating that someone has written a novel about it. Kahlil Gibran and Omar Sharif are the only two famous persons of Islam who have made an impression artistically upon me. The architectural styles prove that there is some beauty in Islam. However, even today, Allah, which means the God, is truly great while mercilessly keeping all of Islam in that state of doom called fate. I liked this book. Its ending is actually a beginning for a new Egypt with the Caliph just coming into power, the mystery of the salawar still unsolved, and the fate of Yesamine who is now the tool of the evil Ibn Sharr, but who is still the subject of a search by the Caliph. Much is yet to be resolved so that a sequel would be a reward for those who want to have the author solve this puzzle instead of our own vivid imaginations.