A Jewel in the
Sands of Time
A Freddie Malone
Adventure Book 2
By Clive Mantle
Thanks to his Uncle Patrick s mysterious map, Freddie is about to embark
on another incredible adventure through time except this time, he's not alone.
Join Freddie and best friend, Connor, as a feisty new neighbour, Ruby,
threatens to disrupt the boys plans...
Clive Mantle brings all the drama of his TV, film and stage career to the
second in a thrilling series of incredible time-travel adventures.
The notorious second novel.
I’ve been very lucky and suffered few nerves writing
my second book. The pressure was always there, as the reaction to ‘Treasure’
was so positive. I was always gunning for a standard below which I knew I must
not drop, but I planned more thoroughly and researched in great depth, and most
importantly laid out the chapters and the adventures progression far more
professionally than before.
When I occasionally ‘research dumped’ my agent was
very clear in her instructions. It’s an
adventure set in an amazing historical period, not a 272 page book showing us
how much you’ve read about Egypt. Enough said.
Luckily by the time ‘Treasure’ had won the ‘Peoples
Book Prize 2019’, ‘Jewel’ had been with my publishers for 4 months, and the
final tinkering and proof reading, layouts, trims and polishes were all that
remained. So that helped a great deal. I was never sat contemplating a blank
page thinking, ‘Oh No! What shall I
write? How do I follow that?’
I am very lucky that I really like my characters,
including a feisty new addition called Ruby, who is a major force to be reckoned
with. The ability to place them anywhere and at anytime in History is a
glorious luxury. I’m not confined to the present, although about a quarter of
the books are set in the 21st century. It is a formula that I’m
pleased to continue and a very handy device to compare their present day
experience with their existence placed in another ‘Time’, contrasting the
pressures of modern day life and all that brings, with life as it was.
In ‘Jewel’ we travel to ancient Egypt in two bursts.
Firstly to 1328 BC, midway through the short 10 year reign of King Tutankhamun,
and secondly to 1125 BC. Here, Ramesses 1X is pharaoh, and the Egypt Freddie
finds 203 years later is very different from before.
Again, Freddie, Connor and now Ruby, are faced with a
world of wonder, but also intrigue and danger, as the reason for Freddie’s
adventure becomes clear. He is always called to champion someone not best
placed to help themselves, and through his actions he becomes an integral and
loyal friend to the young pharaoh and his wife Ankhasenamun.
We travel through the Egyptian seasons as well as the
centuries, as ‘Ahket’, the ‘Inundation’, raises the water level of the Nile 35
feet at Waset [modern day Thebes] then the most populous and powerful city in
the world. Karnak is close by, still to this day the largest religious
structure ever built.
‘Jewel’ is set in two main Egyptian locations. In and
around the Valley of the Kings, and then some 400 kilometres north up the River
Nile to the Great Pyramid and Sphinx complex at Giza.
Immersing myself in all things ancient Egyptian was a
real pleasure. It is such a vast and glorious period, spanning three and a half
thousand years. It is a complicated process picking a spot to land on with a
story.
But the one person that young and old want to know about, is
Tutankhamun.
I read two complete histories of all the dynasties to
make sure I wasn’t missing someone or something more interesting, and as
amazing as the whole period is, I was inevitably drawn back to the golden Boy
King.
His Tomb plays a large part in the book and I feel
like I know where each of the 5000 relics and precious possessions were laid to
rest with the king. But it’s the simple things almost that touch me most. The
positioning of the statue of Anubis – in the form of a reclining hound, as near
to the foot of the sarcophagus as possible, maybe echoing the loyalty shown to
Tutankhamun by his own Tesum hunting dog called Dedu. Did Ankhasenamun command
it to be placed there as close to its royal master as possible?
On the West wall of the Burial chamber, the wonderful
depiction of the Solar barque on it’s journey towards Osiris, and underneath
the 12 baboons each marking an hour of the night through which the world
travelled until the rebirth of the God Amun as the sun rose again.
The position of the Scarab in Egyptian society was
highly respected. The example of the dung beetle pushing its burden ever
onward, was seen as displaying the great qualities of diligence and
perseverance. The tiny insect was often celebrated in the form of jewelry and
paintings, and I have placed one at the heart of my book.
It is now thought that he suffered from Temporal lobe
Epilepsy. He certainly had a club foot and cleft palate from birth, but the
previously held theory that a mark on a neck vertebrae thought to suggest
foulplay, has now been marginalized as his possible cause of death. More likely
is the far more mundane – Septicaemia – resulting from a badly broken leg,
which ended his 10 year reign at the tender age of 19.
He had fathered two children by then, but neither had
survived beyond birth. Ankhasenamun was more than likely his half sister, and
so the disastrous policy of the royal family inter marrying continued. Little
did they realize that the process severely weakened any offspring. The short
reigns of most pharaohs would have been dramatically extended had they married
into outside families and different blood lines, rejuvenating the health and
longevity of the royal line.
Ankhasenamun was six years older than Tutankhamun, and
after his death and against her will, she was forced to marry Ay - who
succeeded the Boy King. Ay had been one of his joint Viziers, like prime
ministers, along with Horemheb who controlled the Army.
On Tutankhamun’s death, Ankhasenamun pleaded by letter
to the Hittite King to send one of his sons for her to marry, which he did. But
Prince Zannanza was murdered on his way to Egypt. With facts like these to
provide a secure backbone, it is exciting to then imagine the intrigue and
plots, the loyalties and double dealings, and whilst never altering History in
any way, provide a realistic glimpse of what the state of play was.
To me, Kha and Ankha [as I call them] were like ornate
trapped birds in a golden cage. Gilded and bejewelled, but powerless,
friendless and vulnerable…
Until… Freddie Malone arrives.
So that’s how I’ve spent the majority of the last
year, and now my attention turns to all things London and 1665 and 1666. More
of that another time. Safe to say it’s just as fascinating to research, and
just as much fun to write.
I will be recording the Audiobook of ‘Jewel’ soon, to
accompany ‘Treasure’ which is already available either through Amazon or from
‘Oakhill’ directly.
Thank you to all those who have bought the books so
far, and those who voted in the Peoples Book Prize 2019. Your support is very
much appreciated. Xc.
Excerpt
A Jewel in the Sand of Time
Prologue
In a cold, dark basement, a long way from where you
are reading these words, the Collector sat at his writing table inspecting a
huge yellow gemstone under a solitary light. The elderly man scrawled on a
piece of folded white card, using a quill dipped in a vivid turquoise ink.
And many years ago, in a silent and ancient tomb, also
a long way from where you are reading these words, there lay a King in his dark
resting place. A long dead Boy King who was always at the mercy of those who
would seek to possess his impossible wealth.
Close by the King, a precious jeweled trinket guarded
the Pharaoh through the twelve stages of night on his journey to the next life.
The Collector wanted to turn back time and steal the
priceless artifact for himself and deny the joy of its discovery to the rest of
the world. He also craved a precious liquid, a legendary medicine, which if
taken would prolong his life - the seconds, minutes and hours of which were
trickling through his twisted fingers like fine desert sand as he neared his
worldly end. He calculated that the two treasures could easily be collected
together, or so he hoped.
Around him in the large basement were dozens of
illuminated cabinets containing many of the world’s missing wonders, which he
had acquired by one foul means or another. He moved towards the furthest
display, stroking the glass of several others as he passed.
Even now, after all these years, there was still room
for a treasure yet to be stolen. He unlocked the door of the last cabinet and
with a shaky hand smoothed the velvet interior.
On it he placed the huge yellow ‘Florentine Diamond’,
tinkering with its position until he was satisfied that it caught the available
light. Almost immediately his eyes moved from the priceless gemstone to the empty
expanse to its right. He lovingly stroked the velvet cloth and whispered,
“Of course, be patient. Not long now. You will soon have
a treasure.”
Pick up your copy of
A Jewel in the
Sands of Time
Clive
Clive Mantle is a much-loved British actor, a star of both stage and screen for over 40 years. He is perhaps best known for playing Little John in Robin of Sherwood, Great Jon Umber in Game of Thrones, Simon Horton in The Vicar of Dibley and Mike Barratt in Casualty. His voice is also well known from his work on over 180 audio books, and voicing animated characters, including Gator in Thomas the Tank Engine...
...And, he is now a published Author.
...And, he is now a published Author.
'The Treasure at the Top of the World' was released on 24th May 2018.
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See you on your next coffee break!
Take Care,
Mary Anne xxx