Fatal Tears. The Journeys of Rupert Windfield by Stuart Fifield

Rupert Windfield is young, he is an Egyptologist but then he decided to escape from his family and even his career.

Soon he has thrown it all over for a somewhat dubious career as a tour guide on a Nile paddle steamer.

The Great War (still yet to gain the title First World War) was now a memory and, once again, wealthy were in Egypt once again, thronging to look at the remains of one of antiquities' former great civilisations.

At first, the trip is normal. Or as normal as one can expect with a varied collection of the indolent, the ignorant and the prejudiced all in the mobile hothouse that was a Nile paddle steamer.

But soon, young Winfield realises that not is all that it seems on this journey. Some of the guests have secrets, some seem to be more than they might appear at first glimpse.

Accidents start to happen. But why? What is happening? Why is it happening?

This thriller ranges through time and space amongst various locations in Africa and beyond. Stuart Fifield spent time growing up in Uganda and Kenya, where his father was a civil servant. He later lived in the Seychelles and South Africa and he was able to use his experiences as a foundation stone for his novel.

It is published in hardback at £17.99 by the Book Guild. The ISBN is 978 1 84624 872 6.