The Legend of the Winged Scarab continues in book five of the series, The Nile Conspiracy. We see the return of Jonathan, Naunet, and former "pharaoh" of the Cairo Museum Egyptian Jabari El-Masri. Several other previous characters return including a favorite of mine, Vergil, a sly and crafty character, who acts in own self-interest. In the previous books, Borg forms a story surrounding regional political events like the revolution in Egypt that overthrew Mubarak and natural events like the Khamsin and Sirocco. All the natural phenomena used in the stories are real. In a previous book the supervolcano, the Yellowstone Caldera, erupted causing a great disruption in the world order and removing the United States from position power.

In this story, Egypt is still trying to seek stability after the revolution and dealing with a major threat to its existence. Ethiopia is is constructing the Grand Renaissance Dam on the Nile which is a threat to Egypt’s water supply. Ethiopia is the source 85% of the Nile’s water of which Egypt counts on for 80% of its water needs. This provides the catalyst of the story and what draws all the characters together -- from familiar characters to Egypt’s top leadership. There is action and adventure all within the reader’s willing suspension of disbelief, much like a Clive Cussler novel.

The two storylines of protecting Egypt’s water supply and the quest for control of the fifty ancient golden tablets and their meaning also continues. Their location is known but they are simply out of reach. The story also includes some mythology going back to the first book, which took place before the Egyptian civilization. This, although adding a supernatural aspect to the book, creates a stronger tie into the story and the events.

The story is fast moving and the storylines tie in nicely. The writing is clear and pulls heavily from real events. Borg does her research well and takes the current political situation and ties it in with real or possible natural effects. Even though the writing is fiction the reader can pick up real world issues like the effects of Ethiopia building the world’s largest hydroelectric dam on the river that has been a source of life in North East Africa and center of an ancient civilization. I liked this series from the beginning. It’s smart. It makes the reader want to research aspects of the story. It is not your average cookie cutter fiction or action/adventure series; it holds your attention and has you looking into current events and history. It is a series you actually become involved in.
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