Somewhat intrigued by the cover and title, I ended up reading this book and came away disappointed. Already a short book (245 pages), it would have been even shorter had the author left out the pages of interior-design filler material and the constant archaeological lectures of the young man (I forget his name) on Malta. These lectures were the most annoying part of the story; I had the impression the author was copying information out of an encyclopedia and spitting it back out of this convenient character's mouth. Don't waste your time on this one. Tim Thompson