Description

‘An enthralling thriller … hypnotically readable’ ANDREW TAYLOR
‘A compelling tale of a world on the brink of war’ THE TIMES
‘Ceaselessly entertaining’ OBSERVER

In the heat of the desert, will the trail go cold?

Cairo, 1938
Archie Nevenden is many things: amateur archaeologist; theatre impresario; absent father; potential defector. And now, he’s a missing person.

His daughter, Prim, hasn’t seen him for nearly fifteen years. But she’s never given up on him, and now she’s on her way to Cairo to assist in the search.

Harry Taverner claims to work for the British Council, but Prim knows there’s more to it. He clearly has a theory about what happened to Archie, one she’s not going to like.

As Prim and Harry uncover the layers of Archie’s existence in Cairo, they find themselves drawn in to more than one conspiracy. And soon they’ll discover that Archie may not be the only one in danger…

Praise for S W Perry:
‘Powerful, panoramic’ Sunday Times
‘Beautifully written, entirely convincing’ Leonora Nattrass
‘Gripping and heartfelt’ Elisabeth Gifford
‘Sweeping’ Daily Mail

Publisher Review

An enthralling thriller that skilfully treads the fine line between fact and fiction. Perry brilliantly recreates prewar Egypt in all its colourful and complex detail. He’s a master of intoxicating narrative twists that take you where you least expect to go – usually, in this case, somewhere dangerous. The novel is both hypnotically readable and emotionally rich. A fine achievement. — Andrew Taylor, No. 1 bestselling author of THE ASHES OF LONDON Weaving an intelligent take on complex politics with a fantastic adventure story, I can’t recommend SW Parry’s Cairo Gambit enough. — Leonora Nattrass, author of BLACK DROP A poignant love story and enthralling mystery set amongst the treacherously shifting sands of pre-war Cairo and Palestine — Elizabeth Gifford, author of THE MISCHIEF MAKERS An exciting novel of danger and daring underpinned by a sharp political eye … A finely-drawn thriller you won’t be able to put down, with enough twists and turns to keep you gasping right up until the last page — Deborah Swift, author of THE SILK CODE A richly textured read, vibrant with the scents and sounds of old Cairo that also zips along at the pace of a thriller, plunging us into a world of intrigue and secrets. This was a book that kept me up half the night and left me wanting more. — Amanda Lees, author of THE SILENCE BEFORE DAWN A deep dive into Cairo’s underworld of the 1930s; heat, love and intrigue. A heady trio within a great read. — Mandy Robotham, author of THE WAR PIANIST ‘Powerful, panoramic’ * Sunday Times on Berlin Duet * Engrossing, superbly detailed, unsentimental but very moving — Elizabeth Buchan on BERLIN DUET