Wilbur Smith · 2007 · river

Wilbur Smith's 2007 novel of ancient Egypt. When plagues ravage the land and the mighty Nile itself falters and fails, Pharaoh turns to the old magus Taita to save Egypt. Taita leads an expedition far up the river, through the vast reed swamps of the Sudd toward the mysterious sources of the Nile, to confront the malevolent sorceress whose dark power has dammed the lifeblood of the kingdom.

1. 1
   Thebes

   Egypt is struck by seven terrible plagues, and then the unthinkable: the eternal Nile falters and dries. Desperate, Pharaoh summons the ancient magus Taita and sends him upriver to find the cause and restore the river of life.

2. 2
   Khartoum

   Taita journeys far up the Nile beyond the cataracts, past the meeting of the waters where great tributaries join, into wild lands few Egyptians have seen, following the failing river toward its distant birth.

3. 3
   The Sudd

   They push into the Sudd, a limitless labyrinth of reed and papyrus swamp that has swallowed whole armies, battling fever, beasts and despair as they force a passage toward the hidden heart of the continent.

4. 4
   The source

   Near the mysterious sources of the Nile, Taita finds the malevolent sorceress Eos, whose dark sorcery has dammed the river and cursed Egypt - and there, at the roof of the world, he must break her power to bring the waters home.