Arden Theatre Company Extends ‘Rent”

Philadelphia-based Arden Theatre Company is thrilled to close out its 2024-25 season with the electrifying Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning musical RENT. Following its Broadway debut in 1996, where it earned four Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Score, Best Book, and Best Featured Actor in a Musical, RENT redefined musical theatre by taking audiences on an unforgettable journey of love, loss, hope, and resilience. The Arden brings Jonathan Larson’s iconic story to life on the F. Otto Haas Stage, in a powerful new production directed by Terrence J. Nolen and Steve Pacek. The production begins May 15, with opening night May 21. Due to popular demand, RENT has been extended through June 29.

Matteo Scammel (Roger Davis) and Leigha Kato (Mimi Marquez) in Arden Theatre Company’s 2025 production of “Rent”. Photos by Ashley Smith, Wide Eyed Studios.

With its unforgettable score and songs like “Seasons of Love” and “I’ll Cover You,” the production tells the story of a close group of young artists and musicians struggling to survive and create a life in New York City’s East Village during the height of the AIDS crisis.

The dynamic cast features new and familiar faces to Arden audiences.

Tickets are available online at ardentheatre.org or at the box office at Arden Theatre Company (40 N. 2nd Street). . Single ticket prices vary by performance and start at $65.

Note: $20 couch rush tickets, available exclusively through TKTS Philadelphia (at Independence Visitor Center, 599 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA) will be available for the first three weeks of the run.

Post expires at 9:08pm on Monday June 30th, 2025

BRT Summer Fest Returns

Bristol Riverside Theatre (BRT) announces the return of its highly anticipated 2025 Mid Penn Bank Summer Music Fest. This year’s powerhouse lineup features a stellar mix, including The Bronx Wanderers, Beatles vs. Stones: A Musical Showdown, and Purple Xperience, alongside the uproarious musical comedy Oy Vey! It’s The Calamari Sisters.

This year, the concerts are back at BRT’s historic, intimate, and recently renovated theater. The theater offers an inviting atmosphere with comfortable seating, free on-site parking, wheelchair accessibility, assisted listening devices, and a full range of concessions, including beer and wine.

Get ready to kick off the summer with these unforgettable shows:

The Bronx Wanderers | Thursday, May 8 – Sunday, May 11, 2025

An electrifying journey through rock ‘n’ roll’s greatest hits, from Frankie Valli to Queen! The Bronx Wanderers bring boundless energy, unmatched talent, and harmonious vocals, having earned standing ovations throughout their Las Vegas residency. This high-octane tribute to classic rock will have the audience dancing in the aisles from start to finish.

Beatles vs. Stones: A Musical Showdown | Wednesday, June 25 – Sunday, June 29, 2025 Which legendary band will reign supreme? In this one-of-a-kind “battle of the bands,” two world-class tribute acts — Abbey Road and Satisfaction — go head-to-head, bringing the timeless music of The Beatles and The Rolling Stones to life in alternating sets. The showdown concludes with an epic joint encore that no rock ‘n’ roll fan will want to miss!

Purple Xperience | Wednesday, July 16 – Sunday, July 20, 2025

Calling all Prince fans! Direct from Minneapolis, Marshall Charloff & The Purple Xperience deliver a tribute to the iconic superstar like no other. With jaw-dropping musicianship and electrifying showmanship, this unforgettable performance captures the magic of Prince’s greatest hits, blending R&B, soul, and new wave in a mesmerizing live experience.

Oy Vey! It’s The Calamari Sisters | Wednesday, July 23 – Sunday, July 27, 2025

When the Calamari Sisters are hired to cater an event at a Jewish funeral home, culinary chaos and comedic brilliance ensue. From matzah balls to meatballs, challah bread to pizza dough, and gefilte fish to baccala, the girls try desperately to bridge the cultural gap. This laugh-out-loud musical comedy blends Italian and Jewish traditions with side-splitting songs and outrageous antics, proving that family is the secret ingredient to making both death and dinner unforgettable.

If You Go

Tickets are available at 215-785-0100, brtstage.org. Ticket prices start at $50 for adults or purchase a Mid Penn Bank Summer Music Fest 3-Pack Subscription and enjoy three incredible performances for as low as $135.

Bristol Riverside Theatre is at 120 Radcliffe Street, Bristol, PA

Post expires at 9:23pm on Monday July 28th, 2025

Review: ‘Darkness Rises’ at Lincoln Mill Haunted House…

Review by Lisa Panzer

Darkness Rises, A Star Wars Inspired Horror Experience only at Lincoln Mill

Dare to traverse the ‘dark side’ at ‘Star Wars’ inspired Lincoln Mill Haunted House, where the Sith, some armed with light saber-saws, and their creepy cronies urge you to join them. Courageously crafted corridors of chilling horror filled scenarios await, carving the way through an alley-GORY-cal mythos of insanely morbid sci-fi infused macabre. Will you be convinced join the diablerie?

This otherworldly frightening tour de ‘Force’ is inescapably all pervasive in its feel. Immense detail has been committed to creating an immersive environment via interaction with some stellar actors, eerie lighting, superb sound effects and theme song, forced air, and surprising moving, and sometimes gutsy, props that pop, and often plop! All combine to create an eerie atmosphere from a super spooky world populated with galactic ghouls. Fun times!

If You Go

Look for the show to return in October 2025.

Darkness Rises

Lincoln Mills Haunted House

4100 Main St.

Philadelphia, PA 19127

https://lincolnmillhaunt.com/

Run Time:

20-30 minute tour

Events at Venice Island Performing Arts Center

The King is back at Venice Island– and so is the music! Join us for a night of twisting and shouting with The Ghostlight Players for their spring musical, “All Shook Up!” You won’t want to miss all the pelvic thrustin’ and honkey tonkin’ from the talented cast – get your tickets today!

3 SHOWS ONLY!

Friday, May 9th at 7:30 PM

Saturday, May 10th at 2:00 PM

Saturday, May 10th at 7:30 PM

Tickets: Ludus – The Ghostlight Players Inc

$20 – General Admission (Adult)

$17 – General Admission (Child/Senior Citizen)

4th Annual Shoe Box Short Theatre Festival

Saturday, May 17

7:00-9:00 PM

The Shoe Box Short Theatre Festival highlights original assorted works by local and regional artists. This year features pieces by:

Thoughts by The Collective Mic Productions

Out Of The Heart Wicked Things Doth Come by Jaz

Smart Casinos by Brooke Shilling

La Diva Noire Speaks Love, Strength & Freedom by The Collective Mic Productions

We’re All Sad So Let’s Laugh by Teresa Nutter

General Admission $10.00 + $1.20 Service Fee at Shoe Box Short Theatre Festival in Philadelphia – Checkout

Venice Island Performing Arts Center is at 7 Lock Street, Philadelphia, PA

Brandywine Native Garden Hub Now Online

Brandywine Native Garden Hub, a new online resource designed to inspire gardeners of all levels and skillsets. Photo by Mark Gormel

The Brandywine Conservancy is thrilled to announce the launch of the Brandywine Native Garden Hub, a new online resource designed to inspire gardeners of all levels and skillsets. The Brandywine Native Garden Hub is a free, user-friendly website that serves as both an educational guide and an interactive database for anyone interested in incorporating native plants into their landscapes. Naturally occurring in a specific region without human intervention, native plants have adapted to the climate and soil over time, making them easier to grow and maintain, plus they directly benefit pollinators, wildlife, and the local ecology. With the Brandywine Native Garden Hub, users can search for and learn more about native plants specific to Pennsylvania and northern Delaware, save their favorites to personalized “Garden Boards,” and browse through a suite of educational resources to help enhance their gardening success.

Now available at www.NativeGardenHub.org, the Brandywine Native Garden Hub contains information on more than 250 native plant species found in our region. Each plant profile contains everything you need to know about the plant—from growing conditions to key attributes and wildlife benefits—along with photos that show different growth stages. Users can also personalize their searches by filtering for plants according to their garden’s specific growing conditions, including sunlight exposure, soil type, and soil moisture. Plants can even be sorted by the user’s preferred attributes and benefits, including plant type, height/width, peak bloom time, bloom color, deer resistance, fragrance, and more.

To help visualize and plan their dream gardens, users can create a free account to build personalized “Garden Boards” that are customized to their unique growing spaces. Boards can be curated for the spaces users currently have, the type of gardens they are looking to start—such as a container garden for smaller spaces or one designed to attract specific pollinators—or even boards for future garden inspiration. Once users set up their boards, they can “pin” their favorite plants while browsing to save them for building out their garden plans. Users can also add, edit, and create as many Garden Boards as they’d like, which can be referenced at any time on both desktop and mobile devices.

To equip users with even more tools for success during their gardening journeys, the Brandywine Native Garden Hub also features a wealth of educational resources. Users can dive into the beginners guide for getting started with native plants or browse through other articles, including topics on how to prep a container garden, tackling invasive species, and seasonal gardening tips. Additional articles will be published throughout the year for continued learning.

For more than five decades, the Brandywine Conservancy has been a trusted leader in growing and promoting the use, preservation, and appreciation of native plants. The Brandywine Native Garden Hub is the latest extension of this work, providing a digital platform to help gardeners bring the benefits of native plants to their own landscapes. To start your journey with native plants, visit www.NativeGardenHub.org.

Pig Iron Theatre Company presents ‘Franklin’s Key’

The internationally acclaimed, award-winning Philadelphia- based physical theater company Pig Iron Theatre Company presents the world premiere of Franklin’s Key, written by Dan Rothenberg and Robert Quillen Camp. This thrilling, magical, sci-fi theatrical adventure explores Benjamin Franklin’s hidden discoveries in a parallel universe.

Running from June 3 to 29 at Plays & Players Theatre (1714 Delancey Street, Philadelphia), this electrifying new production transforms some of the city’s most iconic landmarks into portals to adventure as two high school prodigies find themselves caught in a struggle between secret societies dedicated to safeguarding Franklin’s discoveries. Fans of The Goonies, Stranger Things, Harry Potter, The Da Vinci Code, and National Treasure will enjoy the artistry in this electrifying live stage production.

Pig Iron Theatre Company, founded in 1995 in Philadelphia, has long been recognized for its daring and highly physical approach to theater-making. Its genre-defying works have earned critical acclaim. Their upcoming production of Franklin’s Key marks a significant shift from past experimental and genre defying works, embracing a more fantastical, family-friendly approach to storytelling.

During the War of Independence, the British feared Benjamin Franklin could control the weather. Franklin’s Key asks: what if that were true? A mystery unfolds for audiences in an alternate reality where Franklin’s undiscovered technology has been hidden underneath some of Philadelphia’s most treasured landmarks for centuries. Set in present-day Philadelphia, Franklin’s Key follows two teenage prodigies: Temple, a self-taught scientist, and her brother Arturo, a gifted musician. The two uncover an ancient mystery, setting off a chain reaction that draws them into a secret battle between rival factions seeking to harness the incredible but volatile powers of Franklin’s long-lost technology. Temple and Arturo, aided by a cast of quirky friends, traverse hidden tunnels under the city, leading them from abandoned subway platforms to the iconic statue of William Penn atop City Hall and the building-sized organ inside the old Wanamaker Department Store. With time running out, the team must navigate the labyrinth of Philadelphia’s forgotten tunnels, evade powerful enemies, and unlock the secrets Franklin left behind before his discoveries fall into the wrong hands.

Franklin’s Key is like a Marvel movie translated for the stage. We are working with an amazing team of scenic and effects designers to evoke building-sized automatons, Da Vinci Code puzzles, and teenagers with telekinetic powers. While the story is cinematic in scope, audiences can expect Pig Iron’s signature, elegant stagecraft – sometimes disarmingly simple, but always surprising. – Pig Iron’s Co-Artistic Director Dan Rothenberg

Co-writer Robert Quillen Camp wrote the text for Pig Iron’s Pay Up and Chekhov Lizardbrain and is a regular collaborator with downtown New York provocateurs Hoi Polloi. Co-writer and Director Dan Rothenberg is one of the founders of Pig Iron Theatre Company, where he has been instrumental in creating over 30 original works that have toured to 15 countries.

Three actors from New York are leading the production as the teen heroes: actor and singer Taylor Rose Mickens, making her Philadelphia theater debut, plays Temple. Temple’s brother Arturo is played by Sam Gonzalez, a New York-based actor and dancer known for Invasive Species (The Tank, NYC), Bathhouse.PPTX (The Flea, NYC) and performances at the Bushwick Starr and Joe’s Pub. Jacob Orr (Montag, SoHo Rep) plays Temple’s hapless ex-boyfriend, Richard.

The supporting ensemble includes Chris Thorn. Alice Yorke, Benjamin Bass, and Izzy Sazak.

If You Go

Franklin’s Key takes place at one of the oldest theaters in the country, Play & Players Theatre, a charming 220-seat venue with a proscenium stage layout.
Run time of 110 minutes, including a 15-minute intermission
Performances take place Wednesday through Sunday evenings at 7 p.m., with matinees on Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. and two Tuesday evening performances on June 3 and June 10 at 7 p.m.
Tickets are available online at Franklinskey.com.. Daytime performances are available for group bookings.

Post expires at 8:46pm on Monday June 30th, 2025

Conversations With Writers And More

There will be spring days ‘so perfect’

By Steven Brodsky

… as perfect as the day that’s featured in the poem “Today,” by Billy Collins:

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/40824/today-56d21ebdad746

Such days foster expansiveness under a “larger dome of blue and white.”

Photo by Steven Brodsky

Those days will be perfect enough to possibly help to alleviate or eliminate impingements on one’s writing flow that may have set in over the winter.

Posted 3-31-25

Things that bug us

By Steven Brodsky

Photo by Steven Brodsky

Writers usually find it easier to shoo away or crush flies at spring, summer, and autumn picnics than to decide if they should write about some pesky (and personally troublesome) subjects.

If you’ll be attending picnics, enjoy them!

Nice (and easier) writing can arise from those picnics, whether or not flies and other external pests will be present.

Posted 3-28-24

The road I chose today

By Steven Brodsky

Photo by Steven Brodsky

… a road not made of asphalt, enables me to commemorate Robert Frost’s birthday, which arrives in two days, by sharing this link: https://poets.org/robert-frosts-road-not-taken.

Robert Frost was born on March 26, 1874.

I’m appreciative that Robert Frost chose a road that facilitated his penning “The Road Not Taken.”

Posted 3-24-25

The last vestige of light is present on these woods

By Steven Brodsky

… at the start of this snowy evening.

Photo by Steven Brodsky

Though I would like to linger at these woods, it wouldn’t be expedient: there are “promises to keep” and “miles to go before I sleep.”

The words between quotation marks in the above paragraph are those of the speaker in this poem by Robert Frost: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/42891/stopping-by-woods-on-a-snowy-evening.

I have to move on from these woods and this post.

Thanks for stopping by.

Posted 2-12-25

A biblical admonition for writers and/or bookworms

By Steven Brodsky

Writers and/or bookworms (many writers are bookworms) may find Ecclesiastes 12:12 to be a catalyst to offset effects of excessive sedentary time with healthful activities.

Ecclesiastes 12:12: “And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.”

Be well!

Posted 2-10-25

A winged writing prompt

By Steven Brodsky

… prompted by Emily Dickinson’s “Fame is a bee” (linked below):

Photo by Steven Brodsky

www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/52139/fame-is-a-bee-1788

No telling when this prompt will take wing and disappear from this page.

Emily Dickinson did not experience the sting of fame; she was not famous during her lifetime.

Posted 5-4-24

In commemoration of the birthday of Robert Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963)

By Steven Brodsky

… Let’s enjoy Robert Frost’s “Birches”:

“Birches” by Robert Frost (read by Tom O’Bedlam) (youtube.com)

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44260/birches

“Birches,” a song by Bill Morrissey, had been referenced in the main section of this column. I believe that Bill Morrissey probably titled the song as a nod to the same-named Robert Frost poem. Bill Morrissey spoke of the impact of Robert Frost’s poetry in an interview: “And then, as I got older, people like Robert Frost really hit me.” Bill Morrissey’s “Birches”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5n5ceAv_Bc&ab_channel=BillMorrissey-Topic. I never had an opportunity to interview Bill Morrissey.

Posted 3-26-24

Longing to be ‘lost’ in a romantic interest

By Steven Brodsky

… the condition of the speaker of “I Am Not Yours,” a poem by Sara Teasdale (1884 – 1933): https://poets.org/poem/i-am-not-yours.

The first-person character of Paul Simon’s “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover” does not have that condition:

48 years ago, on February 7, 1976, “50 Ways To Leave Your Lover” reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first of three weeks.

The poem and song are referenced here in advance of Valentine’s Day.

Posted 2-7-24

‘The work of a writer, his continuing work, depends for breath of life on a certain privacy of heart.’

By Steven Brodsky

… Yes. For the purpose of maintaining “a certain privacy of heart,” will leave it at that; no flippancy is intended.

The quotation is that of Tennessee Williams. It appears in New Selected Essays: Where I Live.

It’s presented here in commemoration of the birthday of Tennessee Williams this coming Sunday. He was born on March 26, 1911.

Posted 3-24-23

One can only imagine

By Steven Brodsky

… how great Hubert Selby Jr.’s novel Seeds of Pain, Seeds of Love (the working title) would be if the novel had been completed.

Revisiting this reading by Selby of a few pages from the incomplete manuscript of the novel because the pages and the reading are powerful and not everyone here now watched the reading when a link to it was originally posted, and because the writing exemplifies what can be achieved by someone who never completed formal education beyond the eighth grade and who had some huge personal challenges, and because I hope that the reading will inspire writing by some of you, but be aware that the reading contains a depiction of violence upon a juvenile by a parent and adult language: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q0wAJ8AFRmQ.

An outstanding documentary about Hubert Selby Jr.: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvDJNEcUxfs.

This posting is dedicated to the memory of Dan Fante (February 19, 1944 – November 23, 2015).

Dan Fante was encouraged to write by Hubert Selby Jr.

Have you read Dan Fante’s memoir? It’s titled Fante: A Family’s Legacy of Writing, Drinking and Surviving.

Posted 12-5-22

Seamus Heaney’s father and grandfather used a spade. Seamus Heaney, a squat pen.

By Steven Brodsky

… digging tools.

Nobel Prize-winning poet Seamus Heaney at Villanova University in April 2010 reading “Digging”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNRkPU1LSUg.

The text of “Digging”: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/47555/digging.

Seamus Heaney was born in Northern Ireland on April 13, 1939. He passed away on August 30, 2013.

Posted 2-2-22

Great color choice for the wheelbarrow in a 16-word poem by William Carlos Williams

By Steven Brodsky

… W.C. Williams chose red—an excitatory and perfect color for the wheelbarrow in the poem “The Red Wheelbarrow.”

Had he chosen any other color, the poem’s effectiveness would be greatly diminished.

Read or recite the poem from memory with a different color for the wheelbarrow and check this out for yourself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqIl3oX_44s&ab_channel=awetblackbough

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/45502/the-red-wheelbarrow

Posted 8-19-21

Tickets on Sale for Colonial Theatre 26th Annual Blobfest

Colonial Theatre gears up to host a jam-packed weekend full of ghoulishly gooey fun for its 26th Annual Blobfest. This year’s Blobfest theme is “Camp Blobfest,” promising an outrageously over the-top festival experience filled with nostalgia, thrills, and larger-than-life fun.

From July 11 to July 13, the three-day festival pays homage to the theatre’s starring role in the 1958 classic Steve McQueen film, The Blob. Phoenixville’s favorite movie monster oozed into town more than 60 years ago after the Colonial Theater was featured in the famous 1958 film during a scene where a large crowd runs out of the theatre to escape the renowned blob. Since then, the Colonial has celebrated the film and all things sci-fi horror for a quarter century.

Fan-favorite events returning to Blobfest this year include an electrifying stage show and iconic Run-Out, where attendees can relive the legendary escape scene from The Blob. Due to high demand, an additional Run-Out has been added to the event lineup. Tickets start at $40, offering fans a chance to be part of the action and excitement. Other beloved annual events include the high-energy 1950s rock ‘n’ roll Blob Ball, the lively Saturday Street Fair, Shorty’s Short Film Contest, and the Blobfest 5K, 10K, and Half Marathon with tickets for the race starting at $35. Attendees can also take part in the Facade Decorating Contest and Costume Contest, showing off their best Blob-inspired looks and creative storefront displays. Screenings of The Blob and other horror classics will show throughout the three day festival, including the Spanish-language version of The Blob, La Masa Devoradora, Evil Dead 2: Dead by Dawn, and Gremlins 2: The New Batch.

Tickets for Camp Blobfest events can be purchased online or in person at the Colonial Theatre box office.

The Colonial Theatre is at 227 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, PA .

Book: ‘Empress Creed’

By Karen McCarraher

The author describes her book as “a woman’s crime love story set in the urban Midwest during the Great Depression”.

Ella Monroe grew up in the south side of Chicago with an alcoholic, prostitute mother. After an attack by one of her mother’s “clients”, Dulce moved in with Mama Lee who ran a day care center in her neighborhood. Dulce dreamed of becoming a couture fashion designer. She did not go to school; but Mama Lee recognized how bright she was and provided books and materials for her to learn.

When she was in her teens, she met Perry Savage, an Army Captain, and spent one night in delightful ecstasy. She left him early the next morning with just a note. Perry searched for her but because she had not given him her true name, he was unable to find her and he returned to the Army.

Dulce’s friends had nicknamed her “Lil Empress”. As she grew older, she despised her poverty and drifted towards the dark side of Chicago. Although she still dreamed of becoming an international fashion designer, she began running numbers for “Countess” who was a queen in Detroit’s gambling trade. She saved her money and bought a run-down hotel in Gary, Indiana. She had it completely refurbished and named it “The Palace”. It was from there that she launched her gambling and other activities such as money laundering. These were very lucrative and Empress became very rich.

Years later, she again met Perry Savage. They fell in love and were married. Perry became her bodyguard, hotel manager and anything else Empress asked him to do. All the while she continued to design clothes for herself, Countess, Mama Lee, Perry and all her friends.

During that time, the Midwest (as well as other parts of this country) was blighted with racial discrimination and police corruption. Empress had managed to keep her business away from them until one day, when she and Mama Lee went out to buy sodas and they encountered the police. Empress was arrested for no reason and when Mama Lee objected, the police chief grabbed her around the neck and choked her to death. Thus began a war between the corrupt politicians and police and Empress’ organization. Empress was disgusted with America. She and Perry went to France and noted that people of color were not treated differently. Empress longed to move and raise her children there.

So, readers, do Empress and Perry get their happily ever after or is she destroyed by the Chicago or Gary, Indiana corruption? Does Empress ever fulfill her dream of fashion design? Read on to find out.

This is a powerful book about the climate in America in the thirties, the joy of family and friends, and the love and belief in God. And thank heaven for the teacher who told the author: “Girl, write the damn book”…

About the Author

Tarris Marie was raised by her grandparents who lived in the Midwest. She grew up listening to their music and hearing their stories which formed the basis for her book. It is our hope that Tarris will continue to bless us with more of her talent.

Published by:

Black Odyssey Media, LLC, Dallas, TX

Available from Amazon.com

Book Review: The Bones of the Apostle

By Karen McCarraher

“The Bones of the Apostle” by John Amos is a historical novel featuring two aging British private detectives—Flinders Petrie and Thomas Pettigrew. They have built a thriving business and have received many accolades for their fine work in the past. However, they yearned for just one more “big adventure”.

Months go by and then one day they are visited by the Patriarch of the Eastern Church. At the time of Christ’s ascension into heaven, the apostles scattered throughout the world. Peter went north to Rome. Thomas went east to Mesopotamia and established the Eastern Church. The Church flourished until the seventh century when the Ottomans overran the land and the Muslim Church was established. However, the Eastern Church continued its practices in secret. The bones of the Apostle Thomas were returned from India, where he died, to a basilica in Italy. Later they were sent to the Church of the East where they were cared for and honored for centuries. Recently, the bones were stolen. The bones were contained in a silver casket which was guarded day and night. One morning, the guards were found dead and the casket was missing. The Holy Scriptures were desecrated, and the altar was on its side but there were no other clues. The Patriarch begged Flinders and Pettigrew to take the case.

So Finders and Pettigrew took the train to Oxford. When they arrived, they went to the library to meet a contact from the British Secret Service. They were greeted by Father Divinius, a secret agent masked as a priest. Divinius took them to the bowels of the library where many artifacts were stored. They met with other agents and told them that they thought this was the work of “the Veiled One”, a very bad character the detectives had had encounters with in the past. The British Intelligence Service managed to trace “the Veiled One” to Baghdad so it was decided that Flinders and Pettigrew would go there. However, Divinius insisted that another agent accompany them, Grazelda Jones, who was also a witch.

They set off across the Red Sea and the by land to Bagdad. When they arrived, the place was in chaos. The Mongols were overrunning the city. Danger was everywhere. The group discovered that “the Veiled One” had set up his location in a bombed out, walled structure that had many rooms. The three found a small breach in the wall and made their way in. After a long search, they found “the Veiled One”. Flinders engaged him in a battle of swords; however, “the Veiled One” was wearing chain mail and Flinders was unable to wound him. Grazelda found them and shot at “the Veiled One” numerous times. The chainmail protected him somewhat but she was able to wound him slightly. She grabbed the casket of bones and the three took off down a long hallway. They managed to get to the river and made their way to the British Consulate. They had to escape the country by driving for four days across the Syrian Desert before they came to a seaport and could return to England.

This book was fun to read. It was filled with action and adventure. The historic descriptions of the fall of the Ottoman Empire were well researched. The last few chapters of the book contained an additional story that was heartwarming. All in all, it was a good read.

About the Author John Amos

John Amos holds a Ph.D. from the University of California at Berkeley and a JD from the Monterey College of Law. He has taught at the university level for over twenty-five years and has numerous academic publications. His fiction works include several novels. He has lived and studied in the Middle East—Egypt, Lebanon, Libya and Turkiye. He currently practices law in California.

Published by:

River Grove Books

Austin, Texas

Available online