new time travel and aliens from Max Wannow

Kill Tut

By Max Wannow

Audio version, read by Max Wannow

Time Travel

Near future dystopia

January 2019

99 cents eBook

$12.99 Print

$ Audible

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About the Book

Ancient Egyptians, aliens, Neanderthals. Kill Tut is a historical fiction sci-fi novel. For a secret government operation in the near future, a team of three is sent back in time to kidnap King Tutankhamun.

New York, New York: 2041. The American-Egyptian War continues as more Egyptian battalions invade the USA. With the purpose of bringing the war to an end, Operation Golden Ankh is a top-secret Delta Force mission that consists of sending a team of three back in time. Captain Jackson Martindale, Staff Sergeant Laiklyn Ladore, and CIA Officer Dana Villa have seven days to complete the mission in the Eighteenth Dynasty of Ancient Egypt. To successfully complete the mission, the three must coerce King Tutankhamun to travel with them to the future. Forcibly kidnapping the pharaoh would lead to a domino-like disruption in the architecture of time. The three are quick to discover the past deviates from what history books provide. The ancient people of Thebes, Egypt resort to panic when their city is invaded by Neanderthal warriors; but when humanoid aliens with skin made of a malleable gold arrive, the Ancient Egyptians welcome them with open arms.

My Review

The author approached me for this review of the audio version of his novel Kill Tut. While I like near future dystopian time travel, I was somewhat puzzled about what kidnapping a child pharaoh would accomplish…but we learn history textbooks are not exactly correct. Set twenty years in the future, the US is at war with Egypt. Three members of different military and intelligence organizations are teamed up to return to ancient Egypt dressed as a Hittite priests and priestesses. The goal is to use the most famous boy Pharaoh, Tut, as bait to make Egypt stop their attack over a US missile crisis that inadvertently destroyed the Valley of the Kings during a period in which the Earth is off its natural orbit and it’s impossible to program missiles to hit specific targets. The team members are able to absorb and translate the language through a neural implant. Egyptian society is loose and sensual. Alcohol, drugs, and sex are used liberally. Inexplicably, a nearby colony of Neanderthals attack and kidnap several Egyptians, along with Laiklyn.

The author narrates his work using slightly different intonations to create the voice of a young Jackson, the hero, as a child, and again as female members of the team, Laiklyn and Dana, and in a deeper authoritative tone to represent older men. Otherwise his narrative is somewhat mechanical but clearly enunciated. The story involves a fair amount of research and creative speculation of ancient societies, language, worship practices, and evolution. It’s a good thing there’s plenty of good ancient beer, wine, and magical mushrooms available to quench thirst and fill in spaces between action. There is a good deal of gruesome warfare and sacrifice, especially toward the end.

Separated into several viewpoints and twining through time, Kill Tut is a creatively imagined story taking place mostly in speculative ancient Egypt using heavily described setting and character. We’re also apparently derived from intelligent creatures from Jupiter. Passive language with present tense and lots of explanation tends to slow the pace. While I want to give the story more than 3 stars, it’s a bit short of 4. I’m sure readers who like transformational time traveling aliens, guts, and spiked beer in ancient Egypt will get a kick out of Wannow’s tale.

About the Author

Max Wannow is an independent absurdist novelist, who describes his work to be thought-provoking and discomforting. Simply put, Max Wannow is not for everybody.