The House of the Eagle begins Duncan Sprott's 'Ptolemies Quartet', an epic and ingenious restoration of the dark and glittering story of ancient Alexandria and the Greek Pharaohs of Egypt, whose extraordinary dynasty spans twelve generations from the death of Alexander the Great to the fall of Cleopatra. Narrated by Thoth, the ibis-headed Egyptian god of writing and wisdom, this book details the rise of the shrewd Ptolemy I from ordinary soldier of Macedon to Satrap of Egypt, and his coronation as Pharaoh and a god in his own lifetime. A triumph of historical salvage, The House of the Eagle brings vividly to life the most bizarre family that ever existed. 'After the first few pages something extraordinary happens, and you find yourself lulled by the story's relentless onward push . . . It slips by like a bad dream that leaves you feeling still shaken in the morning. And that is meant as the highest compliment.' Kathryn Hughes, Guardian
